Camino Frances o Camino del Norte ?

[El Gallo]

I am planning on doing a camino next year. I have heard that the 'Frances' is the easiest but the 'Norte' is more wilderness oriented and scenic, but harder.
I am an old Boy Scout who loves hiking and nature but I am not a spring chicken any more. I am
mentally determined to finish my camino even if I must hire a mule to drag my dead body into Santiago. Is 'Norte' that much tougher that I should first get 'Frances' under my belt as a practice hike?
Also, what are the best months to go to avoid extreme weather AND crowds? I am from South Florida and can handle heat & humidity but I like the cold also (not cold rain though).
I am looking for some words of wisdom from my fellow camino forum members.

 

[tominrm]

If there is any advantage of aging, it is having more time on hands than younger people who have other priorities such as job or school. You raised a similar question that I raised a few months ago, and I had exactly the same question when I had to decide which camino to choose first ljast year.
In my opinion, it would be better to do Camino France first so that you learn all the "essentials" of doing camino. Then take up more challenging route such as CN if you decide to do it again.
I finished CF at the end of May, 2014, after 37 days from sjpdp to muxia. Living in the flat land of Illinois, I had to find some hills to train, but the first week of CF was very hard.
I am planning to do CN in April/May of 2015, and this time I will prepare myself better because I know the consequences of not doing it. The terrain of South Floria is just about the same as that of Illinois.
So my opinion is, do CF first and then decide if you want to do CN.
Buen Camino

 

[rickster]

I am planning on doing a camino next year. I have heard that the 'Frances' is the easiest but the 'Norte' is more wilderness oriented and scenic, but harder.
I am an old Boy Scout who loves hiking and nature but I am not a spring chicken any more. I am
mentally determined to finish my camino even if I must hire a mule to drag my dead body into Santiago. Is 'Norte' that much tougher that I should first get 'Frances' under my belt as a practice hike?
Also, what are the best months to go to avoid extreme weather AND crowds? I am from South Florida and can handle heat & humidity but I like the cold also (not cold rain though).
I am looking for some words of wisdom from my fellow camino forum members.

El Gallo,
I can't speak for the del Norte as I will beginning this route in less than a week, however, having experienced the Camino Frances, I don't think that it is exactly a piece of cake, especially the first day over the pyrenees. Have also heard that the del Norte may be a little more difficult, but certainly less traveled. I am still of the "old school" that it is hard to beat the Camino Frances as a first pilgrim's experience. It will fill you with memories and leave you wanting more in days to come...... such as the del Norte. Nevertheless, you can't really make a bad decision here.

 

[Dutch]

I will be leaving in 8 days for Biarritz. Still don't know if i will end up in Sjpp for the Frances or in Irun for the Norte

 

[El Gallo]

El Gallo,
I can't speak for the del Norte as I will beginning this route in less than a week, however, having experienced the Camino Frances, I don't think that it is exactly a piece of cake, especially the first day over the pyrenees. Have also heard that the del Norte may be a little more difficult, but certainly less traveled. I am still of the "old school" that it is hard to beat the Camino Frances as a first pilgrim's experience. It will fill you with memories and leave you wanting more in days to come...... such as the del Norte. Nevertheless, you can't really make a bad decision here.

Rickster, thanks for your words of advise. I will take them under consideration.

 

[El Gallo]

If there is any advantage of aging, it is having more time on hands than younger people who have other priorities such as job or school. You raised a similar question that I raised a few months ago, and I had exactly the same question when I had to decide which camino to choose first ljast year.
In my opinion, it would be better to do Camino France first so that you learn all the "essentials" of doing camino. Then take up more challenging route such as CN if you decide to do it again.
I finished CF at the end of May, 2014, after 37 days from sjpdp to muxia. Living in the flat land of Illinois, I had to find some hills to train, but the first week of CF was very hard.
I am planning to do CN in April/May of 2015, and this time I will prepare myself better because I know the consequences of not doing it. The terrain of South Floria is just about the same as that of Illinois.
So my opinion is, do CF first and then decide if you want to do CN.
Buen Camino

tominrm, Thanks for your words of advise. I will take them into consideration.

 

[Tia Valeria]

We have walked the inglés, the Norte (Santander onwards) and the Primitivo, never the Francés. The decision should be more about which Camino calls you most and whether you want to walk more coast and mountain areas or the inland route and the meseta. There is no real need to 'do' one camino first as preparation for another. We are retired, so age is no barrier to walking the northern routes.

 

[Diefenbaker]

I will be leaving in 8 days for Biarritz. Still don't know if i will end up in Sjpp for the Frances or in Irun for the Norte

Just to confuse things further, why not start the Camino Vasco in Irun which then joins the Frances either at Santo Domingo or Burgos? Just trying to drum up support for the seemingly forgotten Vasco/Interior/Tunnel route!

 

[Dutch]

I will keep that in mind for another camino. This time its either the coast or Sjpp to Roncesvalles -> SdC

 

[mikevasey]

The Norte was my 1st Camino and Frances 2nd. I loved walking both of them. The big difference apart from the locations is that on the Frances you get more sense of a defined pilgrimage, you feel there is a more continous path in front of you and the places that you go through and stop in are more pilgrim orientated and it adds to a deepining awareness of your own path and the pilgrims around you. However the Norte, has more sense of adventure and particularly if you go on to the Primitivo at Oviedo it starts to become a very beautiful quieter pilgrimage route to Santiago.

 

[Lynda t]

Camino Vasco sounds interesting. Going to look on the map!!! Had planned another SJPP to SDC BUT.......

 

[chocky]

....I am planning to do CN in April/May of 2015....
Buen Camino

I'm doing my first camino along the Norte in March '15, I've put 6-8 weeks aside for it

Sorry btw, can't offer much advice on which to do but my reasoning for choosing the Norte first was simply because its coastal and less populated. Means I get more selfish alone time with my much better half . Weather wise, in my experience as a sailor, since the Norte is along the Bay of Biscay the weather can change in hours, Spring and Summer is typically Spanish but slightly cooler than the south obviously. The Bay is notorious for changing its mind in a matter of hours, going from flat calm to very rough. It's pretty much a 50/50 chance of rain in any given day around March/April. In my opinion it shouldn't get too bad but then I'm an overly optimistic optimist!

Sorry if that's as clear as mud!!

Si

 

[Luka]

I can't tell you which one you should choose, but I am also someone who didn't start on the Francés. I have walked from Amsterdam to Le Puy and walked (most of ) the Via de la Plata. This month I experienced my first 8 days on the Francés. I think it is more about preparation: know what to expect.

I have seen the opposite as well. People quitting the VdlP after walking the Francés. They found it too hard to have to walk a whole day without a stop for a bocadillo or a coffee. While my experience was the other way around: not having to carry food for two days in my pack anymore! Always finding an albergue and a meal at the end of a walking day!

 

[MKalcolm M]

I spent a while contemplating whether to do the Norte or the Frances as my first camino, walking in May/June 2013. I was put off by the number of people on the Frances and really encouraged by pictures of the scenery on the Norte. After seeing a few of the photo blogs on Youtube of the Norte showing all the beaches and coastal scenery and reading that there are fewer pilgrims but the camraderie between them seemed stronger, I went with my gut feeling and opted for the Norte. It was a fantastic walk and I have no regrets choosing it over the Frances. There were a lot of retired people walking the camino at that time of year, but enough young bloods to provide a good social mix. I hope you enjoy your first camino as much as I did!