Camino Frances vs Camino Invierno March (Child 2-year-old)

Anylu said:

Camino Frances vs Camino Invierno (March)

Last year my husband left Leon for Santiago starting March 1, and this year we will be joining my 2-year-old daughter and myself. (We leave Leon on March 1). We go in relaxed plan walking as the weather allows us, in case of a very bad we plan to enjoy the village and wait one more day to continue and at worst case take a taxi to the next town for the good of our baby. She wil be “walking” on a stroller/ chariot. Doing some research around there I found that there is the winter road in order not to go through Ocebreiro, last year there where plenty of snow but just arroud Ocebreiro, so we were thinking if we do that route skip that.


Do you recommend taking this route or the traditional?

Do I need worry that for the dates there is no lodging on the other route?


We know that we will have to sleep in hostels and not albergues for the good of the community jejej


Thanks for your sharing

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I did the Invierno last April and enjoyed it very much. However, it would be great deal more challenging than the Frances for you. The area is beautiful but little walked compared to the Frances. (I did not meet another pilgrim before the merger with the Camino Sanabres after Lalin, my sixth or seventh day.) In wet weather – which you will almost surely encounter in March – noticeable portions of the trail will be mucky and you will either have to do road walks (so download GPS tracks before you go to plan them) or somehow manage to carry your baby and her carriage on very modest grass verges, stone fences, etc. (Most of the forest and farm paths have not had lots of gravel dumped in to "winterize" them as they have on the Frances and other more popular caminos. The options for changing plans and staying at a private albergues or hotels are fewer and farther between than on the Frances. (Look at Gronze.com to get an idea for the relative difference.) You would likely cut out parts of the walk to manage avoiding the muck or walking very long days (for example, skip Villavieja and the Castillo de Cornatel and take the shorter road walk on day 1; somehow find a way to skip the descent at the Codos de Belezar; etc.).

People would be welcoming and intrigued by your effort, and if you are flexible, very fit and very committed to not taking the beaten path you could manage it. If your main concern is avoiding snow and inclement weather on O Cebreiro, a combination of timing your ascent and descent to match better weather, road walking or taking taxis on the Frances would be a better choice.

Good luck.

I would not do the Invierno with a 2 year old while hoping to walk leisurely and stopping when one wants to. It simply does not have the infrastructure to give you that flexibilty.