bostonYogaFan
New Member
- Time of past OR future Camino
- camino frances: sept 2018
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Help us. What will resonate with you? Culture, physical challenge, wineries, churches, types of views?I would love to start with a section that resonates with me.
Help us. What will resonate with you? Culture, physical challenge, wineries, churches, types of views?
Oh Michael, you MUST go back and walk Navarre shortly BEFORE the harvest! The Bierzo, too - between Camponaraya & VillaFranca del Bierzo. The red vinyards are exquisite! Early in the morning. When the sun is just coming up & shining thru the low clouds! You might get to see a WHITE rainbow aka fog bow!!I wonder how much this depends on the season you walk? A lot of people list Navarre and La Rioja as their favorite sections. I walked this immediately post-harvest, and my memories were of dust and more dust, with no vegetation to muffle the sounds of traffic on the nearby roads. It was the only section where I thought: never again. But with that ... if your plan is to do one section at a time over three years, it makes sense to start here!
Oh no. Wherever's x harvest is in June.For example, early September for x crop in whereever?
Thank you. I picked the avatar from a photo I took of a Camino sign. I needed something other than a picture of me so I wouldn't scare people off the forum. I'm cheating a bit as the moustache is blond whereas mine used to be blond.Your avatar makes you look like a cute walrus!
Alas, Sparrow, I'm not exactly farm-inclined either, but wine is harvested in the Fall in Navarre and Bierzo, I think. Bread & croissants also harvested in the Fall on the Meseta. Maybe there's a more knowledgeable caminante in the Forum audience who can be more specific.@OTH86, of course the harvest is in the fall, but for those of us who are not farm inclined (even though I have a lovely dairy cow as my avatar), could you please be specific as to regions and crops? For example, early September for x crop in whereever?
No. I keep it above the lip. But now I've got more hair under the other lip.So is your moustache actually that long?
@bostonYogaFan
Firstly I would strongly caution you against cycling on many parts of the walking trail. Put simply many parts of the walking trail are not suited to cycles. Then add the pesky walkers ... Unisuitability for cycling comes in many forms. It may be the narrowness of the trail, hemmed in by vegetation or fencing. Or it might be a rocky (or whatever) uneveness that has walkers criss-crossing to to be safe.
So, @bostonYogaFan , kia kaha (take care, be strong, get going)
@bostonYogaFan , I understand from your post you intend to cycle the Frances in several stages.
I would alos understand that, en route, each stage would be a seven days cycling, or less.
Firstly I would strongly caution you against cycling on many parts of the walking trail. Put simply many parts of the walking trail are not suited to cycles. Then add the pesky walkers ... Unisuitability for cycling comes in many forms. It may be the narrowness of the trail, hemmed in by vegetation or fencing. Or it might be a rocky (or whatever) uneveness that has walkers criss-crossing to to be safe.
And then there is the rule (in my country at least) of pedestrian priority on shared trails. That means cyclists have second (and slower) place in those awkward circumstances.
From my observation the parts unsuitable for cycling occured on just about every one of my stages. And in many cases the walking trail was alongside a road. So it is not the case that using a road proper would deprive you of any of the "magic" of the Camino Frances.
For that reason and others, such as wanting a more consistent surface to walk on, I often took to the roads. From memory between the Franco - Spanish border and Galicia there are two main roads the Frances often follows. These are the N135 and the N120. And in Galicia the LU633 covers a significant part of the distance and is, also, often either the walking route itself or close to it.
And a joy for both on the way to Compostela when using a road is that walkers will be on the left and cyclists on the right: never the twain shall meet.
So, @bostonYogaFan , kia kaha (take care, be strong, get going)
Bells are not loud, and your ears are designed for noises ahead, not noises behind, particularly when they are muffled by a backpack or hat. It is courteous for bicycles to use bells, but I personally doubt their efficacy.just about got hit by one biker from behind neglecting to use his bell
Bikes on roads.so then what is the answer?
I love cycling myself but must agree to this result. Bikes on roads.Bikes on roads.
I am a long-time cyclist. When I walked the Camino Frances the first time, I was shocked and embarrassed by the bad behavior of the cyclists. I saw two accidents in which a cyclist coming too fast and too close knocked a walker down, and there were far too many close-calls. Many people I walked with said that the cyclists should be banned, and based on the behavior I saw, I cannot argue that point, and almost agree.
On my second Camino Frances, I was walking with a friend from Australia, also a long-time cyclist. He also was surprised and annoyed by the bad behavior of the cyclists.
I do not know the answer, but the bad behavior of so many of the cyclists has me really thinking that I do not want to put myself at that risk again.
While my Australian friend and I were walking the Camino Frances, we met a Spanish man from Malaga going over the Napolean route and walked with him for several days. He said that he had cycled the Camino Frances twice, and that he found that walking was a much, much deeper spiritual and religious experience, and his thought was that the Camino pilgrimage was at its best a walking pilgrimage. I agree - I do not understand how one can immerse themselves in the beauty, the meditative, and the spiritual aspects of the Camino while cycling. I do enjoy riding my bikes here in California (I ride about 150-200 km per week), but to get the most out of the Camino de Santiago, I walk.
Buen Camino!
--jim--
My favourite sections would be:
CF: SJPD to Roncesvalles has the magic of going over the Pyrenees and long descents, its rural, enormous eagles overhead. On the other hand, I also like culture. Burgos to Astorga is fairly flat easy riding if you take the road route. The entry into Leon is totally insane at the moment (road works) and you may need to take a moment to sort out your nerves after coming down the hill/making it round the roundabout./not ending up on the motorway but Leon is wonderful and there are lots of places to visit on this bit of the route which suits me.
Not the CF but might be easier depending on where you arrive. In good weather, taking the tunnel route San Sebastian through to Vitoria feels more adventurous and it's also very beautiful. The climb from Zegama at the weekend is full of local cyclists who are fun and it's the same amount of climbing as going over the Pyrenees if you go off road (Note you have to carry your bike in places to do this, which won't be doable if heavily loaded and not at all if it's muddy). I liked this bit because it's real Spain rather than Camino Spain. Food in San Sebastian is amazing. Coastal road route Saint-Jean-de-Luz to Irun is busy but also very beautiful with the sea view.
thanks to all for the thoughtful comments on biking on the path vs the roads. The discussion has been very helpful.Bikes on roads.
My husband and I have made it to Portomarin and are on our way to Santiago! Today was one of the scarier ones with what appears to be more and more professional cycling clubs charging down the mountains on the Camino causing us to quickly get off the Camino for fear of our lives. There is no way these cyclists would be able to stop for us. As there are more and more Camino walkers I really think it is safer if the cyclists stay off the trail. There are so many rocks, narrow sections and with the speed of their professional bikes it is almost like having motor bikes along the trail. I do understand their desire to be on the trail but this is getting more risky.even when there would be road sections right beside the Camino they would be barreling down the trail.@bostonYogaFan , I understand from your post you intend to cycle the Frances in several stages.
I would alos understand that, en route, each stage would be a seven days cycling, or less.
Firstly I would strongly caution you against cycling on many parts of the walking trail. Put simply many parts of the walking trail are not suited to cycles. Then add the pesky walkers ... Unisuitability for cycling comes in many forms. It may be the narrowness of the trail, hemmed in by vegetation or fencing. Or it might be a rocky (or whatever) uneveness that has walkers criss-crossing to to be safe.
And then there is the rule (in my country at least) of pedestrian priority on shared trails. That means cyclists have second (and slower) place in those awkward circumstances.
From my observation the parts unsuitable for cycling occured on just about every one of my stages. And in many cases the walking trail was alongside a road. So it is not the case that using a road proper would deprive you of any of the "magic" of the Camino Frances.
For that reason and others, such as wanting a more consistent surface to walk on, I often took to the roads. From memory between the Franco - Spanish border and Galicia there are two main roads the Frances often follows. These are the N135 and the N120. And in Galicia the LU633 covers a significant part of the distance and is, also, often either the walking route itself or close to it.
And a joy for both on the way to Compostela when using a road is that walkers will be on the left and cyclists on the right: never the twain shall meet.
So, @bostonYogaFan , kia kaha (take care, be strong, get going)
My husband and I have made it to Portomarin and are on our way to Santiago! Today was one of the scarier ones with what appears to be more and more professional cycling clubs charging down the mountains on the Camino causing us to quickly get off the Camino for fear of our lives. There is no way these cyclists would be able to stop for us. As there are more and more Camino walkers I really think it is safer if the cyclists stay off the trail. There are so many rocks, narrow sections and with the speed of their professional bikes it is almost like having motor bikes along the trail. I do understand their desire to be on the trail but this is getting more risky.even when there would be road sections right beside the Camino they would be barreling down the trail.
personally just about got hit by one biker from behind neglecting to use his bell in advance.
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