First Time Camino

[VanessaD]

Hello Camino Travelers,

I want an honest answer from you camino experts ... this will be my first time on the camino ... and traveling alone and potentially with a help of a tour for my family's peace of mind. I am so torned between wanting to do the full camino Frances (SJPP to Santiago) in 35 days or just maybe the last two sections (Ponferrada to Santiago) in 14 days. I am not trained for it yet, I have only started my daily walk of 6 miles and will be slowly increasing the number of miles as I go. My camino will start in less than 2 months (beginning of October 2014).

So my question is, am I being realistic with the full camino or should I just maybe start with the last two sections and come back another year? Also how is the weather condition for an October walk?

Please shed some lights and thank you for your advices.

Vanessa

 

[wayfarer]

Welcome to the forum Vanessa. If you can walk six miles a day you can walk the Camino and with 35 days you should be fine.
Buen Camino.

 

[xin loi]

If you can walk across a Wal-Mart parking lot carrying two six packs of beer, you can walk the Camino! Long walk; not a difficult walk. 35 days may or may not be enough time--depends on weather and where you want to stop. Originally, We were only going to do Sarria to Santiago and changed our minds and did it all from SJPDP to Santiago. Glad we did the long hike.

 

[efdoucette]

And the weather in October is fabulous, the earlier in Oct the better I think, the days will still be warm, the evenings cool. You will need a sweater (light fleece) and a jacket (light waterproof). Keep your backpack light. For you parents ease of mind bring your smartphone and keep in touch, send them a message regularly. Have them read some threads on this forum dealing with the overall safety, probably one of the safest places on earth. I'd say go for the full 35 days and the full experience. Your training is going well, keep walking, put on the backpack, pack it with what you are taking, keep the weight as low as possible. Buy the Brierley guidebook. Have a great Camino.

 

[VanessaD]

Thank you everyone. Ok, that is reassuring and some of your comments are funny . I will come back to this forum as I found myself having many more questions. I spent 2 hours today in REI just to decide on the right footwear and the staff has been exceptional. I am still so far away from my packing list ... looks like my camino has already started here, I am so excited.

 

[mspath]

VanessaD,

Welcome to the Forum!

You will find a wealth of information here to help you plan your camino and to show your parents some of the many aspects of this special journey.
Since you plan to walk in October be sure to scan this Forum thread re walking in autumn to read what other pilgrims and I have posted earlier regarding weather, albergues and kit during the cooler months.
Last October the weather was great -- golden days and cool nights. I hope it is the same this year for you!

Buen Camino,

Margaret Meredith

 

[Al the optimist]

Welcome to Ivar's wonderful world! Seriously though. Read the threads, ask any question however silly you might think it. You have a whole two months to learn, buy, train and prepare. Take the 35 days and don't worry about it being enough as you can always bus a bit if you need to. The great thing about it being only two months to your off is that it doesn't give you a lot of time to start worrying about things which you shouldn't worry about. Once walking you will realise there is nothing to worry about anyway other than your feet.

 

[Jeff Morgan]

Hello Camino Travelers, I want an honest answer from you camino experts ... this will be my first time on the camino ... and traveling alone and potentially with a help of a tour for my family's peace of mind. I am so torned between wanting to do the full camino Frances (SJPP to Santiago) in 35 days or just maybe the last two sections (Ponferrada to Santiago) in 14 days. I am not trained for it yet, I have only started my daily walk of 6 miles and will be slowly increasing the number of miles as I go. My camino will start in less than 2 months (beginning of October 2014). So my question is, am I being realistic with the full camino or should I just maybe start with the last two sections and come back another year? Also how is the weather condition for an October walk? Please shed some lights and thank you for your advices. Vanessa

Hello Camino Travelers, I want an honest answer from you camino experts ... this will be my first time on the camino ... and traveling alone and potentially with a help of a tour for my family's peace of mind. I am so torned between wanting to do the full camino Frances (SJPP to Santiago) in 35 days or just maybe the last two sections (Ponferrada to Santiago) in 14 days. I am not trained for it yet, I have only started my daily walk of 6 miles and will be slowly increasing the number of miles as I go. My camino will start in less than 2 months (beginning of October 2014). So my question is, am I being realistic with the full camino or should I just maybe start with the last two sections and come back another year? Also how is the weather condition for an October walk? Please shed some lights and thank you for your advices. Vanessa

 

[Jeff Morgan]

Hi Vanessa:
Seeing how this is my first complete message on the forum, please forgive my 2 previous mishaps.

I also plan to start the walk about 2 months from now. Since I plan to spend a few months walking around Europe after the Camino, I'm going to be walking with a bicycle trailer to carry what amounts to a medium-sized backpack full of my gear and some edible goodies. Although, from what I've discovered so far by browsing the Internet, people are pretty confident that you don't need to carry much along the way. I'll just make sure I have a couple of good pairs of shoes, comfy socks, and some rain gear. We'll see what happens. Oh yeah, and a pocket full of cash backed up by a bag of travelers checks to buy my way out of any hardship.

Good luck.
Jeff

 

[kmrice]

Hello Camino Travelers,

I am not trained for it yet, I have only started my daily walk of 6 miles and will be slowly increasing the number of miles as I go. My camino will start in less than 2 months (beginning of October 2014).
Vanessa

A 6 mile daily training walk for two months will be plenty - far more than my wife and I did training for a 35 day SJPdP to Santiago Camino last fall, probably far more than most pilgrims train. Do train with your pack, though, building up until you are training with the full amount of weight you will carry on your Camino. Train on hills, steep hills if possible; the Camino crosses some steep mountains!

I'd, personally, walk the whole way if you have time, but lots of people thoroughly enjoy shorter Caminos as well.

Karl

 

[VanessaD]

VanessaD,

Welcome to the Forum!

You will find a wealth of information here to help you plan your camino and to show your parents some of the many aspects of this special journey.
Since you plan to walk in October be sure to scan this Forum thread re walking in autumn to read what other pilgrims and I have posted earlier regarding weather, albergues and kit during the cooler months.
Last October the weather was great -- golden days and cool nights. I hope it is the same this year for you!

Buen Camino,

Margaret Meredith

Thank you for sharing your insights, Margaret, a lot of good information! I am still working on selecting my gears for this month of the year. When you said "cool nights", how cold does it get? Three years ago, when I was in Italy in October, it was really cold - about 2 to 5 degree celsius.

 

[VanessaD]

Welcome to Ivar's wonderful world! Seriously though. Read the threads, ask any question however silly you might think it. You have a whole two months to learn, buy, train and prepare. Take the 35 days and don't worry about it being enough as you can always bus a bit if you need to. The great thing about it being only two months to your off is that it doesn't give you a lot of time to start worrying about things which you shouldn't worry about. Once walking you will realise there is nothing to worry about anyway other than your feet.

Thank you Allan! I will have no problem asking silly questions! As a matter of fact, I have one ... I am trying to minimize what I take, are two pair of liner socks and two pair of wool socks really enough for 35 days? And is the thin wool socks good to reduce blisters or the thicker wool socks is a better choice?

 

[VanessaD]

Hi Vanessa:
Seeing how this is my first complete message on the forum, please forgive my 2 previous mishaps.

I also plan to start the walk about 2 months from now. Since I plan to spend a few months walking around Europe after the Camino, I'm going to be walking with a bicycle trailer to carry what amounts to a medium-sized backpack full of my gear and some edible goodies. Although, from what I've discovered so far by browsing the Internet, people are pretty confident that you don't need to carry much along the way. I'll just make sure I have a couple of good pairs of shoes, comfy socks, and some rain gear. We'll see what happens. Oh yeah, and a pocket full of cash backed up by a bag of travelers checks to buy my way out of any hardship.

Good luck.
Jeff

No worries Jeff for the posts, when I published my first post, I had to re-edit it like 10 times .

Thank you for sharing your tips, any information helps! I am doing the opposite of what you are doing. I will be walking a bit Europe for 2 weeks before the camino, hopefully I wont be too tired!

Maybe I'll run into you on the camino. Good luck with your journey!

 

[VanessaD]

A 6 mile daily training walk for two months will be plenty - far more than my wife and I did training for a 35 day SJPdP to Santiago Camino last fall, probably far more than most pilgrims train. Do train with your pack, though, building up until you are training with the full amount of weight you will carry on your Camino. Train on hills, steep hills if possible; the Camino crosses some steep mountains!

I'd, personally, walk the whole way if you have time, but lots of people thoroughly enjoy shorter Caminos as well.

Karl

Thank you Karl. I have to say, it is not easy to even do 6 miles every day ... I am getting all type of cramps on my calves, legs, thighs ... because I have never worked on certain part of my muscles before! I have been told to stretch more and use a foam roller to release the knots. Will try that and hopefully I can keep up the pace! Did your wife manage to walk 14-16 miles per day during the camino?

 

[Al the optimist]

Thank you Allan! I will have no problem asking silly questions! As a matter of fact, I have one ... I am trying to minimize what I take, are two pair of liner socks and two pair of wool socks really enough for 35 days? And is the thin wool socks good to reduce blisters or the thicker wool socks is a better choice?

As you may have discovered everyone has their own foot approach. If you have decided to have an inner and an outer (maybe smartwool inner and a merino outer) then obviously if you wash them every day one to wash and one to wear is ok. Obviously you will have to consider what happens if you cannot dry the washed pair but you will probably be ok in September. Anyway you can always look for an albergue with a secador (dryer) if necessary.

 

[kmrice]

Did your wife manage to walk 14-16 miles per day during the camino?

More like 15 - 20, most days. She was 64. The last 100 kilometers she carried my boots as well as her pack (I had blisters and wore sandals after Sarria).

If you are cramping, you may be over training - consider shorter walks and increasing your distance every couple of days. Don't over train.

Karl

 

[efdoucette]

Cramping? Eat your bananas!!! Drink!!! Stretch!!!

 

[Kanga]

I am getting all type of cramps on my calves, legs, thighs ... because I have never worked on certain part of my muscles before! I have been told to stretch more and use a foam roller to release the knots.

Vanessa, sometimes I too get cramps and for me it is helped by stretching before and after exercise and taking some electrolyte powder - or increasing my potassium intake (lots of bananas helps).