First timer, June Camino

[Kathy in Maryland]

This is the third bulletin board I am posting on, trying to get as much information as I can about the Camino.
I plan to start from St. Jean PP either 31 May or 1 June, and hope to arrive in Santiago 1 July.
Is this timing reasonable, does anyone know?
Buen camino,
Kathy

 

[Deleted member 397]

It all depends on what sort of daily distance you want to cover-taking into account the various hilly stages. I haven't walked the CF yet but will start from Le Puy in late june and plan to finish the end of august. The Brierley book breaks the CF into 33 stages so that's a good guide but it's always wise to allow for a day or two recovery/sightseeing-no point hurrying through.

 

[sillydoll]

June Camino

Hi Kathy,
It is quite scary planning to walk almost 800kms across a country and not being sure if you should attempt it can give you nightmares!
I would say, from my own experience, that unless you are very fit and are used to walking long distances carrying a backpack over difficult terrain (river boulders, gravel pits, muddy ruts through fields) 30 days from St Jean could be pushing it a bit. You certainly don't want to push it the first few days because so many people sustain injuries in the first few days that result in them having to give up walking altogether.
In 2002 I walked from Roncesvalles to Santiago in 27 days averaging 28kms per day. But, that meant doing 20km some days and 40kms on others. I am going to walk the same distance again but this time over 36 days averaging 21km per day.
Is there a special reason why you want to start in France? It's not worth pushing it for the scenery alone. There are many other places on the camino with stunning views and wonderful landscapes. It is ± 750 kms from Roncesvalles and with only 30 days to walk you will have to average 25kms per day (unless you skip a few stages in between).

Here is a really good website for planning your stages. Work out how many kms per day you think you can walk and then see if there are albergues for you to stay in at the end of each stage:

http://www.godesalco.com/plan


Good luck with your planning!
Pilgrim hugs,
Sil

 

[spursfan]

Just to give an alternative view

It depends on some specific factors (walking speed, stamina, age, weight of pack)

Last April, by coincidence, three of us started at SJPP on the same day - female early 30s and two males age 50 and 60 - and completed the trip to Santiago in 20/21 days - one hare (7 hours each day) and two tortoises (up to 11 hours each day) - though it is fair to say that we were at the extreme end of the distribution

You should buy the John Brierley book - he divides it into 33 daily walks as well as giving good, detailed maps and altitudes (incorporating adjusted distances to relect height gains) - most of the climbing is relatively steady and certainly in Summer the walk will be on roads and paths with no mud

 

[sillydoll]

June Camino

In 2005 a Japanese guy ran the camino in 12 days from Roncesvalles. I don't know what he saw of the monuments along the way or whether he had time to lie in a field of poppies and watch the white and black stork swooping over the fileds looking for food for their young. He probably didn't have time to chat to the locals or attend a mass in a village church.
Any really fit walker can cover the 800kms of the camino in 20 days - or walk ± 40kms per day. (Even Shirley Maclaine managed it when she was over 60 years old.)
For most people hiking almost 40kms per day for 20 days is not fun and I, for one, would hate to walk for 11 hours a day for three weeks unless I could have a siesta at mid-day and numerous stops along the way.
For many people the camino is a once in a lifetime experience and they must try to savour every moment of their time there.
I went back again in 2004 because I knew that the 27 days we took to walk from Roncesvalles in 2002 was too quick. This time I want to slow down even more and really smell the roses.

"When you run so fast to get somewhere
You miss half the fun of getting there.
When you worry and hurry through your day,
It is like an unopened gift.... Thrown away.
Life is not a race.
Do take it slower
Hear the music
Before the song is over."

Abrazos,

 

[spursfan]

I'm offering my thoughts just to reduce the uncertainty that we all felt upon walking the Camino for the first time - and so that newcomers can tailor general estimates from books into specific information for themselves - and this forum is great for allowing such breadth of opinions

There was a time say 25 years ago when, because few apart from professional runners had completed marathons, ordinary people were frightened - but then, with the aid of steady training over a few months, it became possible for the rest of us (though running one did cure me)

One of the joys of the pilgrimage is that there is plenty of time to slow down and think (lacking access to distractions such as television, radio, newspapers and books) - and chances to opt in to wonderful experiences along the way (I was the sole pilgrim at the vespers with the nuns in Castrojeriz)