Frances Camino in Oct

[Jamie Y. Mo]

Hi all pilgrims.
My friend would likely be walking the Frances Camino in Oct or could be partially also in Nov...
I myself have only walked in Spring, May and June, last year and it was nice and pleasant weather-wise.
How is the weather like in general in Oct and early/mid Nov? (or possibly even mid/late Sept as well, if you don't mind?)
We are from Canada and we are used to harsh winter but we wouldn't like to have chilly winter-like weather when we are out there.
Can someone kindly advise us how things are like in Oct and Nov?
Mostly our concern is about the weather but we also think about how it would get crowded compared to other months and how easy or not easy in terms of finding an albergue along the way..

Thank you and Buen Camino, all pilgrims...

 

[mspath]

October/November is a great time to walk with generally golden days and cool nights. Do be aware however that many albergues start to close mid October

Check out these earlier threads for posts/tips/links
https://www.caminodesantiago.me/community/threads/camino-in-october.6261/

and

https://www.caminodesantiago.me/community/threads/camino-frances-in-october.47068/

For lots of personal commentary regarding walking at this time including a kit list see my Camino Gazetteer blog.

Happy planning and Buen Camino!

 

[tomnorth]

I walked from late September to late October in 2015. It's a beautiful time to walk. Toward the end there were some chilly mornings, but no wintry weather to speak of. I did not have a problem with albergues being closed.

 

[Tim Floyd]

Walked Sept to mid Oct last fall. Weather was really nice. Three days of rain. Cool mornings and warm days, but not hot. Biggest issue I had by Oct was the shorter days. Crowds were clearly letting up a bit at the end. As others have said, starting in October some facilities close for the season. We saw many were the signs said they were closing by end of month October.

 

[Jamie Y. Mo]

Thank you all three of you...
Now we know that Fall Camino is not a bad idea... but actually a good idea!

 

[Desert Bruce]

I've walked the Frances in September and October 2016 and 2017. I agree that it is a fine time to be on the Camino. The mornings were cool until the sun comes up about 08 or so. We had very little rain either time.
Buen Camino!

 

[Pilgy]

I walked Oct 7 to Nov 7 last year. Got sunburned several times. Had one and a half days of rain showers. Never booked ahead at alberques. Always found a bed. Some alberques closed like clockwork Oct 31. Lots of people walking still but far quieter than September. do it!! But the one thing that few talk about is the length of the day. By late October before Daylight savings ended it would be dark until almost 9AM! The day would be light later of course but it has an impact if you want and early morning start. Come November when the time changes the mornings are actually lighter. I had never considered this.....

 

[StuartM]

I walked in October 2012, finishing on Halloween. Weather was lovely, cold mornings, sometimes below freezing up in the hills, even a hint of the first snows but temp builds during the day. Peaks around 4-5pm where it was very hot some days, then falls away rapidly. Lovely cool evenings.

Downsides, bigger chance of rain. Had some very big downpours. Also, albergues can be a bit unpleasant. They get really stuffy because a lot of people won't want windows opened because of the cold night air (I'm told that's a very European thing) so that's 50 watts of heat each person is giving out with nowhere to go and the heating will be on, too. Drying damp gear and boots can be a pain as well. Even just doing laundry when the air is damp is a chore. Colds and viruses were rife, I kept away from albergues for a while because there were so many reports of people getting sick.

But it was a lovely time of year. You got to see autumn turning right in front of your eyes as you moved west. I remember it started off green at the beginning, all the leaves were brown by the end. The last couple of days approaching SdC was incredible. Lots of woodland, it was windy, leaves blowing and rustling, so atmospheric.

 

[DebR]

Hi all pilgrims.
My friend would likely be walking the Frances Camino in Oct or could be partially also in Nov...
I myself have only walked in Spring, May and June, last year and it was nice and pleasant weather-wise.
How is the weather like in general in Oct and early/mid Nov? (or possibly even mid/late Sept as well, if you don't mind?)
We are from Canada and we are used to harsh winter but we wouldn't like to have chilly winter-like weather when we are out there.
Can someone kindly advise us how things are like in Oct and Nov?
Mostly our concern is about the weather but we also think about how it would get crowded compared to other months and how easy or not easy in terms of finding an albergue along the way..

Thank you and Buen Camino, all pilgrims...

I’ve walked twice in spring (mid April through to late May) and twice in the autumn (mid September to mid-late October), and the latter is definitely my favourite...so much so that I’m going again at the end of September. I’ve never really noticed crowds at that time, and the weather has been very stable: little rain and generally nice walking temperatures. As others have said, some albergues close, but it’s easy to work around them. And Watching grape harvest in the fields as you walk by is an added bonus.
Definitely a vote for autumn from me..,