Going now to make Ponferrada - Santiago / sleeping condition

[tiagorosado]

Hello!

Just got a few days free and we're going tomorrow!! to finish our Camino that started on SJPP in July, but unfortunately had to end it in Ponferrada.
My questions are adressed to anyone that made the Camino outside the summer season...about sleeping at the albergues:
Is there any kind of heating, or we'll have to bring winter sleeping bags?

And about drying stuff, how to you brave winter pilgrims do it? do you need more that 2-3 changes in shirts and underware?

thank you so much for you help!!

 

[viajero]

Hi,
In 2008, a friend joined me in late March in Ponferarda to walk the rest of the Camino to Santiago with me. She carried only a silk liner. Nearly all of the albergues had heat and if needed there were extra blankets (at least at ALL of the albergues where we stayed). You do not need more than 3 changes of clothes. Usually the very light weight clothes dried over night but not always so a third set is useful to have. Actually when we were walking that stretch it was cold/snowy in O'cebreiro but the rest was very mild/warm. We had no trouble finding albergues to stay in but as it is Holy Week AND you will be covering the last 100 km. , it might be a little crowded. Try to plan to stay in non-end stage albergues (in other words, albergue in between the towns listed as beginning/ending stage albergues for each day).

 

[grayland]

April is Spring...not winter so you really do not have to carry winter sleeping bags or a lot of extra clothes. A very light sleeping bag or just a silk liner and sleep in your clothes if it gets cold and no blankets are available. Usually blankets are available.
Three sets of clothes seems a lot of extra weight to me. Things do dry pretty easily in April as a rule if you take tech type material. I easily get by with 1 tech cargo pants and a lightweight change if they need washing. 1 long sleeve and 1 short sleeve tech tee shirt, a pull over fleece shirt and a waterproof windbreaker and a good poncho.
On Cold mornings I just layer until the walking warms me up. Sure beats carrying all that extra weight for the very few times you will need it.
The zip off legs on the cargo pants allow you to just wash the lower legs if they get muddy.

 

[Deleted member 3000]

so a third set is useful to have

I understand what is being said, and have carried a lot of items for exactly that reason. However, anything to which you can attach those words can be safely left behind if you are trying to travel light!

 

[tipperary]

hi
Just to update re blankets. In march 2010 i walked from Leon to Santiago,staying only in municipal albergues from O Cebreiro onwards. All albergues had disposable sheets and pillow cases,all albergues had generous central heating,but i dont recall seeing any blankets. This is probably due to hygiene and bedbug infestations. I add i have stayed in Albergues more than 100 times and never encountered bed bugs there,so maybe its a high season problem.
Buen camino
Justin

 

[tiagorosado]

Thanks so much for the fast replies!

I'm on route now, and will arrive tomorrow at Ponferrada. And the funny thing is that just also now I've heard of a group of fellow pilgrims a few days ago just started a new route by foot from the Cape of S.Vicente here in Portugal - southwest corner - Amazing!! I guess I'm going also to make that route one day - it's 40km from my house!!

About the sleeping bags: thanks a lot for the info. I've never imagined good heating at the albergues Nice. I'm kinda afraid of bedbugs in blankets - so I woudn't use them anyway. And has we have 1kg down winter sleeping bags and our packs with them are at 7kg, we'll keep them. At the time I've posted I imagined a much heavier pack, but she didn't got much heavier. And fewer cloths helped!

Thanks again for your help and support!