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Guidebooks.

la tulipe

New Member
Time of past OR future Camino
I am planning a pilgrimage on the Camino Frances in May of 2015
Question for veterans on the camino: which guidebook do you recommend - John Brierley or Anna Dintaman and David Landis?
As a newbie, here are my pros and cons:
Brierley : pro - the maps are clear and big enough for my septuagenarian eyes; although he has the compas on each map, he is telling us to go bottom (of the page) up. I want to go down toward the West.
con: places to stay are not clearly explained.
Dintaman and Landis: pro - clear info about each town/village with what is available to the pilgrims.
con: the maps are not as clear.
I made a copy of Brierley's maps and hopefully Ivar's new app will take care of the rest.
Gracias por su atention.
 
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I copied both Brierley and D&L and put them on my Kindle. But the guide I used the most was Kelly, already in electronic form. The Kindle was lighter than any one of the books alone. And I liked the multiple perspectives.
 
2015 Brierly guide shipped from Barnes and Noble! Should get it tomorrow or Tuesday!

Blessings and buen camino!
Jen
 
If you start in SJPP they will give you the only thing you need in the form of two pieces of paper: 1 with the list of all albergues en route, the other distances and elevations for suggested etapas. Can't get much lighter than that!
 
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I like Brierley for all the extra information he gives, e.g. alternative routes, historical places to visit that you might miss otherwise, and I really like his maps. Jill
 
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And I like the Rothers guide. It has great information about the towns and albergues. It also shows elevations and distances.
 

Another "con" of Dintaman and Landis for me is its weight - all those glossy colour photos are not lightweight! I've just received my copy of the new (2015) Brierley edition and I notice that it is significantly smaller than previous editions and somewhat lighter - meaning the weight difference between it and D&L is even more noticeable. In fact this edition seems to have a few significant changes (I've had the 2 previous editions - yes, been planning that long!) - Brierley has changed the start and end points of a few of his stages (eg now Zubiri not Larrasoaña, then Pamplona not Cizur Menor) and has corrected a few maps where roads had been shown incorrectly, as well as the odd mis-named town (take a bow, Calzadilla de los Hermanillos!)

I like to have a guide book so I can read a bit about places I'll be walking through. I have read Brierley and Dintaman & Landis, and both have good points and both have something the other doesn't, but I will be taking Brierley with me on my Camino.
 
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Ideal sleeping bag liner whether we want to add a thermal plus to our bag, or if we want to use it alone to sleep in shelters or hostels. Thanks to its mummy shape, it adapts perfectly to our body.

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I understand that there are many ways to make a map and that a stylized map can convey selected information more clearly than a more cartographically "accurate" map.

Still, not having yet field-tested either of them, I am more drawn to the topo maps in Dintaman & Landis.

Maybe more importantly, we plan to stay in casas rurales and the like, some of which are completely off the Brierley maps. Example: we plan to rest up before tackling the Alto de Perdón in a casa rural in Astraín (west of Zariquiegui), which isn't on Brierley's map. (To be fair, Dintaman & Landis have the town of Astraín but not the road to get there from Zariquiegui, so in truth the map we'll be following is Google.)

Anyway... from my armchair I prefer Dintaman & Landis's more zoomed-out topo maps. Am I wrong and will I wish I had Brierley?

¡Gracias y buen camino!
 
I had Bierley and ended up leaving it behind the first week. A man who was leaving the Camino gave me his and it was PERFECT. Sadly, I lost it and can't remember who made it. It was a small, laminated spiral notebook about the size of an open wallet. Each page showed elevation, distance, villages and towns and the number of albuergues and whether there were hotels, hostels and cafes to be found. The man who gave it to me was from Ireland but it seems like he told me he bought the thing in SJPP.
 
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I took Brierly and tore out the route map every day and kept it in my shirt pocket. Very handy and you know a lot more about where you are. I avoided the electronic versions as it was so easy to ask directions with the piece of Brierly map in my pocket. It felt like a little friend... and you don't have to fish out the whole book.
 
Is that the Green booklet that just has maps and scant information? If it is I have it and also Brierley's book. The weight difference is huge - Dilemma - so do I just need that one and save the weight.....? I can see myself pondering that till the day I go and end up taking both if I am not careful!
 
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My walking companion was Dutch so was using the Dutch Society's guide. It was so good, I put my Brierley away and worked on his. There is of course a language problem unless you can read Dutch. I met a guy recently who swears by the 'Miam Miam' French guide. The British CSJ guides are good but no maps, just some directions and almost full list of albergues. I know of at least three that are not listed in the 2015 guide. Of course there is the ultimate guide. It is called 'yellow arrows'
 
I just cannot bring myself to tear pages from a book or to write on the pages
 
I would take the green one for the maps and distances and get the most up to date accommodation list here on the forum. Its in PDF format and you can print it or carry it on your smartphone.
 
Altus BALI Sleeping bag liner
Ideal sleeping bag liner whether we want to add a thermal plus to our bag, or if we want to use it alone to sleep in shelters or hostels. Thanks to its mummy shape, it adapts perfectly to our body.

€46,-
wayfarer said:
I would take the green one for the maps and distances and get the most up to date accomodation list here on the forum. Its in PDF format and you can print it or carry it on your smartphone.
Click to expand...
OK thanks
 
Thanks
 
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I really like the Brierley maps and i think he describes the route fairly well, but Brierley and i dont see eye to eye on the way he describes accomodations. If he says modern, it probably was modern....30 years ago. Now not so much.
Plus he is a little biased now and then when it comes to towns and accomodations, but thats my opinion.
 
wayfarer said:
I would take the green one for the maps and distances and get the most up to date accommodation list here on the forum. Its in PDF format and you can print it or carry it on your smartphone.
Click to expand...
Great idea - the Michelin Map guide weighs 87g and double sided photo copy of Forum Albergue PDF only weighs 59g - combined total = 146g and I can leave Brierley 281g at home. You have NOT only saved me 135g but you have succeeded in bringing my total Backpack weight down to 9.9% of my target body weight!! Ridiculously happy - thank you
 
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