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Heat warning

jgpryde

Member
Time of past OR future Camino
St.Jean-Santiago (2017)
I just received the following alert from my travel insurance company.

---------------------------------------
High Temperatures Predicted throughout Southern Spain
Countries: Spain
Category: Transportation
Rating: Low

According to local media sources on Saturday, 17 June, temperatures are set to reach 42 degrees Celsius (107 degrees Fahrenheit) in Seville, with high temperatures throughout the south-east of the country. Only the north will see temperatures dropping below 30 degrees Celsius (86 degrees Fahrenheit).
------------------------------------------

Stay cool out there.

-jgp
 
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I just received the following alert from my travel insurance company.

---------------------------------------
High Temperatures Predicted throughout Southern Spain
Countries: Spain
Category: Transportation
Rating: Low

According to local media sources on Saturday, 17 June, temperatures are set to reach 42 degrees Celsius (107 degrees Fahrenheit) in Seville, with high temperatures throughout the south-east of the country. Only the north will see temperatures dropping below 30 degrees Celsius (86 degrees Fahrenheit).
------------------------------------------

Stay cool out there.

-jgp

Holy Moly,

I leave for Southern Spain the next week. I suspect Alicante will be the same. I will check it out.

Thanks

BP
 
Hopefully somewhat cooler becasue closer to the sea. Around 28 Celsius.

I hope so. I can manage in 40 + C but, that is when I have gotten used to it. Flying down to Alicante and stepping out in the heat will definitley destroy me. I will have to do 24 kms the first stage... :Oo
 
St James' Way - Self-guided 4-7 day Walking Packages, Reading to Southampton, 110 kms
I hope so. I can manage in 40 + C but, that is when I have gotten used to it. Flying down to Alicante and stepping out in the heat will definitley destroy me. I will have to do 24 kms the first stage... :Oo

Stay safe and I really think that in these kind of circumstances taking a form of motorized transport is not a bad decision.
 
Stay safe and I really think that in these kind of circumstances taking a form of motorized transport is not a bad decision.

I know... I'll be careful... I have done this stage once before and there is not much shadow between Alicante and Orito... We'll see...
 
St James' Way - Self-guided 4-7 day Walking Packages, Reading to Southampton, 110 kms
Greetings from Sevilla where it registered 49°C (120° F!!!). (I saw the digital thermometer on someone's computer.) yesterday June 16, 2017.

I went out this morning but it was too hot to stand in line for tickets for Cathedral and Alcázar.
 
The focus is on reducing the risk of failure through being well prepared. 2nd ed.
Greetings from Sevilla where it registered 49°C (120° F!!!). (I saw the digital thermometer on someone's computer.) yesterday June 16, 2017.

I went out this morning but it was too hot to stand in line for tickets for Cathedral and Alcázar.

Wow. Will be in Seville in September, luckily for a " regular holiday". I remember last year Caceres when one day it was 43. C. Now that was a relaxing holiday...too hot to do anything.
 
It looks as if the whole of next week will be under a heat wave spell all over Spain. Check www.aemet.es (7 days forecast) for where you are heading.
 
A selection of Camino Jewellery
Short days for me. ! I'm on the Inglés in pontedeume and I really felt it today !
There were parts in trees tho and I kept the water up , stopped for snack breaks and 4ks short of pontedeume I put an electrolyte pack into my water and drank it all. I could feel that I needed it.
Into accommodation by 1.45 pm also / I can unwind in the really hot part of the day.
 
Technical backpack for day trips with backpack cover and internal compartment for the hydration bladder. Ideal daypack for excursions where we need a medium capacity backpack. The back with Air Flow System creates large air channels that will keep our back as cool as possible.

€83,-
1. Start early, finish early.

2. Wear a BROAD Brimmed sun hat.

3. Carry at least one Buff, or similar microfiber tube, to wet and wear on pressure points in your neck and wrists. I wear mine, wet, over my head and neck, under my sun hat.

4. Eat & carry bananas and oranges for hydration & electrolyte replacement.

5. Bring electrolyte tablets to add to bottled water, or stop in a pharmacy to ask for "los preparados para esfuerzos deportivos" or "las bebidas energéticas." Brands like Etixx, elete, Trisport, Ergysport, Wcup all have isotonic electrolyte preps of one sort or the other. The best thing is good old Aquarius, which you can buy most anywhere and is so much nicer tasting than Gatorade, Powerade and the like.

6. Carry 2-3 times your normal water load and top off as you walk from reliable sources.

7. Share your water, fruit and electrolyte solution, or tablets with other pilgrims in need.

Be careful out there.

I hope this helps.
 
Last edited:
1. Start early, finish early.

2. Wear a BROAD Brimmed sun hat.

3. Carry at least one Buff, or similar microfiber tube, to wet and wear on pressure points in your neck and wrists. I wear mine, wet, over my head and neck, under my sun hat.

4. Eat & carry bananas and oranges for hydration & electrolyte replacement.

5. Bring electrolyte tablets to add to bottled water, or stop in a pharmacy to ask for "los preparados para esfuerzos deportivos" or "las bebidas energéticas." Brands like Etixx, elete, Trisport, Ergysport, Wcup all have isotonic electrolyte preps of one sort or the other. The best thing is good old Aquarius, which you can buy anywhere and is so much nicer tasting than Gatorade, Powerade and the like.

6. Carry 2-3 times your normal water load and top off as you walk from reliable sources.

7. Share your water, fruit and electrolyte solution, or tablets with other pilgrims in need.

Be careful out there.

I hope this helps.
Oh Tom, I should have read this (and paid attention), and maybe I'd not have this disorientation, fierce headaches, body aches, and a few other symptoms that go with dehydration!! Not fun!!

And to think I used to teach oral rehydration therapy to mom's when I was in Peace Corps on the Sahara desert!!! --100 in both Leon & Madrid currently
 
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,-
Oh Tom, I should have read this (and paid attention), and maybe I'd not have this disorientation, fierce headaches, body aches, and a few other symptoms that go with dehydration!! Not fun!!

And to think I used to teach oral rehydration therapy to mom's when I was in Peace Corps on the Sahara desert!!! --100 in both Leon & Madrid currently


On my Camino from Porto (#3) in 2015, I had three episodes of "sudden onset syncope." In plain English, I passed out three times in five-days.

It was not until several weeks and a battery of cardiac and metabolic tests later that my doctors pronounced me stupid! I concurred with this expert medical diagnosis.

My problem was being lulled into complacency by the very sunny, breezy, 27 degree days, as well as the beautiful surroundings. I did not FEEL thirsty. So, I became dehydrated and began my sequence of impromptu "dirt naps."

The first two were momentary, light/headed collapses to my knees. The third episode was a full-frontal, unconscious, "face-plant" on the Via Romana XIX. It destroyed a pair of wire framed eyeglasses.

Despite having had specific training, and simply knowing better, I ignored the early symptoms of sweating ceasing, along with the desire or need to urinate. Lightheadedness and pitching forward followed...

I learned my lessons and hoped to impart them here.
 
I'm so envious! Regardless of how beautiful winter in New Zealand can be, summer in Spain is a beautiful (if somewhat dangerous at times) creature.... be careful on the road, and take care of yourselves, those of you who will be walking in the heat.
 
Very hot weather here in the UK too with daytime temperatures around 30 degrees and at night around 18 to 20 degrees.

Further south in France, Spain and Portugal it is far hotter. Sad news today of a huge forest fire in central Portugal with more than 60 people dying mostly in their cars trying to escape the fire.

To everyone out there on the Caminos, my thoughts are with you. Stay safe.......
 
The 2024 Camino guides will be coming out little by little. Here is a collection of the ones that are out so far.
One wonders... is it any more reasonable to head out on routes like VDLP (little shade or water options) when temps are as high as they are now than it is to walk from SJPP to Roncesvalles in winter via the Napoleon route?

Is it a matter of time before we are told that if we walk in temps above X and we need rescuing because of dehydration that we will also be handed a invoice?

@t2andreo gives tips including using a damp buff, but where is one supposed to get the water to keep said buff damp? Carry 2-3 times the water you normally would? That would be 9kg right there.

Is there a safe way to walk these southern routes with little shade, water or in-between stops? Or should alberfues on them be closed from let's say June 15th and September 15?

Food for thought...
 
I regularly carry 4-.5 liter bottles of water, for a total of two liters when I start out. If I KNOW I will likely consume more, I strap a 1.5 liter bottle to the top of my rucksack.

An example of this would be walking the Meseta on the Frances from Carrion de los Condes and Sahagun (or Rebekah's place). In fact, in 2014, I jumped my 4 standard water bottles and TWO 1.5 liter bottles, one in each side mesh pocket.

I started with a total of 5 liters of bottled water. That is 5 kilograms added weight.

Along the 32 km I walked that day, I shared with other pilgrims who "did not get the memo" about the questionable fuentes along this stretch. By the time I reached Moratinos, I was down to half of one .5 liter bottle.

As regards to wetting the Buff, I wet my Buff anywhere I find enough water. It does not have to be safe to drink. I am only using the water for the evaporative effect. In the past, I have used water in animal troughs, flowing streams, puddles on rocks, public fountains and Fuentes, even if labeled "non-potable."

On my recently completed Camino from Lisbon I did use some of my bottled water for the Buff, but only enough to wet the Buff, laid in the top of my sun hat. The hat served as a field expedient "sink." It absorbed excess water from the Buff and when put back in my head, added to the evaporative effect on one very hot day.

Needs must.

Take care y'all...
 
An example of this would be walking the Meseta on the Frances from Carrion de los Condes and Sahagun (or Rebekah's place). In fact, in 2014, I jumped my 4 standard water bottles and TWO 1.5 liter bottles, one in each side mesh pocket.

As regards to wetting the Buff, I wet my Buff anywhere I find enough water. It does not have to be safe to drink. I am only using the water for the evaporative effect. In the past, I have used water in animal troughs, flowing streams, puddles on rocks, public fountains and Fuentes, even if labeled "non-potable."
...
Yes, that works on the Frances and Portuguese, but good luck finding any kind of water on some VDLP days, regardless of the quality of the water. Not a drop in sight. Hence my question about how smart it is to venture out on days like today.
 
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I learned that when on Camino, there are days to be brave, and days to be smart.

The trick is to recognize when to press forward, or when to take a rest day, or perhaps to walk part of the day and use transportation to finish the day's planned distance.

I find experience to be the greatest teacher. Advice, even from an expert or seasoned veteran may be useless if it does not pertain to what you are facing here and now. Experience is what allows each of us to assess suggestions or recommendations in the context of what we are seeing in real time.

I hope this helps,
 
15 and 16 June (2017) there was rain and fog from SJPdP to Roncevalles, not a picturesque beginning for many first time pilgrims, since then high 30's. It was 39 at Zabaldiki and close to that in Pamplona today (19/6) IMHO the only time to walk is before noon and yet there are some newbies tying to push 40k/day right now.
 
One more weather related tip. It appears in several other dialog threads in the Forum but seems very appropriate here.

If you carry a smart phone, download the 'AEMET.ES+' app from either the Android or Apple app stores for your device. It is free. If you are in Portugal or Spain now... please just DO IT! It is free!

This is the official weather service in Spain. While it does carry weather for nearly every place on earth, it also has weather reports and forecasts for virtually every named place (city, town, village, and hamlet) in Spain.

You would be surprised if you turn on 'location services' for your phone and you fire the app up to get the weather where you ARE at that moment....albeit from the closest reporting station / remote sensor. It is amazing really. I cannot get this degree of location specificity from Google, the Weather Channel, Weather Underground, Yahoo, or any other weather app I have tried.

I believe the Spanish meteorological agency, www.aemet.es, has hundreds (if not thousands) of small, self-contained remote, weather reporting "stations." They are mostly solar-powered and positioned all over the country. On my several Caminos, I have observed what might be these stations atop buildings, towers and poles in the most incongruous places.

They appear to be inox (stainless steel) or aluminum boxes about the size of a small dormitory or bar refrigerator, with antennae, sensors, wind speed indicators, rain catchment cups, and a solar panel attached to them. Some are painted white. Others are au natural...

In any event, I could obtain weather forecasts for odd places like Foncebaddon on the Frances, and similarly out-of-the-way places on both the Madrid and Portuguese routes. Obviously, the location capability is best in Spain, but a lot of places in Portugal are covered too.

I imagine the system is justified and intended to support farming, ranching, and agriculture primarily. That explains the wide coverage net. But the forecast information is freely available to all.

This is the BEST weather app for Camino use that I have yet discovered over five years.

As always, I hope this helps.
 
The one from Galicia (the round) and the one from Castilla & Leon. Individually numbered and made by the same people that make the ones you see on your walk.
1. Start early, finish early.

2. Wear a BROAD Brimmed sun hat.

3. Carry at least one Buff, or similar microfiber tube, to wet and wear on pressure points in your neck and wrists. I wear mine, wet, over my head and neck, under my sun hat.

4. Eat & carry bananas and oranges for hydration & electrolyte replacement.

5. Bring electrolyte tablets to add to bottled water, or stop in a pharmacy to ask for "los preparados para esfuerzos deportivos" or "las bebidas energéticas." Brands like Etixx, elete, Trisport, Ergysport, Wcup all have isotonic electrolyte preps of one sort or the other. The best thing is good old Aquarius, which you can buy most anywhere and is so much nicer tasting than Gatorade, Powerade and the like.

6. Carry 2-3 times your normal water load and top off as you walk from reliable sources.

7. Share your water, fruit and electrolyte solution, or tablets with other pilgrims in need.

Be careful out there.

I hope this helps.
Excellent advice. Also consider taking an umbrella, one of the silvered ones, to provide even more shade than a hat.
 
I learned that when on Camino, there are days to be brave, and days to be smart.

The trick is to recognize when to press forward, or when to take a rest day, or perhaps to walk part of the day and use transportation to finish the day's planned distance.

I find experience to be the greatest teacher. Advice, even from an expert or seasoned veteran may be useless if it does not pertain to what you are facing here and now. Experience is what allows each of us to assess suggestions or recommendations in the context of what we are seeing in real time.

I hope this helps,
Yes indeed! Managing that inner dialog can be tricky. The inner compulsion to carry on, do more, get there, stick to the schedule, do what other peregrinos are doing...can be relentless. And having a time by which you need to arrive in SdeC (to catch flights out etc) can add to the self-imposed pressure.
 
I just received the following alert from my travel insurance company.

---------------------------------------
High Temperatures Predicted throughout Southern Spain
Countries: Spain
Category: Transportation
Rating: Low

According to local media sources on Saturday, 17 June, temperatures are set to reach 42 degrees Celsius (107 degrees Fahrenheit) in Seville, with high temperatures throughout the south-east of the country. Only the north will see temperatures dropping below 30 degrees Celsius (86 degrees Fahrenheit).
------------------------------------------

Stay cool out there.

-jgp

Meteo France has produced a useful pictogram to help anyone assess the duration of a heatwave (canicule in French) and the symptoms of heat related illness
http://www.meteofrance.com/documents/10192/75187/depliant_canicules_fortes_chaleur.pdf
 
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