i Pods and Mobile phones on the Camino

[Steve.Belfast]

I've noticed that some people have mentioned taking mobile phones and iPods with them on the Camino. How would they charge them?

 

[Dael]

Hi,
I finished a 1200 mile cycle journey around the 'outside' of Scotland in mid June of this year. I charged my Iphone with a "POWERMONKEY - EXPLORER" which is a solar charger for any number of phones etc.
Given that I had Scottish weather to contend with, was camping, and had no problems charging, I would think that it would work perfectly in Spain. They are on sale in "Amazon".
Dael

 

[gregdedman]

With any piece of electrical equipment you take on the Camino, you have to add an electrical charger too.

To take a mobile phone for example means taking the phone, the charger and an adaptor.
To take a Camera, you need a charger with plug and adaptor.
For ipods you can get away with only taking the usb lead to charge but then you have to pay for use of a computer to use the usb as a charger.

If you take a phone, you are taking it for emergencies right? So to have it fully charged at the start could mean that IF you needed to use it, you wouldn't necessarily need the charger.
If you plan to keep the phone on all the time then you'll need the charger.

You can usually find a plug socket to charge things, but spare a thought for the electricity you use.

 

[givney42]

I'm bringing my Iphone due to needing to be in close contact with home due to my mom's illness. I also have a freeloader pico solar charger(solar technology, UK) for it. It works well here at home (Seattle, WA). So, figure it will do well on the camino.

Buen Camino!
Kim

 

[evanlow]

Thanks for the tip Dael and Kim,

I will definitely get one of the solar charger for the next camino. Beats sharing the power point at the albergue for charging.

 

[gregdedman]

Hola all,

Just thought, if your a pilgrim whos thinking of taking their iphone, then you may find this info useful for staying in touch along the camino.

If your iphone can read PDF files or word documents then there is a number of guides you can download and store on your phone. The first two I put together and have previously posted on these forums.

Guide to the Camino Frances
http://www.scribd.com/full/32910789?access_key=key-2hk4o12x0c2ydot9880w
Stage maps for the Camino Frances and Fisterra
http://www.scribd.com/full/35980164?access_key=key-18f4e4ldpn7628vj8sn8

These next two are fantastic!

http://www.caminoguide.net/camino_frances.htm Free guide by Ger Kelly

http://www.caminodesantiago.consumer.es/llevatela-al-camino/ Another free guide
(In Spanish but very useful)

The above site has also produced a rather fancy iPhone application, again, only in Spanish but you may find the maps, photos and accommodation contact numbers useful if you don't speak the language.

http://www.itunes.apple.com/es/app/camino/id378279011?mt=8

You can also use SKYPE for mobile to call home!
If the person you're calling has skype, then its free if you find free WIFI along the way;

http://www.skype.com/intl/en/get-skype/on-your-mobile/

And finally, heres where to search for free WIFI locations;

http://v4.jiwire.com/search-hotspot-locations.htm
Again, these guys have an iphone app to search for them on your iphone.

Hope you guys find this info helpful, especially if you need to be in close contact to loved ones at home.

Buen Camino
Greg

 

[jujuawayagain]

hi there gregdedman, wow what a great guide. so accessible.
i don't have an iphone but i now plan to get one so i can put your guide onto it.
this is my first post on this forum. i'm planning on heading off in september 2011 and am just starting to gather info. thank you for sharing such a great and easy to read guide.

 

[renegadepilgrim]

jujuawayagain....you don't necessarily need an iPhone, those apps should work on an iTouch, which is a bit cheaper, I believe. Unless you have pressing circumstances where you need to be in contact with home, you really don't need to have a phone on the Camino. I spent five months traveling, starting with the Camino, this year, and didn't need a phone at all.

 

[elzi]

Hi,
I finished a 1200 mile cycle journey around the 'outside' of Scotland in mid June of this year. I charged my Iphone with a "POWERMONKEY - EXPLORER" which is a solar charger for any number of phones etc.
Given that I had Scottish weather to contend with, was camping, and had no problems charging, I would think that it would work perfectly in Spain. They are on sale in "Amazon".
Dael

I've taken a Powermonkey on 4 camino journeys and would highly recommend them. They can charge most devices in a variety of ways. I usually found a combination of charging from power points in albergues and solar-powering en-route would keep my devices going but if you do spot a computer with a usb port they also charge from them.

The best thing about them is that you can charge them up like a battery and then charge your devices at a later time as and when they run out.

Also I think there is less chance of them being stolen when left plugged into a communal albergue power point which I think is an occasional issue with fancy phones (mostly people don't know what one is when they are plugged in!)

I did two weeks wild camping on the Frances last year only charging my phone from the solar attachment without using an indoor electrical power point so it is possible.

That said, if you are staying in albergues then I think you'll usually find a power point at least every few days so you shouldn't really worry. It's only if you are planning to sleep outside regularly that getting power becomes an issue. The reason I took the Powermonkey initially was to cut down on weight (rather than carrying a separate charger for each piece of equipment (phone, camera, ipod) but obviously not everyone carries all of this stuff and maybe one iphone will do the lot!