Kilometers walked at the beginning and towards the end

[sugargypsy]

Hi,

at the moment I'm trying to calculate how many days I'll need for the CF from SJPdP to SdC. My time budget is quite adjustable - my wallet is unfortunately not quite as flexible ;-) - but everything between 40 and 60 days is o.k. I would like to narrow it down a bit, so that I might already be able to book a return flight.

I am aware that the number of stages / required days - in addition to restdays or unplanned events - depends very much on the daily mileage that I'll be able to walk. At the moment the stages will probably be shorter than those of an average pilgrim, but hopefully I'll be able to built up stamina and walk longer stretches after a while.

Long preface, short question: I would therefore be interested in your experiences, whether you were able to walk longer stages after lets say 10 or 15 days or not. And, if your stages have become longer, could you tell me much longer they got in kilometers?

I know that one can't really compare one to another, it's sort of like looking into a crystal ball , nevertheless I'd be happy to hear about your experiences.

In addition, I'd be interested in something else: I have read in various posts from time to time in this forum that some pilgrims needed quite some time to recover after the Camino due to the unaccustomed activity. Have you made a similar experience or not really? Thanks in advance for any answers.

 

[Stroller]

My average over the whole trip was 25kM per day including rest days. During the first week the distance covered was far less than this probably in the order of 15kM per day. As rest days are included in the average plus the slow start some days must have been 30kM plus towards the end. I did not walk Brierley stages but stopped when tired or I had arrived at an interesting place to stay. I was 60+, recovering from hospitalisation and had not walked much for years although I had walked long distances in my youth.

I live in a very flat area, few hills, so my problem was climbing but a shortened pace and plenty of stops to get the heart rate down to less than 150 BPM and it worked. Climbing also improved with time.

So short answer is that the ability to walk longer distances increases with the time you spend walking, the amount of gain will, of course, be individual.

There is no "average pilgrim distance" some do 5kM per day others, exceptionally, 35kM per day from the start most make it in the end.

If time is short you can bus parts of the camino or stop and come back later, it is better to do either of these rather than try to go too fast and injure yourself.

After the camino I had no recovery problems other than needing to walk and being restless when I could not. I had no injuries or blisters during the walk. I did and still do miss the simplicity and routine of the trail but nothing major.

My experience was individual, as will yours be, but I hope this is of some use.

 

[David Tallan]

We started with no training and averaged just over 20 km a day, maybe 21 or 22. We started with 22, 15, 15, 15 and then increased to 20ish per day for a while. By the time we were finishing the meseta, we were up to 25-30. But that brought on the bad blisters for my son, so we dropped down to 20-25 for the rest of the Camino.

 

[sugargypsy]

My average over the whole trip was 25kM per day including rest days. During the first week the distance covered was far less than this probably in the order of 15kM per day. .

Guess I will start my first days anything between 12 to 15 km per day.

I live in a very flat area, few hills, so my problem was climbing but a shortened pace and plenty of stops to get the heart rate down to less than 150 BPM and it worked. Climbing also improved with time..

I'm living in a town which is shaped like a kettle, wherever you walk sooner or later it's going up- or downhill ...

Usually I don't really appreciate that. But considering this as practice for the Camino, at the moment it definitely seems to be an advantage. Walking from the center to the top, I have to cover 250 height meters spread over 4 km, my goal is to be able to walk that at least twice in a row. At them moment I’m able to do that once, slowly, but with no serious problems. I did not try yet, to do this twice in a row. (maybe next weekend). And I've got 10 more weeks to practice.

So short answer is that the ability to walk longer distances increases with te time you spend walking, the amount of gain will, of course, be individual.

I know it's individual how much one will improve, nevertheless it's motivating to read your answer. Thanks.

If time is short you can bus parts of the camino or stop and come back later, it is better to do either of these rather than try to go too fast and injure yourself.

I've already had one injury too much concerning my feet, believe me, I won't take any risk on that subject.

At the moment I have one wish, to start at SJPdP. And yes, I know, one can start the Camino anywhere. But since my heart's set on that, I won't compromise right from the beginning.

I want to try it. In case it's too difficult for me, I've figuered out all possibilies to deal with that - I guess -, including hiring Express Bourricot back to SJPdP and travel via bus to Pamplona.

My experience was individual, as will yours be, but I hope this is of some use.

I'm very grateful you've told me your experiences. I know the Camino is individual, but reading your practical knowledge helps me a bit to evaluate my own capabilities in comparison. Which at least at the moment gives me some sort of security which is all what I need right now on my way to my way.

When I’m actually walking it's going to be different, I know.

But I'll take care of that, then ;-).

 

[sugargypsy]

We started with no training and averaged just over 20 km a day, maybe 21 or 22. We started with 22, 15, 15, 15 and then increased to 20ish per day for a while. By the time we were finishing the meseta, we were up to 25-30. But that brought on the bad blisters for my son, so we dropped down to 20-25 for the rest of the Camino.

It's very reassuring to read, that you and your son could improve from an average of 17 km up to 30 a day, then reduced to 20 to 25 km a day.

So there's hope for me, that I'll be able to improve from 12 -15 km up to 20 or 23 km a day. Hopefully without blisters.

Thanks a lot for your answer!

 

[Kiwi-family]

If you can afford the time (and money) you could plan on an average of 15km per day - then if you increase significantly you’d have the option to walk out to Muxia and Finisterre or even do the Ingles.

 

[JamesVT]

My average over the whole trip was 25kM per day including rest days. During the first week the distance covered was far less than this probably in the order of 15kM per day. As rest days are included in the average plus the slow start some days must have been 30kM plus towards the end. I did not walk Brierley stages but stopped when tired or I had arrived at an interesting place to stay. I was 60+, recovering from hospitalisation and had not walked much for years although I had walked long distances in my youth.

I live in a very flat area, few hills, so my problem was climbing but a shortened pace and plenty of stops to get the heart rate down to less than 150 BPM and it worked. Climbing also improved with time.

So short answer is that the ability to walk longer distances increases with the time you spend walking, the amount of gain will, of course, be individual.

There is no "average pilgrim distance" some do 5kM per day others, exceptionally, 35kM per day from the start most make it in the end.

If time is short you can bus parts of the camino or stop and come back later, it is better to do either of these rather than try to go too fast and injure yourself.

After the camino I had no recovery problems other than needing to walk and being restless when I could not. I had no injuries or blisters during the walk. I did and still do miss the simplicity and routine of the trail but nothing major.

My experience was individual, as will yours be, but I hope this is of some use.

This was very encouraging. Many thanks.

 

[Former member 49149]

Hi,

at the moment I'm trying to calculate how many days I'll need for the CF from SJPdP to SdC. My time budget is quite adjustable - my wallet is unfortunately not quite as flexible ;-) - but everything between 40 and 60 days is o.k. I would like to narrow it down a bit, so that I might already be able to book a return flight.

I am aware that the number of stages / required days - in addition to restdays or unplanned events - depends very much on the daily mileage that I'll be able to walk. At the moment the stages will probably be shorter than those of an average pilgrim, but hopefully I'll be able to built up stamina and walk longer stretches after a while.

Long preface, short question: I would therefore be interested in your experiences, whether you were able to walk longer stages after lets say 10 or 15 days or not. And, if your stages have become longer, could you tell me much longer they got in kilometers?

I know that one can't really compare one to another, it's sort of like looking into a crystal ball , nevertheless I'd be happy to hear about your experiences.

In addition, I'd be interested in something else: I have read in various posts from time to time in this forum that some pilgrims needed quite some time to recover after the Camino due to the unaccustomed activity. Have you made a similar experience or not really? Thanks in advance for any answers.

While I did not start from St Jean, when planning, and in doing, my Frances camino was based on an average daily 25km. It worked. I was 59, not the fittest, but had trained somewhat. We had banked a couple of days but did not use them, as rest days. Slow but sure. By the almost end, enough stamina had been built up to allow for extra distances to be able to find a bed 13 km in excess of average. it was one day at a time. No booking ahead except for final days in Santiago. Hope this is useful for you.

 

[GaryAus]

I thought the first days SJPP to Valcarlos, and then to Roncesvalles, only 14kms each day, were two of the hardest days of my life. But on the 2nd last day into Santiago, we did 35kms easily. It took 3 weeks for my feet to harden up, and for my body generally to get past the initial aches and pains. My first really long days were not until the Meseta where we did 35kms a day on 3 days after Burgos. It took 33 days of walking SJPP to Santiago, which felt just about right. We took 3 rest days on top on this, at Pamplona, Burgos and Leon. Buen Camino

 

[t2andreo]

Start slowly to build strength confidence and experience...

Finish slowly, because by then, you will NOT want it to end...

For the in between bits, do what works best for you.

Mr. Brierely set an arbitrary duration of 33 days for his famous / infamous guide. The basis for this was the number of years Jesus Christ is said to have live on earth. Over time, these stages have become almost carved in stone.

However, in my personal experience and observation, a nice, reasonable, mature pace would be about 42 days. Again, this is IMHO. There will be as many opinions as there are pilgrims.

If you have the time and wherewithal, this allows for ample extra 'rest days' at notable places like Logrono, Burgos, Leon, Astorga, Ponferrada, and perhaps even Sarria. Just avoid being at these places on weekends, unless you have pre-booked reservations.

This also allows time for spending an extra day or two at Santiago. I always advise pilgrims to do this. The destination city is like an onion. No matter how much time you spend there, you always learn more and see more. Too many pilgrims arrive and then want to leave Santiago de Compostela either the same day, or the very next morning. I respect those you must do this, but encourage all who can to linger another night or several. You will be glad you did.

I have been arriving there off Camino for six-years. This year will mark my seventh. Each time I spend 5 - 7 days after arrival just being in the historic and holy city, oozing with interesting stuff to see and do. By the time my departure day comes, I am well and truly depressed. I never want to leave.

In addition, I return for a month every July to spend a month working at the Pilgrim Office as a volunteer. This is the busiest time of the year. I get more out of working six days a week tha I invest. So it is a win-win.

Hope this helps.

 

[Rick of Rick and Peg]

Walking from the center to the top, I have to cover 250 height meters spread over 4 km, my goal is to be able to walk that at least twice in a row.

Here is your first day or two: (click chart for better picture and comments)

Elevation profiles of the tracks from St. Jean Pied de Port to Roncevalles

• Rick of Rick and Peg
• Feb 14, 2019
• 10
• sjpp to roncesvalles

If seen in a post click the chart to see a page with comments on the details.

 

[Yoyo]

I walked 38 days (averaging 21 km) and rested 2 days, in Pamplona and León. My longest walk was 27 km.
I kind of went through different stages:
For the first few days, all my muscles were sore after the up and down over the Pyrenees; I could hardly get back up after resting, and just walking down a flight of stairs seemed an impossible task.
Then I developed ugly blisters that accompanied me over many days and, although by then I felt strong enough for walking, my feet hurt badly with every step.
Towards the end of my camino, there was a kind of accumulated exhaustion from walking day after day after day.
So, all in all, I never got to a stage where it would have been a lot easier to walk significantly longer stages.
But that was me (female, mid-50s, reasonably fit). And despite all that "suffering" I had a wonderful time and can't wait to go back and do it all over again! (This time, hopefully, without the blister part!)
Good luck and buen camino to you!

 

[Delphinoula]

First day of the plain getting up at 200 I walked 15 km ,next day 34 km, finding out that was way to much, so about 20 km was right for me, but you have to find that out for yourself. In the end 30 km walking no slow all day was not to much.

 

[Deleted member 56069]

If you look after your feet and don't overdue it in the early days of your Camino, your feet will harden up after about ten days making longer days an option at that point. It is nice to have the option to walk a few longer days and stretch it out on a few days. Your pace all depends on the time you have available and where you want to end up.
Blowing up your feet in the early days is tough to overcome without rest days and can plague the rest of your Camino.
I have found no amount of training is really the same as the daily rigors of walking the Camino, not to say that training is not a wise move!
So plan shorter days at the beginning, longer days towards the end. Listen to your body, if things start to hurt or feel uncomfortable, stop and deal with it right away.
Generally by the time we finish, our feet are ready for doing one of those burning coal walks...

 

[tpmchugh]

My average over the whole trip was 25kM per day including rest days. During the first week the distance covered was far less than this probably in the order of 15kM per day. As rest days are included in the average plus the slow start some days must have been 30kM plus towards the end. I did not walk Brierley stages but stopped when tired or I had arrived at an interesting place to stay. I was 60+, recovering from hospitalisation and had not walked much for years although I had walked long distances in my youth.

I live in a very flat area, few hills, so my problem was climbing but a shortened pace and plenty of stops to get the heart rate down to less than 150 BPM and it worked. Climbing also improved with time.

So short answer is that the ability to walk longer distances increases with the time you spend walking, the amount of gain will, of course, be individual.

There is no "average pilgrim distance" some do 5kM per day others, exceptionally, 35kM per day from the start most make it in the end.

If time is short you can bus parts of the camino or stop and come back later, it is better to do either of these rather than try to go too fast and injure yourself.

After the camino I had no recovery problems other than needing to walk and being restless when I could not. I had no injuries or blisters during the walk. I did and still do miss the simplicity and routine of the trail but nothing major.

My experience was individual, as will yours be, but I hope this is of some use.

Hi,

at the moment I'm trying to calculate how many days I'll need for the CF from SJPdP to SdC. My time budget is quite adjustable - my wallet is unfortunately not quite as flexible ;-) - but everything between 40 and 60 days is o.k. I would like to narrow it down a bit, so that I might already be able to book a return flight.

I am aware that the number of stages / required days - in addition to restdays or unplanned events - depends very much on the daily mileage that I'll be able to walk. At the moment the stages will probably be shorter than those of an average pilgrim, but hopefully I'll be able to built up stamina and walk longer stretches after a while.

Long preface, short question: I would therefore be interested in your experiences, whether you were able to walk longer stages after lets say 10 or 15 days or not. And, if your stages have become longer, could you tell me much longer they got in kilometers?

I know that one can't really compare one to another, it's sort of like looking into a crystal ball , nevertheless I'd be happy to hear about your experiences.

In addition, I'd be interested in something else: I have read in various posts from time to time in this forum that some pilgrims needed quite some time to recover after the Camino due to the unaccustomed activity. Have you made a similar experience or not really? Thanks in advance for any answers.

Longest I walked was 25 km. Shortest was 8 from Saint Jean to Orisson. I never took rest days as such. Took a few short days of about 12 to 15 and finished before lunch. Had a good rest but still was moving forward. Of course my longest days were towards the end as fitness improved. Just thought. I had a shorter day, my last day from Monte do Gozo into Santiago so that I would be in early with time to get my compostela, drop my bag off in an albergue and get to noon Mass. Only recovery I needed was trying to figure out what to do with myself when I woke up each morning

 

[peckahad]

I am doing my 1st Camino beginning Sept 18 on my 77th birthday. Have reservations in Orisson then no plans until I get to Pamplona. Will chill for a day and then to Lograno 2 nights there . 2 nights in Burgos 2 nights in Leon 2 nights at Ponferrada and then several days in Santiago. Hopefully I can get there by Oct 31. Nothing reserved past Orisson. Have flights out of Madrid on Nov 15. Definitely some buffer time.

 

[Delphinoula]

Hi Dallas,
What’s in you water there in Texas, must be special. Sound you are going to have a blast. I wish you the best.

 

[peckahad]

Hi Dallas,
What’s in you water there in Texas, must be special. Sound you are going to have a blast. I wish you the best.

Looking forward to it. Been walking for several months up to 15 miles a day I know i am ready now but plan on being in good shape so at end of each day I can enjoy visiting, drinking, and eating with fellow travelers.

 

[Ralph Ayling]

Buen Camino pechad!