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Leaving walking sticks in Santiago

CatPhillips

Active Member
Donating Member
Time of past OR future Camino
Camino primitivo April 24
I am in Santiago and will be leaving tomorrow for home in the United States. I have a pair of walking sticks that I can’t take with me. The Pilgrim House is closed, I realized today, so I don’t have a good plan for how to re-home my sticks. Any suggestions?
 
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Or maybe do a pm to @SYates from Egeria House?

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Egeria House has moved, for the winter! See updates below, new location, same help for pilgrims but – Please contact me before showing up before the door as I might not always be at home! Con…
egeria.house

She might have good use for it or deliver them later this week to Pilgrim House.
 
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Hi, there used to be a container for left poles in the inner yard of rhe Pilgrim reception office, rua das Carretas. Someone who needs them will find them there.
 
What happens to those "donated" treking poles left at the Pilgrims Office?
 
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The best of the donated walking sticks (brand names, good quality, lightweight) usually find their way to the Pilgrim House's donativo stash. Pre-COVID, they were hosting the best donativo collection of surplus-to-use items in Santiago. There is no formal agreement. It just happens.

The wholly wooden walking sticks are collected periodically by a local charity. They remove any metal tips, then cut the sticks into short lengths. There are actually low income folks in and around Santiago who cook or heat with wood. These sticks are ideal as kindling. So, these disposed wooden waling staffs are repurposed to good use.

Metal walking sticks that are of lower quality were customarily sent to recycling on a regular basis.

For a while, a few years back (Pre-COVID) a local art foundation was collecting hiking poles of all types to use as part of an art installation at the Ciudad de Cultura. That's the modern building on the hill outside the ring road, to the south east of the old town. I have not seen it - but it's considered "art."

Hope this helps.

Tom
 
Ah Tom, cheers for the explanation. Good to hear about the recycling of the wooden sticks. Especially in these times where energy costs are so freakishly high.
 
It must be sad saying goodbye to old and trusted friends. Working in the Pilgrim Office in '18 I saw a young Japanese pilgrim place his rather expensive looking poles on the pile outside, bow deeply and walk away with just the one sad look over his shoulder.
 
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SabineP said:
Ah Tom, cheers for the explanation. Good to hear about the recycling of the wooden sticks. Especially in these times where energy costs are so freakishly high.
Click to expand...
They have been providing these kindling sticks to local folks since at least 2016 that I know of. I do not know if COVID has affected this practice.

Hope this helps.

Tom
 
I live in Santiago and I’ll gladly take People’s poles and put Them to good use with other pilgrims.
I Can be contacted on Messenger JT Pedersen or Instagram thedanishvikingpilgrim
 
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