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litter on the Camino?

Zazenzone

New Member
Time of past OR future Camino
The Way is the Destination
Hi everyone

I have a question about litter on the Camino?

So I've walked the Camino Frances twice now and on the pass from Saint Jean de Port to Roncesvalles l remember a lot of litter in bins, near a small shelter which had a lot of rubbish inside also?

If anyone can let me know, about that part in particular of other parts you remember etc?

As I'm planning a Green Camino 💚

Thanks

Buen Camino
 
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I have a question about litter on the Camino?

So I've walked the Camino Frances twice now and on the pass from Saint Jean de Port to Roncesvalles l remember a lot of litter in bins, near a small shelter which had a lot of rubbish inside also?

If anyone can let me know, about that part in particular of other parts you remember etc?

As I'm planning a Green Camino 💚
I am not sure what your question is.
Is there litter on the Camino? Yes, lots of it.

Do you want us to identify the many places we have seen litter so you can avoid those places?
 
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I'm a he and lm asking mainly about the pass between France and Spain? As it was very noticeable bins over filled etc.

Yes and also if there are any other places, I'm going to do a clean up and recycle the rubbish Green Camino!
 
Fwiw, I thought there was significantly less litter on CF this Sept/Oct than I did during Sept/Oct 2017, especially toilet paper. I was pleasantly surprised.
 
Hi everyone

I have a question about litter on the Camino?

So I've walked the Camino Frances twice now and on the pass from Saint Jean de Port to Roncesvalles l remember a lot of litter in bins, near a small shelter which had a lot of rubbish inside also?

If anyone can let me know, about that part in particular of other parts you remember etc?

As I'm planning a Green Camino 💚

Thanks

Buen Camino
I always carry a roll of "Doggie Poop Bags" with me and pick up trash as I go. Unfortunately I have to carry several rolls due to the amount of litter that I encounter.
 
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Consider obtaining something like this to bring with you to pick up litter along your camino.


I regularly supply them to friends living along the camino or in Santiago, to loan to pilgrims who want to clean up the camino as they walk. This one is from the Spanish amazon site.

It saves a LOT of bending over. Plus, folding in half, it can easily be carried in your mochila side pocket.

Hope this helps.
 
Consider obtaining something like this to bring with you to pick up litter along your camino.


I regularly supply them to friends living along the camino or in Santiago, to loan to pilgrims who want to clean up the camino as they walk. This one is from the Spanish amazon site.

It saves a LOT of bending over. Plus, folding in half, it can easily be carried in your mochila side pocket.

Hope this helps.
Thank you @t2andreo. I’ve been looking out for something like this for a very long time. However, if I’m reading this correctly, this site currently does not ship this item to Canada where I live, and picking it up in Santiago would not work for me. Hopefully there will be more discussion about this and how one might easily access this item further back along the camino.

Thank you so much. 🙏😊
 
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.
Fwiw, I thought there was significantly less litter on CF this Sept/Oct than I did during Sept/Oct 2017, especially toilet paper. I was pleasantly surprised.
I thought the same as well. My first Camino in 2016 I was appalled but this year it seems to be much less.
 
I quoted availability form the Spanish Amazon site because the OP was from Santiago de Compostela. However, you can find the same items on any Amazon site.

Here is a similar item on the Canadian site:


Try this or something similar. I plan to take one this coming April - May. They are VERY lightweight. When you get to Santiago, donate it at Pilgrim House on Rua Nova... They will recycle it if still useable.

You can also find 2-packs for a cheaper price per unit.

Regardless of what country you are in, go to your local Amazon site and query "picker grabber folding..." That should bring up a selection of these and other handy items.

I keep one around the house to use to get stuff from my top kitchen cabinets.

Hope this helps.
 
I ordered stuff from Amazon( I lost the charging cable for a TomTom watch) whilst on the Camino, I arranged to collect it from a camera store in Burgos. As I don't speak a word of Spanish I was super impressed that I navigated Amazon.es. I have just realised that I am still paying Amazon prime subscription 6 months later.
 
The 2024 Camino guides will be coming out little by little. Here is a collection of the ones that are out so far.
I quoted availability form the Spanish Amazon site because the OP was from Santiago de Compostela. However, you can find the same items on any Amazon site.

Here is a similar item on the Canadian site:


Try this or something similar. I plan to take one this coming April - May. They are VERY lightweight. When you get to Santiago, donate it at Pilgrim House on Rua Nova... They will recycle it if still useable.

You can also find 2-packs for a cheaper price per unit.

Regardless of what country you are in, go to your local Amazon site and query "picker grabber folding..." That should bring up a selection of these and other handy items.

I keep one around the house to use to get stuff from my top kitchen cabinets.

Hope this helps.
Lol. I put that Very item on my wish list this morning. Will be getting that one and bring it with me this spring also. This forum as a collective is a powerful community for change and betterment of the Camino.
 
I figure that if no more than one of 20 every pilgrims carried one of these pick-up tings, there would be ZERO trash on the Camino.

It’s a thought....
 
I might walk with my eyes closed but when I walked the CF in May I saw very little rubbish and no toilet paper! I thought that it was a credit to all apart from those that scrawled over the signs.
 
The 2024 Camino guides will be coming out little by little. Here is a collection of the ones that are out so far.
I might walk with my eyes closed but when I walked the CF in May I saw very little rubbish and no toilet paper! I thought that it was a credit to all apart from those that scrawled over the signs.
We walked the Camino in 2015 and were shocked and appalled by the amount of garbage, plastic and human excrement along the paths and occasionally right on it. I recall many times that we sat down on a rock for a rest/snack to find a pile of human feces and used toilet paper behind them. I am pleased to hear that it is getting better.

Although it is great to see people bringing bags and tools to pick up garbage, the best we can hope for is for people to stop thinking that the Spanish (and other) countryside is their personal garbage and toilet. Most people would not think it’s okay to use their yards as a toilet so why the back yards of Spanish people who graciously allow us to walk through their country.

When I read about pilgrim etiquette here, my first though always goes to basic hygiene and garbage disposal. Let’s stop thinking leaving our sh*t on the Camino.
 
The first edition came out in 2003 and has become the go-to-guide for many pilgrims over the years. It is shipping with a Pilgrim Passport (Credential) from the cathedral in Santiago de Compostela.
Yes l do agree, thank you for your response, l also feel? The local authorities could do more. My idea is to make pilgrims more aware of litter and especially, when you can carry it, to a bin! Rather than just through it without a thought to the environment. And any respect to walking a Camino at all!

Thanks again
 

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