LIVE from the Camino Mud

[Deleted member 3000]

Having slogged through France for a month, and now Spain, I would like to provide some information to those who are new to a pilgrimage.

Today I walked on hard pack adobe, sometimes with fresh boot prints in dust.

They were next to boot prints an inch deep from the sodden earth two weeks ago from weeks of rain (on the Camino Aragones).

The volcanic ash that is Spain, typically in red or grey, is hard trail when it is dry, and slippery mud when it is wet.

Expect good footing to go bad when it rains for a few days, and don't be afraid to road walk in bad conditions. A woman broke her leg going into Oloron-Ste. Marie two weeks ago when she slipped on the mud. Local advice had been to road walk, and she ignored it to be authentic.

 

[Terrri]

To add to your advice, when road walking isn't possible, we discovered it was best to not fight the mud. When we tried to walk the edge of the mud or find an easier route, not only did it take a lot longer, but it also was usually slipperier and muddier due to so many people doing the same. When we just slogged straight thru the middle it was usually not as muddy as we thought and progress was also easier. Walking sticks are great for testing the ground as well. When we went over the napoleon route there were paths thick with leaves, some spots were okay and other hid the fact that there was tons of water underneath.

We didn't fall but I could imagine that some people have probably lightly pulled muscles while struggling to regain their balance from a potential fall.