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Multiple Caminos...

Time of past OR future Camino
2019
Dear all,

I notice that many of you have done multiple Caminos...often the CF multiple times.

I was having a discussion about this with my wife, the other night. Her view (and this is before we have completed it for the first time) is that there are so many great long distance walks, why do the same one more than once?

My suggestion is that is different every time but she says that it would be impossible to beat the first time you complete the walk.

For those who have done the Camino a number of times, what makes you do it rather than go and do some other long distance paths? (I also get that some of you have done other long walks but what draws you back to the Camino?)

All the best,

Patrick
 
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Simples. Some of us regular pilgrims become addicted to the camino - I have walked the Frances (in parts several times, whole route 3 times. Camino Ingles 4 times) two trips a year since 2011.
It really is different each time: you meet different people, of course, you stay at different albergues, you eat different food, the weather is rarely the same, so it's a new experience every time.
Not everyone repeats the walk, for some once is enough.
For me, bring it on, walked Leon to SdC in April, start Bayonne (via Baztan, a new route for me) to SdC via Invierno, again a new route, in September. Sometimes I get home and say, "never again" - a few weeks later I'm planning the next time!! (much to my wife's amusement "I told you so", she says....)
Buen camino to you, and maybe the start of a long relationship with the journey.
 
I will be walking the Frances a second time this year. I really looked into doing the Portugues but in truth I had unfinished business on the CF and had to do it once more before any other.
 
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Hi @Patrick Hickmott

Good question and one I'm often asked by my rather bewildered friends.

For me there are three primary reasons;

  • I know roughly what I'm going to get on the Frances. I'm a sociable person so while for some the idea of walking in solitude with nature and having an albergue all to themselves might be bliss the loneliness of the long distance hiker is not for me. This combined with varied scenery and regular cities appeals to me.
  • It's a touchy subject for some I know but price is also a major factor. For what it costs to do a week on The West Highland Way here in the UK I could probably pay for three weeks of walking on the CF. So yes, it's a cheap holiday for me and as someone who isn't hugely wealthy that's valuable.
  • Thirdly because I've decided I need to walk in all four seasons. Spring and Summer were both surprisingly different both in terms of the countryside around me and the type of people I met, I have no doubt that Autumn and Winter will also have their own delights.
Once I've done the Winter Camino my next target is the Henro Michi in Japan and then different caminos in Europe but I'd be surprised if I didn't return to the Frances one day.
 
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NB: I was originally going to write ‘women’ and ‘wife’ instead of ‘music’ and ‘song’ but remembered a while ago my wife has suggested she would be interested in walking a different Camino............ :oops:
 
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When we walked our first Camino I couldn't believe that people would be mad enough to put themselves through it again, let along multiple times. But somewhere along the way we were infected with the dreaded walking sickness and have boldly gone on a number of different routes.

Having tramped in NZ for years, we liked the infrastructure on European routes, here you have to carry everything and be fairly self sufficient. While our kids thought we were legendary criss-crossing the Iberian peninsular, once they had done their first Camino our cover was blown as they realised we were walking between bars. Still it's no cake walk.

If you are after short stages and plenty of accomdation options then stick with the CF, you can always do it in stages or rewalk you favourite bits. I am not really one for rewalking the same route time and time again and have really enjoyed the challenge of some of the more isolated routes. But each to there own.
 
I have done 5 different caminos. They all have value and special meaning. I personally enjoy walking different Caminos. If you walk one Camino 5 times you will have a different experience each time. I believe walking 5 different Caminos 1 time will add greatly to your experience in ways that you do not know when you take your first step. It is difficult to put into words but the pilgrims who walk Caminos other than the CF in some ways come from a different mindset or place. It is not a judgement of good or bad or better or worse it just feels a little different to me. The challenges, obstacles and environment also change and I think it helps, at least for me to learn just a little more about myself. I will be walking the CF (third time) this November and I am anxious to see if the same Camino that I do love will feel much the same or if and how it may be different.
 
When I did the Camino Frances a second time there were a few things driving my choice: I wanted to do a better job of it (more "purist") than I did the first time. I wanted to walk it with my son. I wanted to walk the same route with him that I had covered the first time. (That's why we started in Roncesvalles rather than SJPP. When I walked it the first time I was told that's where it started. We did carry on to Finisterre, though, which I didn't do in 1989.)

When I went back a few years later, I walked a different route. I didn't have as much time for walking and I wanted to experience something different. I have lots of Caminios left in my future (I hope). I plan on walking several other routes. But I also plan on walking the Camino Frances again. I like it. As Jozero says, there's lots of great music in the world but that doesn't mean you can't listen to a song that you love again rather than always listening to a new song that you might also love. Similarly, I love trying new foods but there are some dishes I find myself returning to again and again. I don't see why it should be different for Caminos.
 
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Dear all,

I notice that many of you have done multiple Caminos...often the CF multiple times.

I was having a discussion about this with my wife, the other night. Her view (and this is before we have completed it for the first time) is that there are so many great long distance walks, why do the same one more than once?

My suggestion is that is different every time but she says that it would be impossible to beat the first time you complete the walk.

For those who have done the Camino a number of times, what makes you do it rather than go and do some other long distance paths? (I also get that some of you have done other long walks but what draws you back to the Camino?)

All the best,

Patrick
I think it is the simplicity of the experience that calls us back. All I need to do each day is get up and walk, find some food and a bed.
 
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I have walked the Camino Frances multiple times. I have also walked other routes and gone to a lot of other locales when traveling. I guess simply put, and I've said it before, walking the Frances makes me happy. I am happy everyday I walk it, every time I walk it. I do not tire of it. I will admit when I walk it, I stay low key I have walked it before. I prefer to see and hear other people who are walking it for the first time talk about it.
Yes, the first time I walked the Frances was the most memorable. Not the best, but the most memorable for so many reasons.
 
Dear all,rent

I notice that many of you have done multiple Caminos...often the CF multiple times.

I was having a discussion about this with my wife, the other night. Her view (and this is before we have completed it for the first time) is that there are so many great long distance walks, why do the same one more than once?

My suggestion is that is different every time but she says that it would be impossible to beat the first time you complete the walk.

For those who have done the Camino a number of times, what makes you do it rather than go and do some other long distance paths? (I also get that some of you have done other long walks but what draws you back to the Camino?)

All the best,

Patrick
We all walk a Camino for different reasons. For me, it is a spiritual journey, which is why the traditional pilgrimage was established. Each person has to be honest with themselves as to their motivation for walking any particular Camino. I walk the Camino Frances every 3 years and it is spiritually uplifting for me, but that is not true for a large percentage of pilgrims.
 
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