My Camino
So, after over a month away from home indulging myself on this journey, it’s finally over. In stats it meant travelling a journey of 500 miles, walking an average of 16 miles a day, burning an average of 4000 calories per day, and climbing over 13000 metres during the walk. It’s certainly a long walk, with a couple of pretty challenging days, day 1 in particularly, but it’s absolutely achievable by most people of reasonable fitness, though only 25% of people starting where I did manage to make it all the way through to the end, and blisters and injuries can always intervene. But if anyone was thinking I would like to do it, but not sure I can, you absolutely can. You just need to free the time up to do it.
Setting aside the practicalities of doing the walk and the stats of the walk, what are my final reflections and what do I take away from this experience?
For over a month I’ve thought of little else but the walk, the day I’m on, and have absolutely lived in the moment. For clearing your mind it’s hard to beat.
I haven’t come back with any life changing lightbulb moments but I wasn’t looking for them, I’m happy with where my life is, but I know for many people it does provide that opportunity.
For me my Camino was immersing myself in a new experience, pushing myself, seeing new places, walking through awesome landscapes, living in a different culture, but above all, meeting new people with new perspectives and stories I’ve never heard before. That will be my lasting memory of this trip.
People warned me that you experience a strange and powerful emotion at the end of this walk, and I get it, you do. Despite all the joy of looking forward to seeing my family and friends again back in the UK , I’m sad it’s now over. Along the walk, I met people who had done this walk multi times, and right up until the last week, I kept asking why you would want to do that? I now know why. I think I will be back.