New walker planning on heading off in September

[Pilgrim Drew]

Hey guys another new pilgrim here. I have been watching this forum for about a month now, since I first found out about the Camino de Santiago. I have finally decided to join up and get involved. I am finding that my thirst for all things about the Camino is insatiable. Since accidentally stumbling upon the existence of the Camino I have bought and read Hape Kerkeling's book (Which was great) and got my hands on a copy of The Way (Not so great).

So a bit about me. I am a 22 year old third year student from England. I am studying photography and all my work due in 20 days, I cant wait to finish. I have wanted to go travelling once I graduated for some time but apart from wanting to visit China and America I have been stuck for ideas. The Camino de Santiago sounds perfect for me, it sounds like a fantastic adventure. I have lived with my parents for all my 22 years, never really having any independence and so this is my time to truly be alone. To reflect on the years I have spent in education and hopefully come up with some sort of plan for my future. I am stupidly excited, each day I check on here for new threads. I would go now if I could but I have all my work to do first, then a family holiday and then my birthday on 16th September, so I hope to leave three days later on 19th September. I have no time limit, so I will see what happens when I am there.

I find myself to be very worried about getting to St Jean as my French is nonexistent. I am planning on getting a train from Birmingham to Liverpool street, then another to London Stansted, a flight to Biarritz, the bus to Bayonne and then the train to St Jean. I just hope that I am able to make my way through France okay speaking only English, though I may get a French phrase book and then discard it afterwards.

I have walked the Cotswold Way in England with my father when I was a lot younger and done a few other walks, but the last I did was a hike up Ben Nevis with a backpack, camping on the top and back down but that was about seven years ago. So I do have some experience with hiking, although I haven't done any for a good few years.

So that is me, I probably wont post much apart from asking a few questions as I don't really have any knowledge to share. I have learnt a great deal already from this forum, copying bits and saving them in a word document. I have my packing list made up and the pieces of equipment which I need to buy. First thing I have bought was an awesome hat :lol: Talk about priorities!

Anyway, sorry about the huge introduction! Maybe see some of you on the Camino in September.

 

[fraluchi]

Just go for it, you'll manage. Sign language will get you a long way and you'll meet quite a few fellow pilgrims on The Way. Many are "beginners" but usually learn pretty fast.
Ultreya! :lol:

 

[Caminando]

Hi Brummie,

As a student, you'll find the bus to Stanstead much cheaper, if you wish. For that, go to Victoria coach station , Buckingham Palace road (oh the shame of the names!), nearest tube, Victoria (rail station). A bus from Birmingham will end up in Victoria anyway, I believe. You might care to check if you can get off nearer Stanstead than go into London.

If I were you, I'd get that French phrase book and be familiar with it, however hesitant your use of it; it's a courtesy to the French that English isn't inflicted on them, and they will respond to your efforts, sometimes in English. Ditto Spain.

I'm sure you'll have a great time - and the hat purchase is a great symbolic start in preparation for your walk!

Tell us how it was some day.....
Buen camino

 

[Pilgrim Drew]

Just thought that I would post a quick update. I am on here everyday reading all the new posts, not a day goes by where I don't think of my impending adventure. I have all of my equipment, though I keep adding little things here and there. I will post my pack contents a few days before I go to see what you guys think, if that is ok with you of course!

So I have started my training and decided to test my new boots with a walk up Scafell Pike, the highest peak in England. Although only a few miles or so up and down it is quite a climb. We went up the more difficult route and in some parts found ourselves (my dad accompanied me, it was his idea to do it) scrambling along cliff edges and cliff faces, it was a great adventure. I was taken aback by my thoughts during the dodgiest parts where a slight slip would have seen me fall to my certain death, I wasn't thinking "Oh god I have to be careful here as I don't want to die" but "Gotta be careful here, I can't die until I have done my Camino!" Crazy. I also find myself increasingly worried about coming down with an illness or injuring myself randomly (toe or foot) which may make my Camino impossible.

So the hike was great, tough work as it was pretty steep but the boots were fantastic. No blisters and they were very comfortable and sturdy despite my foot being twisted in all directions as I scrambled over rocks. I know the boots will not be put through this on the Camino but it is great to know what they are capable of.

Today I started my more regular training, I was going to use the opening week of the Camino as my training but I have decided doing a little here will help. So the plan is to walk ten miles three times a week for a month, from my house into town. I measured it today with a running GPS and it is 4 miles to the town so I added an extra mile by circling the outskirts of the town and coming to a bench overlooking a river at 5 miles. So I had a break and then walked back home, had a cold shower and some lunch. Again my boots are fantastic, my 1000 mile socks likewise, t-shirt and trousers breathable and my technical boxer shorts dry the sweat quickly and stop rubbing. I am very happy with my equipment so far.

I have not used my backpack yet (Osprey Exos 46) and I doubt I will either, as I wouldn't be able to take the heckling as I walked into town with a backpack on! Very excited to using it though, it looks like a fantastic bag.

The route is great as it is made up of several ascents and descents, some quite steep which is great though quite tiring. I did it at a faster speed than I intend to walk the Camino as I am hoping to build up my fitness to lessen the shock to the system during the first few weeks.

So I am rambling a bit now, as usual! Currently reading 'Call of the Camino' which is good for the historical background to the Camino but I find the author fails to draw the reader into their adventure like Hape Kerkeling's book. Another has just arrived too called 'Field of Stars' which I cannot wait to get stuck into.

Sorry for the long read, nothing much interesting here either but thank you for reading!

 

[Deleted member 3000]

I have all of my equipment, though I keep adding little things here and there. I will post my pack contents a few days before I go to see what you guys think, if that is ok with you of course!

I usually have a 20-24 pound pack before water and food. A test packing last night has it down to 11.8 pounds for the end of August! I keep finding things I can leave behind...

 

[methodist.pilgrim.98]

Hi Drew.

A belated welcome from another UK'er.

Seems like you are doing the rights things.

If you choose to go by bus then see if your bus stops at Golders Green. The Stanstead bus often (if not always) also stops there and you might get a good connection. Not going from/to GG and Victoria saves well over an hour. Make sure your Tamworth/Birmingham driver knows you want to get off at GG and make sure your ticket ends there and not at Victoria, otherwise they might take a different route into the city. GG has plenty of shops where you can get stuff to eat and drink. I hope that makes sense.

To my shame I speak no French but I got to SJPP via Stanstead as are you doing with no problems at all.

When you buy your euros make sure you get plenty of change to pay the Biarritz bus driver (and others).

In France you need to watch your camera. I had mine stolen at Bayonne station as I was returning home and I gather it can be a bit of problem.

If you get the chance I recommend Katherine Lack's Cockershell Pilgrim which gives insights into the medieval pilgrimage. If you can get to Worcester cheaply and easily you could have a day trip and metaphorically start your journey there. I did that in 2010. His resting place is marked by a tablet.

Have you joined CSJ, ordered your credential through them (free apart from postage) and bought their Camino Francés guide? The guide book starts thick but gets lighter as you throw the pages away once you no longer need them.

This forum is full of people bursting with ideas and information and we are very good at answering specific questions. The advice might be contradictory because the Camino is an art not a science.

As you look to the future, it is worth saying that 785km (if you go to Finnisterre as well) in one, long walk will look impressive on your CV.

Your enthusiasm fizzes through your posts and we look forward to hearing from you.

 

[Sojourner47]

Drew - just a thought, but National Express will take you from Birmingham to Luton Airport, then Easyjet fly to Bordeaux (£21-99 + the usual add ons) then train from Bordeaux to SJPDP..
Might be a more straightforward (and possibly cheaper) way of getting there. It will avoid going to London/changing etc.
Buen camino, whichever way you do it...

 

[PadreQ]

Drew,

I am new to the Camino also - I'll be heading out on the 7th or 8th from St. Jean - so we may not cross paths - We have the same pack. I had mine on this morning for the first time for 5 miles up and down some Texas hills. I'm glad I have a month to train before I head out. I've been doing the thrice weekly walk for a month now with just a camelback on - it is time to get used to the weight of the pack. After this morning, I'm glad I am working it this way - I'll need it, but then I'm a good bit older than you - 52.

If you got the large frame Exos 46, it will actually hold 49 liters of stuff and empty it is a pound lighter than the Atmos 50. Enjoy!

blessings,

Chris +

 

[ksam]

Reading blogs of new Pilgrims is always fun. It's such a joy to see the anticipation, the excitement, the nerves!! Not like mine was all that long ago! Padre & Drew...looking forward to hearing about your adventures,

Bless you both & Buen Camino, Karin

PS. Falcon is so incredibly right...whittle it down...you really need so incredibly little!

 

[wdbillingsley]

Be careful in the Texas heat...and don't try to fill the pack up.

Weyland (living in Georgia but forever a Texan)

Drew,

I am new to the Camino also - I'll be heading out on the 7th or 8th from St. Jean - so we may not cross paths - We have the same pack. I had mine on this morning for the first time for 5 miles up and down some Texas hills. I'm glad I have a month to train before I head out. I've been doing the thrice weekly walk for a month now with just a camelback on - it is time to get used to the weight of the pack. After this morning, I'm glad I am working it this way - I'll need it, but then I'm a good bit older than you - 52.

If you got the large frame Exos 46, it will actually hold 49 liters of stuff and empty it is a pound lighter than the Atmos 50. Enjoy!

blessings,

Chris +

 

[Deleted member 3000]

Next, the pack, sleep sack, and Tyvek sheet go into the permethrin wash. It adds no weight, and keeps the Chinches de Camas from hitchhiking with me. The spray-on application works, too, but I have a big bottle of concentrate, so I am going to saturate these three items for the high season for bed bugs. I'll have a very small bottle of DEET spray, in case I think I need it, and my hat with a drop down bug net for keeping the gnats out of my nose and eyes.

 

[Lydia Gillen]

Hi Drew,
Just a line to wish you Buen Camino from Ireland.
How I envy you your youth and fitness and energy.
If you have time, get Spanish language C.D.s from public library and listen as you do all the things we do each day that don't require too much brain power. A little knowledge of Spanish is no burden to bear, but will greatly enrich your Camino in so many ways.

Looking forward to hearing how you get on.
Buen Camino

 

[Anniesantiago]

Next, the pack, sleep sack, and Tyvek sheet go into the permethrin wash. It adds no weight, and keeps the Chinches de Camas from hitchhiking with me. The spray-on application works, too, but I have a big bottle of concentrate, so I am going to saturate these three items for the high season for bed bugs. I'll have a very small bottle of DEET spray, in case I think I need it, and my hat with a drop down bug net for keeping the gnats out of my nose and eyes.

Falcon, when you put these items into the "wash," and they dry, can you smell the permethrin?
In the permethrin sheets I've found at REI, the scent is very strong, and I can't bear it.

 

[Pilgrim Drew]

A month or so till my Camino and I have had a bit of bad luck, which is threatening my Camino. Basically I have a sebaceous cyst on my upper back, right on the shoulder blade. I have had it for months, about the size of a 5p coin and suddenly it has erupted to just over the size of a golf ball. It is very painful and sore.

I visited the doctors and they have put me on antibiotics. I am hoping these work and I can get some more to take with me in case it erupts whilst on my Camino. I think due to the time frame having it removed is out of the question as I am guessing there will be a waiting list and I am not sure it will heal in time.

I am very upset. I would be unable to walk with a backpack due to the location of the cyst and how sore it is. I am on a weeks course of antibiotics so I will see how they go, I am also planning on visiting the doctor again Monday to discuss the possibilities of having it removed due to my Camino.

Quite worried. Fingers crossed it will sort itself out.

 

[grilly]

Hoping it all turns out the way you want it to be.
Crossing my fingers for you.

 

[jujuaway]

i'm thinking of you Drew.

i'm leaving st j on 6th September and have been following your posts and i had hoped we might pass each other along the way. I'm 54 years old and have a 17 year old son.

what ever happens it will be perfect.

years ago (30 years to be exact )i was headed for world tour and i ended up getting very sick. Instead of being away for 1 year i was home again after 5 weeks. I was then sick for 5 years (chronic fatigue). i ended up having an inner journey that is still resonating with me today. In the mean while i had sold my house, said good bye to everyone and put the dog in storage. Life was never the same again!!

take care my dear, i hope you are able to get onto the path and proceed as you planned, regards juju

 

[Tia Valeria]

A month or so till my Camino and I have had a bit of bad luck, which is threatening my Camino. Basically I have a sebaceous cyst on my upper back,............... I think due to the time frame having it removed is out of the question as I am guessing there will be a waiting list and I am not sure it will heal in time.
..............
Quite worried. Fingers crossed it will sort itself out.

I am so sorry for you. I have had these on my head. I only had to wait a short while each time for their removal but it takes up to 10 days before the stitches can be removed and at least as long again before the wound site would be able to cope with daily rubbing by straps. My sunhat rubbed on the site of one last year, done 2 weeks before the Camino, even though it did no harm and I could move my hat off it. Not an easy option with a pack.

Hopefully the antibiotics will take it down sufficiently for you to make a 'corn-plaster' style pad to surround it and allow you to walk as planned. If you have to have it removed urgently again maybe really good padding would work.
Best wishes whatever happens

 

[andy.d]

Drew,

I hope things work out for you. When are you going to have to make a decision on whether you can do it or not? When I walked the Levante a couple of years ago I had to postpone starting for 6 months when a family member died. This was all extremely difficult, but was definitely the right thing to do. If you can't do it now, the Camino will still be there for you when you are ready.

Thinking of you,

Andy

 

[methodist.pilgrim.98]

Drew, feeling for you. I had to postpone my May 2008 Camino trip due to ill health. I had planned to set out on the 10th anniversary of my first pilgrimage and to start walking 10 years to the day when I first set out from SJPP. The frustration nearly killed me and drove my wife up the wall.

The doctor had bluntly told me not to go and I did not want to find that my travel insurance would wash their hands of me if I had to be brought home by air ambulance.

If you spend money getting to Spain and have to abandon after a couple of days it is a lot of money wasted.

My 2010 pilgrimage should have happened in May, but it took me till December before I could finally get and then it was a much curtailed walk.

You have to respect the needs and problems of your body.

If your shoulder is not right do not risk it. You'll be gutted but as Andy says the Camino has been there since 813AD, it is not going to go away.

In the mean time keep us posted; we are people you know where you are coming from.

 

[mmm042]

It might be possible for your doctor to drain it in his office, then apply some kind of tight bandage that lessens the likelihood it will refill. I had that done successfully with a cyst on my finger, although it wasn't as large as yours, nd I wasn't trying to carry a backpack on it!

Best wishes.

Melanie

 

[Lydia Gillen]

Hi Drew,

So sorry to hear about your cyst. I can well imagine how frustrated you are. But as someone else has said the Camino will be there waiting for you if you cannot make it this September. Maybe coping with this dissapointment is the 'Camino ' you have to make this year.
However I do hope that you will get going and that all will go well for you

kind regards,
Lydia

 

[Pilgrim Drew]

Thank you all for your lovely replies. Helps a lot when I am this frustrated, but I have always maintained that everything happens for a reason. So far it has shrunk a little bit which I guess is good news. I am going to call the doctors tomorrow and try and get in ASAP, not sure what my options are as time isn't exactly on my side.

I am hoping they could drain it or something and give me some antibiotics to take with me just in case. Not sure I have time to have it properly removed and have time for it to heal. I will keep you all updated.

Thank you again, for your kind posts.

 

[andy.d]

How are you doing Drew?

 

[Pilgrim Drew]

Hey Andy,

Things are actually starting to look a lot better. After my course of Antibiotics the cyst has gone down, still painful if I put a lot of pressure on it but nowhere near as sore as it was.

I tried my backpack too and it doesn't touch the cyst at all so even if it comes back up it would not be pressing on it, so it should be bearable. The plan is to now return to the doctors and ask if they would give me a course of Antibiotics to take with me on the Camino, possibly a long shot but worth a try. Then if it does flare up again whilst I am walking, I can quickly tackle the problem.

Very happy that it looks as if my Camino shall be going ahead as planned. Thank you all for your kind words. I am very relieved.

 

[andy.d]

That's excellent news Drew. Definitely a good idea to take the antibiotics with you. It's also worth remembering that farmacias in Spain sell medicines that you can only get on prescription in the UK and that your European Health Card ensures you can use the excellent Spanish Health System in the same way as we use the NHS.

Andy

 

[skilsaw]

I had a problem on the Camino in April 2010. Went to a pharmacy first, but their solution did not work. Saw a Dr. a week later and he gave me a prescription for something stronger. It worked fine... continued on my way to Santiago...

I didn't speak enough spanish to explain my problem, and the Dr. didn't speak English. He whipped out a laptop computer and used an translator program... He'd enter his Spanish words and they would be translated to English. I'd enter an English reply, and it would be translated to Spanish. Excellent system!

When I offered him payment, he declined, but asked that I pray for him in Santiago. A common experience for pilgrims receiving help, I understand.

Buen Camino.
David, Victoria, Canada

 

[annakappa]

I tried my backpack too and it doesn't touch the cyst at all so even if it comes back up it would not be pressing on it, so it should be bearable. .

Hello Drew, Why don't you find a pair of light weight foam shoulder pads to put between you and your pack straps? I always take them with me - and use them (they are at least 20 years old and, as they are not any more in fashion, I don't know where you will find them)! I can assure they really relieve any eventual rubbing of the straps on your shoulder! Anne

 

[methodist.pilgrim.98]

Hi Drew,

I'd buy from a pharmacy both mefix tape and mepore pads. Both are used on patients with burns. The glue on the tape is like a post it. It pulls off easily but will usually stay in place until pulled.

Before setting out walking get another pilgrim to put the pad over the cyst as additional protection. Once you stop walking whip it off so that it gets chance to breath. If the weather is warm enough I'd let fresh air get to it if you can. Keep a close eye on the cyst and do not ignore it if it appears to be getting worse. Remember that Spain has both private and public hospitals so check which one you are attending as you might have to pay at the private. The state ones might have a PAC clinic; this is the one you want as it is there that they treat EC citizens.

Anna's suggestion of a pad is a good one. Shops that sell material to make dresses usually sell ladies shoulder pads. Birmingham is bound to have several. Check on the Internet and phone first so you don't have a wasted journey. They are cheap. Try one out and see how you get on, but do it before you hit the Camino.

 

[camino-david]

Due to a shoulder reconstruction I use car seatbelt covers on my harness. Not sure what countries sell them, but in Australia we can buy them made from sheeps hide complete with the fleece. They have velcro fastenings so are easy to put on and take off any time, and are easy to wash. Cost in Asutralia is about AUD$ 25.00 per pair (18 euros)

 

[Pilgrim Drew]

Thank you all for the replies. I have just got back from a two week holiday in Spain and the cyst flared up again, I went to the pharmacy and they gave me (over the counter) antibiotics. They worked a treat so I will be taking the empty box with me on the Camino incase it flares up again.

So I am doing all my final preparations and tomorrow I head to London to stay in a hotel before I head off on Monday. I have made my blog (I am sure there was a place to post blogs around here but I can't find it) so if any of you are interested in following my journey then you can do so from here: http://drewgoeswalkabout.blogspot.com/

I just want to thank you all from the bottom of my heart for all of the help and information you have given me. I have trawled these forums for every bit of information and I feel a lot more prepared for it.