Second thoughts on completing del Norte

[JoroAtanasof]

Hi pilgrims , last year i had some spare days and i walked from Irun to Santander , so my plan for this year was to start in Bilbao and walk to Santiago in 24 days . It turned out that i can squeeze 4 more days and take 30 days of paid leave so it makes it 28 days of walking if i want to walk ..... So I thought that I could start in Garetaia or Deba and make more friends (yes I enjoy the social part of camino ). I think it is quite doable. I am prepared mentally and physically and I have all the lightweight equipment that I need . The problem is that I am catching myself daydreaming/planning to complete AGAIN Camino Franses ... Why is this route pulling me all over again ? I completed it 3 times already, once from SJPP and 2 times starting from Pamplona and I can say that every time it was special . Am I in the comfort zone of completing CF all over again instead of walking the unknown ? Do you felt the same or do you had the same impulse ? I walked from Porto 3 times and i was ok in 2021 i walked the Primitivo and it was really special because of the scenery and the people that i have met , nevertheless when i walked del Norte being surrounded by majority of the people who just like me were walking Camino for the second + time i thought- well this is the real camino , this is the way i wanted it to be . So oldtimers ... Can you share some wisdom with me please

 

[Antnix1]

Start by asking yourself what your motivations are for doing the pilgrimage.

On the Frances if can be quite giddy with first-timers, people from all over the world, cañas and cafe lattes (I'm feeling too argumentative to say cafe con leche) every 5km... It's an experience alright and can be special. Does it give you time to think? Does it change you after 3 times already, or is it just somewhere to disappear to for 5-6 weeks? Does it still feel like a pilgrimage?

 

[BobY333]

If I were you…I would try something different to begin, and see if it fits your needs for this Camino. There are so, so many to choose from that I would start somewhere new.

If you find you don’t like it and you are wanting/needing what feels more comfortable, more familiar, or has more of a social component, you can always find transportation to a point on the Francés and walk to Santiago from there.

I’ve found that walking the Camino a few times has freed me to not be “militant” about just using my body for transportation. I definitely felt on my first Camino that I could only walk to Santiago - period. So, you may feel more freedom to choose too, which opens up many possibilities for you to explore.

If I had your amount of time I would consider starting on the Olvidado and enjoy what looks like incredible scenery. If it’s too lonely, you’re close to the Norte, Francés, San Salvador, and other Caminos.

Enjoy!

 

[lt56ny]

Can you share some wisdom with me please

I think this is an impossible question to answer. Like yourself there are so many of us who have walked many long distance caminos. Yes the first time I walked was very, very special and the CF was also very different in 2012. I do not have the same type of excitement that I had on my first few Caminos. Now I know I walk for very personal reasons that are difficult for me to put into words. Where should I walk is decided by wanting new discoveries and the yearning for peaceful, mindless solitude. I think you need to look inward and go with the feelings you have that are generated in your heart and spirit. Get as far away from your head as possible. I believe your decision needs to be a deeply and private personal one. It is the first step to opening yourself up to freedom. My wisdom,
My truth, comes from and is for me. My wisdom is to tell you my pilgrim friend, find your own wisdomit is right in front of you. Buen Camino

 

[JerryStroebele]

If you don't you will always wonder about the rest of the Camino del Norte. All of it (ok, except for a few km between Gijon and Aviles) is very beautiful and special. Buen Camino

 

[Eamonrodden]

Hi pilgrims , last year i had some spare days and i walked from Irun to Santander , so my plan for this year was to start in Bilbao and walk to Santiago in 24 days . It turned out that i can squeeze 4 more days and take 30 days of paid leave so it makes it 28 days of walking if i want to walk ..... So I thought that I could start in Garetaia or Deba and make more friends (yes I enjoy the social part of camino ). I think it is quite doable. I am prepared mentally and physically and I have all the lightweight equipment that I need . The problem is that I am catching myself daydreaming/planning to complete AGAIN Camino Franses ... Why is this route pulling me all over again ? I completed it 3 times already, once from SJPP and 2 times starting from Pamplona and I can say that every time it was special . Am I in the comfort zone of completing CF all over again instead of walking the unknown ? Do you felt the same or do you had the same impulse ? I walked from Porto 3 times and i was ok in 2021 i walked the Primitivo and it was really special because of the scenery and the people that i have met , nevertheless when i walked del Norte being surrounded by majority of the people who just like me were walking Camino for the second + time i thought- well this is the real camino , this is the way i wanted it to be . So oldtimers ... Can you share some wisdom with me please

The Norte is the best and most beautiful. Walk it and enjoy it.

 

[dbier]

Joro, if your heart is pulling you back to the Frances, why are you fighting it? Especially since you've walked other Caminos.

Fear of missing out? On what? That's an expectation you might want to consider getting rid of.

Are you trying to rewrite your personal history? Then yes, take a different path. Although wiser people than I have noted that you can never step into the same river twice....

Spend a little time with yourself. Your answers are inside you, or between you and God if God is in your life.

Buen Camino.

 

[trecile]

ok, except for a few km between Gijon and Aviles)

But if you are walking with interesting people and enjoying good conversation it doesn't really matter.

 

[andylm65]

Hi pilgrims , last year i had some spare days and i walked from Irun to Santander , so my plan for this year was to start in Bilbao and walk to Santiago in 24 days . It turned out that i can squeeze 4 more days and take 30 days of paid leave so it makes it 28 days of walking if i want to walk ..... So I thought that I could start in Garetaia or Deba and make more friends (yes I enjoy the social part of camino ). I think it is quite doable. I am prepared mentally and physically and I have all the lightweight equipment that I need . The problem is that I am catching myself daydreaming/planning to complete AGAIN Camino Franses ... Why is this route pulling me all over again ? I completed it 3 times already, once from SJPP and 2 times starting from Pamplona and I can say that every time it was special . Am I in the comfort zone of completing CF all over again instead of walking the unknown ? Do you felt the same or do you had the same impulse ? I walked from Porto 3 times and i was ok in 2021 i walked the Primitivo and it was really special because of the scenery and the people that i have met , nevertheless when i walked del Norte being surrounded by majority of the people who just like me were walking Camino for the second + time i thought- well this is the real camino , this is the way i wanted it to be . So oldtimers ... Can you share some wisdom with me please

My plan is Camino Vasco del Interior to Burgos, Burgos to Leon on the Frances, Salvador to Oviedo/Gihon and Norte to Ribadeo, then some combo of coastal to Ferrol, approaching Santiago from the Ingles. In 2018 it was Norte to Primitivo and into Santiago via the Frances. I like combining the mountains and the coast.

 

[Henriettagal]

Hi pilgrims , last year i had some spare days and i walked from Irun to Santander , so my plan for this year was to start in Bilbao and walk to Santiago in 24 days . It turned out that i can squeeze 4 more days and take 30 days of paid leave so it makes it 28 days of walking if i want to walk ..... So I thought that I could start in Garetaia or Deba and make more friends (yes I enjoy the social part of camino ). I think it is quite doable. I am prepared mentally and physically and I have all the lightweight equipment that I need . The problem is that I am catching myself daydreaming/planning to complete AGAIN Camino Franses ... Why is this route pulling me all over again ? I completed it 3 times already, once from SJPP and 2 times starting from Pamplona and I can say that every time it was special . Am I in the comfort zone of completing CF all over again instead of walking the unknown ? Do you felt the same or do you had the same impulse ? I walked from Porto 3 times and i was ok in 2021 i walked the Primitivo and it was really special because of the scenery and the people that i have met , nevertheless when i walked del Norte being surrounded by majority of the people who just like me were walking Camino for the second + time i thought- well this is the real camino , this is the way i wanted it to be . So oldtimers ... Can you share some wisdom with me please

I walked the Camino Frances in 2017. My husband and I walked Del Norte Camino last Fall 2023. Both were in entirety because as a seventy something year old I have lots to see and little time to squeeze it all in so why repeat. Plus both experiences were off the charts fabulous and I don't think I could ever repeat that. You decide of course but Del Norte is gorgeous and the coastal part is amazing.

 

[JoroAtanasof]

Thanks everyone for the replies, tomorrow morning I will fly to Bilbao and continue from there on . Funny thing is that I was supposed to fly on 27th but I missed my 3 a.m flight(just woke up few hours later ) it is a good thing actually because I have minor shin splints inflammation for a week now . Everything happens for a reason I guess