Vézelay - St Jean Pied de Port, which route to choose?

[Luka]

I am thinking of walking all the way from Amsterdam to Santiago de Compostela (not at once) through Vézelay. It seems like there are different options to walk to St Jean Pied de Port. If I am correct, I have found these:

1) Via Lemoviciensis (which seems more like the 'real' pilgrim route)
2) GR 654 (the long distance path, which seems longer and less authentic)
3) Vézelay - Le Puy (and then further on the Via Podiensis)

I have some questions about these options.
- Can anyone correct me if I am wrong?
- How easy or difficult is Vézelay - Le Puy? (route description, marked ways, lodging, etc)
- Are there enough places to sleep on these routes?
- Which one would you prefer and why?

Thanks in advance!

 

[jl]

I was astounded at the frequency of small but very well equipped and well kept refuges on the Vezelay path. The price of these was also very easy on the purse. There is a scarcity of them in the Limousin region, but even there you will be able to find gites which won't break the bank. There is a lot of road walking on the Vezelay path, but it also takes you off onto some lovely forest paths. When I walked (from about the 12th of July) I had the route pretty much to myself, and so if being solitary is a problem you might need to take that into acoount. I believe that it is much more populated in Spetember / October. I have a friend currently walking this route and there have been a number of times that she has become lost due to road works. I took the northern route through Bourges. Cheers, Janet

 

[Luka]

Thanks for your reply, Janet! Did you do the GR 654 or the 'real' pilgrimroute? Is there much difference anyway? I am a little anxious about the possible loneliness. I like to be all by myself, but not for days or weeks or so. Haven't you met any other pilgrims?

I have heard that Le Puy - St Jean is much more crowdy. The route Vézelay - Le Puy sounds beautiful (through the Morvan), but it also sounds quite hard. Any experience on that?

 

[AJ]

Thanks for your reply, Janet! Did you do the GR 654 or the 'real' pilgrimroute? Is there much difference anyway? I am a little anxious about the possible loneliness. I like to be all by myself, but not for days or weeks or so. Haven't you met any other pilgrims?

I walked the "real" route, as described in the Chassain guide earlier this year, starting in May. I believe Janet walked the same route last year. It is different from the GR654. It is not as far and not as hard. I walked a few days with a Dutchman who had been using the GR654 guide. Whilst with me he followed my guide. He had started from Hilversum.

I only met about 8 other pilgrims between Vezelay and St Jean.

 

[jl]

Hi Luka, as AJ says I walked the route that I think you refer to as the "real" route - and used the bright yellow guide from the Amis in Vezelay (although I actually bought the version with the English Introduction from the CSJ). The time I walked was from early July till approx mid August, and it wasn't until I got to just before Limoges that I met a few other pilgrims. Indeed until I got to St Palais I probably only came across a half a dozen in total, and only shared accomodation on about eight nights. Yet, despite that, I didn't feel lonely partly because the locals were so friendly. I must admit that this was the first time that I had spent so long on a pilgrimage totally on my own. That said, I believe that had I left in mid August I may have met many more pilgrims, as, for some reason, most pilgrims in France seem to avoid the mid summer time. Cheers, Janet

 

[Luka]

Thanks again!

Well, still have a long time to decide. Haven't even reached Den Bosch yet. From there to Rocroi, then Vézelay and after that I have to decide. By then I will know how well I would cope with loneliness, because I don't expect much other pilgrims on my way to Vézelay...

 

[Luka]

My time to decide has come near now!

Last summer I ended up in Auxerre, just a few days before Vézelay. I hope to walk a bit further again the first two weeks of September. Still haven't made a final decision. Had actually planned to take the route Vézelay - Le Puy en Velay but have got second thoughts. First of all, it doesn't seem easy to find a good guide from Vézelay to Le Puy (except for the one from Le Père, but that one hasn't a description of the route in it and very unclear maps). Secondly, the GR 65 from Le Puy seems pretty busy with groups.

So now I am thinking: why not the route from Vézelay to Montréal du Gers? My only doubt is still that I might find it a bit too lonely. Last summer I walked almost four weeks a great part in solitude, but I had company from good friends for 3 days and 5 days in a row. Then still I have to decide if I would take the GR654-2 or the 'real' pilgrimroute.

Choices, choices... Advice and experience is still welcome!

 

[Luka]

I have made a decision! It is gonna be Vézelay - Le Puy - SJPdP. Hope to move on from Auxerre the end of August or the beginning of September. I probably won't have more time than three weeks, so I won't reach Le Puy this year.