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Hi Carol , walking the Valcarlos route is very nice to .If I decide to start on 28th March or 4th April will I be disappointed walking via Valcarlos?
Hi Eddie , the Napoleon route is closed . You need to take the Valcarlos route .Hello Carol and others,
I am planning to walk from St Jean Pied de Port to Pamplona from Saturday 24th March. Do you know if this section is closed and where the Pilgrim Office posts this information?
Thanks, Eddie
Thank you Peter.Hi Carol , walking the Valcarlos route is very nice to .
Wish you well and Buen Camino , Peter .
Hi Eddie, I don't know the answer to this. I understand that the route over the mountains is closed but the rest of route is open. Let me know what you discover. Maybe see you on the Camino. Buen Camino.Hello Carol and others,
I am planning to walk from St Jean Pied de Port to Pamplona from Saturday 24th March. Do you know if this section is closed and where the Pilgrim Office posts this information?
Thanks, Eddie
Thank you John.The Pilgrim Office knows best. I arrive on the 17th and plan on the Napoleon route but would have no problem taking the Valcarlos route if necessary. Having said that, many pilgrims start their Camino in Roncesvalles. This is my second Camino and I wouldn't miss St Jean Pied de Port.
Buen Camino
[Thank you Peter]Hi Carol , walking the Valcarlos route is very nice to .
Wish you well and Buen Camino , Peter .
[Tincatinker, thank you for taking the time to share your delightful and encouraging comments, if aspirant pilgrims can't ask questions then please explain the point of this forum]I am always a little puzzled by aspirant pilgrims who cannot understand the simple phrase "the Route Napoleon is closed". How will they cope with "no defecar", or grasp that "Menu Peregrino €10" means that inedible muck is available, with wine, for €10.
And if one more 'peregrino' suggests or implies that the ancient and historic pilgrim way through Valcarlos is in some way inferior to that modernist concept that dear old 'Boney' never went near: well, I'll go to the foot of our stairs....
The purpose of the pilgrimage is to walk to Santiago. The route is an irrelevance (smiley added in case anyone thought Tink was in grumpy mode)
I could refer you to Nilsonns "The Point", but that would betray both my age and my (alleged) lifestyle. My point is that there seems to be a growing tendency to keep asking the same question until someone provides the desired answer. This is not a criticism of individuals, scared, confused and bewildered I can handle: but determinatedly ignoring information and advice just reminds me of all those politicians I used to work with.[Tincatinker, thank you for taking the time to share your delightful and encouraging comments, if aspirant pilgrims can't ask questions then please explain the point of this forum]
[The Pilgrim office is SJPP says the route now may not open until 15th April. ]
[Hello looking for some encouragement and advise. I am scheduled to start my Camino on March 28th 2018. I based my start date on input from others and did not research opening date of Napoleon route. The Pilgrim office is SJPP says the route now may not open until 15th April. I can not wait until then to start. I can wait until 4th April. So my questions are;
How likely is it that the route is not open until 15th April ?
If I decide to start on 28th March or 4th April will I be disappointed walking via Valcarlos?
Since the route is closed, is it better to go directly from Biarritz to Roncesvalles and start my Camino there?
Thank you in advance. Carol ]
Hi Peter and others,Hi Eddie , the Napoleon route is closed . You need to take the Valcarlos route .
Wish you well , Peter .
I spoke to themWhere did they 'say' this Carol? I couldn't find anything on their website, or did you call them?
I'm just surprised that they try to forecast a month ahead.........
As others advise, early in the season, t's really just a case of turning up and finding out 'on the day'.
Welcome, Carol!If I decide to start on 28th March or 4th April will I be disappointed walking via Valcarlos?
I wish people did not treat it as an inferior route.
And if one more 'peregrino' suggests or implies that the ancient and historic pilgrim way through Valcarlos is in some way inferior to that modernist concept that dear old 'Boney' never went near: well, I'll go to the foot of our stairs....
Thank you for your helpful comments. I had decided to walk via Valcarlos. I am so looking forward to it. Your positive comments are much appreciated. I am reluctant to post any additional questions in fear of ridicule. I look forward to saying to others Buen Camino.Welcome, Carol!
Not at all. It is a really gorgeous walk, and the older, more 'authentic' Camino Frances route. Shirley Maclaine, Paolo Coelo, and Hollywood have all made the Napoleon route out to be the 'real' one, but that's just inaccurate hype. Hence these posts, which I have to say I agree with entirely:
So I would concur with others who have said, 'No need to wait!' And if you do wait until after April 1, when you get to SJPP, the people at the Pilgrim's Office can advise you of the current conditions. The Napoleon may be open or not - at this point there is no way to know.
Whichever way you go, buen camino!
[Edited for spelling...]
Wonderful - you will love it.I had decided to walk via Valcarlos.
[Hello looking for some encouragement and advise. I am scheduled to start my Camino on March 28th 2018. I based my start date on input from others and did not research opening date of Napoleon route. The Pilgrim office is SJPP says the route now may not open until 15th April. I can not wait until then to start. I can wait until 4th April. So my questions are;
How likely is it that the route is not open until 15th April ?
If I decide to start on 28th March or 4th April will I be disappointed walking via Valcarlos?
Since the route is closed, is it better to go directly from Biarritz to Roncesvalles and start my Camino there?
Thank you in advance. Carol ]
[Hello looking for some encouragement and advise. I am scheduled to start my Camino on March 28th 2018. I based my start date on input from others and did not research opening date of Napoleon route. The Pilgrim office is SJPP says the route now may not open until 15th April. I can not wait until then to start. I can wait until 4th April. So my questions are;
How likely is it that the route is not open until 15th April ?
If I decide to start on 28th March or 4th April will I be disappointed walking via Valcarlos?
Since the route is closed, is it better to go directly from Biarritz to Roncesvalles and start my Camino there?
Thank you in advance. Carol ]
I started my walk March 30, 3017. Napoleon route was closed and apparently opened three days after I left. You will bind the second half of the via Valcarlos route every bit as challenging. Just make sure you have water. I would suggest you don’t skip this first leg of the Camino just because the Napoleon route is closed. Via Valvarlos does has its own qualities, some picturesque photo opportunities, challenging uphill walk and just that satisfaction of completing day one. I found every leg of Camino Francais had its own uniqueness to it and am glad I walked every part of it. You won’t be disappointed if you walk SJPDP to Roncesvalles even if Napoleon rote closed and via Valcarlos is your alternate route. Buen Camino.[Hello looking for some encouragement and advise. I am scheduled to start my Camino on March 28th 2018. I based my start date on input from others and did not research opening date of Napoleon route. The Pilgrim office is SJPP says the route now may not open until 15th April. I can not wait until then to start. I can wait until 4th April. So my questions are;
How likely is it that the route is not open until 15th April ?
If I decide to start on 28th March or 4th April will I be disappointed walking via Valcarlos?
Since the route is closed, is it better to go directly from Biarritz to Roncesvalles and start my Camino there?
Thank you in advance. Carol ]
Thank you for your helpful comments. I had decided to walk via Valcarlos. I am so looking forward to it. Your positive comments are much appreciated. I am reluctant to post any additional questions in fear of ridicule. I look forward to saying to others Buen Camino.
Thank you for talking the time to share so much. I am excited to begin on Wednesday.Hi Carol and welcome to the Forum! As you have discovered, the Route Napoleon is officially closed until the 1st April, but if weather conditions are bad that opening may well be delayed. In fact this route is very weather-dependent all year, and even when it is "officially" open, there are times when the local police and Pilgrim's Office will advise people not to go that way - it can be dangerous in bad weather, and it is very changeable and hard to predict - long-term weather forecasts for mountain areas are notoriously unreliable! The Valcarlos route is also beautiful, with more woodland and also as others have pointed out, you have services about halfway at Valcarlos (and before that) which is also an overnight option if you want to start slow the first day. There are no services or water sources after Valcarlos until Roncesvalles.
Personally I'm a fan of Roncesvalles as a starting point - I started there for various reasons on my first Camino and found it such a special and spiritual place to begin in the early Spring with its cool and misty mornings, that I chose to start my second Camino there too, at a different time of year. But St Jean is a lovely little town too. If you decide to start there, plan to take the Valcarlos route (especially if you stick to your planned date of 28th March) but then if you delay until after the official 1st April opening date and the weather is good on the day (and the route closure hasn't been extended), you might decide to walk up and over the Napoleon Route instead. Look at it that way and then you can enjoy whatever route you take! (And the different humour you will find here on the Forum too...)
Buen Camino Carol, whatever you decide!
Hi Carol. Please don't be reluctant to post questions here. Although I can see why you would be, I can guarantee that 99.9% of questions asked on this forum are responded to with encouragement and kindness.
Buen Camino!!
Hello Carol
I am also starting on the 28th for the first time.
Shame the Napoleon route is closed but the Valcarlos route looks great.
Hope to see you on the trail
Suzi
Hi carol. I’m starting the 28th as well. I’ve done the Napoleon route twice but I’ve heard the valcarlos is really nice as well. I’m actually excited the Napoleon is closed so I can try a different route. Take what the Camino gives. Not sure where I’m staying yet in sjpdp, but hope to see you out there. I’m 35 with blonde hair and will have a Patagonia hat on.
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