Walking with (young) children

[GAUVINS]

Hi

My wife, our 2 daughters (4 & 10) and I will walk this Summer. Our little group will start from le Puy en Velay and end (or not) in Santiago. We will travel with two experienced donkeys (yes yes, both have trotted the whole trail).

I'd like to hear about relevant experiences with children, especially if it concerns a 4-6 year-old.

We are not particularly anxious as if this is not working out, we have plan B, and C and D. The hope is that this will be a memorable odyssey for our daughters, who will bond with their respective donkey and discover an interesting part of the world. Frankly, my biggest worry is something like -- what happens when it rains nonstop for 72 hours

take care

 

[Fritz]

I hope this helps. While I did not walk with children, I over nighted with a family with 4 children between ages 2 and 10 twice on my Camino. The father had a pull cart with their items and I don't remember if the children had small packs or carried anything. I stayed with them in Fonfria and then met them on my return from Muxia in O Logoso about 10 days later. On the trail, the older children were ahead of the rest of the family at one stop, patiently waiting for the others to catch up. On both stops, hospitaleros were helpful and accommodating and pilgrims were welcoming. I'm not sure about 72 hours of rain, the kids may enjoy it more that the adults???? I think it is going to be a very positive and memorable trip for all.

 

[Jan_D]

Hi Gauvins,

It's always wonderful seeing children on the camino; no doubt it will be an amazing experience that will stay with them for the rest of their lives!

I'm sure you'll get lots of feedback here, but if you're looking for some forum treats to snack on in the meantime, you can get to related threads by clicking on the highlighted word 'children' in your original post. You might find these helpful as many people have posted links to blogs, books, etc. If you don't know which to choose this is probably a good place to start, just follow the links and enjoy:

https://www.caminodesantiago.me/community/threads/walking-the-camino-with-children.13036/