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What to take--nuevo peregrino

barryoglick

New Member
Time of past OR future Camino
bogg1000
Hello!

I am a first time peregrino, walking this June. I am awaiting my Brierly guide book, but wondered if I could ask the following question:

I would like to carry as little as possible. Would a light sleeping bag & a canteen be enough? If the Alberques have bedding, would I even need that? Although, then, I couldn't camp, could I? How about a "space blanket," one of those tin foil like blankets for emergencies. I think the June temperatures in Spain are fairly moderate, even at night, but in the mountains? Are there places to fill up a canteen and buy food interspersed frequently enough so that I would not have to carry food?

I know the guide book will probably cover this, but often they do not get this specific, so I thought anyone who has walked El Camino before could give me some suggestions. I want to travel very light, don't want to lug a heavy pack, but of course, I will if I have to. I don't think St. James shopped at LL Bean ;>)

Warm Regards,

Barry
 
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Hey Barry,

If sleeping in albergues bedding can sometimes be provided but it is not a general rule. You will at least need a liner to put something between you and the mattress.

In the Xunta albergues but by now already also in some private ones you will find the paper disposable covers to wrap around the mattress.
 
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The focus is on reducing the risk of failure through being well prepared. 2nd ed.
know the guide book will probably cover this, but often they do not get this specific, so I thought anyone who has walked El Camino before could give me some suggestions.
Welcome to the forum! If you want specific answers (of all types), this is the place to be! :D You may not have tried the Search box in the upper right corner of the screen. If you enter "sleeping bag" or "water bottle" in the search box, and start reading the first few threads that are suggested, you will get all the opinions and information you can hope for.
 
I'd add some toiletries, actually. And sunscreen and a hat. Some kind of detergent or soap for washing your clothes.

I actually carry MORE now than on my first Caminos, since I've found that I like having my own pillow, a larger sleeping bag, Crocs for the evenings and around the albergue, a bit of food (not needed on Francés, definitely needed on some of the others) and a heating coil, a phone with charger. I'm still around 6 kg, depending on how much water I carry.
 
Ideal sleeping bag liner whether we want to add a thermal plus to our bag, or if we want to use it alone to sleep in shelters or hostels. Thanks to its mummy shape, it adapts perfectly to our body.

€46,-
€2,-/day will present your project to thousands of visitors each day. All interested in the Camino de Santiago.
Definitely not one of those foil space blankets however, far too noisy in an albergue - your fellow pilgrims would not appreciate the rattling they make!

If you sleep warm then a silk liner is probably enough bedding in June on the CF. Other posters have mentioned the essentials; a change of clothes, basic toiletries, a hat.
 
Make sure (Almost) everything you pack has a dual purpose. (Poncho can be a bed liner, extra shoe laces can be a clothes line, zip off hiking pants, rubber sandals to walk and shower in) Think along those lines when selecting items to pack. It really helped me the first time
 
The first edition came out in 2003 and has become the go-to-guide for many pilgrims over the years. It is shipping with a Pilgrim Passport (Credential) from the cathedral in Santiago de Compostela.
Hello!

I am a first time peregrino, walking this June. I am awaiting my Brierly guide book, but wondered if I could ask the following question:

I would like to carry as little as possible. Would a light sleeping bag & a canteen be enough? If the Alberques have bedding, would I even need that? Although, then, I couldn't camp, could I? How about a "space blanket," one of those tin foil like blankets for emergencies. I think the June temperatures in Spain are fairly moderate, even at night, but in the mountains? Are there places to fill up a canteen and buy food interspersed frequently enough so that I would not have to carry food?

I know the guide book will probably cover this, but often they do not get this specific, so I thought anyone who has walked El Camino before could give me some suggestions. I want to travel very light, don't want to lug a heavy pack, but of course, I will if I have to. I don't think St. James shopped at LL Bean ;>)

Warm Regards,

Barry
The clothes on your back and a change in your pack plus another pair of socks and underwear. Sleeping bag liner will be plenty in June. It will rain, almost certainly at least one day so something to keep you dry. I prefer a light (0.5 kg) rain jacket and a pair of light gaiters, others prefer a poncho. I like to have a bush hat to keep the sun off and a buff for my neck to pull up to keep flies out of my ears :). There are lots of places to fill canteens and buy food. The only food I ever carry is something to nibble on like nuts and raisins and a daily banana.
 
Get a spanish phone number with Airalo. eSim, so no physical SIM card. Easy to use app to add more funds if needed.
I found a water bottle tube on Amazon called the Camelbak Unisex Eddy Hands-Free Adapter. Not the hydration pack that goes inside your pack, but a tube that attaches to a one-liter Camelbak water bottle. You can easily fill your bottle at fountains that way, and be sipping the tube while you're walking. It was a perfect solution for me. Wrap some duct tape around the base of the tube so it doesn't fall off - I had to walk 1 km back one time to find it before I figured that out.
 

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