I am home less than three weeks now and naturally enough, I am beginning to think of where my feet will take me next year. I don’t expect next year’s Camino to be long, 2 weeks will be fine. A have a number of options:

• St Jean Pied de Port and continue for 11 or so days – I haven’t walked from St. Jean since September 2014 and I miss the climb out and up to Orrison. However, the Camino Frances is usually extremely busy unless I walk in the off season.
• Astorga – Santiago de Compostela – Another section that is due a visit. I love the walk from Rabanal to Molinaseca. I haven’t been beyond Sarria since 2011. However, along with it’s beauty comes it’s crowds.
• The Camino Portuguese from Porto – This was a runner until last week. The coastal route, or Senda Litoral looks great. It is quiet, the route touches the ocean and it is short. However, there is a lack of municipal albergues and I would need to book my accommodation ahead. It is one for the future, and at that stage, there may be more albergues
• Then, there was also my old favourite, the meseta, from Burgos to Leon. However, it would be my fourth time walking through it. I need a change.

In have decided to stay in Galicia and walk the Camino Ingles. The English Way originates in Ferrol or A Coruña. It was a medieval pilgrimage route for people from Britian or elsewhere in northern Europe, who arrived by ship to the ports of A Coruña and Ferrol.

I have no dates decided as of yet. On walking to Santiago, I will continue to the coast and visit Muxia. Today, the Camino Ingles starts in Ferrol or A Coruna and is just over 120km from Santiago. You will only be entitled to a compostela should you start in Ferrol as the distance from A Coruña does not exceed 100km. It is a much quieter route to Santiago with 2,174 pilgrims collecting compostelas in August 2016 compared to 14,936 pilgrims who walked from Sarria.

Walking alone for most of the day did seem to catch me off guard on the Camino Finisterre, so I guess I am prepared for much of the same on the Camino Ingles.

However, the Camino Ingles is a tough trail, it is no walk in the park. It takes pilgrims on many climbs and descents. Betanzos to Hospital de Bruma, for example, has a steep climb of 500m in just over 5km. The Camino Ingles, according to many guidebooks, can be walked in 5 days, but I may walk it in 6 days, breaking the above stage into 2. But just like my recent walk to Finisterre, any plans made can be thrown out the window.

I spotted this article online written by a journalist after he had completed the Camino Frances. Yes, but there are hundreds of these articles, I hear you say….! However, the points he has made have hit the nail on the head about what the Camino is, in my opinion.

Recently, I packed 2 small bags, boxed up my bike and hopped a plane to Paris. Lugging a massive bike box through Paris, I then took a train to Bayonne in southern France, assembled my bike and rode 3 hours to a town in the Pyrenees mountains called Saint-Jean-Pied-de-Port where my journey on the Camino began.

Source: 7 Things I Learned On Camino De Santiago | Tarek Riman

Hi folks, just a quick post about something that has been on my mind of late. The Camino has been very busy so far this year (2016 Jubilee Year) and I’ve been asking myself the above question. 

When people mention the Camino, they are talking about the Way that takes you from the foothills of the Pyrenees in St Jean Pied de Port to Santiago de Compostela. The French Way or the Camino Frances is the route with the most deep-rooted historical tradition and it is the most popular one. A certain film has made it popular also. Over 60% of pilgrims choose the Camino Frances because it is the route where you can get the most of the “pilgrim experience”. There are many pilgrims that you will meet on your journey and there are many facilities that cater to pilgrims. It is also the best-waymarked route of all. These 790kms will leave an imprint on you, whether you choose to walk over a number of years, or in one year.

However, May 2016 has seen over 32,000 compostelas (or certificates) being issued in Santiago de Compostela, with the figures set to rise over the summer. The numbers of pilgrims have been increasing gradually year on year and many see the next Holy Year as a year of new records. Will there be sufficient albergues or accommodation for these peregrinos? Will supply match demand? I won’t answer those questions now but it is food for thought. Some people may choose to have their Camino booked through a travel agency to remove the stress, while others will sleep under the stars with a mat and a sleeping bag and leave it all up to chance. I prefer to take that option myself!

But…..let’s just park the Camino Frances to one side…, just for the sake of this post. Let’s leave it and discuss the other options available to pilgrims who want to get a “pilgrim experience” and yet have some solidarity. Because you can!

Here are just a few options available to you:

• The Camino Finistere is the extension of the Camino Frances from Santiago de Compostela to Cape Finistere. It was mistakenly believed to be the western-most point of the Iberian Peninsula. It is about 110km in length and can take 4-5 days.
• The Camino Norte runs from Irun in north-eastern Spain. It runs along the Cantabrian coast to Ribadeo, at the entrance of Galicia, where the route turns southwest towards Compostela. It is just over 800km in length and can be tougher than the Camino Frances in parts. After the Frances, it is one of the more popular routes, passing through major cities like Bilbao, Santander and Gijon.
• The Camino Primitivo starts in Oviedo and makes it’s way to Santiago. It goes through Asturias and Galicia. This road has in recent years gained a lot of fans, thanks to its landscapes. This is one for the future for me. Many people take the Camino del Salvador from Leon to Oviedo and then the Primitivo to Santiago. It is a great way to have time to yourself. The Camino Primitivo is 314km in length and can take about 2 weeks to walk.
• As mentioned above, The Camino del Salvador links Leon with Oviedo, across the Cantabrian Mountains. It is about 130km in length.

• Next, we have the Camino Inglés which originates in Ferrol in the North of Spain. The route would be taken by many medieval Irish or English pilgrims, who would sail to the northern Spanish coast and walk to Santiago. Today its popularity is rising as you can reach Santiago within a week; 119km.
• The Camino de Baztan is a very solitary route but is very well waymarked. It started in the French town of Bayonne and ends in Pamplona, where you can continue on the Camino Frances if you wish. The route can be used instead of walking over the Pyrenees from St Jean Pied de Port. It is approximately 100km in length and while it is solitary, its popularity is rising.
• The Camino de Invierno or the Winter Way joins Ponferrada with Santiago through the valley of the river Sil. This way runs underneath the Camino Frances and avoids the climb to O Cebreiro. It is still a very lonely road, but well signposted and maintained.
• The Via de la Plata (or Silver Way) is the most important route in Southern Spain. It is also the longest. It starts in Seville and is characterized by the enormous distances between towns and extreme temperatures in summer. Not one for light walkers!
• The Camino Portuguese is another important and popular route. It starts in Lisbon to the south. Today its two main starting points are Porto and Tui, the last town on the Spanish-Portuguese border. It is the second busiest road after the Camino Francés. It should be noted that there are other Portuguese roads, such as the interior route and the coastal route.

I’ve only listed a few of the many routes in Spain, but there are many more pilgrim routes further afield and where there are pilgrim routes, there will be pilgrims. A busy Camino Frances during the Summer months may be something we have to live with, as there is no sign of the numbers decreasing. But looking at the other options are interesting for possible Caminos over the next few years.

So my Camino Finistere has been planned – the flights have been booked – I have an idea where to stay where I arrive in Santiago on the 1st of September. I’m getting the hang of putting a Camino together, eh? But I always find putting together the packing list the most fun part. I mean you could have walked 10 Caminos, but you will always have the temptation to try something new. If it works, excellent! If it doesn’t, so be it.

With 5 months to go before my short trip, I can’t see what I will carry changing drastically. I am keeping the same backpack. I have bought a new sleeping bag with next year’s Camino Ingles in mind and I have a new Montane wind jacket which works a treat. I have however made a few changes bearing in mind that I am not checking in my backpack. So I will need to abide by the 100ml liquid rule. I hope to have a lighter pack this time around as I will be away for 8 days. My previous trips have exceeded 2 weeks. So during the Easter break I bought a few things taking into account the 100ml rule and where I will be walking.

• Dr. Bronner’s All Purpose Soap Bar

Since I decided not to check my bag in, I knew that I would need to replace the Lifeventure liquid soap that I had been using for the last 3-4 years. Now 50ml (pictured) would be too little to carry for washing your body and clothes, but Dr. Bronner’s soap bar, cut in half, is perfect. Now, I just hope the smell is not overpowering!

• Bart’s Basic Beanie

The weather in Galicia throughout the month September is unpredictable to say the least. You could be on the tail end of a rainstorm, while the sun could be super-nice to you the next day. So I will bring along a beanie. This only cost me €10. This is a departure of sorts for me as I have always been a fan of the traditional baseball hat along with a buff around the neck. I think I’ll pass on them for this trip but the next time I’m wandering over the meseta I’ll go back to the baseball hat.

• Adventure Medical Kits Blister Medic

Ok, so some of you may think there is not much of a difference between the Medical Kit and the Compeed brand. And you may be right! However, I have been unfortunate enough to receive blisters in 2012 and last year. Compeed has never worked for me, so I’ve moved onto Plan B – Moleskin. If this doesn’t work, it’s back to Compeed. However, I feel confident enough that I won’t get any. And this leads me to my next purchase.

• Smartwool Men’s Hike Ultra Light Crew

Aha, the dreaded sock conundrum! I have tried every brand known to man at this stage, but I seem to have issues – whether it be blisters or pains in the ball of my feet. After May of last year, I wanted to move away from the 1000 mile sock, so I chose the well-recommended Bridgedale Speed Demon ankle sock. I thought “ok..I’ll try these” but after a 20km walk, I had a lot of pain on the base of my feet. It could be a shoe problem though? Possibly! So I decided to by a pair of Smartwood socks to find out if it is. Maybe I just need more protection on those protection points?

• Osprey Washbag Carry-on

And lastly (but probably not the last before I leave in September), I added this handy wash bag to the kit. In the last 4-5 years, I have usually put my toiletries in a dry bag along with my quick dry towel, and you can generally get away with that. However, as I will carry on my backpack, I want to be a little more organised. So I would recommend this.

So that’s it for this shopping spree. Time to put the credit card away for a little while longer. In the next few weeks, I hope to talk about packing lists in more detail.

There are so many “Ways” to Santiago de Compostela. From the South, you can walk from Seville on the Via de la Plata or from Lisbon on the Camino Portuguese. From the North, you can walk from Irun, Ferrol, Bilbao or Santander on the Camino del Norte. From the West, your feet can take you from Muxia or Finistere. Or from the East, your Camino can begin in many different points across Europe including St Jean Pied de Port on the Camino Frances. Although, it is a well known phrase that you can start your Camino from the moment you leave your front door!

However, one increasingly popular way is the Camino Primitivo…the Primitive or Original Way. Many pilgrims are veering away from the over-crowded Camino Frances to walk a shorter Camino and still gain a compostela. It is said to be the oldest route and pilgrims use that as a great reason to walk it. The Camino Primitivo starts in Oviedo and works it’s way across western Asturias and Galicia. It is 320 kilometres long and can be walked in two weeks. A caveat however….this Camino is much more challenging than it’s cousin that begins in the Pyrenees, so be prepared.

So why am I writing about this, you may ask yourself? Well, I just want to share with you an article I stumbled on, written by Peter Murtagh in the Irish Times. Peter and his daughter, Natasha, wrote Buen Camino!, and if you are serious about the Camino, you should give it a read. More recently Peter and his son walked the Camino Primitivo and this article is a journal telling us all how they both got on. Give it a read…maybe you will consider it in the future. I know I will.