I would walk 800 (an Irishman's thoughts on the Camino): 2024

What began as an entry on Frances's bucket list became an amazing adventure and an experience never to be forgotten. I must admit I was somewhat blase about the whole thing and wondered why everyone else was so excited about it...it was just a walk in Spain! Little did I know.

Joan putting the finishing touches to
red and yellow decorations

I guess it began to dawn on me that this was something significant when the "little" party hosted by our great friends Jim and Joan O'Doherty turned out to be an amazing celebration of our forthcoming Camino. A Spanish themed evening with Spanish food, Spanish decorations, and place mats with Camino Frances printed on it. There was even a cake showing the Camino map and pictures of the major towns along the way. Frances and I thought this party was to celebrate Jim's birthday so it was a complete surprise to us. I think that was the moment I felt this was going to be something special..

The Cake

Trying to describe the Camino in words is proving more difficult than I thought. Initially I thought I was going for a nice walk across Spain with Frances and I am really happy having managed it! We had so many wonderful experiences that "a nice walk across Spain" does not come close to describing the Camino, in fact I'm not sure I can capture the experience in words. The things which impacted us most were; the people we met, the scenery, the weather, the food and the albergues and walking a half marathon every day (except one) for 36 days.

St. James's Church

Our adventure began with a flight to Dublin Ireland in order to get our Compestela passport from St. James Church in Dublin and our first Stamp in the Guinness Brewery next door. The passport is a record of all the places a peregrino (pilgrim) visits on his or her way to Santiago. It seemed appropriate to me that we should start in Dublin and with a pint of Guinness which is after all located a St James's gate, James's St. in Dublin.

Pint #1

We toured the Brewery part of which included a pint of Guinness and the history of the Brewery. Well, with my son a recently qualified brew master how could I not! In any event the Guinness would strengthen me for the journey.As their advertisement says, "Guinness is good for you" (they are not allowed to say that any more but I still believe).

Frances drinking a 'Bud'

Actually I had two pints as Frances does not drink Guinness...gotta love that woman! She did have a pint of Bud and she doesn't look too unhappy about that! We enjoyed a walk around Dublin and even had a bus ride. The memories came flooding back and we thoroughly enjoyed our trip down memory lane. Dublin has changed so much that some parts were difficult to recognize.

We left a suitcase with clothes etc. with Frances's sister, who lives close to the airport, so that we might have fresh clothes for our week in Ireland after the Camino. We stayed over night close to the airport, in Bewleys Hotel which has a shuttle to the airport. I like to be early for airplanes!

Heading for Biarritz

We flew Ryanair to Biarritz and then took the bus to St.Jean Pied de Port.

We met Chris and Joe on the bus but only got to spend an afternoon and part of the evening with them. They were so much fun we would have loved to have met them again along the way but they walked much faster than us so we never saw the two lads from Tullamore (Ireland) again but they did inspire the following limerick.

First day we met Chris and Joe

Two Irish lads don't you know

Shared pints and great fun

And this thing's just begun

I think I'll enjoy El Camino

Tom, Chris and Joe

Waiting for Chris and Joe in St Jean Pied
de Port

Now before I go any further I should perhaps say that my goal was to write Limerick every day on the Camino which I did, and more. My stalwart editor Frances suggested some of the limericks were best not included in the blog. If I need to explain that further you are not an aficionado of the limerick! What this means in essence is some; of the 'best' limericks are in the 'censored limerick file" and I'm unsure what to do with it. I'm sure something will come to me but, your suggestions would be most welcome. For the moment any time you see 0=0 it means that there is a censored limerick on this person or topic.(suggestion?)

The first night spent in an albergue (hostel) was most interesting and a little scary. We were "oriented" to the customs of that particular albergue and that was quite scary. Lots of do's and don'ts but it turned out OK,.

St Jean Pied de Port

There were about 14 -16 peregrinos (pilgrims) there and we each had to give our name and say why we were doing the Camino ... as if I knew!

The best I can do is write a limerick to explain.

Temporary madness I think you'll agree

Brings an upside sometimes, you'll see

I'm doing the Camino

With someone we know

It's six weeks just Frances and me

Actually when Frances was asked why she was doing the Camino she said she didn't know. Needless to say, when I was asked I said, "well I'm with her and if she doesn't know what chance have I." That got a laugh.

Some of the people we met that night crossed our path several time during our walk and we all arrived in Santiago within a day of each other. If my memory serves me right, the first night we met Chris,Paul and Roxy.

Roxy 0=0

And then, we met Roxy, and Paul

The happiest, couple, of all

I think, you'll agree

Like Frances, & me

That with them, you'll have, a ball

Paul (AKA Pablo) 0=0

We did have several great nights with Roxy and Paul and are hoping for many more!

Chris 0=0

Now Chris is a man among men

And he’ll do the Camino again

The women might swoon

Hoping he’ll be theirs soon

And he’ll wed but we don’t know when.

Chris was doing his second Camino and next time we met him (Burgos I think) he was walking with a merry band of peregrinos; Greg, Soren, Hannah, Sue and Steve. These were the happiest bunch of people I have ever met and I hope we get to meet them again. Their pictures will appear further down. (for the sake of chronology).

Played 'catch' with this dog

Spoiled with a double room
at Orrison

Brian the Forager (Galway)_

Leaving Orrison

Orrison

Our introduction to walking on the Camino was more of a baptism by fire. We were not prepared for the hills and certainly not for the weather.The hills to our first first stop, Orrison, were tough; so tough I thought if all of the Camino was like this I was not going to make it. The reward for the effort was the breathtaking views. I'm glad we stopped at Orrison which was only an 8K hike; but what a hike! Having a private double room was unexpected and most welcome as was the hot shower.

Community dinner

The strange custom of the highly regimented community dinner became easier to accept as time went on but initially it was a little strange and sometimes the servers were impersonal and detached. Sometimes they were dictators; sometimes they were angels; I'm not sure which was worse. I suppose for 10 euros for a three course meal and and a half liter of wine one cannot complain. I have to say the majority of albergues (private) were very pleasant and the service very good. I'd recommend stopping at Orrison because for the uninitiated (like me) the hills at the beginning were overwhelming.The thought of going on to Roncesvalles on the first day still scares me a bit. I think the distance combined with the hills might have been the "straw that broke the camel's back". The mountain profile shows a climb of well over 1000 m which for us was considerable. And then there was the weather!!!

Snow and high winds in May in France; who would have expected that? Our rain gear was pretty incredible and our boots were amazing. Walking in what should have been dried up river beds with the water covering our boots at times (depth of 3-5 inches); our feet remained dry. I was amazed. We were cold from the snow and only comforted by the fact that it should get warmer when we descended the mountain. The weather for this portion of the walk was unbelievable! Cold from the weather, hungry because we wrongly assumed there would be places to get food along the way. There was only a "stall" at the summit selling cold coffee and the usual assortment of breads. They did have hard boiled eggs; something I saw fairly often on the Camino. The wind, snow, hail and rain was not pleasant. Luckily we were reasonably prepared for it but a Brazilian guy passed us in shorts, tee shirt and a light wind breaker saying repeatedly "I can't feel my hands". Poor guy must have been freezing.

From Orrison we started our walk

Hills so steep we couldn't talk

Then came the rain

Snow & hail what a pain

Leaving Frances & me so distraught

Profile of the first couple of days walk

Annette

Annette comes from far Germany

She walked on Camino with me

When first we began

She met me and Fran

And for us she was great company.

We met Annette on the way to Orrison and she seemed to like our slow pace so we walked together for quite some time. I think this collage will give an idea of the weather we experienced on Day #2

Snow and hail in the Pyrenees

Tom, Pierre and Frances
(Frances's angel)

The man in black was Pierre, a wonderful genteel man who had been walking with Annette and continued to walk with what was now becoming a group, for several days. We "lost" Pierre before we hit Pamplona and did not see him again until we were in Santiago on our last day.

The weather improved as we descended and we had a 'dry' day for the trip to Pamplona that is until the outskirts of Pamplona when, true to form, the rain came once again.

The weather got better gradually

The Camino may have spiritual meaning to many people but travelling from Roncesvalles to Zubiri it meant only one thing...BLISTERS. Despite some discomfort I was not overly upset by the great big blisters I got on my left heel; it did however inspire the following.

Today I found my first blister

This evening I found its big sister

But Frances had moleskin

And a bag to bath feet in

It felt so good that I kissed 'er

Frances had brought a plastic bag big enough to bath my foot in (genius, definitely) and had moleskin which seemed to limit the soreness next day. The acetaminophen also helped. I did, against Frances's warning, burst the blister and squeezed out the fluid. That was the strategy I adopted for the whole Camino with no ill effects and short lived discomfort. If you decide to replicate this make sure your puncturing device is clean. You can buy a sterile syringe needle for about 0.3 euros. I used a small cleaned pen knife smeared with polysporin gel.

Even the trees are disciplined in Roncavelles

Good bye to Roncavelles

Fabulous town (note the drain and cleanliness|)

You can't tell it's me but it is

We stopped Villava en route to Pamplona

Mountains, road and trail En route to Pamplona

If you wondered how one finds their way along the Camino; let me say that it is unlikely you will ever get lost. Should you miss a sign someone will let you know very quickly. Peregrinos are common place and clearly identifiable by their backpack and poles but having said that we do have shells and arrows to keep us on the straight (not very) and narrow (sometimes).

The dominant symbol of the Camino is the shell and you will see it in a variety of styles as you pass through different regions. I was fascinated by the variety.

I tried to take this one with me!!

The bridge where Martin Sheen lost the bag with his son's urn

An Iron Peregrino

Although the shell is everywhere, it is the little yellow arrow that guides you along. It is ubiquitous and will not lead you astray; you can depend on it. It can be inspiring!!!!!

Some trails are wide, some are narrow

Passing fields awaiting a harrow
As we walk side by side

Our perennial guide
Is that small but bright yellow arrow

Don't follow Scott's arrow.

The rain abated on our trip to Pamplona but just as we arrived it began to drizzle and grew more intense with each passing minute. We were tired from the day's walk and had no idea where the albergue was. Frustration was beginning to show and then came Isabel. Isabel was an angel. She not only told us where we needed to go but accompanied us right to the door giving us a guided tour of Pamplona along the way. She even managed to show us the streets where the bulls run, ignoring completely the ever increasing intensity of the rain. I'm sure she was soaked to the skin but still she remained cheerful and enchanting. She said she was enjoying using her English. Isabel was truly delightful although I'm should not be surprise; her wit and repartee was gleaned in Dublin, Ireland where she worked for some time as a nanny. She predicted that the rain would stop and the sun would shine as soon as we reached the |albergue and she was right. My tribute to Isabel.

In Pamplona we saw where bulls run
Being tired wet and lost was no fun
But Isabel came

An angel the same

And her joy & her smile brought the sun.

Pamplona town hall (Bulls run past this!)

From Pamplona on down to Obanos

Stopping only for treats once or dos

A day with no rain

And a modicum of pain

Tonight we'll have beer and tostados

We have been told several times that 25k/day should be our absolute max. We found 25k with hills is tough and we decided to try and aim for less, with 20k being our minimum. It is always the last 3-5k that seems to be the hardest. Walking for 8 hours each day is tough especially in the sun. We agreed to try and begin each day as early as possible aiming always for a 7 am start and having breakfast around 8:00 and not in the albergue we had stayed at. Having breakfast at the albergue delayed us considerably.

Alto de Perdon

The climb to Alto de Perdon was rewarded with a close up view of the metal figures there.

We 'lost' Annette somewhere along the way today.

Typical Panorama

Uterga

We ate with the pilgrims last night

As a bunch I'd say they're alright

Met a Spaniard on Camino

His name was Rodreigo

Then to bed for to walk at first light

We had our first community dinner in a municipal Albergue in Lorca last night. It was different. The service was more "take it or leave it" and unfortunately for me the meat balls were not fully cooked. I suffered the ill effects for several days.

I thought we would be getting more used to the hills but they are still tough. I don't think any training would really prepare you for this. Ours didn't. The general consensus is that the Camino trains you but between you and me, the Camino is a hard task master. Despite the tough going we were treated to wonderful scenery and fabulous towns along the way. Of course it's the little cameo events that adds to the "enjoyment".

Tough for walkers and cyclists

A map of the world

During our walk from Lorca to Villamajor we discovered Bodega Irache that provides wine for pilgrims a fuente (fountain) free of charge. I couldn't believe it but then Frances tells me she knew about it. I think she was trying to keep it to herself! I was still a bit under the weather and didn't really appreciate it enough at the time but inspiration did follow.

Now folks I don't like to whine

So today was almost divine

At a local Bodegas

Which we did not pass

Was a tap that gave pilgrims free wine

Tap giving wine to pilgrims for free!

After a few days on the Camino we realized there were things we had not used and would not. We had brought a single cup water boiling element and a cup, neither of which we used. We also brought instant coffee, powdered milk and sugar. I don't think they are necessary. Coffee is readily available everywhere. Medical supplies are a good idea but there is no shortage of pharmacies and they sell everything you will ever need. My suggestion is bring a two day supply at most, unless you need a prescription medicine.

Clothes: Three tee shirts; long and short sleeved.I had two long and one short...I wore the long sleeves to protect from the sun. Three pairs of underpants and three pairs of socks. You will wash clothes everyday so get used to it. A pair of shorts and a pair of long pants which can have part of the legs removed to make them shorts is a good idea. Good hiking boots for walking and casual shoes for relaxing in the evening; Running shoes or sandals. Rain gear; we chose water proof pants and jackets which we feel were a good choice. Wrestling with a poncho in high winds in difficult. A hat for the sun and a warm jacket for chilly mornings/evenings. We found our fleece jackets perfect. Anything else is weight so think carefully about each item. We each brought our cellphones but used them only with WiFi. We did not have a 'plan' but were still able to produce this blog every day except in the mountains.

As we headed on to Torres del Rio we had time to enjoy the scenery a bit more than usual. It was an easier walk and strangely enough we met no one that day a rare situation on Camino.

I guess the free wine was playing on my mind a bit when I wrote this little 'ditty'. I should emphasize we had not been lost at this stage although I was always aware that we could!

I once met an old Peregrino

One day while doing the Camino

I said do you know

Which way to go

He said no, I'm too drunk on the vino

Now that interaction with an old Peregrino may or may not be true. I'll leave you to to decide; but have I ever led you astray?

Smile for the camera!

Come with me...I know the way!

Now that's a load of bull

For no particular reason I find myself thinking of the many wonderful bronze sculptures we saw on the Camino. I can't explain, but I have a great fondness for bronze figures and particularly those we see in thebusier areas. They seem to cause us to stop for a moment and "take stock" which is never a bad thing. The Camino had its fair share and below is only a fraction.