On The Road To Santiago And Beyond

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The time is finally here. After first becoming aware of the Camino de Santiago when I lived in Granada in 2000 I'm ready to make my first step of many in a few more weeks. For the reader who may not be familiar with what the route is I will explain. It is a pilgrimage route to the tomb of St. James the Apostle which has been going on since the Middle Ages.

I will be taking the French route which has its beginning in the small French Basque town of St-Jean-Pied-de-Port. I'm estimating 30 days to cover the 500 miles. Since I plan to spend time documenting my own personal experiences on the trail it may take more time. Time is not a consideration since I will be in Spain until October.

These last few weeks of April have been spent in preparation for the trip. Thanks to the internet and in particular travel blogs I've been able to glean much useful information. One previous traveler on la ruta has posted a useful website. Of particular interest to me was his list of what to carry on the camino. I've never liked to be a burro when I'm hiking and thanks to his advice I've managed to keep the weight of my backpack to a very manageable 20 lbs. Since I'm sleeping indoors and traveling in the summer I've opted instead to carry a sleeping sack and an emergency blanket. The problem with a sleeping bag besides the weight and bulk is that if it is hot you will be sweating to death in the bag.

I haven't spent anytime doing conditioning hikes. Last summer I was up to 26 miles but I have had very little time to do the same while I've been working. I'll be back in Illinois in a week and will do a few conditioning hikes to get in shape before I depart on the 14th of May. Fortunately I live at 8,000 plus feet in elevation so the altitude going over the Pyrenees shouldn't be a factor. When I finally make that ascent I'll let you know how I fared in a future blog.

So why have I chosen to make this journey? The reasons are many. It gives me the opportunity to see a part of Spain to which I have not yet traveled. Since I'm 63 years of age my health is of great importance. Although I am in good health I need to lose about 20 lbs. I figure 500 miles of walking with 20 lbs on my back ought to do the trick. I speak Spanish but there is much room for improvement. So I'll have a chance to speak daily with Spaniards in may different regions of Spain. Who knows maybe I'll learn a little Euskadi in the Basque Country. Also there is the religious side since this is a pilgrimage. Hopefully long days of solitude on the camino will give me time to reflect and meditate. And another reason which didn't enter into my original reasons for doing the camino is my ability to help others who are contemplating the journey to make the decision and to plan for it.

The internet has proven to be a valuable tool in making my travel plans. Often I see people posting requests for information on how to get to St-Jean-Pied-de-Port. One solution is to go to Wikipedia and look up the town's name. If it is a city with transportation servicing it, you can usually find it there. Also there are also valuable links listed. If there is a tourist office it can be found there.

Most people when they think of traveling to France, think of flying to Paris by default. There are many other options. If you are on a budget the cost of getting to southwest France can be costly. I chose to fly to Toulose which is in southest France and close to St.-Jean-Pied-de-Port. Additionally it is on the main rail route to Bayonne the entry point to St. Jean-Pied-de-Port.

Earlier I wrote that I wanted to document my trip to share with others. To that end I purchased a notebook computer, a Nikon camera and a Sony digital camcorder (extremely lightweight and compact). Not so long ago I would have needed a burro to carry my load. Even with these three things in my pack the weight will come in under 20 lbs.

I'm still learning how to use this travel blog site so it may take me a while to master the posting of photos and videos. I want to make my blog enjoyable to read and informative.

I hope you follow along with me as my travels take me first to Toulouse, then to the Camino de Santiago and beyond.

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