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Published: June 20th 2023
Most of my thoughts below only pertain to those considering walking the 120km El Camino de San Salvador, arguably the least walked and at times most remote of the caminos in Spain; otherwise, consider it fodder for my photos.
I’m not going to give any directions or trail descriptions because they can easily be found free online. I paid $10 to download a very long pdf book from
PilgrimageTraveler.com and it was pretty good. Most everyone else was using the Camino app, but I didn’t have cell service.
Why not El Camino Frances? Last summer I walked a 5-day portion of The French Way - the walk that most people choose - and opted for a different approach this year.
The biggest pro and con of choosing El Camino de San Salvador vs. El Camino Frances is that it’s the camino far less traveled.
I only saw 5 other pilgrims on the entire hike. This might sound like a con, but anyone who has hiked with me knows it’s exactly what I wanted. A place doesn’t feel like it’s yours for a few minutes if dozens of others share the moment.
All of us were solo.
Two were in their 30s - a Siciliano who had walked all the way from Madrid and a Czech guy headed all the way to Santiago. They were bichos raros (strange birds) and seasoned travelers just like me. Then there were two Spaniards in their 60s - a man and a woman - who had walked many of the caminos in Spain, including the entire French Way. They didn’t speak a word of English. There was another Spanish woman who I never got a chance to talk to.
I got along very well with all of them since we all wanted the same thing: to hike alone in nature and have some conversation if we wanted it. And it was easy to approach them because even most introverts want some company after 5 hours of walking alone. On the Camino Frances, it wasn’t uncommon to see a line of a dozen people in front of me, and at times groups of 20-30. “Buen camino” was usually the extent of the conversation and for many it was the first time they’d left their home country. No judgment there - we just didn’t share a similar perspective.
The other side
of the coin is that on El Camino de San Salvador you need to have some backpacking experience, accommodations are basic and sparse, and food is harder to find. And because the route isn’t very popular, there are long stretches along highways and overgrown trails.
What to Pack As always, I obsessed over what to take. My wife had to hear about it for months, so I should pass it along, in order from most important to least.
Calzado Nothing matters more than your shoes and socks. Most people do well with trail shoes/runners. The ‘ankle support’ argument for boots is mostly spurious because if they help you to avoid injuring your ankle, something still has to give, like your knee. Everybody is different but in general you should avoid waterproof shoes/boots and/or cotton socks. If your shoes are breathable, your feet will dry if they get wet from rain, puddles or just plain sweat. If it’s very wet, wool socks will hold the heat without causing blisters as easily. I met someone last year who had to go to the hospital because of blisters and a fear of infection, so it’s important to test out any shoes
Ancient Road
Pretty, but try walking down it. The rocks have been smoothed by thousands of feet and sunlight never gets through. Any purity I picked up at the church at the top evaporated from my profanity.you plan to wear on a few long hikes.
I took a pair of
Lems Primal Pursuit and
Cairn Bedrock sandals so I could avoid any hotspots and switch back and forth based on the terrain and weather. A small roll of duct tape can prevent hotspots from developing into blisters.
Mochila Your backpack shouldn’t be over 20lbs/10kg if you’re doing it the same time of year I did. Everyone I’ve met who struggled on the trail had either foot problems or was carrying too much weight. My base weight without water or food was 13 pounds.
I won’t get into types of packs because if you don’t already own a good pack with waist straps, you probably shouldn’t be attempting this walk.
Ropa I took 3 50-50 cotton/poly t-shirts (some say polyester or merino wool are the only ways to go), 3 pairs of Exofficio underwear, a pair of shorts, a pair of zip-off pants, a long-sleeved shirt, 2 pairs of wool socks, a very lightweight raincoat, and a buff. I washed the clothes I wore for the day in the sink as soon as I arrived at my accommodation and hung them on my pack the next day
Shade
This looks nice, but shade = flies to contend with. if they didn't dry overnight.
June nights can drop into the 40s but as soon as the sun hits temperatures rise quickly. I started a couple of cool mornings with my long-sleeved shirt but stripped it off after 15 minutes.
Alimento This depends on your budget, but you should always have food with you. Some pueblos don’t have a restaurant or store so do research ahead of time. I avoided staying in those towns so I always ate breakfast and dinner at a cafe/restaurant and then lunch on the road. My go-to lunches are basic: bread or crackers with a small can of tuna or peanut butter. Snacks like chips or trail mix obviously work well too.
Agua Every town has a fountain and there’s usually a sign telling if it has potable water. You could possibly get away with just carrying 1 liter but I always carried 2 just to be safe.
Bastones de Senderismo I can’t imagine doing this trek without hiking poles. They take off a lot of pressure on the knees and prevent falls on steep, slippery surfaces. They’re a pain to get through airport security so I usually just buy a
pair wherever I’m traveling and pass them on to someone else at the end.
Quemadura del Sol Sunscreen is also very important. I’ve never had to apply so much to my right arm or back of the neck. Since the walk is due north, the morning sun was always to my right and then moved behind me.
Telefono If you're American and have a locked iPhone, consider downloading an
e-sim card through Airalo. I found out about it during this trek and used it in Ghana; I paid only $9 for 2 gigs of data in 10 days and only used half of it. If you stick to Google Maps, WhatsApp, and basic web browsing, you won't use much data.
The rest is mainly about your personal preference and comfort.
Day 1- Leon to La Robla (27km/17mi) I had a hard time finding the actual camino from the starting point so I was glad I had my guidebook. It took a while to get outside the city limits and La Robla is still in its periphery. If you’re from Pittsburgh, think of it as Clairton - a rusty old post-industrial town with a lot of pride, except
with ancient streets, terra cotta, and wine.
Day 2 - La Robla to Poladura (24km/15mi) The second half of day 2 is when the impressive scenery began. Here’s a 360 view:
Day 3 - Poladura to Campomanes (32km/20mi) The morning scenery was the best of the whole walk. The authors of my guidebook recommended breaking this day up because of the brutal downhill in the second half of the day. I was admittedly pretty sore in the quads the next day.
Day 4 - Campomanes to Mieres (25km/15 mi) This day was harder mentally than physically. Most of the walk was along a superhighway and even when it wasn’t, I could hear it. The lively town of Mieres and its cider obsession was very welcome, though.
Day 5 - Mieres to Oviedo (18km/10mi) This was basically my rest day. There was a lot of elevation but most of it was on country roads. It wasn’t too hard to convince the people at the cathedral that I’d walked the entire camino, even though I didn’t have the book or stamps, so after a short quiz I got an official certificate.
There are many more photos
Cider Guy in Mieres
The only way to pour cider, apparently. far below.
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D MJ Binkley
Dave and Merry Jo Binkley
Hiking Ancient Roads
We have friends that have made this hike and it is challenging. Good luck.