Tuesday, August 16, 2005

At home - D-9

Depart Le Puy-en-Velay on 25 August, arriving Santiago around 11 November – if all goes well. Training walks and runs have been done but none emulates the accumulated effect of walking for many days in succession. Average distances to be covered will be some 20-25 km/day with a rest day every week or so. Rucksack weight to be no more than 12 kg but this is on the heavy side. How to get it down when it appears that everything I have selected is essential? While I intend to cover the whole Camino in one trip many people do sections of the route, return home and resume at a later date from where they left off.

I will occasionally update this "chronicle" but it will depend on availability of computers along the way and how enthusiastic I feel about sitting down to write! Some say that they get into the walk and may maintain a manuscript account but do not wish to spend time in front of a keyboard. However, having looked at several sites in French and English I believe there is quite an interest amongst previous "camineros" and potential ones about what is experienced on the Camino.
Background reading has included a very good French diary about a couple who walked from Le Puy to Santiago in 2001 : "Carnets de Saint-Jacques de Compostelle" by Francois Dermaut. His illustrations are all painted and sketched and include caricatures of people encountered on the way. It is useful to have at least one opinion on some of the accommodation I am going to stay in.

For other camineros useful books (which I shall take) include “Le Chemin du Puy vers St Jacques de Compostelle” by J-P Siréjol and L Laborde-Balen, “Le Chemin de St Jacques en Espagne de St Jean Pied de Port à Compostelle” by J-Y Grégoire and L Laborde-Balen, “miam-miam-dodo” by L Clouteau and J Cloteau for the route in France, and by C Champion for the Camino Francés in Spain.

2 comments:

Geoff said...

I did the same route last year and photo blogged it at http://phlog.net/user/geofones/archive/20040908
My rucksack weighed 6.5kg and that was enougth!
I really enjoyed the route and met many wonderful people make sure, if you can, to go to Finisterre or Muxia. To me a more emotional ending, standing alone on a wind swept rock overlooking the Atlantic than the very busy Santiago.

Graeme Bennett said...
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