The Camino: Our Long Walk

Celebrating milestones with girlfriends is nothing new, but the preoccupation with footwear before this journey was surprising. My good friend was planning a different way to celebrate her 50th birthday, to walk a section of the Camino de Santiago de Compostela. After an innocent email suggesting that a spring walk in Spain might be fun, she managed to rope nine friends into heading out together on the well-worn path.

Planning details for a Camino trip can be overwhelming given all the choices of routes. We chose to follow the classic Camino Francés as our departure point the French border town of St. Jean Pied de Port. The ladies gathered from distant points around the globe to rendezvous at the airport in Bilbao on a drizzly morning – not exactly the omen we were hoping for. Our spirits were only slightly dampened by the humid, cool, wet weather; we were certain that the next day would be better. Besides, it was exciting to grasp a hold of our official Pilgrims’ Passports, to receive our first stamp, and hear the initial cheery “Buen camino” from the Pilgrims Office.

Our first day dawned overcast and rainy. The weather that day did nothing other than deteriorate as we crossed the Pyrenees into Spain. I am certain that the vistas are beautiful, but we were simply focused on our wet feet and thankful that someone had the foresight to spend $15 on plastic ponchos for our crowd. We were overjoyed to reach our first destination, the hamlet of Roncesvalles, after six and a half hours in the rain. Day one was over; we attended the pilgrims’ mass to pray for better weather before sharing some hearty Spanish red wine.

Our prayers were not answered; day two arrived even more miserable than the first one. This time there was no misty rain, rather a steady torrent of water from the sky. It could not have been more than 30 minutes into the walk when everyone had wet feet and our spirits were failing. It was quickly determined that walking pace would determine with whom you spent time that day as there was little to discuss. After six hours of trudging in the rain, we arrived in Akerrata, thrilled to see our luggage and even happier to step into warm showers. A few laughs over dinner, a bit more red wine, and we were convinced that the worst was over.

Our breakfast of fresh coffee and pastries on day three did not negate the fact that it was still raining outside. Blessedly, the deluge lessened after a bit of time, and we even had glimpses of the sun as we walked to Pamplona. We shared a late lunch of pintxos before heading out to see some of this famous city. Finally, this trip was feeling a little less like penance and a bit more like a holiday.

Our next three days from took us from Pamplona to Los Arcos. The sun shone and the wind made the green and gold fields of oats, wheat, and barley dance. The days passed quickly as our conversations covered the gambit of kids, husbands, house renovations, gardens, and favorite recipes. Along our way we met and greeted fellow pilgrims, many who were planning to complete the entire journey to Santiago. It was easy to admire the courage of these solitary travelers, loaded down with heavy packs and burdened by painful blisters. Our group was certainly not unscathed in the foot department, but the fact that our journey was only a small section, one stage on the longer trail, made it easier to finish each day.

Before our group headed back to their busy lives filled with work deadlines, family commitments and day-to-day challenges, we each reflected on what the Camino meant to us. Our answers echoed the Walking the Camino documentary message – each person follows their own Camino.