Our Camino, Our Way
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The reasons many opt to walk the Camino de Santiago can be quite personal. This article was written prior to setting foot in Portugal and Spain, and my reasons have not yet come to me. Well, other than my parents invited both me and my older sister. We accepted.
I'll leave it to my parents to answer that for themselves--if they so choose. But, what I can tell you is that it has been on my mom's bucket list for a while, and she became interested only after reading Joyce Rupp's book, 'Walk in a Relaxed Manner: Life Lessons from the Camino.'
They were originally supposed to go in September 2020, but COVID-19 had other plans for the World. With international borders opening back up in 2022, they began to plan once again. This time, they decided to invite "the girls."
What is the Camino de Santiago?
Pilgrims ('Peregrino' in Spanish) have been reaching the city of Santiago de Compostela, Spain, for over 1000 years. Traditionally, they would start from their houses. As the decades and centuries passed, distinct routes formed. When new forms of transportation came into being, more solid rules came into play.
To obtain the 'Compostela,' you must:
- Make the pilgrimage for religious or spiritual reasons, or at least an attitude of search.
- Do the last 100 km (62 miles) on foot or horseback, or the last 200 km (124 miles) by bicycle. It is understood that the pilgrimage starts at one point and from there you come to visit the Tomb of St. James.
- You must collect the stamps on the “Credencial del Peregrino” from the places you pass through to certify that you have been there. Stamps from churches, hostels, monasteries, cathedrals and all places related to the Way are preferred, but if not they can also be stamped in other institutions: town halls, cafés, etc. You have to stamp the Credencial twice a day at least on the last 100 km (for pilgrims on foot or on horseback) or on the last 200 km (for cyclists pilgrims).
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But, WHY?
Why would anyone want to subject themselves to such a hike? Even though obtaining the Compostela requires only 100 km, some travel the 'full' routes that can span 500-800 km (311-500 miles). Most carry their world on their backs. Some, like us, carry only daypacks, and transfer their luggage to their next stop.
As long as they fulfill those three requirements listed above, they are a 'True Pilgrim.'
Don't let anyone tell you otherwise.
Why, though? Because Santiago de Compostela, Spain, is the resting place of St. James the Apostle. There is scholarly and literary evidence supporting the belief that St. James had been evangelizing in Spain, and that his body was ferried there after his death because it was a safe place (and would not be desecrated). The body of St. James was discovered during the reign of King Alfonso II (792-842 CE), and a cathedral was built between 1075-1211 CE, over the site of the tomb.
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I still haven't directly answered, 'why.' Well, it is a religious and spiritual journey. The why is up to the person walking the Way. Perhaps it is due to tradition, the walker wishes to carry it on. Since I was invited, I cannot quite answer this at this time, but it is something I will ponder as I walk.
Today, pilgrims are recognized (usually) by a white shell with a red Cross of St. James painted on it dangling from their backpacks. The traditional way to greet pilgrims is 'Bom Camino' (in Portugal), and 'Buen Camino' (in Spain). Both mean 'Good Camino!'
Planning and Training
More information is available in the links at the top of this article.
I live in the same central Texas city as my parents, and we had never really done much hiking before Camino Training. My sister lives on the East Coast of the USA, and regularly does shorter hikes with her family. We knew she'd be fine.
We three Texans, however, delved into everything hiking related: the gear, the clothing, the expectations, the injuries (mostly blisters), the sights, the customs and traditions! Our lives were suddenly revolving around finding the right gear for our personal needs, and deciding what local sights to see.
We joined several amazing Camino Facebook groups. They are a wealth of information, a lot from boots on the ground. Search for groups that cover all-routes as well as groups that are route-specific. My mom found an amazing Camino Travel Agent who took care of each and every one of our specific needs.
Then, we were consumed with training. My parents started a lot earlier than I did, and walked three times a week. In 2023, my dad turned 80, and my mom 73. I joined them to walk for the first time on June 7, 2023, but only twice a week. We added our gradually-increasing, weighted backpacks sometime in July. Now, if you're unfamiliar with central Texas weather, at 7am (the time we started walking around my parents' neighborhood), it was already 78 degrees Fahrenheit and 80-83% humidity. By 10:30am, it was close to 90 degrees Fahrenheit out, but the humidity had dropped to about 60%.
We were melting. For months, my mom and I could not get over 4.5 miles--which we only accomplished a couple of times. Usually, we could do 3 or 3.5 miles. My dad was holding steady at 3 miles. We were physically miserable, and completely demoralized. We watched as my sister posted her accomplishments on Facebook: 7 miles in 2 hours. Could we three even survive walking the Camino???
One Sunday, the last weekend of July, my husband and I randomly ran into some friends at a restaurant, and decided to eat together. "Why don't you join a gym?" The wife suggested using the treadmills. DUH. Why hadn't I thought of that? Although, I knew a gym was pretty much out of the question with my parents. I cannot remember if she had also suggested this, or if it came to me as I brainstormed alternatives to the gym, but I remembered that our local malls open earlier than the stores so that people can come and have a cool, safe place to walk.
I suggested mall walking to my parents, and the very next week, we tried it.
Our first mall walking occurred on August 7, 2023; 6.5 weeks until our Camino. We arrived at 8am, and that very day, my mom and I walked SEVEN MILES; my dad walked FIVE MILES! We doubled our mileage by simply walking in the air conditioning! You cannot imagine how ecstatic and relieved we were! (see above photo!) It was the heat and humidity that was doing us in, and we should be able to do the Camino after all! Bonus points for the temps in the mall being what we hoped they would be during late September and early October in both Portugal and Spain.
We all completely and utterly realize that mall walking is under perfect conditions. There are no hills. There is no rain. There are neither cobblestones nor tree roots. But, we were trained in other ways. There were slippery floors because the janitors cleaned while we were there in the early morning. Spotting the yellow "Wet Floor" signs, and the exact spots where it was wet became the challenge. Avoiding chewing gum and clear plastic became second nature [hiking poles could slip on the plastic].
We walked and walked, and walked some more. As we made the rounds, day after day, we recognized faces of shop attendants, when they'd arrive, what they sold. We would smile and wave. Sometimes we'd find common ground, and chat briefly as we passed. We quickly drew the attention of many people--attendants as well as other regular mall walkers--because we were wearing backpacks and using hiking poles, and because we were there for sooooo long each time we walked. Only a handful stopped to ask us what we were doing, and we'd gladly oblige. We made some new friends.
We quickly, yet steadily, increased our mileage each day or week, depending on how we felt, because sometimes we walked back-to-back days. We also increased how many days a week we were walking: my parents were up to 4 times, I was up to 3. Then, towards the middle of August, I started doing 4 days. We even made it to several 10-mile days, and even one day of 11 miles! We held steady with our training through all of September 2023.
This training absolutely consumed our lives for one single reason: we are slow walkers. As my mom likes to point out, 'we walk in a "relaxed manner."' There is no way we will be able to complete our 8-10 miles per day on the Camino while walking quickly. In fact, we walk a very consistent 2 miles an hour. So, completing 10 miles in the mall, we wouldn't get home until 2:30-3pm. Our average day was 8 miles for my mom and me, and 6 miles for my dad. But, given time, my dad was reaching 8.5 miles! By pushing ourselves to go longer under these 'perfect conditions,' we knew we'd be able to handle shorter days with obstacles.
Google even thought I was shopping for FIFTY-FOUR HOURS during the month of August. HAHA! Only about four of those were actual shopping... It's because I stopped using Google Fit to track my walking, and only used FitBit. (You can see my June and July walking in the screenshot below.)
As we neared our departure date (September 23, 2023), we were accomplishing our walking days without feeling quite as tired, nor quite as out of breath. We weren't completing 10 mile days very often, but we weren't worried about much Camino-related, anymore. We knew we'd be able to walk the Way!
Breakdown of Our Training
- My parents started walking 3 times a week (outdoors) approximately 7 months before our scheduled date of departure, walking approximately 3 miles each time.
- I joined them 3.5 months before our scheduled date of departure, walking approximately 3 miles each time. A couple weeks into my walking with them, we began wearing our backpacks with only a little weight.
- 6.5 weeks until our departure date, we began mall walking, and doubled our miles walked per day. Gradually increased our mileage until reaching 11 miles. In the mall, we were wearing fully-weighted backpacks (what we intended to carry everyday on Camino).
- Our walking schedule for training was such: walk 2 miles and take a 10 minute break; walk 2 miles and take a 30 minute snack/lunch break; walk 2 miles and take a 10 minute break; walk 2 miles and take a 10 minute break; walk 2 miles and take a 10 minute break.
- During the Camino, we hope to keep the same break schedule, but I hope to eat a bit more (and I am a slow eater). We didn't want to spend so much time in the mall--it began filling up with customers around lunch time.
- On Camino, we intend to change our socks about halfway through our walk in order to keep our feet dry (which helps prevent blisters).
