Beating the Camino Bed Race

“There are no beds.” “There are too many people.” The rumors flew up the Way faster than I could walk, carried by Radio Camino. They were shared over pilgrim menus and café con leche, baguettes and French cheese plates. Even when I’m home, if I see them ripple out across the Facebook groups and discussionContinue reading “Beating the Camino Bed Race”

The Importance of Rest Days

When we first set out to walk the Way of St James from Le Puy, France, all the way to Santiago and then on to Finisterre, I knew in theory we would need rest days along the way. I understood that a person can’t—well, shouldn’t—walk a thousand miles without stopping to re-fuel now and then.Continue reading “The Importance of Rest Days”

Making Reservations on the Chemin du Puy (the Le Puy Camino)

I started to suspect that I’d been misinformed before we even started walking. At the Pilgrim’s Welcome Gathering in Le Puy-en-Velay, Eric and I struck up a conversation with a friendly French woman who asked how far we would walk the next day. I told her the name of the town where we thought weContinue reading “Making Reservations on the Chemin du Puy (the Le Puy Camino)”

Walking the Camino as a Couple

The idea that Eric and I spent 79 days together, 24/7, walking across two countries, fascinates people. (It fascinated people we met on the Camino, too. I can’t count how often someone would ask “you’re walking all this way together…and you’re still married?”)

Progress (Almost Wordless Wednesday)

“If you’re walking down the right path and you’re willing to keep walking, eventually you’ll make progress.”  — Barack Obama   When Eric and I set out from Le Puy, Santiago de Compostela seemed impossibly far away. A thousand miles? It was easy to get discouraged and believe I couldn’t do it. But the thingContinue reading “Progress (Almost Wordless Wednesday)”

Why Walk to Finisterre?

When Eric and I approached Santiago de Compostela two years ago, the crowds of people around us grew by the day, as did their anticipation. Together we counted down “the last hundred” kilometers to Santiago, where the remains of Saint James waited for us in an enormous cathedral. On the morning of our arrival inContinue reading “Why Walk to Finisterre?”