For those who know us well, the only reason we need for
doing something like this is that it’s an adventure we haven’t had yet! It all started after a book club meeting at
Pam’s house when Karen, (as per usual) stayed after everyone else went
home. After reading about this Camino
that month in our book, we began discussing it and after a bottle of wine,
decided this was something we had to do!
We also felt it good timing as Karen is celebrating the beginning of her
50s and Pam is celebrating the end of her fabulous 50s…and what better way to
celebrate?!
What is the Camino, you ask?
The Camino de Santiago (or the
Way of St. James) was one of the most important Christian pilgrimages during
the Middle Ages and has been “in business” since the 9th
century. James (an apostle of Jesus) spent
some time in Spain proselytizing for the church. After his attempts were unfruitful, he returned
to Jerusalem and was promptly beheaded.
Legend has it that James’ remains were carried by boat from Jerusalem to
northern Spain where he was buried, in what is now the city of Santiago de
Compostela. He became a martyr and
Spain’s patron saint. Over the years,
the pilgrimage to Santiago has been made for reasons of penance, atonement and
spiritual growth. Traditionally, as with most pilgrimages, the
Way of St. James began at one’s home and ended at the pilgrimage site. Nowadays, a few of the routes are considered
main ones, including the one we will take, the Camino Frances (French
route). We will be walking from St.
Jean Pied du Port in southern France to Santiago de Compostela, a whopping 800
kilometers (500 miles)!
 |
| Major routes, with Camino Frances highlighted |
We will also be taking the journey a little further to Finisterre
(the End of the Earth) on the coast.
An “official” pilgrim will carry a credencial or special
passport-type document that gives them access to inexpensive overnight accommodations
(hostel style) along the route. Pilgrims
get stamps in the passport from each town or hostel (and sometimes restaurants
and other locations) and it provides pilgrims with a record of their journey
and serves as proof to the Pilgrims Office in Santiago that the journey was
accomplished according to an official route.
This qualifies the pilgrim to receive a compostela (or certificate of
completion) in Santiago. To obtain a
credencial, you must state your reason for doing the Camino. While religious reasons are still common,
many pilgrims (like us!) are doing it for fun, for the sport of it, to travel
and see new and exciting things and simply for the challenge of weeks of
walking. It will definitely be a
spiritual adventure to remove ourselves from the bustle of modern life!
We have been planning this trip for almost of year. We’ve completed multiple hikes from the coast
range to the gorge (selecting only those the books deem “difficult”) as
training. We’ve walked for hours
through rain, wind, hail, snow, more rain, mud and even hot temperatures at the
end of the training. Our routine for
each hike was a Starbucks on the way to the hike, a rice krispy after the
roughest part, and pizza and beer to celebrate at the end. It worked because we put in many miles and
gained many feet of elevation gain!
We’ve carried our weighted-down backpacks on these hikes, hoping to get
acclimated, as we will carry all we need on our backs for the 6 weeks.
We look forward to this mystical and uplifting opportunity -
the adventure of a lifetime! Thank you
for your interest in our journey. We hope to keep you informed and entertained! Please post comments if you’d like.
Karen & Pam
"20 years from now you will be more disappointed by
the things that you didn't do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the
bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbour. Catch the tradewinds in your sails.
Explore - Dream - Discover." - Mark Twain
