Packing!

What to bring? Mindful that everything must be carried for up to seven hours daily, weight takes on a major significance in packing the knapsack! The heaviest items will be potions and lotions to keep the sun at bay, the face reasonably protected, and the body and clothes clean. So various 100ml plastic bottles will carry sunscreens, face creams, moisturisers, toothpaste, and shower/wash gel. Mobile phone (with charger and adaptor) is not essential, but good to have for keeping in touch with loved ones, so space will be found for it. My camera is compact and light, and one charge will have to last!

Hostels issue disposable sheets and pillowcases, so a sleeping bag is not necessary and a silk liner together with cotton pareo (which also makes a great scarf or shawl) will suffice as bedclothes, while a muslin cloth will double as towel and pillow cover. Walking trousers that zip off to shorts are highly practical: I will manage with one pair and an extra pair of lightweight shorts. Undies will be down to a minimum : one to wear, one to wash, and a spare or two. Night attire can adapt as sundress, and four tee shirts will be more than ample. A long-sleeved cotton shirt both for additional warmth and as sun protection will be useful, and a light cardi keeps out the chill of early morning starts. A windcheater, hat and poncho will take care of the inevitable rain, and walking socks, boots, and featherlight but sturdy Crocs will protect the vitally important feet!

Blister repair kit, antiseptic cream, sewing things, sun- and reading glasses, medications and small torch will complete the load in my small day pack, and water bottle, documentation, pilgrim passport, copy book for diary, pencil, purse, camera and maps of the route slot into a small bum-bag which worn to the front counterbalances the load. A total of 7kg is a very modest weight to carry, and makes the walk all the more pleasurable particularly on hills.

Laundry can be easily carried out at any of the hostels, most of which have outdoor clotheslines - I must remember to add clothes pegs to the list above! Early starts and early arrivals allow time for the housekeeping issues, and in case of endless rain I can always purchase a few extra items of clothing!

Planning and preparations are all well in train, and the next post will come from the Camino itself - not sure where or when but as soon as I reach an internet cafe or welcoming library! Thanks for the continuing interest in the trip, and as they say en route, Buen camino!

The Route

Many roads lead to Santiago de Compostela. In the middle ages it was the third most important Christian site after Jerusalem and Rome. Irish pilgrims would traditionally have set sail from St James' Gate in Dublin and landed in Ferrol or Coruna and walked the 100 km to Santiago along the Camino Ingles. We completed this in 2007 as our first taste of the Camino experience. Last year we walked from Porto on the Camino Portugues, and this time I am attempting the last part of the Camino Frances or French Way which has Tour Saint-Jacques in Paris as one of its start points.

Flying from Dublin to Bilbao on May 4th, I will check out the new Guggenheim Museum and overnight in the city, before taking a local bus to Sahagun in the province of Leon - a journey of 4.5 hours. Sahagun was formerly an extremely important town on the pilgrim route, boasting the most influential Benedictine monastery outside of Cluny in Burgundy. Its scriptorium produced many priceless manuscripts, and many famous saints and scholars were educated here. In the 1400s it had achieved university status. However, it began to fall out of favour in the 18th century, and was devastated by fire in the 19th. All that remains today is the 12th century chapel of San Manico, but there are many other notable churches and public buildings in the city. I will stay at a hostel run by the Benedictine sisters at the convent of Santa Cruz, and claim the first stamp or sello on my Pilgrims' Passport, a vital document which will entitle me to accommodation at pilgrim hostels all along the route for a very modest sum.

From Sahagun I will walk for 20 days, varying my daily distance from 16 km on the first day to the longest stretch of 26km two days from Santiago. Some stages will be along quiet country paths, while on others there will be a good deal of road waking with attendant traffic. Some days the going will be fairly level, but on days 7 and 8 I will get to an altitude of 1,155m and 1,505m respectively which will be fairly strenuous for me! In Galicia I will expect rain but hope it doesn't pour too often. As this is a Holy Year when the feast of St James, July 25th, falls on a Sunday, there will be many pilgrims en route, but hopefully at this relatively early time of the year the hostels will not be full. There will be long hours of light, and generally I will start walking early and try to arrive at my destination by early afternoon, to grab a decent bunk and do some washing/internetting/exploring before an early bed. Lights out are generally at 10.00 pm, and fellow pilgrims are good about keeping silent after that.

So for now it's back to training, as I try keep up 2 - 3 hours walking daily, though at this stage without a backpack!

Preparations

Hello Everyone!

There are just four weeks left before my Camino Frances walk begins. Already the response to my request for sponsorship for the Cork & Kenya-based charity, Friends of Londiani has been huge, and I am tremendously heartened and encouraged by all of this. Thank you all so much for your great generosity. If anyone else would like to sponsor me just click on http://www.mycharity.ie/event/360k_walk/

Training is beginning, and I hope to build up to a couple of hours per day, though from previous hikes I know there is nothing to beat the actual daily effort on the path, and somehow one seems to get strength to complete the course. The fact that so many other walkers, many of whom are covering far greater distances, are there to give encouragement and support is a great and magical part of the Camino experience.

I have bought the excellent book of route maps produced by John Brierley and have planned my daily mileage, generally covering between 15 - 22 km per day. I will keep my backpack down to the usual 7kg - which is pretty restricting for a three-week hike, but when it has got to be carried for several hours every day, every gramme counts. All the hostels have excellent washing facilities, and hopefully there will be sunshine to dry the smalls!

I will endeavour to keep you all posted on my route as I walk, with visits to internet cafes and libraries every few days to upload photos and updates - blister reports and general Camino gossip. It will be lovely to be able to communicate in this way - and at least you will know that I haven't done a bunk with the money!