Such great advice! On breaking up the first day, absolutely recommend going half way initially. If you arrive around 3pm to SJPP you can still make Orisson on day 0 [8km] (usually have to be there by 7pm). The day 1 walk on the Napoleon route really benefits from being over the climb to Orisson. I found this Day0-Day1 split worked the best for me.
The "standard" itinerary (I call it the "Brierley" itinerary) is simply too ambitious for the first few days of the Camino Frances, particularly if you don't have the time beforehand to do some training. And I absolutely insist that there is no real way to train for some of the steeper sections of the first few days if you live in most places in North America, because replicating the treachery of the ground in some of these places is close to impossible. I live 3.5 hours from the Canadian Rockies, and even if I were to drive there and hike every weekend, I would not (for example) run into trails that had extensive amounts of the infamous "Dragon's Teeth" that you find during the first few days of the CF hikes through the Pyrenees. The Brierley itinerary also makes the mistake of putting the worst descents at the _end_ of each day's hike, which guarantees that you face these descents tired and careless. No amount of encouragement to "pay attention" or "take care" can overcome real exhaustion. I only hiked the first six days, and I saw _way_ too many injuries first-hand. There's no need for that. I'm probably going back next year, with a more thorough understanding of some of the unique challenges that the CF up to and including Logroño confronts you with. Much more robust measures need to be taken for blister prevention, and the poor profiles of many of the trails themselves require different ways of walking, otherwise your feet are constantly torqued either left or right while you're trying to straddle washouts in the middle of trail sections, which telescopes unusual forces/stresses up to your knees. Ouchie.
Awesome advice - thank you very much. I am accustomed to hiking the less “aggressive” tracks in New Zealand but these lighter trails are certainly more demanding than many of the worst Camino stages. But the big difference is that a several day hike is very different to a day after day hike (El Camino) where we get tired and make mistakes and the constant strain on the body over many weeks profoundly affects our wellbeing in both a positive and negative way. I really appreciated your walking tips and thank you for taking the time to put this video together and share it with the Camino community. PS I start my very first Camino on 29th August this years as a solo senior in my late 60s :-)
You are making a great point. Even for experienced through walkers, keeping "in the moment" and attentive to ground conditions is half the battle as you begin to get fatigued. I think that is extremely true of the Alto Erro downhill coming right after the potentially super-hard day from SJPDP. Buen Camino to you on the 29th!
So I am mindful of your advice and after a very long haul flight from New Zealand, I am taking the Valcarlos route - overnighting at Valcarlos. It seems that some of the most difficult walking is at a time when we are most vulnerable with possible jet lag etc.
@@Xtinedriffill Exactly, fatigue is a major challenge particularly in the early going when you are experiencing the adrenaline rush of starting that can drain your batteries for what is coming on days two (900 meter climb) and three (the "Dragons Teeth" at Alto Erro before Zubiri). If you are staying at the Municipal albergue, it is a little tricky to find as the entrance is at the base of the building to the left of the little park in the middle of town. There is a number to call on he door to get the hospitalero to register you- he was very quick getting there when we stayed there. Right across the main road from the albergue there is a great restaurant and store with very friendly folks, we had a terrific meal with many pilgrims there even in mid March. Finding the Valcarlos route out of SJPDP can be a little tricky- half our ultimate family missed a critical turn and went several km off trail. If you look carefully at the pictures in the pilgrim office I don't think you will have a problem. In particular the key turn is shown in a picture with a very distinctive building as your signal to turn. Suggest taking a picture of it at the office. Next day we took the road up to the ridge top before Roncesvalles; several people we walked with later took the path up which is a bit hard to find but I understand it was a fine walk, a bit steeper than the switchback road but a well built trail. I imagine if there has been a lot of rain it might be a bit tricky. As a recovering geologist I am a big believer in the adage "There are old bush pilots, and bold bush pilots but no old bold bush pilots." I think it is a useful maxim on the CF, being conservative in decision making early until you have kind of figured it all out tends to be a good approach imo. Buen Camino!
One of our crew taxied down- there is a road at the summit so would say yes. It’s not a hard climb up, just long but the climb down with the rolly polly stones can be a challenge in my opinion.
Most important is width- if the shoes are too narrow blisters are highly likely. Next, I tried to figure out a sole that would work on pavement, cobbles and rocky trails. The Challenger 7s worked for me. Finally, I have found that orthotics in soft soled Hokas are ideal for me and the 6mm drop is super critical to not messing up my achilles. I wish I could wear the very wide zero drop shoes like Altras but this last point makes that impossible. Hope this helps!
Thanks for the information. Very useful.
Such great advice!
On breaking up the first day, absolutely recommend going half way initially.
If you arrive around 3pm to SJPP you can still make Orisson on day 0 [8km] (usually have to be there by 7pm). The day 1 walk on the Napoleon route really benefits from being over the climb to Orisson. I found this Day0-Day1 split worked the best for me.
Great advice. I did the Frances last year in June and without doubt the descent into Zubiri on Alto el Erro was slippery and dangerous at times.
The "standard" itinerary (I call it the "Brierley" itinerary) is simply too ambitious for the first few days of the Camino Frances, particularly if you don't have the time beforehand to do some training. And I absolutely insist that there is no real way to train for some of the steeper sections of the first few days if you live in most places in North America, because replicating the treachery of the ground in some of these places is close to impossible. I live 3.5 hours from the Canadian Rockies, and even if I were to drive there and hike every weekend, I would not (for example) run into trails that had extensive amounts of the infamous "Dragon's Teeth" that you find during the first few days of the CF hikes through the Pyrenees.
The Brierley itinerary also makes the mistake of putting the worst descents at the _end_ of each day's hike, which guarantees that you face these descents tired and careless. No amount of encouragement to "pay attention" or "take care" can overcome real exhaustion.
I only hiked the first six days, and I saw _way_ too many injuries first-hand. There's no need for that.
I'm probably going back next year, with a more thorough understanding of some of the unique challenges that the CF up to and including Logroño confronts you with. Much more robust measures need to be taken for blister prevention, and the poor profiles of many of the trails themselves require different ways of walking, otherwise your feet are constantly torqued either left or right while you're trying to straddle washouts in the middle of trail sections, which telescopes unusual forces/stresses up to your knees. Ouchie.
Great video! Wish I had these tips BEFORE my walk! 😁
Same here. Those are some gnarly downhills!
Awesome advice - thank you very much. I am accustomed to hiking the less “aggressive” tracks in New Zealand but these lighter trails are certainly more demanding than many of the worst Camino stages. But the big difference is that a several day hike is very different to a day after day hike (El Camino) where we get tired and make mistakes and the constant strain on the body over many weeks profoundly affects our wellbeing in both a positive and negative way. I really appreciated your walking tips and thank you for taking the time to put this video together and share it with the Camino community. PS I start my very first Camino on 29th August this years as a solo senior in my late 60s :-)
You are making a great point. Even for experienced through walkers, keeping "in the moment" and attentive to ground conditions is half the battle as you begin to get fatigued. I think that is extremely true of the Alto Erro downhill coming right after the potentially super-hard day from SJPDP. Buen Camino to you on the 29th!
So I am mindful of your advice and after a very long haul flight from New Zealand, I am taking the Valcarlos route - overnighting at Valcarlos. It seems that some of the most difficult walking is at a time when we are most vulnerable with possible jet lag etc.
@@Xtinedriffill Exactly, fatigue is a major challenge particularly in the early going when you are experiencing the adrenaline rush of starting that can drain your batteries for what is coming on days two (900 meter climb) and three (the "Dragons Teeth" at Alto Erro before Zubiri). If you are staying at the Municipal albergue, it is a little tricky to find as the entrance is at the base of the building to the left of the little park in the middle of town. There is a number to call on he door to get the hospitalero to register you- he was very quick getting there when we stayed there. Right across the main road from the albergue there is a great restaurant and store with very friendly folks, we had a terrific meal with many pilgrims there even in mid March. Finding the Valcarlos route out of SJPDP can be a little tricky- half our ultimate family missed a critical turn and went several km off trail. If you look carefully at the pictures in the pilgrim office I don't think you will have a problem. In particular the key turn is shown in a picture with a very distinctive building as your signal to turn. Suggest taking a picture of it at the office.
Next day we took the road up to the ridge top before Roncesvalles; several people we walked with later took the path up which is a bit hard to find but I understand it was a fine walk, a bit steeper than the switchback road but a well built trail. I imagine if there has been a lot of rain it might be a bit tricky. As a recovering geologist I am a big believer in the adage "There are old bush pilots, and bold bush pilots but no old bold bush pilots." I think it is a useful maxim on the CF, being conservative in decision making early until you have kind of figured it all out tends to be a good approach imo. Buen Camino!
Great video! Thanks. Question: Can one take a taxi up to Alto del Perdon ?
One of our crew taxied down- there is a road at the summit so would say yes. It’s not a hard climb up, just long but the climb down with the rolly polly stones can be a challenge in my opinion.
I'm confused I need wide shoes, you seemed to not like the wider shoes because of the soles. Which ones did you use?
Most important is width- if the shoes are too narrow blisters are highly likely. Next, I tried to figure out a sole that would work on pavement, cobbles and rocky trails. The Challenger 7s worked for me. Finally, I have found that orthotics in soft soled Hokas are ideal for me and the 6mm drop is super critical to not messing up my achilles. I wish I could wear the very wide zero drop shoes like Altras but this last point makes that impossible. Hope this helps!
Trilobite Tour: cuando comienzas a recorrer el Camino por Galicia, te caes y ya no vemos más. Así ocultas la parte más hermosa del Camino. Una pena.
Me caigo a menudo pero es parte del Camino y me hace valorar el lugar, sobre todos Galicia