In late spring I will be embarking on a pilgrimage to walk a portion of the Camino de Santiago. It is also known as Pilgrimage of Compostela or in English the Way of St. James. I will be walking 205 km (about 128 miles) from Ponferrada to Santiago, Spain. This will be an eleven-day journey of walking 10-18 miles each day. You may have heard of this journey or seen movies about the Camino but if you are like me and knew very little beforehand, I thought I would share some information. If you have walked the Camino, I would love to hear about your experience!
But first, let me back up. It was September 2024 when I received a message from my friend Jenny asking if I’d be interested in walking a portion of the Camino de Santiago in the spring. At that time, I was in the throws of prepping for retirement, moving, and finding a new home so it was a bit overwhelming to think about. By early October it was an even busier time but, I was all in. I am always up for an adventure and I will honestly say while I had heard of the Camino, I was entering into this experience blindly. Some say the Camino Walk begins from the time you start planning and that makes sense. I have poured over videos, blogs, podcasts, and spoken with some who have made this journey. I have prayed about this pilgrimage and will continue to do so. I want to be fully prepared physically, mentally, and spiritually for this. I have also received the advice, “don’t overthink it.” Do they know who they are talking to? The queen of overthinking! But they are right. There is an element of this journey that is solely based on faith. After all, the pilgrimage is a spiritual journey and one that I am seeking at this stage in my life. I’m sure I will be writing more about this as the journey gets closer. Some have asked (with a quite puzzled “are you crazy, girl?” look) why I have decided to do this. I continue to contemplate my whys and will share in another blog post.
If you are interested in the history of the Camino de Santiago, this section is for you! Created and established after the discovery of the relics of Saint James the Great at the beginning of the 9th century, it became a major pilgrimage route of medieval Christianity from the 10th century onwards. But it was only after the end of the Granada War in 1492 that Pope Alexander VI officially declared the Camino de Santiago to be one of the "three great pilgrimages of Christendom", along with Jerusalem and the Via Francigena to Rome. It is a network of pilgrims' ways or pilgrimages leading to the shrine of the apostle James in the cathedral of Santiago de Compostela in Galicia in northwestern Spain. This is where tradition holds that the remains of the apostle James are buried. Many follow its routes as a form of spiritual path or retreat for their spiritual growth. There are several paths that lead to Santiago but the most popular is the “French Way” which is the portion of the route I will be taking. The walk has been growing in popularity over the years and there were almost 500,000 pilgrims that walked the Camino in 2024!
Most pilgrims purchase and carry a document called the credencial, which gives access to overnight accommodation along the route. Also known as the "pilgrim's passport", the credencial is stamped with the official St. James stamp of each town or refugio at which the pilgrim has stayed. Many hosts take pride in their stamp and design their own. It provides pilgrims with a record of where they ate or slept and serves as proof to the Pilgrim's Office in Santiago that the journey was accomplished according to an official route and thus that the pilgrim qualifies to receive a compostela (certificate of completion of the pilgrimage). The photo in this post is of my credencial that arrived the other day by mail. I love a good passport and stamps! I collect them at the National Parks, too.
If you have read this far, you are either a really good friend, a family member that feels compelled to, or you are in need of something to do! In all seriousness, I appreciate you following along with my adventures and feel free to drop me a line with any questions or comments along the way. Peace, Julia
“A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step” – Lao Tzu