My first 100km trek - #350WordsWeekly

By the end of April, I will start my first trekking adventure, and for my first journey I chose "The Saint James Way" or in the local language "O/El Camiño de Santiago". Compostela is in Galicia, Spain, and this is one of the most popular hiking ways in Europe. One of the reasons is, you can start your journey in several places and follow many different directions (you can check the image on this post to figure out). Only in Portugal we can find 4 different paths and that's why this hike is mentioned using the plural many times.

This is a religious pathway but all of us can do this hike. Catholics will be able to find a special offer like shelters where you can sleep without paying a specific price! But you should be generous, those places depend on your donation. I'm reticent to name those places as hostel because you can find a bed if you arrive soon but if you arrive later maybe you will need to sleep in the floor with your sleeping bag and sleeping pad... Other benefits of a religious hike are discounts for pilgrim in some cafés and restaurants.

If you wish to get a certification of your pilgrimage you should get a "passport" before starting your hike and collect stamps in those places and others such Catholic places and institutional places along the pathway. You will need to hike minimum of 100 km walking or 200 km if you prefer to use a bike. Accomplishing this step, you will be able to apply for your "Compostela" (“Compostela” is the name of certification). Remember, these benefits are for Catholic pilgrims only.

Don’t worry if you aren’t Catholic, you will be able to find places to sleep too and you will hike behind forests and villages full of cultural references. 

This way is marking by yellow arrows or scallops. The scallop is a symbol of this journey and for my first journey I pretend to follow these marks from Tui to Santiago. I’m choosing a short distance maybe, but this is the recommendation for starters.

The sections I will chose are:

Tui - Redondela (31km / 19mi)
Redondela – Pontevedra (17.5km / 11mi)
Pontevedra - Caldas de Reis (22km / 13.5mi)
Caldas de Reis - Padrón (19km /12mi)
Padrón - Compostela (25km / 15.5mi)

and I’m thinking about divide the first section in 2 parts. I hope you enjoyed this post and, in that case, kindly comment, subscribe and share. I will be sharing my adventure soon.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Portuguese Hike Markings - #350WordsWeekly

Image
I All, I’m thinking about why not look inside Portugal and let you know something about what you can find in my own country… If you wish visit us, and walk, you will find two different route types, both certified routes by FCMP . The short distance routes “Pequena Rota [PR]” and the long-distance routes “Grande Rota [ GR ]”. PR are short distance hikes that will take you one day maximum and GR are medium or long-distance hikes, mainly designed to take more than one day but you can find some GR to fulfil in less than the expected if you are an experienced hiker. You can find some three European long-distance paths ( E-paths ) too, but they are usually marked with the GR symbols and in the same pathways. Usually PR are marked in yellow and red, and for GR are used the same symbols but in white and red. You can find some different colors such in “ Rota Vicentina – Fishermen’s Trail” the green and blue ( just because in south of Portugal they need to be different 😊 ). Yo
Read more

My first backpacking gear - #350WordsWeekly

Image
Hi All. I’m searching for an ultra-light backpacking gear and this post will be about what I’m considering using, given my little experience on trekking long-distance paths. Since I was young, I had hiking and camping experiences due to my parents’ fondness for this kind of activities, and later on #Scouting activities. I already went thru the experience of preparing a backpack, but usually for one day activity, and for one single campsite. So, this will be quite a new experience for me. My goal is to prepare a 13kg / 28lb backpack for my first 21 days thru-hike at Kungsleden, Sweden, including three litters of water, three meals and considering the possibility of cold night conditions. This is the first time that I will be packing a tent. It’s very different from what I expected. I can easily get for an acceptable price a two-body tent with 1,6kg / 3lb only. The tent isn’t my major weight problem. Including the usual stuff, like the backpack itself, sleeping bag, sleeping p
Read more