Doing a Camino is the dream of many. Not necessarily expert hikers or habitual walkers: a journey is something that changes you insideregardless of whether it is what Americans call a thru-hike, i.e. a walking and backpacking journey from the beginning to the end of a long-distance trail such as the Appalachian Trail (AT), the Pacific Crest Trail (PCT) or also our Sentiero Italia, or a walk of a few days such as the Via degli Dei or the Cammino di Oropa.
Going on a journey: an achievable dream?
But if walking is a dream, is it also an achievable dream? If you can put one foot in front of the other, day after day, the dream is absolutely achievable. And if you are thinking of embarking on this adventure, here you will find some essential basics to start and get to the end of your experience.
What is a Camino?
What makes a hike a Camino? Essentially the fact of traveling for several days on foot, backpacker, from the beginning to the end of a walking itinerary recognizable for a reason, a theme, an argument, a purpose.
The most famous in Europe are undoubtedly the Camino de Santiago and the Via Francigena, and many others like these are characterized by a religious or devotional theme. But there are many others with historical, artistic or literary characteristicssuch as the Cammino di Dante or Il Sentiero Calabria, and others that have a particular charm due to the characteristics of the route, such as the Sentiero Italia CAI.
Walks, paths, roads
Paths do not necessarily proceed on paths. Some also, or mainly, include mountain trails, perhaps even of a technical grade that is not simply hiking; others mainly travel along country paths, carriageways, secondary roads; still others pass through population centers, cities or even metropolises.
This is one of the first basic notions and features to take into account when you start planning your first journey: a Camino with stretches in the mountains, perhaps at high altitude, requires physical preparation, ability to orient oneself, suitable equipment such as footwear, clothing or trekking poles; a path on the plain that crosses towns and cities is less demanding from this point of view and allows easier “ways out” in case of difficulty.
Credentials
A real Path that is considered as such always requires Credentials. What are? Essentially a walker’s “booklet” on which to have stamps affixed at each stage until the completion of the journey. Are credentials required? No, nothing is mandatory in something that is a free choice, but the credentials of the path can give access to reception facilities or other sites of interest, in the end they provide a “reward” as evidence of the path taken, and in any case they are a personal satisfaction . And even personal satisfaction needs something tangible.
Is a Path such if and only if it is followed without interruptions?
No, a Path is such if it leaves something in your soul, heart and mind. There are those who travel the Francigena or Santiago in stages year after year, there are those who plan their own Sentiero Italia taking into account the seasons and the weather, and there are those who leave everything for months and do not return home until they have covered his experience from beginning to end. What matters is your experience, not the record.
Tent, hostel, hotels, hotels: which accommodation?
It depends on you, on what you want to live, on your financial availability, on your level of tolerance with respect to inconveniences. Each type of accommodation has its pros and cons.
The tent means absolute independence, and it is also an insurance against the unexpected. But in Italy it is forbidden to go wild camping (at most you can camp out, and we have explained the difference here) and for a tent you have to plan for a few kilos of extra weight on the backpack and shoulders. In addition to the fact that you may find yourself assembling it late at night, in the dark and in the middle of a storm or in pouring rain.
The hostels are not necessarily the “young” option. Often what distinguishes hostels located on the paths is not the age of its guests but the fact that they are all walkers. This allows you to share experiences, stories and information. The other side of the coin is that we don’t talk about anything else, and maybe you might need to take your mind off your monographic course a little on the path you are on. Everyone experiences it in their own way.
Hotels and hotels I’m not a non-walker option. Of course, the sense of community may be missing a bit, but if you need a comfortable bed to rest on and some extra comfort, these are guaranteed. Obviously the budget to be foreseen is significantly higher.
Along the most famous Paths there are also families indicated in the walker’s booklet that provide rooms or the garden for the tent for walkers, at obviously super-agreed prices. They are usually super dispensers of good advice as well as a very cheap solution.
Alone or in company?
Everyone lives their own path as they see fit. Certain the essence of all spiritual or religious paths is that of the saint who sets out alone open to encounters with others, and since the beginning of the world, the transformative experience of travel can be lived alone. But a Camino can also be an experience for a couple or a group. Just know that there are pros and cons, and that in any case, during the long hours of walking, there will inevitably be moments of solitude.
What equipment do you need for a Camino?
It depends on innumerable factors, from the type of itinerary to the season to the type of accommodation that one can or wants to afford.
In any case one Backpackfrom the sturdy but also comfortable footwear and suitable for walking 10, 15 or 20 km a day, of the aclothing that can be washed and dried quickly, something that shelters from the rain even in summer (and certainly equipment suitable for the cold and precipitation in winter) are the basic kit. The advice of all those who have already made a journey is: bring the essentials and possibly that it is light and not bulky. Every extra pound multiplied by 20,000 steps in a day can make a difference.
What is always recommended to bring with you? A torch or headlamp if you linger until the evening hours, a multipurpose Swiss Army knife that can serve many purposes, a water bottle to always have a supply of water with you and plasters for blisters on your feet.
If then your Way foresees sections in total autonomy with night bivouacs you will need the essentials to shelter you at night (from a tent to a tarp, as well as a sleeping bag), to light a fire, cook and eat, as well as obviously a paper map of the route.
How to plan milestones
Distances are objective, times subjective. And as always the time indicated next to the km is the average of the chicken between those who take less and those who take longer. Therefore: the stages are planned in advance, well in advance of the departure; when planning the stops, we also take care of where to find water and food, as well as possible exit routes, such as public transport in case of need, or intermediate accommodations; and then we leave early in the morning, in the summer to take advantage of the cooler hours, in the other seasons to take advantage of every second of light, and always to have time in the afternoon to organize one’s belongings and organize the next day’s stage.
Can you give up?
It happens to everyone, even to hardened and experienced walkers: after several tens of kilometers or days you will begin to wonder why you wanted to do this thing. You may even think about quitting. It’s like for books: it is permissible to abandon, and it is not a defeat. This too is an experience.
That said: the days when you think about giving up are a natural and inevitable part of the journey. However, in order not to have remorse, it is always better to never give up on a bad day.
And now that you know everything, discover all the Paths you want to do in our dedicated channel.
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