Virtual Camino

For a few years now, I've wanted to try to find a way to walk the Camino, officially known as the Camino de Santiago de Compostela...or in English, The Way of St. James. It's a collection of ancient pilgrimage routes across Europe that terminate in northwest Spain at Santiago de Compostela. Tradition says that the bones of St. James rest in the cathedral there. In medieval times, it was one of the most important pilgrimage routes. Even today, tens of thousands of people still travel along the same paths, mostly on foot, some by bike. (A few cheat, and ride buses. I personally don't think that counts.) :-) There are hostels all along the way that pilgrims can stay in cheaply.

The most popular Camino route starts in St Jean Pied de Port, France. It's (gulp) approximately 496 miles long and takes (on average) 33 to 35 days to complete.

At this very moment in time, I can't imagine:
a. leaving my family for this long
b. having the physical stamina to walk 500 miles
c. having the money to pay for airfare, etc.
d. taking a month of leave (ie, no-pay) from work

But I really, really want to do this. And I have some crazy friends out there who want to do it, too! So far, it's been nothing but talked about. I've read of few books, bought a guide book, looked up airfares. But that's it.

So.

I had the idea to do a "virtual" Camino here in preparation for going. In my goals for this year, I said I'd like to be prepared to go by the summer of 2010. I don't think that's going to happen, but maybe. BUT...what I can do is finish a virtual walk by then.

Using my guidebook and Internet resources, I'm going to walk as much as possible here and track my progress as if I were walking the real route. I'll post on where I'm at, what the countryside is like, the weather, historical facts, major sites along the way, the hostels available, etc.

Basically I'll research the Camino while I'm virtually walking it here.

Maybe by the time I finish the miles here, God will have provided a way for me to make it to Spain - physically, financially, and logistically. Or maybe not.

Why do I want to do this, you ask? And how in the world did I ever come up with the idea of walking 500 miles across Europe? Hmmm...I suppose that will have to be another post! Until then, here's a link to a pretty good site on the Camino. Also, this is the book I'm using as a guide right now. And finally, below is a short video showing the city where I would start my pilgrimage, St Jean Pied de Port, France.

More to come on the first stage of my virtual walk.