Month: January 2019

It’s Like Riding a Bike

I’m finding that preparing for Camino II is like riding a bike. You’ve
already done it, you know that you can do it, so, just get on and start to
peddle. Camino II or, for that matter, any training regime is much simpler the second time around, even if I am a few years older.

My personal schedule has been severely disrupted over the last several
months so, having a bit of my routine back has been a great pleasure. Getting back to the gym for general fitness and getting back to our monthly walks now just feels right. Back and forth on the Katy Trail (KT) is a pleasure even if it’s a bit boring.

While I questioned the fit of my new boots, my Keens from Camino I would not make another trip, even on of 1/3 the length of the Camino Francés, so I
finally decided that I needed to begin breaking in my new boots, also Keens.
They actually feel fine and I look forward to actually getting them dirty, soon, I hope.

While the basics of Camino II are set, I was disappointed that I had to
adapt my schedule but, I’ve come to accept that it is Fate and, I’m not in
control. So, here’s what I know:

May 31st, depart for Madrid.

June 1st, arrive in Madrid and scramble to Ferrol via Santiago.

June 2nd, begin the Camino Inglés.

June 6th, arrive in Santiago.

From there, I must make a decision, all of them sound good but I need to
decide which road I’ll travel.  My friend Katja, the Camino Beast, tells me that there’s no hurry and I will decide when I decide.  While that’s true, one choice does require some advanced planning.

One choice is to train to León and meet Leo and Chris to walk to Astorga
where Leighton, Renee and Katja will join us.

Another choice would be to fly from Santiago to Madrid and meet L, R & K
and then train up to Astorga to meet Chris.

Another choice and, one that I find appealing is to start walking east,
which for a Pilgrim is very strange.  The sun in your face instead of on your back. I think I could possibly make it to Sarria where I could catch a train
to Astorga.  Long days but, why not.  Something to seriously consider.

Whatever the choice, we will all walk from Astorga to Sarria, some of the
most beautiful country side as you leave the Meseta and begin climbing into the hills of Galicia.

From Sarria, we will all split up.  I’ll head to Santiago where I’ll begin my journey home.  Chris and her crew will continue to Santiago and then Finisterre/Muxía.  Leighton, Renee and Leo may train to Ferrol to do the Inglés and then to Finisterre.  Katja, well, who knows which way the wind
will blow my friend.  Maybe west to Santiago, maybe north and east to more of the Primativo, possibly to Portugal.  She’ll know when she needs to know.

Personally, the randomness is growing on me.

We Vagabonds have no where to go, everything to see but nothing to show, We trod the road in the bright summer sun, the cool of spring or a deep winters snow, Our needs are simple and always benign, taking but little with no baggage in tow.

Every Step Is Worth It!

For me, one of the joys of the Camino de Santiago is the preparation for that walk.  I learned in 2016/17 that the walking, hiking and comradery which was part of both was almost as important as the Way itself.

The Crew

This year, as we did in the past, many of us are making regular walks just to get our aging bodies in shape for the daily grind of walking the 18-20 miles that we’ll do each day.

Yesterday, we walked the White Rock Creek Trail a round trip of almost 7 miles, it was flat an easy for the most part but, it was a good start and a great chance to talk with friends.  While I woke up a bit sore this morning, it felt good in a way, I earned those aches.

WRC Trail on a cold morning.

Five months and counting…

A New Year!

Welcome to 2019!  A new year with new adventures, challenges, failures, successes and joys.

For me, Christmas wrapped up with a great gift, the opportunity to walk the Camino de Santiago once again in 2019, almost 2 years from when I did my first Camino which has afforded me time to reflect on my first and consider the possibilities of my second.

This pilgrimage will be different, I have a quote attached to my email that states:

 “No man ever steps in the same river twice, for it is not the same river and he is not the same man”

This Camino for me is very much like that.  I am a different person than I was two years ago and, the Camino has certainly changed as have the cast of characters who make up the daily comedy and drama of the Camino de Santiago.

This year, some of the same people who walked the Camino with me in 2017 will once again trod that ancient path.  Happily, joining Leighton, Renee and me will be my last Camino friend, a woman I met walking up to the lighthouse in Finisterre.  Katja, my German Amiga.  I call Katja the Camino Beast, this will be her 5th trip to the Camino but, she’s so much more than an experienced Pilgrim, she’s a force in her own right.  I look forward to walking with her and for her to get to know some of the people that I consider to be my family.

My friend Chris (one of the Professors), who I met along with her husband Steve on the Camino in 2017 will be taking a group of students from Texas A&M to the Camino, what a wonderful opportunity for them all.  Our plan is to begin our Camino in Astorga and to walk with them for at least one day.  By the time we meet up, they will be experienced Peregrinos.  I look forward to hearing their stories and sharing the Way with them, if only for a brief time.

It’s ironic, joining the last friend I made on the Camino will be Leo, the first friend I made in 2017.  I met Leo, who happens to be from the Dallas area, in the Pilgrims office in Saint Jean Pied de Port (SJPP) while we were checking in on that rainy day.  Leo and I separated in Estella without getting to say good-bye. 

Leo had to skip part of the Camino, the meseta, to get back home.  Leo made it to León and then took a bus or train to Sarria where he finished the final 100k.  He wants to walk the pieces that he missed so, he’ll start in León, walk to Astorga (2 days) where we’ll all join up.

Our Camino this year will take us from Astorga to Sarria, some of the most beautiful areas along the Camino in my mind, it will also give me an opportunity to visit the stone the Professors left last year for our friend Dave who passed away last May.

From Sarria, the plan and, there is nothing written in stone, is to take the train to Ferrol where we’ll walk the Camino Inglés, the English Way to Santiago.  From there, we’ll keep walking to Finisterre, the end of the world, one of my favorite places.

As I said earlier, this will be a very different Camino for me and I expect I’ll have a very different reaction to this experience because it is not the same Camino and I am not the same man. I can’t wait.

Camino prep begins on January 5th with a nice training walk with the Dallas Pilgrims.  Yay, Outside!