I Prefer Paris: Camino de Santiago Frances Pilgrimage with Karen Wimmer

My longtime friend and neighbor (we met in 1986) from New York, Karen Wimmer, bravely took on walking the Camino de Santiago Frances Pilgrimage last September and October. The most popular pilgrimage in the world Camino de Santiago Frances has existed since the 10^th century and has been named Proclaimed First European Cultural Itinerary in 1987 and has been inscribed as a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 1993. Karen walked 484 miles for 35 days with two friends.

Karen flew to Paris for a few days last September before she went on her journey and we met for dinner. I asked her tons of questions and later thought it would be a great blog story. I interviewed Karen, so you have a chance to see what the experience was like.

What made you decide to do this? Was it a longtime dream? No, not a longtime dream, just the opposite.

• A very old friend, Catherine, who lives in Australia contacted me via text in early 2019 and said she was thinking of people she knew in the world who might want to walk the Camino de Santiago Frances pilgrimage and thought of me. She and her best friend Ali were walking, and would I be interested?
• So, Catherine gave me the idea and since I love to hike, I love challenges – especially physical, and I was 72 and retired – had the time, it sounded great! I did wonder could I physically do it? Also, I had never stepped out of my life before; meaning, I worked right out of college until I retired at 70. I never backpacked in Europe or took any stretch of time out of my life, so a long adventure or pilgrimage was very intriguing.
• I was a little shocked, at the distance of 779 km or 484 miles, that you would be walking about 35 days from France across Spain through the Pyrenees, and walking from St. Jean-Pied-de-Port, France to Santiago de Compostela, Spain – yikes! So I texted Catherine, “give me a weekend to decide.” And I looked for signs across the weekend and I got two very strong ones and committed on May 5, 2019.

How did you physically train before you started your trip?

• Walked a lot! Travel info recommend time / distance to walk 3, 2 and 1 month before you start the Camino – gradually increasing your walking time & distance. I never reached what was suggested. However, I did increase my walking and walked a variety of terrains, i.e., NYC city streets and parks, upstate NY on asphalt rail trails, to mountains on the Appalachian Trail. I walked 2 to 3 days / week in August averaging 5 to 6 hours per hike. Biggest challenge was to get away from my daily life to walk.
• Learned to use hiking poles – which were a pain in the ass at first! Eventually, I got

the poles down. They take pressure off your knees. Extremely useful & love them now!

• Carried my day-backpack with 3 liters of water in hydration pack – so I got used to hiking with weight, carrying my water pack, and hydrating frequently.
• Used All Trails App for routes to train on – a side benefit, discovered many new trails in New York, Massachusetts and Connecticut 20 to 45 minutes from our house upstate.

What other things did you have to prepare for?

• We pre-booked accommodations using RAW Travel (Australia) – RAW booked our hotels for the entire trip except in St. Jean Pied-de-Port. Bookings included breakfast and daily pick up of our bag or pack to take to next accommodation.

• Many pilgrims book accommodations as they go – they don’t want to be tied down to walking a set # of km each day. They stop for the day when they want and look for a hotel (a room) or Albergue (a bed). We wanted a hotel room each night and didn’t want to search after we walked. The downside, we had to walk a set amount per day – 32 km (20 miles) on a few. We averaged 22 – 29 km (14 – 18 miles per day).
• Booked our own Flights & Ground transportation … JFK to Paris; Charles de Gaulle Paris to Biarritz, France; hired a shuttle in Biarritz to drive us to Saint Jean Pied de Port, France, the official starting point in France. You sign in and get your first stamp in your official credencials or Pilgrim passport. These credencials you need to get stamped once or twice daily to prove upon arrival in Santiago that you walked the whole Camino, and to receive the official Compostela with your name and distance walked.
• Travel Insurance – RAW required travel insurance that would air lift one out if injured.

• Purchased extremely light suitcase (2300 g or 5 lbs.) – the places we stayed were small B&B’s with stairs and you’d have to carry it up and down, so you want to pack very light.

What did you have to pack?

• TOO MUCH!! Now after doing it, I would pack less! But I did fine…
• Packed light-weight pants & tops that wick, wool socks (Smartwool), underwear that doesn’t chafe – very important! Buffs, sun hat, and light jacket and gloves. Rain pants and rain jacket are a must and were a lifesaver on wet, damp, rainy days which I carried in my backpack at all times! Clothes that can be layered for warmth or peeled off.
• Waterproof hiking boots – I wore these starting in May and across the summer on my hikes. However, I found they were too hard for asphalt, so bought an additional pair of more cushioned trail runner shoes for walking on pavement. I did a lot of trial and error before I got the right pairs. However, even then, I got blisters!
• Head light for walking early morning in dark – never thought I’d use it, but I did

You traveled with two friends who you haven’t traveled with before. What was that experience like and were there moments of tension or any disagreements?

• It was fantastic traveling with Catherine and Ali – they are best friends in Australia. They are upbeat, extremely friendly and outgoing, and energetic walkers. Both were very engaging with people. We laughed at lot at ourselves and situations; especially in the mornings – because we always ate breakfast and started the walk together. The only tension, I can remember is when we wanted to leave at different times in the morning.

• Catherine was the organizer; she created a WhatsApp for our Camino family of friends as we’d meet folks along the way, which allowed us to connect when we’d finish for the day and find out who wanted to meet up for dinner or drinks. Ali was the navigator; she had an App on her phone that we could use to navigate at the end of the day to figure out where the heck our hotel might be once we got into the small village, town or somewhere outside of town on a country road.
Day 6 / Sept 12 - Alto del Perdon - Karen with wrought iron sculpture of ancient pilgrims

Day 1 / Sept 7: Views as we walked up our 1st day!
Day 7 / Sept 13 - Ali, Emma, Catherine and Karen walking from Puerta la Reina to Estella on old Roman roadway along vineyards and rolling farmland.

Were there things you forgot to bring or didn’t know you needed?

• Vaseline & Compeed Blister Cushions! – everyone gets blisters. Only a few don’t! Vaseline helps prevent them if you use it frequently on your feet across the day as you walk; and Compeed helps alleviate the pain and / or heal the blister once you get them! But these are both stocked in every Farmacia!

How many days was the trip?

• 42 days total – we walked 35 days, and every 7 or 8 days, we had a rest day – 4 rest days total in Pamplona, Burgos, Leon and Sarria. It was great to give your feet and body a break! Plus Pamplona, Burgos and Leon were amazingly beautiful and our hotels were in the old town – so very historical and charming to wander. And we had 1 day in Saint Jean Pied de Port before we began and 2 days in Santiago de Compostela at the end. In Sarria I was glad to have a rest, because of a bad cold, and I needed to sleep!

Was there a daily schedule and if there was, did you stick to it? Did you start and end the same time every day?

• Yes & No – very informal daily schedule. Wake by 6 or 6:30; we three would meet for breakfast and start the walk as the sun was coming up – usually 7:30 or 8. Only occasionally in the dark. We always knew what town we were headed to and # of km / day. We never knew what we would experience on the way, so every day was unique!
• 5 – 6 hours was average time we walked daily but many days were longer. A 32 km was always a long day – 7 to 8 hours.
• Each day was a surprise / unique – your daily pace varies based on how you feel, the breathtakingly beautiful sights or churches you stop to take in, or the people you meet, or the terrain you walk, or # of times you stop to rest / eat.
• (For example, in Viana [a town we were supposed to just walk through] we arrived at noon and found a lively Fall Festival / Running of the Bulls celebration. It was packed with thousands of locals dressed in all white with red scarves and belts! We stayed 3 hours, watching the parade, the bulls running and had tapas / drinks! We had a fantastic time until we left at 3:30 to finish the 10 km remaining to Logrono of our 27 km for the day. It started to rain! And when we finally arrived at 5:30 – I had wet feet, and was covered in mud, due to walking into a few deep puddles without my water-proof boots!
Day 24 / Sept 30 - YEAH - REST Day in Leon and a little R&R with Camino Family - Tony, Catherine, Belinda, Sally, and Ali - and me behind the phone taking the picture.
Day 20 / Sept 26 - walking the road out of the village early morning - Ken joined Ali, Catherine and I
Day 19 / Sept 25 - leaving before sunrise, we watched the sun come up as we walked through farmlands and along an irrigation canal from Boadilla del Camino to Carrio de los Condes
Was not speaking French or Spanish a hindrance?

• Not really – most of the time you could communicate for simple food and beverages and bathrooms easily; we learned those in Spanish. Most of the Spaniards were friendly and helpful – only occasionally did meet get a grumpy person!
• Google Translate – an app I would never travel without!!! Amazing tool when I needed to communicate complex thoughts or concepts. Used it at Urgent Care in Pamplona (I had a terrible sty that needed attention that started on day 1 and by day 8 – very bad). Surprisingly both the receptionist, and the nurse, had the app on their phones and so we just spoke back and forth with our phones – very accepted and easy. Once I saw the doctor – she spoke English so that was great.

Please tell us about the local people you met, especially in the small or obscure towns?

• Joseph in the village of Akerreta – he owned the rustic Hotel Akerreta and made you feel he had invited you into his home. Joseph was a retired professional athlete and storyteller extraordinaire! He shared how it took him 5 years to renovate the building that had sat abandoned for 91 years before transforming it into a charming rustic hotel! Plus he hosted some of the filming of The Way at his hotel and spent time with Martin Sheen and Emilio Estevez – so he had funny, delightful stories!

• Kim in Rabanal – an American bartender from Orlando who had hiked the Camino 4 times and then eventually moved to Spain permanently 5 years ago, and then bought and renovated a small building transforming it into her home and a 3-room hotel. She called to me from another room, as I entered, “Karen is that you, so glad you are finally here”. She then proceeded to sit me down, ask me wonderful questions about my journey and feed me with banana bread! She was a magnificent host and spiritual person – she did my laundry, insisted we go to the pilgrim mass before dinner, made dinner reservations for us all! Then she topped it off with a candlelight breakfast before sunrise before I left to walk in the morning. We were walking to the most spiritual point and highest peak – Cruz de Ferro, so it was a wonderful beginning to the day.
• Many owners I encountered in the places we stayed, where we ate meals, or stopped for coffee or snacks, cared deeply for and served with kindness and love!
• Local people were friendly / wonderful! – when you walked through towns or villages or even some of the bigger cities – locals walking by you on the street would wish you “Buen Camino” meaning have a ‘Good Way’ or a Good Camino – it’s also how pilgrims greeted one another when they passed each other. However, when locals said it, it seemed that they were wishing you a successful walk and that you finish safely. One day, we ran into an old woman walking from her backyard who had a plate of fresh-picked figs she just picked and stretch out the plate – so luscious – she made us each take 3. We took a picture with her and she hugged us all goodbye saying Buen Camino. The Spanish are extremely warm and wonderful!

Was there memorable meals or food?

• Wine – most served local or regional wines; wonderfully full-bodied, bold and delicious.
• Fresh squeezed orange juice – it was everywhere; and they’d make in front of you
• Manchego cheeses – so flavorful and firm but creamy and rich flavor
• Jamon – (which I didn’t eat) but everyone loved the paper thin slices with the cheese.
• Tapas – in Pamplona and Burgos was spectacular visually and delicious
• Trout – fresh, pan fried local, was amazing
• White asparagus was everywhere – we walked through fields; it was in every salad
• Paella – fresh made with seafood, chorizo or ham and veggies was amazing; others were awful – i.e., frozen dinners.
• Bread was spectacular!
• Espresso was brilliant!
• Meals along the Camino were simple but wonderful and reasonable.

What were some of the most difficult moments?

• Blisters – walking into Burgos was the most painful experience I had on the whole trip!
• Blisters – but because everyone had blisters, they also brought people together – laughed and complained about them, and shared remedies for them!

What were the unexpected surprises, good and bad?

• Intimacy of the walk – you feel an intimacy with the land and small villages as you walk, with the people in the towns, and with the other pilgrims; sometimes it strikes you, that you’re sharing a closeness or connection you’ve never felt before
• Walking into Burgos was mind-blowing – walking 26 km with blisters that day was painful and the last 5 km was through an industrial hell. Then all of a sudden we found the river, and walked along into a Gothic fairy tale; as we entered the old city through the ancient arch and onto the square with The Cathedral of Santa Maria XIII – it was so breathtakingly beautiful and so surreal!
• Sitting or walking with your soul in silence – pilgrim Masses in the Cathedrals, moments in small village churches or chapels where you sit in silence, or where you sit on a rock and soak up the beauty of the Meseta or the Mountains; or as you walk and take in all the surroundings and feel blessed to be alive and human
• Moving / spiritual moments – sometimes you’d be overwhelmed with emotions, because you’re walking a path through vineyards, fields of sunflowers or corn, small villages, across mountain ranges that have been walked for centuries by so many – and especially when we entered Santiago de Compostela to finish the pilgrimage.
• “Every day was an unexpected surprise” and that is the reason I LOVED the walk – you never knew what the day had in store other than walking; and every day was unique, from remnants of cliff dwellers limestone homes, walking through a mist and discovering a cross, beautifully painted building murals, ancient Cathedrals and Castles to town festivals packed with thousands of Spaniards celebrating their heritage, their ancestors, and their love for life!
Day 28 / Oct 4 - walking up to Cruz de Ferro - the highest and most sacred peak - was mystical as Ali, Belinda and I walked up the mountain.

Did you make friends along the way?

• YES – so many!! You meet them as you walk, or rest. Then you run into them again and again and all of a sudden you’re meeting for dinner and / or keeping track of them and arranging to walk or meet at certain towns. And you watch out for one another and support one another.
• It was interesting, that you’d keep running into people you gravitate to; we called them our Camino family and we keep in touch even today on WhatsApp. Many of the ‘Camino Family’ finished around the same time and so we managed to gathered for a final dinner celebration at the Hotel Parador in Santiago (last picture).
• Met people from Sweden, Australia, Canada (Vancouver & Montreal), UK, Korea, Japan, South Africa, Russia, Italy, Spain, Mexico, Ukraine, Germany and USA (New York, Rhode Island, California, Colorado, Texas).

What were the highlights?

• Intimacy of the walk, the people, the beauty of nature across the four distinctive regions we walked – Navarre, La Rioja, Castilla Y Leon, and Galicia; these regions of Spain were ancient and historical, magnificent and mystical, and had distinctive people and cultures!

How did you feel once you completed the journey?

• Emotion / gratitude – I cried when I saw the church steeples / spires of Praza Obradoiro Cathedral as we walked into Santiago on our final day. This is where millions of pilgrims over the centuries have come. That afternoon, in the Cathedral, I hugged the statue of the Apostle St. James and laid my head on his shoulder and felt an immense sense of gratitude.
• Sad that it was over and proud that I had completed. YAYI !!

What advice do you have for someone who would like to do it?

• Do it!
• Don’t have expectations because your Camino will be unique to you personally.
• Take your time; don’t walk too fast; and soak up your surroundings!
Day 39 / Oct 15 - arrived in Santiago de Compostela with Catherine, Ali, Ken and me- we finished!! Windy, rainy and cold that day - but we made it!!!
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Come experience Eye Prefer Paris live with Eye Prefer Paris Tours, which are 3-hour walking tours I personally lead. Eye Prefer Paris Tours include many of the places I have written about such as small museums & galleries, restaurants, cafes, food markets, secret addresses, fashion & home boutiques, parks and gardens and much more. In addition to my specialty Marais Tour, I also lead tours of Montmartre, St. Germain, Latin Quarter, in addition to Shopping Tours, Gay Tours, Girlfriend Tours, Food Tours, Flea Market Tours, Paris Highlights Tours, and Chocolate & Pastry tours.