Walking the Camino de Santiago in March 2024 / St. Jean Pied de Port - Santiago de Compostela

Love and respect to all the friends we made on the road - from Spain, Ireland, Denmark, Korea, Canada, America, France, Italy, Germany, Hungary, Lithuania, Sri Lanka, Netherlands, Hong Kong, Mexico. Also to the hospitaleros in all the albergues who were so friendly and welcoming. Particularly the ones who really try to preserve the true spirit of this pilgrimage. Also to the people working in the bars for all the coffee, pastry and tortillas to keep us walking and happy. - Yesterday? Walking. Today? Walking. Tomorrow? Walking. - pack list Karrimore Jura (cheap option) / Berghaus arrow (better quality option) backpack rain cover carabiner clips x2 packable tote bag Trail runners Barefoot sandals Xero genesis or primark flip flops(Lighter than crocs/havianas) 1x nylon drawstring bag (for sandals so pack doesn’t get dirty inside) Rain poncho (sea to summit one is lightweight and packs small) Suncream in travel size bottle WASH KIT Lightweight wash bag Lightweight towel (S2S one the size of a tea towel is super light and adequate to dry you) Wash soap Dry bag for soap Toothbrush Toothpaste Shaving razor Nail clippers Travel wet wipes Hand sanitizer Shower cap Hairbrush Vaseline STUFF POUCH Lightweight stuff bag earphones Phone charger cable EU plug with USB (lighter than adapter) Ear plugs + spares Sewing needle/thread Duct tape in a small roll Lightweight cord Ziplock bag for first aid items Safety pins Zinc tape Safety whistle Dressing Plaster Antiseptic wipes guidebook or A4 print out Phone Glasses Tissues Lightweight wallet Passport Credit card €50 notes Credidential Cash wallet small coins Pack liner or large dry bag S2S thermolite liner Wool top for bedtime Wool leggings for bedtime Small wool bedtime socks Cotton trousers lightweight Cotton undewear WALKING CLOTHES Big drawstring bag 3x thin trainer socks 1x quick dry t shirt Light/thin Fleece 1 down puffer dry bag for down puffer 1x quick dry shorts 1 leggings for walking 1x underwear quick dry Wool hat (thin) Merino buff brimmed hat - Notes on gram counting I made a spreadsheet and counted every gram. it’s a good way to see where excess weight can be cut. The weight creeps in where you least expect it. - Less support - lighter weight If you keep it light you don’t need things that are heavy but provide support. Bulky shoes, walking poles, rucksacks with waist support/airflow back - all are only necessary if you’re carrying more weight. With more weight you need to drink/carry more water, more snacks, more changes of clothes You create a positive feedback loop - and before you know or you’re carrying 8kg. Without all this unnecessary and expensive equipment - I think Phoebe and I carried around 4kg and this enables us to be very light on our feet. - Notes on rucksack choice Berghaus Arrow is 750g lighter ish than similar size packs with waist support/air flow. That’a a huge weight saving and it’s cheaper/less cumbersome. 30-35liters is plenty of space - I had room to spare. - Notes on water I bought plastic water bottles as I went - I never needed to carry more than 500ml as there were many fountains/shops along the way. - Notes on socks I like thin trainer socks - they are light. You can handwash them in the evening and they’re dry by morning. - Notes on sleeping bag/liner We walked through the month of March - it was cold some nights - mostly it was too hot with my Snugpak jungle bag so I used it like a quilt. Phoebe had a lightweight 3 season sleeping bag that was always too hot. The albergues that were colder always provided blankets. If I was doing it again I’d take a Sea to Summit reactor extreme - it’s light weight and compact - and isn’t noisy. - Notes on packliner I always wanted my sleeping stuff/wool clothes to stay dry. Pack liner is so noisy, when you fill your bag it rustles. I had to shove everything into my tote bag and pack my bag outside because it was too noisy. A dry bag might make less noise. - One change of clothes? As soon as you’re walking your clothes will get smelly and dirty. At the end of the day you can wash them (almost every albergue had lavadoras or hand washing sink) and they’ll be dry and clean for the next day. Most days I didn’t feel I needed to clean my hiking clothes anyway. Your evening/bedtime clothes ( wool and cotton fabrics) won’t smell because you keep them clean and don’t exercise in them. I often went a week or so without washing these. No one said we were smelly. At least not to our faces.