Available shelter on trail

[Elyn Aviva]

I have fond recollections of several nights spent sleeping out under the
stars (and, occasionally, under the rain!) when I walked the Camino in 1982.
Then, there were no refugios for pilgrims, and although sometimes the village
mayor or priest would open up an outbuilding or empty school room for us,
there were a few times when we had no option but to crawl into our sleeping
bags under the Milky Way. There weren't many pilgrims on the Camino, then. I
have the impression (feedback, anyone?) that now, with so many pilgrims, it
would be disconcerting, and disruptive, for local people to have a lot of
strangers camping in their fields.

I also remember meeting a very well prepared French doctor, just back from
serving the French Foreign Legion in Africa. He had everything he needed:
camping gear, stove, etc. He interacted with almost no one.

I don't know what Michael meant by saying the Camino wasn't a camping trip;
perhaps he was indicating the importance of interacting with others in the
experience of sharing shelter. During the Holy Year, a number of large tents
were set up outside of some towns in order to house the overflow of pilgrims
who needed shelter.

I must admit that, for numerous reasons (no room in the shelters by the time
we arrived, the desire for a private bathroom, the desire to sleep with my
husband) we never slept in refugios. But we met many pilgrims, nonetheless.
Maybe next time I'll be able to walk fast enough and start early enough that
there will be an empty bed waiting when I arrive at the refugio!

Buen Camino,
Elyn