Guidebook to Route from Vezelay

[Richard Ferguson]

I have been thinking about walking from Vezelay, France, and broke down and ordered a recommended guidebook, "Itineraire du pelerin de Saint-Jacques - Voie Historique de Vezelay".  The guidebook is in French; I ordered it from England from the Confraternity of St. James, 30 euros plus shipping.  I have the second edition, published in 2003.  The confraternity website calls it an "extraordinary achievement", and it is superior to any guidebook that I have seen to date.

The guidebook consists of four parts:  1. A km by km description of the route, similar to the Confraternity guidebooks, in looseleaf form. This also has information on refugios, hotels, and other services, like the Confraternity guidebooks.  2. Topographic maps, 50,000 : 1 scale, marked with the route, in looseleaf form. 3.  A booklet with the history of the route, and detailed info on the churches with photos.  4. A booklet with practical advice for the pilgrim, similar to what  you would find in the Confraternity guidebooks.  It even includes a waterproof clear plastic case to hold your route description and map sheets.  They say that it is written by pilgrims for pilgrims.

This guidebook focuses on the historic documented route of the pilgrimage, and only occasionally follows the GR route of the FFRP.  They discuss with indignation that some of the formal signage that one would see refers to the GR route, even improperly using the name of the association of pilgrims!  It starts in Vezelay, near Dijon and Auxerre, southeast of Paris.  The route splits into a north and south branch near Vezelay, then joins back into one route, and ends at St. Jean Pied de Port, a common starting point for the French route to Santiago.

It appears that there are some long days on the route, over 30 km, but that most of them could be split in two if desired.  Some of the refuges listed are in private homes, with a telephone number to call before you arrive to check if they are available.

We have been to Vezelay, a village that we liked very much.  It has an impressive 12th century church, reportedly with the bones of Mary Magdalene.  I would like to make the pilgrimage from there someday, but that would be 1700 km, so about 3 months at my pace.

It has always surprised me how many people seem to think that the only right place to start on the pilgrimage to Santiago is at or near the border with France, Roncesvalles or near there.  I have always believed that, unless you live in Europe and choose to start walking from your front door, the start point that you choose is ultimately completely arbitary.  I think that one should not limit oneself to the Camino Frances or the popular starting points.

I thought that some people might be interested in this excellent guidebook.

Richard