[Gocamino] the distance

[tinuviel]

ha! i think i posted this incorrectly this morning since it never showed up
on the list.... another try. so much for computer ability in this lass.

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re: the distance

hmmm ...31 days.

i looked at my journal and it looks like that is about the time it took me
from sjpp to santiago. i didn't have a 'deadline' to get there.

the pirenees were gorgeous. they were also difficult, due to the length of
the first day, not the actual climb up or down. i was 40 and with 2 other
people. 1 older, 1 younger. i hadn't done any preparation whatsoever for the
trip except an afternoon with my new hiking boots on a small hill in maine a
month previous. my normal lifestyle is active but not athletic. i had
expected to be the one most 'hit' by the walk. that night we were all
exhausted, i nearly passed on the mass and dinner in  roncevalles but the
other 2 urged me on. well worth it!! the next morning the legs were
definitely unbelievably sore and stiff but after a few kilometers, loosened
up fine.

the other 2, really had difficulty. possible pulled muscles? and ended up
taking a taxi to pamplona to rest for 2 days while i walked. so there i was,
on my own on the 2nd day of the journey.

i had truly thought i would be the one slowing the others down due to my
lack of preparation. the older person had walked the camino 3 years
previous, the younger was, well, younger!

expect the unexpected. it will happen.

maybe i managed the mountain okay because a few times a year i climb a
mountain here in new england?? (the other 2 folks rarely climb mountains.)
or maybe just random luck.

i found that at the beginning i was mixing long km days and short km days,
some only 8km. it seemed like the short days were 'slacker' days but i think
it was a good way to acclimate. after leon, most days were 'long' days. but
i didn't specifically plan in km, i would walk until the late afternoon,
however much ground that covered.  and there were a few times i'd stop for a
few  hours, even set up in an albergue and realize i wanted to walk further.
the days in the meseta where it was raining, cold, miserable and hailing,
i'd only walk to the next stage. (i left sjpp on sept 15). i wouldn't force
myself into anything.

so with all this and no deadline, i was in santiago in 31 days (sept 15-oct
16).

if you're a mountain climber by nature, start in sjpp. if mountains are
anomalies to your world, maybe start in pamplona. no need to add stress and
worry to your journey. pamplona will give you plenty of time for enjoying
yourself on the way and having 'slacker' days!! plus, you'll want a couple
of days in santiago itself! why leave once you get there? it's a beautiful
town and will feel like arriving home.

buen camino
tinuviel