A New Resource for the Via Podiensis
It has been nearly four months since I last posted here. The relative nature of time certainly has been reinforced during the pandemic, but this fall has been little more than a blur. While Zoom school brought its own distinct set of challenges, the return to in-person learning has been even more complicated. It’s just […]
My Summer on the Via Podiensis
Any summer of pilgrimage is a great summer, but I felt all the more fortunate to be in France this year. After so many months effectively locked down in the US, the reopening of Europe in early June was as well timed as it was deeply appreciated. Beyond that, I know that many pilgrims, in […]
Exploring the Camino del Norte’s Variants, After the Coast
For years, the coastal chunk of the Camino del Norte had the market cornered on alternative routes. Just see that long-running thread initiated and continually cultivated by Laurie above! The majority of this was driven by people branching off from the “official” route to get off-road or closer to the sea, particularly making use of […]
Connecting the GR-65 and the Camino del Norte
I still remember the first time I walked the GR-10. I had just finished walking the GR-65 from Le Puy-en-Velay, so I turned right in Saint-Jean-Pied-de-Port brimming with confidence that I’d make short work of these ~100km. How hard could it be? Three days, max. Well, I got my butt well and truly kicked. Just […]
Finishing the Via Podiensis
I wasn’t thrilled when my hosts in the Saint-Palais albergue informed me that breakfast began at 7am. It’s Saint-Jean-Pied-de-Port day! I wanted to be there as early as I could. For a little while, I considered rolling out at 6, without breakfast. I would have been fine; I had supplies and there were a couple […]
Back in Basque
And just like that, I was back in Basque Country. Technically, the transition occurred yesterday, or maybe even the tail-end of the day before, but today its dominance became undeniable. I can’t fully explain why a white building with red shutters makes my heart skip a beat—maybe it’s just that it triggers nostalgia of the […]
The Longest and the Hottest
This actually ended up being the longest day of the trip. It was also the hottest day (and quite humid to boot), by a considerable margin. The vast majority of it was spent on pavement, which was a lovely pairing with the temperature. And, while I’m grateful to have tracked down viable new shoes in […]
The Corningest Corn That Ever Corned
Draft 1: The corn from corn to corn corned significant corn. The corned corn was a corning corn corn of a corn. And when I corn, let me corn you, the corn corned deep and the corn corned wide and the whole cornstorm and clustercorn was a corning cob. Draft 2: Once again, overcast skies […]
Deep Into the Denouement
It’s a dangerous game, labeling a certain portion of a pilgrimage road as less appealing than others. Every time someone complains about the meseta on the Camino Francés, contrary takes come pouring in, with people reveling over the subtle beauty they admired in that section. When pilgrims from Le Puy talk smack about Décazeville, I’m […]
Hiding in Plain Sight
If yesterday I marveled at the difference between three and six years’ memory, this evening I grapple with the erosion accomplished by six-to-twelve hours. I can tell you that the clouds rolled in overnight, blessing the morning with hours of cool before the sun—finally coming into the heights of its power this week—reasserted itself. I […]