| Walking the Pilgrim Road | |
| In May of 2000,
accompanied by my friend Ruth Veskamins, both of us former teachers at Toronto's
Parkdale Collegiate, I set out to walk the Camino de Santiago from Pamplona in
North Eastern Spain - a distance of some 750 Km. I had spent some time in Spain during the late 1950's and had fallen in love with the country. This was to be a long-awaited return, coupled with a personal pilgrimage. Prior to attempting the Camino, I had already walked Ontario's equally challenging Bruce Trail End-to-End, from Queenston (near Niagara) to Tobermory - 750Km of rugged countryside. The End-to-End was accomplished over many weekends during a 12-month period, in the company of 30 or so other walkers from the Bruce Trail Association. The Camino appeared to be a greater challenge in that it would be just two women with no support team, waling the distance day after day over a single month. Daunting as that may have seemed, the reality is that the Camino Pilgrims are viewed as very special people by the local populations and support was, in fact, readily available. As committed walkers, we carried everything we needed on our backs. However, it did not take long for us to start reducing our loads. Excess clothing and articles that we found surplus to requirements were discarded at points along the route - saved laundering! A camper's towel that seemed miniscule in Toronto, was cut in half and half discarded. Staying in "refugios", we experienced once again the joys of hostel life. As many as 40 people, of both sexes and all ages, sharing accommodation in large dormitories. Eating each day at local restaurants (just for the evening meal), we discovered the "Pilgrim's Dinner" was usually available - at a cost in the range of CAD$10, with a bottle of the local wine thrown in. We'd shop in local markets for the makings of breakfasts and lunch, which we would eat along the way. Occasionally, we'd come across a wine spigot built into a wall, with wine free for the taking. Not grand cru, but welcome nevertheless. Our allotted time to reach Santiago was about 28 days, and we made it. But not without a short section on the bus, when we realized we couldn't complete the walk without skipping one stretch. The final stretch into Santiago was tough, as we encountered heavy rain and, in my case, knee strain. As we arrived in Santiago, we were greeted with a massive Festival of the Annunciation, and were convinced the ensuing party time was put on just for us! The following day, we were impressed to see our faces among the crowd in pictures in the local paper. We attended the all-Latin Mass at the Cathedral and were thrilled to be recognized by the priest as "the two Canadians" who had just completed the pilgrimage and were here for the ceremony. What a sense of accomplishment this was. We spent the two or three days left to us before returning home, by travelling on to Finnisterre (the end of the world), since we felt that would put a cap on our trip - and it did. Since the Camino, we have stayed in touch with friends we made along the way. With several of them, we journeyed to Africa for safaris in Zimbabwe and Botswana, and in the near future, walks in South Africa. Annie Cook |
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Click on the pictures to enlarge |
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| The route of the Camino actually starts within France | Much of the route covers rugged mountain trails |
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| There are consolations along the way - wine from the wall! | "Only" one hundred kilometers to go |
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| The final destination, the Cathedral at Santiago | |
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