Strap your feet up, ankle bandages and compeeds on. Pack the rucksacks up. It's the last day of walking to Santiago. Today we arrive at...

The penultimate day. 30 days of walking leading to tomorrow and out arrival in Santiago. It's been an emotional journey but when we finish today we will know we will be in sight of that end goal and come what may we will hit it. The weather is meant to be up and down today and it's around the 24km mark so we want to take it steady. No major rush today so we got up and packed back on our usual schedule leaving around 7.30. We walked along steadily and chatted at length about N

These guidebooks and apps are crap! Excuse my French. But these guidebooks and apps are so far off the mark! Every single day we look at...

Well I think I will be looking at puppies when I get home. I miss having a dog in the house and the last few days have really brought...

We have a couple longer days coming up now as we begin to return to the guidebook type distances leading us into Santiago. Portomarin, as...

It's going to get busy folks. Today we pass through the town of Sarria, this is the biggest town on the Camino and marks the start point...

Some places on the Camino have so much potential. Alto de Poio where we stayed last night is one of those places. Right at the top of the...

The grand old Duke of York, he had two weary pilgrims. He marched them up to the top of the hill and he marched them down again. Then he...

For a lot of pilgrims the guidebooks act as a mini Camino Bible. Referenced for places to visit, detours to take, walking profiles and...

Yesterday and again this morning I bumped into Dr. Jeremiah Gibbs. A chap who organises Camino tours but also has a number of YouTube...

Today is an important day in our pilgrimage for we will reach the Cruz de Ferro. Sat high up a hillside the iron cross is a spiritual place of unberdoning. Pilgrims from all over the world carry small stones from home all the way here, to represent the burdens that they carry. Thinking on these as you walk and the worries of your past and future is a big part of the Camino and the reason a lot of people make the journey. Dropping your stone, and the weight from your pack, is

Back on your feet pilgrims. It's walking time! Today we swapped back from the bikes to the walking shoes and hit the road at 7am. No breakfast this morning - we aim to grab something on route. Because the longer days took their toll on the Achilles injury earlier in the trip we have now planned days at around the 20-22km range to keep it manageable. Today we begin the climb to one of the most iconic and spiritual parts of the journey - Cruz de Ferro - but that is tomorrow's s

Relaxed after the Spa (for me at last) and a good sleep in an actual hotel room we were ready to set off on the last days cycle. We are heading out of one big city and towards a smaller one - Astorga. The route is long and dull, and we are glad to be on bikes, the 45km mostly goes along a busy road with lorries trundling by, so we are glad to be blitzing it on bikes and will be getting the pedal down today! The first few km are navigating the streets of Leon through the urban

Not having bunk beds is heaven. We had a private twin room last night and being able to wake up and get organised on your own bed rather than a bunk 5feet in the air is heaven. We are aiming to do more private rooms moving forward, though still in the albergues. It tends to cost around 30-35 euros for two, where the bunks in shared rooms costs 12-15. It is more than worth the few extra euros to not share a room with rude Brazilians or shouty Italians! So we woke up much more

Long days of exercise are best done on a clean and healthy body, well fueled and well rested. So last night we went out for a birthday meal for Holgar and a catch up with Maria and Florian (a Camino romance couple)! This catch up involved Nik and I sharing a monstrous steak and a few bottles of wine (after some beers). It was absolutely delicious and one of the best ways to end a great day (though we almost missed the 10pm curfew that is very strictly adhered too!). So we wok

The days start the same. The snoring slowly stops as the place wakes up somewhere around 6am (the early risers at 5 and the lie inners at around 7!!). Most people pack quickly and leave though I need a morning shower before I set off - especially as lately the hot water is in short supply in the evening!! This morning was much the same, though we had breakfast at the albergue so some cereal, toast and coffee before setting out. It's another longer day on the bikes today throu

We are mixing things up for a few days. Nik has seen some good improvement in his achilles however it is still a twinge so we will move onto bikes for a few days. This means we are still covering the distance, though saves a few days whilst resting the sore parts of our bodies. Our bags were due to be collected at 8 but we had little faith so we left them as instructed in the bedroom, with our day sacks to one side. We had a coffee and returned just after 8. Panic ensued. Our

Today we took a rest day in Burgos. A nice lie in and a few hours organising, doing laundry and planning the next stage of our journey. Tomorrow we pick up bikes for 4 days to cover the long flat 180km from Burgos to Leon. Encyclopedia Rachel organised a Camino family dinner so we shared a great few hours with a group of pilgrims as a mini good bye as we will be moving ahead of them over the coming days. It was a great evening sharing high and low points of the Camino and Tho

Caffienated we set off on a longer day than we have done recently hoping the healing will not be undone. The first 4km was beautiful. A track running through forests with the early morning sunlight filtering down. The weather was warming and made for good walking and we strided through the forest tracks with noone else around (apart from a brief encounter with Adrian, a young french rugby player who was answering nature's call in the trees - needs must and all that). We reach

Today has been an emotional day. We heard the news in waking that my Nan and Niks mother in law had passed after a battle with pancreatic cancer. It was expected and it is good to know she passed in her sleep and is now dancing somewhere with my grandad, however it is still difficult. We are here together and have a walk ahead of us so we will focus on that. I spent time on today's walk thinking of good times with her and my grandad. Playing off ground tag on the beach, crock

We set out from Santo Domingo out our usual time passing the cathedral and monastery. Big impressive buildings dating back to the 12th century! As we walked through the streets and headed towards the country we were joined by three Canadians, Ken, Duncan and James. They are nice chaps but it is too early for this volume. At 7am I need to walk in peace for at least an hour or two coffees whichever comes first!! We walked out of town and onto the tracks of the Camino. We lost t

Last night was shit. The Brazilians were not the best roommates. All evening of noise, and then finally bed. Until one of their phone alarms went of at 1am. On the opposite side of the room from their bunk. So scrambling and crashing ensued. They also don't know how to use a door and a door handle quietly so rude awakenings for the loo at 2.30 and 3.30 am were just marvelous. But then they got up at 4.40 to start packing their gear for a 5.30 departure. I'm pretty sure if we

Niks morning routine of anti-inflammatory and ankle straps under way we set out from the town of Navarette. It's a weird layout of a town with roads running in big circles up the side of a hill. Our accomodation was a twin room and it was quiet getting ready. The meal and discussion last night was fantastic and we reflected back on good conversation and the addition of some new faces to our pilgrim family. We are in the La Rioja region of Spain famed for its red soil which is

We found some!!

It's a short day today. So let's take our time in the morning. We don't have to set off early so we can lie in. Lets pack our bags and set off a bit later. 7.35 we leave the accomodation on our way for a shorter day. Nik has taken his new anti-inflammatory, got the ankle compression strap on and sent his bag ahead. We are not going for so it will be a steady morning. Leaving Legrono means walking through narrow Spanish city towns and large churches. We passed the parliament b

We set out from Torres del Rio along now familiar paths and tracks, however Niks ankle and lower leg were still causing pain and discomfort. Throughout the morning we walked toward the town of Viana. A spot where a lot of pilgrims stop over to break up long days of walking. This however was not our destination of the day and we continued through the vineyards of Riojas wine producers until we reached the city of Legrono - a town of about 150k population that sits on the river

Another early start at 6am, however this time in a municipal accomodation there is no breakfast. In fact there were no lights at all on the floor the showers were. Trying to shower and get changed using the flashlight on your phone is a new experience. Plus they were communal! Setting out was another start leaving the outskirts of the city of Estella, before passing back into the fields and rolling hills. Our first stop, at 7.30 was at Irache Monastery. Where they have the in

Monday was a day of trudging. Today is the start of the Plodding. The paths we are walking aren't as strenuous but the long days walks require physical and mental strength to keep walking. Everything aches. The soles of our feet, knees, backs, hips and heads (that last one is probably the wine!). The bustle of the morning starts each day around 6am when everyone wakes up, gingerly rising from bed onto sore legs, get washed and changed for the day, basic breakfast and we are u

The best thing each day has to be the shower. I cannot explain how something so simple as hot water can change everything about how you are feeling. Tiredness, sweat and aches of the body and mind can be washed away by hot water. This morning started with us leaving our apartment happy and content after some excellent burgers and an amazing shower last night. The first few kilometres followed roads leading out of the city before we hit rolling hills of green and fields of yel

Today was a shorter day travelling out of the Pyrenees and into our first major town - Pamplona - famous for the running of the bulls. We were up as seems to be the norm around 6a.m. with breakfast (toast, coffee and orange juice) before hitting the trail. Despite how much it hurt last night we were glad to not have those few kilometres of hell to start our day! We made a better pace following a lovely track along the river with a few steep and treachourous downhills. The we

The Camino is a journey of interwoven paths. yesterday as we struggled up the hills we met a German chap stood next to his car. We had a good chat and asked how come he was so high up the mountain (around 10km into the walk). He said he had just dropped off his girlfriend as she was walking the camino. He said if we happened to bump into her to tell her that he loves her, is very proud of her and that she can do it! Last night at dinner she was sat next to us! She got emotion

5.45 the alarm went off. The excitement and the dread set in at the same time. We are beginning our Camino with a 24.7km hike over the Pyrenees. The total ascent is similar to climbing Ben Nevis and we will both be carrying a pack. At 7a.m. we had made our way into SJPDP loaded up and ready to go. We took a few steps. And stopped for Mum to take some photos. We took a few more steps and I stopped at the bakery for a pastry. Another few steps. More photos. Nik sighed! We waved

We are at the start of the Camino in a picturesque French town in the foot of the Pyrenees called Saint-Jean-Pied-de-Port. Today is the final preparations, getting the rucksacks packed and ready to go, and heading into SJPDP to pick up Camino passports and a scallop shell. The passport is stamped at pilgrim sites along the route such as restaurants and accomodations and proves the pilgrim has completed the journey. The scallop shell is the symbol of the Camino as it shows all

Yesterday was my last day at work. Out of office on and BBQ with friends until the early hours to celebrate. Today is a rough one but at least I can relax for a few days before the flight. Here we go!!

Today the countdown hits 4 weeks to go. This means a bit more of an uplift in the amount of walking, aiming to get at least 3 10-12 mile walks in the next three weeks. The final week before starting will be spent in Barcelona, relaxing. Time to get the boots on and stretch my legs....

At the end of the 60 day workout, with all the effort of organisation done, it is time to give the full load out a test. The weather is not looking too bad, so at 10.30 A.M. I meet my friend Justin in Huddersfield. He is crazy enough to agree to a test walk with me to Leeds, on the promise of burgers and beers on arrival. The first few miles takes us along the Huddersfield canal, passing by Huddersfield centre and heading out towards Leeds. 90 minutes or so in and we reach co

So this last few weeks have been a focus on the packing list and packing. Thanks to the Camino Forum and its members in helping challenge what I'm carrying. I have really pulled the sticky plaster off a lot of what I had planned to take and I now have all the items here and organised. Check out the tips page and the Full Pack list to see what im taking. Check out https://www.caminodesantiago.me/ fo5r more advice, tips and support on pack lists!

So one of the big things I have been thinking about in the approach to the Camino is the amount of weight I am carrying in my pack. Loads of thought has gone into what im carrying, how much it weighs, shave a few grams of the backpack. But then my spare tyre around the belly weighs more than my entire pack.... So New Year, New Me and all that - its time to start a diet plan. I have chosen "insanity" a 60 day HIIT programme, with a calorie controlled diet. And Dry January. Wh