Walking Camino de Santiago
What you should pack – and not.

By Björn Granberg, April 27th, 2012 | Mindful Lifestyle | 0 Comments

There are a zillion guides to the Camino or more out there, and if you read this I assume you have read at least one of them and therefore I skip directly to the essential part. How to pack and what to wear – since its here most people fail – or in fact all, so be prepared to sell, give away or send stuff back by mail.

Photo: Juan Chetti’s shoe – slightly worn but still working juuust fine!

Camino de Santiago is for everyone, young and old and you do not need to be an athlete to walk it. In fact, I met many older people who walked the entire distance without any problems, while many younger and middle aged encountered problems, often because they walked too long distances eacb day instead of relaxing and taking it more slowly. Some also wore heavy backpacks, which you can do if you walk for one or maybe two weeks at the top. But if you pack a heavy backpack for more than that your body will get in to trouble. Every gram of weight in your backback will be a carried by your joints and muscles. Over the days the micro impacts adds to hundreds of thousands. This guide is a reminder for you to pack with awareness.

Zen and the art of packing

Packing light is an art in itself and involves sort of a zen attitude to what you really need. Untethering to the material world is hard for most of us and leaving home for several weeks with the bare essentials is a challenge for almost everyone. But stripping away everything in you and nothing but you, is also what the whole journey is all about. The untethering of everyday habits all starts with the packing.

As a rule of thumb try to make your rucksack weigh less than 10 per cent of your body weight and a maximum of 10 kgs. In the end my pack weighed 7.5 kgs with water, which was ok for me even though today I would have tried hard to pack it even lighter. There are pilgrims who walk with very little stuff, hardly more than a blanket for the night and a toothbrush, while others have so much they pull a cart behind them – I am not kidding!

So this is my personal recommendations for packing. It should be complete for almost anyone.

Shoes

Find a pair of comfortable shoes. They must absolutely not be too tight since your feet will swell a little bit. All types of walking shoes works but my advice is to find a light shoe that looks like a running shoe and has a fairly stiff sole. Skip the idea of hiking boots. Hiking boots are made for walking in terrain, not on asphalt and dirt roads. They are also unnecessary warm and a lot heavier than running shoes. In case you choose boots remember to NEVER tie them higher up than the wrist, you must be able to flex the foot with ease. The upper eyelets are provided for additional support when walking in hilly terrain with steep slopes, where only a portion of the shoes sole is used.

Many I met on the Camino did not know this and neither did I. The problems manifested itself to them by giving severe tendinosis on the front of the legs, that could take weeks to heal. Pain relieving ointments are available at pharmacies along the road, but of course it is best to not end up there! One woman I met had such severe tendinosis that she had been unable to walk for four weeks and was completely stranded in an albergue along the road.

Photo: Shoes is an interesting topic when you walk a lot. These shoes belongs to a retired couple that had walked all the way from Belgium.

Sandals
Bring a pair of leather or cloth sandals that you can alternate with. Its also very good to have since indoors the hostels floors are usually icy cold. I did not bring a pair but made one from a piece of sleeping mat that someone cut off to lighten his pack.

Rucksack
The size of your sleeping bag will decide the size of your rucksack. If you walk in the warm season you will have a much smaller sleeping bag. Often people start by buying the rucksack. I suggest you do it the other way around. That way you can bring the gear you know want to pack and see how well it fits.

If you shop for a new rucksack, compare the weight of the sack itself between different ones – a backpack can weigh 500 grams or three kilos! Also check if it is waterproof or not. If you are going for a cheaper kind that is not watertight you will need some kind of rain protection too. My bag was waterproof, had no side pockets but a top pocket. It also worked to take as hand luggage on the plane. I could have used a much smaller one since I got rid of things along the way.

Sleeping Gear
You must bring your own sheets or a sleeping bag. A sleeping bag that goes down to minus 5 will be just right for the colder seasons. Most hostels have blankets in the wintertime.
During summer time, a thin summer sleeping bag will be the right choice.

An inner silk lining is nice to sleep in. You can also wash it and it will dry over a day.

A small pillow case is also very nice to have. I had one in thin fleece that I put the sweater in and it made up a perfect pillow.

During the summer time (July and August) its high season and you can expect to sleep outside every now and then because it is usually more pilgrims than there are bunk beds. Many places will have tarp tents set up outside to sleep under and for this reason its useful have a rollout mattress that is not too thin. This also gives you the opportunity to sleep in a forest or out on a field under the bare sky. For spring and autumn a thin mattress good enough as it will only be used for the lunch break. In the cold seasons it is sufficient with just a small pad to sit on. I would not recommend an inflatable mattress since there are many spiky plants that may puncture it.

Closest to the body
My suggestion is to wear a thin merino wool t-shirt and underwear in the same material. The advantage with merino wool is that you can wear it for a week before you start to smell. With cotton and synthetic materials closest to your body it will take no more than a day before you stink. Wear one set, and have a spare set in the rucksack.

Mid layer
This depends on the season. You can choose a buttoned shirt or a sweater of some kind. You only need one.

Outer layer
Summertime – something against wind and rain.
During the cold season add a thick fleece or a jacket.
I walked during the semi-cold to cold season and had a thick fleece and a slim, lightweight rain jacket that also worked as a wind shell.

Pants

It suffices with the pair of pants you wear. Do not pack a pair of pants! Make sure the ones you choose are of the type where you can take off the legs with a zipper – without having to remove the shoe. Often you walk with shorts only. Women can use a sarong or such to cover the legs when they enter churches – if that is necessary, I am not totally sure of this.

Photo: This is me the first day of walking. Find five mistakes: Shoes – too heavy. Pants – no leg zippers. Sweater: synthetic – a no-no. Waterbottle: use a platypus instead. Backpack: to heavy. One learns from ones mistakes

Mittens and long-johns

Bring a pair of mittens, a beanie and long merino wool long-johns to sleep in during the semi-cold to cold season.

Socks
Three pairs of socks,

Rain protection
A rain parka that can accommodate a backpack can be a choice of you backpack is not waterproof. These are cheap and easy to buy along the way.

Hat
Yes you need one. Summer – wide brimmed to protect your nose and neck. The rest of the year, you will want a beanie to keep your head warm when you sleep.

Little things
LED head lamp
sewing needle to puncture blisters
tweezers
nail scissors
50 ml of schampoo with a good cork
old fashioned style toothbrush (not electric)
half-full tube of toothpaste
shaving stuff (I use Crabtree and Evelyns shave cream in a tube – much better than the stuff in supermarkets. Buy it at Gents)
Hairbrush
A roll of toilet paper
Pads, tampons
A medium sized towel
Medicine
sunscreen stick
some band-aids
a notebook or diary
pen
guide book
passport
pilgrims pass
cash
credit cards
travel tickets
important addresses and phone numbers
a lightweight pocket knife
a couple of zip-lock bags for the small stuff
a tote bag for the laundry
a hard plastic container to store sensitive food so its not squished in backpack

Guidebook
You don’t need one since the route is very clearly marked but it’s nice to have one. There is a plethora of guidebooks. The one I used was in German, it was titled Spanischer Jacobsweg and published by Rothe Wanderführer. It was ok. For my next trip I have bought A Pilgrims Guide to Camino de Santiago by John Brierley.

Optional
Pocket camera with a large memory card.
Wrist watch (with alarm)
Cord for hanging laundry

Things to avoid
Mobile phone – the reason why you walk is probably to untether so why bring it? Resist the temptation.
Books – they weigh too much and you will have less time than you think to read anyway. Stick to one.

If you fly, you cannot bring the pocket knife and the nail scissors with you. You can either buy those things in France or Spain, but cheaper and much easier is to post the things to your self Poste Restante to the post office in St. Jean in advance.

Washing
Many hostels have washer and dryer. I did almost all of my washing by hand with a bar of soap or shampoo in a sink and let it dry on the outside of the backpack while I walked.

Food and water
I often packed food for a lunch or so. On Saturdays you need to buy breakfast and lunch for the Sunday since all shops are closed Sundays.
I strongly recommend to use a Platipus water system instead of bottles because its otherwise easy to drink too little and get dehydrated and thereby fatigued without realizing why. You need to drink at least two litres a day, in the summer – a lot more. This equals six 33cl bottles minimum and its just a lot easier to drink that much with a Platipus system.

Money
I spent between zero and 25 Euro per day, maybe 17 Euro average, which was enough for room and board plus refreshments during the day at some bar or café. ATMs are available the larger cities and I withdrew money from my visa card as I went.

The Camino Pass
The first thing you do in St. Jean is to go the Camino office in the village and get a Camino Pass. You must have one to be able to stay in the albergues along the way. I believe most albergues issue Camino passes, just be sure to get one if you start somewhere else than in St. Jean du Pied du Port.