7 weeks to go before my 2nd Camino. I think I'm well prepared. Any tidbits of advice welcome.

Hi all
Last year I walked the Camino Frances from SJPP to Finisterre. I loved it so much that I'm going back in!
I've opted for the Via de la Plata for a few reasons; it's longer, i.e. more time on the trail ; it starts in Seville, I've never been there ; I will be forced to speak a lot more espaniol (with the help of a fantastic new offline translator app from jibbigo http://www.jibbigo.com/website/ ) THE BABEL FISH HAS HAPPENED AND ITS ONLY £2.99! ; I will be walking north every day with (hopefully) the sun on my back and not in my eyes .
Last year my 35 litre Osprey Talon pack weighed under 6 Kg (without water). This year I'm taking a few more items of clothing since I'm starting mid March and it may get chully! I've also decided to carry coffee, milk powder, tea-bags, sugar, salted peanuts & raisins. Last year I spent a small fortune every day on endless cups of cafe con leché, so I reckon I can save a significant amount of beer money by making my own morning coffee(s). To this end, I have invested in an X-Mug, a collapsable mug/bowl.
I have also decided to take my iPad mini. The Via de la Plata app is too-good a resource not to exploit fully.
( https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/via-de-la-plata/id423671301?mt=8 )

Items I took last year and not taking this year:
earplugs (unused), guidebook, 3rd pair socks, cotton t shirt,

Items I plan to take this year that I didn't take last year:
Waterproof trousers (pants), thermal cap, gloves, 2nd (ultra-lightweight) shirt, extra (25mm) clothes pegs (these are tiny but very very light)
( http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B0047I5WWM/ref=oh_details_o02_s00_i00 ),
travel game set, cordura bags instead of ziplock bags, soap dish with lid, small mobile (cell) phone.

I have been refining the packing list over the last week or so and have settled (for now) on a total of 8Kg (including bumbag).
I realise that I will be spending a LOT more time alone on this walk and that is principally why I'm taking all the tech, lots of reading time

Any way. I just thought I'd share. I found this forum very useful for my prep last year, maybe my contribution will be useful to someone else.
Buen Camino to all.
Gordon

 

Hi Gordon

Your take on what you might on the Via in March sounds spot-on. You're likely to hit some nasty weather so warm and waterproof gear is essential. Being able to make your morning coffee will have to added advantage that you won't have to wait around until 8 or 9 when the only cafe in the village opens. I just have a couple of comments:

I'd take that 3rd pair of socks. They don't weigh much and if you get a few wet days you might be glad of them. Besides, if you're anything like me, you'll probably lose at least one.

Also, ear plugs. Good to have and weigh nothing. On the Via you'll be meeting the same people night after night a lot of the time. If you're unlucky and end up walking with some kind of supersonic snoring monster (they do exist!) you'll be sorry you left the ear-plugs at home. Very sorry! That you were lucky last year doesn't mean a thing.

Reading material: I always bring a book and never read it. I just can't read on the Camino. I think that part of my brain switches off.

I'm sure your translator app will get a few laughs in rural Extremadura! Please report back on how you get on.

Buen Camino!
Ger

 

Hi Ger
Thank you for all your observations. Message received. I'll take the extra socks and ear plugs. The iPad mini is loaded with books, podcasts and other entertainments, none of which add to the weight, so it makes sense to take a library when it costs nothing in energy expenditure.
The translator app is already giving me some laughs as I play with it. However it pans out, I'm sure to have fun with it.
My budget is a bit tighter than last year; €30/day, so I hope to be buying a lot more food from stores, eating al-fresco or in the albergues. I'll be carrying 500g raisins, 500g salted peanuts & about 150g queso, replenished as required. My hope is to be able to top-up my "larder" every few days, and will be on the look out for a decent mercario in every village. I figure that I can save a lot by not having the Peregrino menu every night.
I will certainly report back after my return ( or perhaps even during).
Thank you again for your feedback.
Gordon

 

Hi Gordon

I think you can manage fine on €30 a day. Accommodation on the Via is cheaper than the Camino Frances and there are far fewer spending opportunities (lots of days you'll walk the whole day without seeing a bar!) You won't actually save that much by cooking for yourself unless you band together with a few other people, then it gets cheaper and easier. Most hostels which have a kitchen have nothing in the way of basic supplies except possibly salt. I always managed on a picnic of break and cheese and yogurt and then something hot in the evenings.

I just got an email from someone who's in Seville at the moment. He says the place to go for a Credencial has changed again. Now you have to go to Hotel Simon at Calle Garcia de Vinuesa 19. Their website's http://www.hotelsimonsevilla.com/

Ger

 

Just wondering if you managed to get a good guide for Camino de la Plata. I'm hoping to start in Seville in April and am having difficulty getting a guide of the same standard as the Brierly guides. Any ideas????

 

Hi Mary
I am hoping the vdlp app will serve sufficiently as a guide. I will miss having Brierley in my back pocket :-(
buen Camino
Gordon