Winter Pilgrimage to Compostela

     Halting - places

I was often asked:"Why do you go
to Compostela in Winter?"  I just answered:"Why not?"
As simple as that. With a bit of naivety and much confidence and
belief that it will be possible, you'll achieve your goal.

There you are on Januari the 1st. in the St. Jacobs Church in Antwerp, with your rugsack, your warm clothes and strong shoes. You got the blessings and the credentials.  Finally, time has come: you can, you may go. A few pilgrims, who already achieved this pilgrimage, accompany you for a while. A detour to the cathedral. You remark on the streets the remains of New Year's eve. Broken glass in the gutter. A drunken man passes by. In the cathedral somebody points at the holy-water font: a shell, the symbol of the pilgrims to Compostela.
At the City Park you say good-bye to your fellow-pilgrim who accompanied you for the farthest. You are now by yourself for the real adventure. A lot of kilometers are waiting for you... Many days in front of you.

The journey

So it lasted 80 days for me. I walked every day between 15 and 42 km. I never spent 2 nights at the same place.
I hadn't traced out my route in advance. I had however vaguely an idea of the itinerary I had to follow: Antwerp, Beauraing, Paris, Rocamadour, Lourdes, and from the Pyreneans the 'Camino Frances' via Pamplona, Burgos, Leon to  Santiago. I always waited to trace out the right route until a few days before the stage. I also used to buy my maps at the moment I was in the region. Then I cut off the map, keeping only the pieces I needed.

I didn't have a tent with me but just a bivouac for emergencies. Anyway I never had to use it. I almost never knew in advance where I would spend the night. Sometimes I reached a village where there was no sleeping accomodation available; I got on then to the next village. There I asked again the local priest or mayor if there was somewhere a place where I could lie in my sleeping bag. Sometimes I slept in a parochial school or in the parish hall. Sometimes I could stay with private families, or in a hotel, a monastery or youth hostel. So I stayed in the youth hostels of Namur, Arpajon, Vierzon. But whem I arrived in Auch, after a detour of 2 km, a bad surprise was waiting for me: the youth hostel was "full" and I had to spend the night in a hotel: I was exhausted.

Dangerous

As I had departed in winter time, I walked the first weeks in the evening in the dark. This wasn't nice and this could even be dangerous. The cars couldn't see me from far, although I had a stick made of reflecting material. But I remarked the days lenghtened quickly and this gave me hope.
Many times I had to jump aside for cars. The drivers didn't expect someone walking on the road. The most dangerous was when a car behind me overtakes another one. You don't see them arriving with speed, skimming along you. So, if suddenly you hear a car behind you speeding up, you hurry to step aside.

Winter weather

I was extremely lucky with the weather. When I left Belgium, it was cloudy and misty. Then on my way to Paris there was sometimes sun, especially when it had frozen. After Paris it became very beautifull. The mornings were ideal to walk: it had frozen and you could notice a lovely light glare. At noon I even felt warm and I had to pull of my jacket. So, in France I walked for about 5 weeks without seeing even one little cloud.
On the Pyreneans there was little rain, but I could take without problem the old pilgrim track through the mountains. In Februari there was almost no snow.
In Spain, however, rain started with the result that the camino looked like a quagmire. So, many times I had to walk on the asphalt instead of taking the old pilgrim route. In the neighbourhood of Logrono I experienced the first snowfalls accompanied with icy stormy winds. I had to struggle against this gale for three days. Sometimes I could find a shelter in a dry riverbed.
Luckily there was no snow on the level of Cebrero. I heard that other people later on had to slog through a half meter of snow. Then, when I arrived in Gallicia, it rained a lot but you don't feel it as you realize that the towers of the cathedral of Compostela are almost perceptible.

The Camino

From Saint-Jean-Pied-de-Port (Atlantic Pyreneans) on, the journey turnsout to be very different. From that point to Compostela there is a marked footway. There are only a few parts where you still have to walk on the normal road. But despite the yellow markings and pennants, I managed to take the wrong road twice.
In winter the refugio's (shelters) aren't ideal: pilgrims are not expected at that time of the year and mostly the water has been closed off or the mattresses have been put away. Sometimes renovation works can also keep you from the shelters. And there are all different kind of refugio's: from a primitive cabin to comfortable dormitories with bunk beds, hot water, shower, etc...

Dogs

All the pilgrims have to deal with it. Apparently dogs and pilgrims don't match together. Everywhere you pass by, even in the smallest villages, you hear barking and wailing. Sometimes you even get irritated by that continuous noise. Dogs which are chained or caged are the worst, but you really have to look out for the apparently quiet dogs, running free, as they really could be dangerous and attack you from behind.
Foncebadon is an unpopulated little village in the mountains, with the exception of one woman who lives there with her sheep and five dogs. Every pilgrim knows that and watches out for those dogs. But however, it's very frightening to experience these huge animals wailing and growling around you. I had collected some boulders in case I would need them against the dogs, but luckily they weren't necessary. So, when I left the village I threw them  underneath the 'Cruz de Ferro'. Every pilgrim adds there a boulder and meanwhile this amount has already become a little mountain.

Alone

When you walk alone you just have problems with... yourself. You do wathever you want but sometimes this solitude can also mean a burden. In Summer you probably will meet other pilgrims but in Winter you'll se almost nobody. Sometimes, at night time it happens that you find out that you didn't pronounce one word in the past day. As entertainment you always can take a little radio and nowadays you already can find mini short wave receivers as small as a packet of cigarettes. I listened almost every day to the news and the programmes of Radio Flanders International (RVI).

At last...

Santiago de Compostela... at last! There you are then on the Monte del Gozo. You have been on the road for three months and walked about 2300 km. Your shoes are rather worn out, your rugsack put together with rope, your dirty clothes...   You remark that the yellow broom is flowering. After looking for a while you see the towers of the cathedral pointing at a marvellous evening sky. You waited so long for that very moment. You are so happy you made it, but you also feel a little sad as this big journey is definitely over. The next couple of days you must have a very good rest.

It's almost Easter. A penance procession in a city full of tourists. On Easter Sunday the Botafumero (huge incensory) swings through the side aisle of the crowded cathedral. Formely this was meant to suppress the smell of the pilgrims. At this moment there is only one real pilgrim sitting there, well washed, well dressed. No-one notices him, no-one knows...

© Paul Versteven