Walking Spain's Famed Camino de Santiago With G Adventures

As I stopped to take a photograph on the Camino de Santiago trail outside the tiny Spanish town of Sarria, I was passed by an older gentleman with a hand-carved wooden hiking stick. He smiled and said “buen camino” as he moved on. The phrase means “good way,” and it’s customary to say it whenever you meet or pass someone along the trail.

Since the discovery of what is believed to be the tomb of the apostle Saint James the Great in Santiago de Compostela in the ninth century, this trek has been one of the most important pilgrimage routes in the Christian world. It is of such historical importance that Camino Frances (also known as the French Way) and the other pilgrimage routes of northern Spain were declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1993.

The Camino de Santiago, also known as the Way of Saint James, has been immortalized in books and movies, too. Today, the trail is popular with hikers and cyclists as well as traditional Catholic pilgrims.

My husband and I had been thinking about doing this hike for years, but the logistics of planning it always seemed to get in our way. There are so many different hiking routes and types of accommodations, and we weren’t sure where to begin. 

But a guided tour of the Camino Frances with G Adventures made the planning part easy. The day-to-day hiking plan was all laid out, hotels were prearranged and luggage transfers meant we could get by with a light daypack instead of having to schlep all our gear in a heavy backpack.

We began our tour with two days of exploring in Madrid and met the rest of the travelers in Sarria, where we received our pilgrim’s passports. Our G Adventures guide, Lalo Garcia, explained that we needed to walk the last 62 miles or so, and get two stamps in our passport each day in order to qualify for the official pilgrim certificate. These stamps are given out freely at churches, monasteries, cafes, tourist shops and accommodations along the way.

“This journey is not a race,” Garcia reminded us as we began our first day of hiking. 

From Sarria, we walked six to eight hours each day across the rolling Galician countryside. We passed farms, sleepy villages and towns. We walked through beautiful shady woods and challenged ourselves with some intense up and downhill climbs — including the steep descent into the riverside town of Portomarin, which we tackled on our first day. That first day was the longest hiking day, with 14 miles walked.

Our group of 16 was composed of travelers ranging in age, from late 20s to late 60s, and everyone traveled at their own pace along the trail. We started each day hiking together and then met up for lunch at a restaurant Garcia had recommended along the way; it was great having cultural insights and inside information from a local Galician guide.

You get a lot of time to think when you’re walking, and that’s where the magic of the Camino really happens. Some ancient pilgrims trekked this route hoping to leave their sins behind. I kept thinking about the things I should leave behind — trying to define what holds me back from being my best self. I pondered my past mistakes, heartaches and resentments, and told myself it was time to leave them behind.

It was pouring rain as we completed the final stretch of the trek along busy roads to the cathedral of Santiago de Compostela and the shrine of Saint James. Several people in our group were crying as we emerged into the grand square in front of the cathedral's western facade. Fellow pilgrims — who were all equally drenched and elated — surrounded us. This was our final destination, but when it comes to the Camino, it’s the journey that really matters.

For my husband and I, it had been a “good way.” 

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