Now THAT Is A Pilgrimage

In an earlier post I inaccurately said that the Via Francigena pilgrimage starts in Canterbury. That was wrong; it actually starts in London. I was reminded of this one day when I was halfway to Chartham on a training walk, all decked out in my Camino gear, and I encountered a dozen people hiking to Canterbury, from London. They were a group of young Via Francigena Goodwill Ambassadors, mostly Italians, and they were delighted to meet a fellow pilgrim (even if I was heading in the opposite direction). We had a nice trailside chat and several of them had been on Caminos in Spain. Based on the videos two of them were taking, I’m pretty sure I now appear in someone’s Italian blog.

Here’s the brochure they gave me. You can see that this is a very long hike! In fact, it’s about 2,000 miles through four countries and takes three or four months. That’s a commitment. Someone else I talked to a few years ago who walked it said that it doesn’t really have the level of supportive infrastructure found on the Caminos in Spain and is quite difficult. Let’s not forget we’re talking about crossing The Alps, too. The ambassadors were very nice but I’m not inclined to do this one. How about you?

However, meeting them put my measly upcoming Camino into perspective. Now I’m raring to go.

I’m in Paris as I write this and I’ll be heading south in two days. I’m passing the time between coffee, croissants, and cafes by engaging in the time-honored, pre-hike practices: tweaking my gear and generally overthinking all my plans. Yes, everything fits in my pack. Yes, I have all the required documents. Yes, I’ll probably be able to carry it all even if I do include that Swiss Army knife. And, as I’ve reminded myself several times, they probably, almost certainly, sell whatever else I might need, in Spain. Sound familiar?

I’m lucky that the wildfires in southwestern France that temporary shut down the trains out of Paris have been tamed. And, at the risk of jinxing myself, the weather forecast for my first hiking day is very pleasant – sunny and dry. One can only hope. I look forward to my ride to Saint Jean Pied-de-Port because the train is full of pilgrims and there’s a festive and excited vibe. I confess I’m getting a little of that right now.

Thanks for coming along and carry on.