How to PREPARE for a 30+ day hiking trip

 

Packing for 6 weeks + in a backpack? Sure! No problem!

With just over 90 days of planning time, it's the arduous task of figuring out what the most important items are to carry on one's back.  I DO NOT NEED THINGS!!  (That's more over my teacher voice giving me a warning!)  Before leaving, I asked many of my students to tell me what to pack.  They drew pictures and made lists.  In the end, I think they gave me excellent ideas that I hadn't even thought of including: bug spray, insulated water bottle, a 2nd pair of glasses (what if yours break?) 😐 

Chato and I have rain ponchos and backpacks.  Chato has dri-fit shorts and shirts.  I have a bamboo Halara dress for evenings and leggings for rainy days.  We have silk liner sleeping sacks. Any kind of easy dry, shove in a compression pack and go type of item.  A shampoo bar?  A compact battery back up pack?  A waterproof cover?

We absolutely had no idea how to prepare for a six week trek of living out of our backpacks. We quickly learned that "FEAR of not having" was our biggest problem.  Just as quickly, we learned that the expression "The CAMINO will provide" is absolutely true.  Chato carried a laptop and charger over the Pyrenees that first day (and he used it ONCE the entire trip).  I didn't need to pack extra shampoo, tissues, lotions, Band-Aids, etc.   All of these items were available to us in small towns, big cities, even vending machines, along the Camino.  I wore my Halara dress twice and my leggings once.  Our routine each day, taught us what we truly needed.  In the end, we had three complete outfits so we didn't have to wash everyday.  We had simple, waterproof zipper bags that organized and kept things dry.  We used our rain ponchos three times (thankful for the lack of rainy days), but they felt like saunas, holding in the humidity and heating us up as we trudged through the rain on those days.  We knew ahead of time that we would take a suitcase for the big city rest days that could be shipped ahead via an excellent transport service in Spain, JacoTrans.  This was a luxury, but again, it was a part of our FEAR that we wouldn't have what we needed.  We most definitely could have lived without it. 

 

In the stories that are to come, reviewing each day of our trip, our "camiga" (Camino friend), Michelle would teach me the word PURIST.  Many believe that there's a certain way to do the Camino: only by foot, only with your backpack, only for religious reasons, etc.  Just as in life, everyone has their own Camino.  We, as you'll see, were not PURISTS.  We did things and made decisions that kept us safe, kept us sane, and were the right choices for us.  

If you took the time to read this, followed us via Instagram LIVE, or are looking forward to see our YOUTUBE compilations, thank you!  We appreciate your attention to this life changing trip and we hope to encourage you to do the same. ¡VALE!