Weather

The time for this walk, from late August till early October, was chosen very much with sunny and dry weather in mind. I enjoy landscape and architecture photography and the pictures come out absolutely best in sunshine, of which there is plenty at that time of the year.

July and August are big vacation months in Europe and these two months alone account for almost half of all pilgrims arriving in Santiago for the whole year. But a lot of pilgrims find the summer months too hot and for that reason choose not to walk  in July and August when the temperature (on rare occasions) can reach 40C/104F in the shade.

To cope with the high afternoon temperatures in the summer months, many walkers start their daily journey between 5 and 6 A.M. Even late in summer, when the sun rises later, some will still take off very early in the dark, which seems ridiculous. Aren't you making this journey to see things? Besides, walking on some of the steep trails in the dark and not see where you set your foot is outright dangerous.

Spring season is very pretty, I am sure, but it is also the rainy and windy season in this part of Spain, so I never really considered that. Generally, I do not enjoy walking in the rain - I cannot imagine walking with wet and muddy boots with the risk of getting wet socks and feet, which can quickly lead to a lot of other problems. Rain and low-hanging clouds make walking in the mountains a misery: You cannot see the mountains and valleys and the trails get slippery – particularly with all the slate in this region – with increased risk of a fall, even if you use trekking poles.

I find winter on El Camino hard to imagine. I am sure it is very lonely, which for some may be an advantage and very attractive, but it is cold and many trails on higher elevations may have snow and treacherous icy spots. Besides, some albergues are closed and one may have to walk farther to find a bed.