Our Walk Along the Camino Frances

Hordes of Pilgrims New Hikers join the Camino Frances Given the racket outside last night, we were up and on our way by 4:30 am.  We half expected that by leaving this early we would be hiking alone in the dark, as we had done so many times before now.  However, we soon found ourselves in a mass of pilgrims, all leaving together.  I guess we left Saint Jean-Pied-de-Port at a similar hour so many days ago. Luggage Transport on the Camino Other changes were immediately evident aside from the number of hikers leaving town.  As we walked we passed dozens of Hertz vans loaded with or preparing to load pilgrims and their luggage. We also began to encounter tour buses and taxis waiting at all the points where the path crossed roads to pick up tired hikers.  Perhaps most stunning was the sheer number of pilgrims travelling in groups and wearing matching Camino tour shirts, very large shells, and occasionally carrying gourds on their hiking sticks. The albergues, bar...