A short day – just 16 km to Santiago, but there were a few climbs which made the day interesting. You could be in the Praza do Obradoiro before midday if you wanted to. We decided to aim for a midday finish as I had planned to meet with someone, but I will come to…
Author: David Smith
My name is David, and I live in Dublin. I discovered the Camino de Santiago in 2011. Since then, I return to the north of Spain to walk a part of this amazing trail, to take in its culture, to meet people and of course, give my spirit some food for thought.
The Camino de Santiago is a pilgrimage but in my eyes, it is also a challenge, a way of meeting people and a great way of getting away from the hustle and bustle of modern day life.
The main Camino is the Camino Frances; an ancient trail covering 800km across Spain starting in St Jean Pied de Port in the foothills of France and ending in Santiago de Compostela in Galicia.
I love writing and talking about the various Caminos to Santiago and if you are one of the many people who has walked these routes, you may well feel the same.
This isn’t a travel website as I don’t get travel to other countries but I hope my talking about my times on the Camino helps you as you plan for yours.
Feel free to browse and “like” any of my posts and if you have any questions, please feel free to comment.
I wrote about my first Camino in 2012 when I walked from Astorga to Sarria. The following year was very much a social experiment and I met people from all over the globe walking from Logrono to Leon. I walked the Camino Portuguese for the first time in 2018 with my brother. And I’m far from done!
As well as this blog, ClearskiesCamino has a presence on Facebook. This group is filled with other pilgrims, some who have only just returned from Santiago, while others are in the planning stage. If you like this blog, and you want to interact with other pilgrims, we’d love to see you over there.
You can find me on Instagram @clearskiescamino also and I use this account the most while on Camino.
Trailhead – City of the Saint
Trailhead or Tobias Panwitz is a singer-songwriter from Germany. He has recorded three albums and has toured throughout Germany, Europe, and Canada. One of his more recent collection of songs, Keep Walking, was born out of walking in Spain. Tracks 4, 5 and the title track are favorites of mine. A number of months ago,…
September’s Camino is a little up in the air…
So as some of you know, I have flights booked to Lisbon to walk some of the Portuguese Camino from September 9th. I booked the outward and return flight from Porto at Christmas. What makes this extra special is I will be meeting Carsten whom I met in Ventosa on the Camino Frances last September….
Camino Inglés – Hospital de Bruma to Sigüeiro – Day 6
Another great day and one with far more people to talk to. On the whole, we were descending from Bruma, but there were many rolling hills to navigate. The sun was out again, which made the first 2 days a distant memory. The albergue cleared out very early and we were on the road before…
Clearskies Camino Patches on Etsy
Just a quick post to let you know that Clearskies Camino patches are available to buy on Etsy for the extremely reasonable rate of €5.00. If you have a Camino coming up, or if you know someone who is due to walk soon, this patch would look good on your or their backpack(s). It can…
Some News
We interrupt my Camino Inglés updates with some news. Some good, some indifferent. Camino Society Ireland newsletter – Shamrocks and Shells has been updated just recently. It has lots of news that you might find interesting. Being editor of this newsletter is a good way to give back to the Camino and kind of helps…
Camino Ingles – Sergude to Hospital de Bruma – Day 5
The first few hours were to ourselves. It was dark but there was a method in our madness. The A Coruna leg joins the Ferrol leg of the Camino Ingles a few kilometres before Hospital de Bruma. We were expecting to see more pilgrims later on in the day, and we were right. Far more…
Camino Ingles – A Coruña to Sergude – Day 4
The official first stage on this leg is 32 kms in distance to Hospital de Bruma. However, we both thought it would be a good idea to split this stage in two. 19 kms into the first stage is the town of Carral – Sergude, which doesn’t have much – a municipal albergue, a cafe…
Camino Ingles – A Coruña – Day 3
I had decided before leaving Dublin that we would spend some time in A Coruña to see the sites, so today would be a travel day. We left Betanzos at 10 am after some breakfast. We agreed to take the train at Betanzos-Infesta train station. The evening previous, a quick search of the times showed…
Camino Ingles – Pontedeume To Betanzos – Day Two
The stay in Pension Casa Apilladeira was super. We left with a filling breakfast and excitement for the day ahead. Even though the skies were overcast and the rains were never far off, I left the rain gear off to start. I was eager to get to Betanzos – a town rich in medieval history….
Camino Ingles – Ferrol To Pontedeume – Day 1
Day 1…Boom! Let’s go! Straight out of the blocks and we are lost. Ha! Where would we be without guidebooks?! We were quite happy to start at dark thirty. It was going to be a long day.30km, give or take. It seems like a lot for a first day, but we had a nice place…
Camino Ingles – Dublin To Ferrol – Day 0
The flight wasn’t as early as last year’s one. I could take a sleep in, as long as we were both in Dublin Airport before 12.30. I was back on the Camino with my brother again, mi hermano! And this time we would tackle part of the Ferrol leg of the Camino Ingles before travelling…
More Clearskies Camino patches ordered!
Just a quick update. This weekend I have posted the first batch of Camino patches to VIP folks. I hope you wear them with pride. Thanks for helping me out over the years! You should receive them in the next week. More have been ordered and those will be available for sale on an Etsy…
Post-Camino Blues
Hello everyone. I arrived back home on the 19th of May, having reached Santiago de Compostela on the 14th of May. For someone who is so used to the flat plain meseta, this was different, but not any less enjoyable. Galicia is a beautiful part of the world and there were times where my brother…
Bray to St. James Church, Dublin – Stage One of The Celtic Camino
I have walked the first 30km of the Celtic Camino in advance of my trip to Spain, having walked from Bray to St James’s Church in Dublin. I walked with a friend Oihana in June 2017 on what would be the hottest day of the year. It was a fun day! — Early Friday morning…
The Sounds Of The Camino
As soon as your Camino begins and you start your walk early in the morning, there will be sounds that will be become part of your day, whether they are welcome or not. Some will make you smile, some will annoy, all are part and parcel of the Camino experience. I’ve decided to run down…
5 Days To Go
This may well be the last post I write before the brother and I head out to Ferrol on Tuesday. I have everything I need and I have one day left in work before I get in the zone. I am missing out on a Fiesta for Camino Society Ireland members, which is a bit…
Daily Costs On The Camino
I haven’t written about the topic of costs on the Camino before so I thought I would dive into my experiences with money over the last number of years. It’s important to start out by saying that everyone’s experience is different. You may choose to avoid albergues and have a more comfortable Camino, thereby increasing…
What’s Next?
It is a little too soon to talk about next year’s Camino before I have taken my first step from Ferrol but the purpose of this post is to let you know what routes I would like to walk in the near future. I won’t give any dates as I have no plans made other…
10 days before i leave….
I don’t have long left. My first trip to Spain this year is within touching distance. The countdown is close to single digits. But I’m far less prepared than before. Is this a sign of an experienced pilgrim or just someone who has other things on his mind? A little bit of both, to be…