Having just finished my third camino in just over 15 months I am considering a career change. “What the fk?!!” I hear you say, “you don’t have a job, let alone a career to change” you all shout….”in fact, have you ever worked?!” a number of you might mutter…..and yeah I hear you but let me explain myself.

I have been applying for work now for a while, and in terms of my profession, its very competitive out there. So I think I would be pretty good at working in a hiking shop. There…not such a bad idea I reckon! But I will aim high….well higher than my station….and I would like to work in a shop that carries the brands I would like to use myself. …it’s all about the discounts people. But I do believe I could give some fairly good advice to people who would like to go for a stroll…whether that be for 1km or 1000km….I could sell you what you need! So to begin I’ll humour you all with why I think I could be good in this type of job by explaining some of the equipment I use when on one of my wanders……

Backpack
I use a pack from a New Zealand company called Aarn. See http://www.aarn.com. These packs are truly awesome. They are lightweight and have innovative ‘balance packs’ that attach to the straps and hipbelt on the front of your body.  They do what it says on the packet….they balance your weight and the pack evenly around your torso. In no way are these packs fashion statements…but they are the most comfortable. The balance packs housed my water, food, guides, ipod, phone and sunscreen so Everything was totally accessible. Many times I came across other walkers who either had to dislocate their shoulders in order to get their water from the side pockets, ask someone else to get their water….or just take the whole pack off altogether. I, on the other cruised on past without a care, happily drinking my water and eating my food all while ignoring the jealous mutterings of fellow walkers about my awesome back pack!!! I am sure I have sold a large French walking group on the benefits of the pack…as they loved mine…I should get a commission I think.

Walking poles
I am a true believer in using walking poles for hiking or any kind of long distance walking. They help you push yourself up hills and stop you sliding face first down a hill too. They are also good to scare away some rabid dogs, or clearing spider webs and branches away from your face. I know some people don’t like them and refuse to use them, which is fair enough, but I love walking poles and my Mam and Dad intoduced me to the formula 1 of walking poles…..the Pacer Pole…..www.pacerpoles.co.uk Like my backpack…these poles are ergonomically designed so there is no unnecessary pressure on your body. I can attest that I still have functioning knees because of these poles. The handles are designed in such a away that you don’t bend your wrists in a non-human manner like the straight nordic type walking poles. Pacer poles a super light too…coming in aluminium and carbon….you could have an olympic fencing game with these things and they wouldn’t break…..these are a true god send.

Boots
Possibly THE most important piece of equipment for a walker. I spent days trying on about a dozen different types of boots in every hiking shop I could find in Melbourne. Many times I was given the best boot the shop could offer, but as soon as I tried them on I knew straight away that were not correct…no matter how much the sales assistant was flabergasted at my quick response to how awful they felt. Moreover, many assistants did not inform me that you should always buy 1 to 1.5 sizes larger than your normal shoe size. You MUST take into account the type of socks you might wear, and that your feet swell after a couple of kilometres; so to avoid blisters go big. I was introduced to Salomon boots at Bongong hiking shop in Melbourne and sales guy put me in a size 39 much to my surprise as usually take a 36.5-37. This guy deserves a medal. I knew as soon as put on the boot these were perfect and I have since needed to buy a new pair while travelling. I have however needed to buy the exact same design and style which required some research and lessons in French! Not all boots by your favourite brand are the same, so when you find ypur perfect pair, note the style and size.  Also, it is really important to bring your preferred insoles or orthotics with you so you can by the correct size. When I bought my new pair I aslo bought new shock absorbing insoles. These were auper comfortable but reduced the space inside the boot and I quickly felt blisters start….so having quickly picked up some portuguese I rectified this problem with new thinner insoles…not as good, but at least it saved my feet from blisters. Blisters can become a huge problem for some people. I met half a dozen people on the camino that required hospital visits and antibiotics because they acquired secondary infections from their blisters. Some even had to abandon their walk altogether.  This is why good, well fitted boots are essential.

First aid
No need for a fancy first aid pack people….it takes up space and often doesn’t have the exact requirements that a walker will need. I carried everything I needed in a small plastic ziplock bag. I did not use any of it for myself on my long camino…but it was perfect for helping others on the way. On the portuguese camino I gave it a good work out thanks to the aforementioned boot and insole fiasco. In it I had
. A swiss army knife..the one with scissors
. Zinc oxide tape…strong white stuff
. Compeed…but this ia never to be used directly on skin. Always put a small piece of the zinc oxide tape on the affected area then cover with compeed. Compeed melts into the skin and will literally tear the flesh off making a small problem so much worse.
. A small sewing kit like the ones you get hotels…perfect for lancing blisters
. A small bottle of antisceptic spray to sterilise everything
. Voltaren or your favourtite sports gel to massage sore muscles
That is all you need…and everything else you can pick up along the way.

Clothes
The lighter the better…..and avoid anything cotton. Cotton doesn’t dry quickly and when you walk with as little as possible you NEED everything to dry. What you pack is always a personal preference and there is so much gear out there it is hard to go wrong. My problem was I found most hiking clothing has function but absolutely NO style. Anyway I had a pair of shorts, a pair of pants, a pair of leggings, a long sleeve marino top and t shirt (marino is fantastic and doesn’t smell as bad if you can’t wash), a waterproof jacket (but in torrential rain nothing is 100% waterproof i discovered), rain pants, a thin fleece jumper, and waterproof cover for my pack. I used 3 pairs of hiking socks (light weight trekking in merino) and 3 pairs of undies ( ex-officio are the best). A hat and lightweight scarf for warmth and shade depending on the weather.

I also used Sea to Summit ultra light sleeping bag and silk sleeping sheet, and a kathmandu brand X-large quick dry towel. These are expensive but worth it, as they are light and can be compressed down to the size of an orange or other citrus fruit! My was bag consisted of travel size everything and I used my shampoo to wash my clothes as well…..no need for the full facial routine…a small tin of Nivea cream was the best thing ever for wind or sun burnt skin.

As I am also a little OCD, or others might say anally retentive when it comes to packing….I packed everything in packing cells or dry sacs that can be found at all hiking shops. This helped with seperating wet from dry, dirty from clean and the embarrasment of not needing to unload my entire back pack everytime I needed something.

Anyway….this is why I think I would do well in a hiking shop….let me know if you need help packing too….I can fit a small house into a 35L bag now and you will still be able to climb mountains!!!

So….I am in Santiago de Compostella. Originally I was going to walk from Lisbon…but thought better of it and started just outside Porto. This is the popular starting point for the Camino Portuguese. It began with a long day of 36km but I was suprised at how well I went and the next few stages were a casual jaunt of 20 or so km, so it was evenly balanced.

The Portuguese camino is actually quite easy. There are few climbs and only one that really challenges the body. The rest of the camino is relatively flat and quite nice. It is, however, a completely different feel from the Camino Frances across Spain. It is short. So you don’t quite get the time to bond with people in the same manner as in Spain…or France for that matter.

Porto to Santiago is about 250km and is easily completed in 10-12 days. Someone told me it is a beginners camino…but if I had done this one first I would never have done another one…..or I would not have been so eager to do another one let’s say.

I cannot quite explain why its different…it just is. As one friend who I met in Spain last year – and recently completed the portuguese camino about a week ago – said “it’s unique”. And that is a good way of describing it.
Having said that….I met some wonderful people along the way and Portugal and Galicia are certainly spectacular. Again, like any camino, it is a truly remarkable way to see a country and this was no exception. The portuguese people are unbelievably friendly. Not that the spanish are not, but maybe they have not been as jaded by so many people walking through their lives. Much like spain, albergues are available to stay in and the Menu del Dia…or pilgrims menu… is always on offer. This consists of soup or salad…a main of beef, chicken or pork with chips, and a bottle of wine for about €9. Needless to say, I never want to see this menu again…except for the wine of course.

So…in all it was lovely to do….but maybe a bit short…or not as organised…or not as picturesque….or not as…..I don’t know.

But it is not without it’s excitement. In a short period of time you can still watch relationships begin and end. I watched a yound german girl Frankie fall in love with Isaac from Australia…a dude who made the world sound unbelievable to Frankie….and she wanted to follow him everywhere. A Brazilian boy who would rather sleep until 10am than walk was suddenly up and out at 5am because of the two german girls who thought this was a good idea!

Me…I now have a tumultuous relationship with thunderstorms. The last few days walking was not blessed by sunshine, but torential rain and storms. I was walking by myself when the thunder started. It was not a problem…nor was the lightening….until it seemed to be very close to me. I thought…it’s only flash lightening, not forked so what’s the problem? I will just stop and wait out the storm…I have all my wet weather gear on…i have a banana and croissant in my bag…I’m set.

But like all plans made in a rush….I suddenly thought waiting underneath a tree wasn’t the safest idea so I walked towards open space as much as I could, only to realise I was under the main and very big electric power lines that run across countries and continents. As panic was beginning to set in, and the lightening was very fast and close I realised I was completely alone with no one ahead or behind me that I could see, and I had no idea where i was in relation to civilisation. So it was then that lightening struck a tree right beside me and I had a nervous breakdown. Shaking, wailing crying, screaming for help I began to run. Sounds like a normal reaction I hear you say…but picture that I have a 10kg backpack on….full wet weather gear…boots that were soaking wet and I was shaking and could feel my heart beat uncontrollably…and I tell you I was a sight for sore eyes!!! As I ran I came across half a tree that had fallen on the track (along with rain was galeforce winds) and my life was suddenly over. I saw headlights in the distance that I ran towards…it was a ranger coming to see the damage of the tree that had fallen. I waved him down and he was obviously looking at me like was a lunatic…which I was. I could hardly speak…and he spoke no english…so I suppose it was ok…but I tried  to tell him lightening struck near me. He seemed to think I was just scared of storms – which I’m not…Queensland has some legendary storms – but he could see I was losing my shit..so he drove about 500m up the track to the next village. There,  I saw some other walkers, and was able to explain what happened. I got a cup of tea to stop my shaking and shock….but the consensus was I had probably gotten a risidual shock from the lightening – that in conjunction with adrenaline sent me into minor shock. I managed to keep walking with some very kind people keeping an eye on me…but I was unable to control my reaction of fear when I saw lightening again during the day…not that it can strike twice. …but you never know! 

Someone was looking after me anyway…and I am fine now…but it might be a while before another camino…in a storm anyway!!