Camino Primitivo: The Original Way
Spain
June 17 - July 1, 2025
September 17 - October 1, 2025
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A shorter, gentler walk will also be included in the 2025 Peaceful Heart Pilgrimage offerings. Message me for more details!
Camino Frances, Final 100km
June 6 - June 12, 2025
September 6 - September 12, 2025
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Feel the call to something larger? How bout 200 miles?
For thousands of years pilgrims have trekked through the open landscapes and rolling hills of Spain on their way to the Holy City of Santiago. They come from all over the world seeking clarity, seeking wisdom, seeking reprieve. They seek adventure, they seek belonging, they seek progress. There are several routes that a pilgrim can choose, but none match the raw beauty and patience of the Original Way. This road hosts the fewest number of pilgrims each year; an unprecedented gift for those of us who are looking to escape tourism and move toward space, goodness, and contemplation.
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This call will cost you. We will work hard each day. We will wake up early. We will carry our burdens. We will sweat. We will bear the rain and sun. We will blister. We will wish we didn't come. It's true. The road is not easy.
The road is not easy, but it is worth it.
You will see sunrises that will haunt your dreams for months to come. You will know the rain, and know the sun, and know the rainbow. You will walk through blooming meadows and cross rugged mountains. You will remember places of anger, disappointment, and frustration, but you will have space and perspective to work through those emotions in a new way. You will have resolve. You will have peace. You will have joy. You will have companionship. You will bathe in rural Spain. You will eat bread and not be sick. You will drink wine and not be hungover.
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This is not a vacation. this is a quest.
Two 2025 trips will be offered, each trip limited to 7 guests
We will meet in Oviedo, Spain and walk together to Santiago, Spain
Total distance ~ 200 miles
15 days, 14 nights (including one rest day in Lugo)
Pilgrim credentials upon completion (Dual Pilgrim credentials if prior completion of Kumano Kodo)
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Camino Primitivo Cost: $3275.00
Includes: 15 nights group lodging, 15 evening meals, luggage transfer, monthly informational newsletter, and unlimited access to me for personalized questions and accountability on gear, training, travel planning, and any additional questions that may arise in trip planning.
*Payment plans are available
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Words from Pilgrims Passed
What was it like to be in a group of people you didn't know?
Going with a group I didn’t know was maybe the best decision I ever made. It allowed me to take something on by myself, but not really alone. I was blessed with the group that I went with, and I think part of the Camino journey really is trusting that you will end up with the people you are supposed to end up with. We had moments where we walked together, walked separately, walked in pairs, walked with conversation, walked in silence. I knew I was never really alone but could seek solitude when I needed—for companionship and community when I needed that. You get to not only share parts of your story with them, but also bear witness to their stories and pain and joy and transformation on the journey. I don’t know when I will see them again, but I think those women hold parts of me that I have never shared with anyone else.
The tangible things: the body pain, the long miles, the food, the accommodations. What do you have to say about the day-to-day experience?
It’s not always fun. As a whole it’s one of the greatest things I’ve ever done, but like anything with a great payoff, it’s hard. Some days you’re so tired and in so much physical pain you’re wondering why you ever agreed to do this, if you CAN do it. Or when the snoring man in your shared room at the albergue keeps you up all night and you daydream about your bed at home. Or the convenience of the supermarkets at home you can just drive to whenever you want or need. But the reward (which I interestingly found the be throughout the journey, not just at the finish line) is so great. Looking back now on those albergue beds, the alarm ringing before the literal crack of dawn, washing my clothes in the sink or shower, I laugh about and even yearn for it; I’d take every ache and pain again to be able to feel that Spanish sun on my back and hear nothing but the crunch of leaves and dirt underfoot.
What would you tell someone who is thinking about heeding the Call?
I think the answer is already in you whether this is for you or not, at this time. You know it, consciously or subconsciously. There may be fear or anxiety about listening to that answer, whether it’s a yes or a no, but something inside you know—your spirit and your heart and your body know if it’s right…take the time to let it arise in you, but also don’t try to fashion the answer into something it isn’t. Don’t confuse the fears, the doubts, or questions with not wanting to take the journey; and equally, if something in you says this isn’t right for you at this time, don’t try to force it into being right.
