Via Podiensis

On April 22nd, 2017, I flew to Paris, to start the Chemin de Saint Jacques via Podiensis. The Chemin de Saint Jacques is the French derivation of the Camino de Santiago, or the Way of Saint James. “Via Podiensis” indicates the route starting in Le Puy en Velay to Saint Jean Pied de Port as the Way continues towards Sanitago before ending at the Atlantic Ocean. Starting in Le Puy en Velay would add 500-mi to my Camino… so basically, I’d be walking 1000+ mi to the beach.

Settling In

I spent my first few days in Paris and Versailles to help me “settle in” to Europe before I started what felt like an epic journey. As usual, shortly after checking into my AirBnB, I hit many of my favorite sites in the City of Lights to fan the flames of my wanderlust. A few months ago, I planned to move to Paris or somewhere in the south of France after my Camino. But plans change; especially when one fails to submit the proper immigration paperwork in a timely manner. C’est la vie…

And so it was, I landed in Paris with only a 38L backpack to sustain me for nearly three months of travel. A couple days later I boarded the RER train in Versailles, and train’d back into Paris, then Lyon, and Saint-Étienne, before I took a bus to Le Puy en Velay. On the train platform it happened… I met the first members of my Camino Family; two husband and wife couples from South Korea. We became fast friends on the short train ride to Saint-Étienne. I wish I had the foresight to take a photo together on the train, because I wouldn’t see them until the Pilgrim’s mass at the Le Puy Cathedral the next morning.

Couchsurfing

I was greeted at the bus station by my Couchsurfing.com hostess, Lou. She gave me a quick tour of the town as we walked back to her flat. After I settled in to my room, we continued the tour of the town. Lou took me to the cathedral where I purchased a Pilgrim’s passport or “credencial,” took a self-guided tour, and learned of a Pilgrim’s gathering in the evening. Then we walked back to her place, where I was able to meet her husband, Matthieu. They had friends over to eat dinner and practice their English with me. I went to bed really late after a long night of drinking; not at all ideal for starting a 1000+ mi journey. So I started my Camino early the next morning by walking up the steep hill to the Le Puy Cathedral for the Pilgrim’s mass not with a hangover, but with a buzz. What a dummy…

Anyway this is the base post for my walk along the Chemin from Le Puy en Velay to Saint-Jean-Pied-du-Port. I’ll post individually about different events and days on the Chemin in follow-on posts. But for the meantime, below is my itinerary:

27Apr / Day 01 – Combrieaux ~25km 
28Apr / Day 02 – Sauges ~20km
29Apr / Day 03 – La Roch ~27km
30Apr / Day 04 – Aumont-Aubrac ~24km
01May / Day 05 – Le Py ~15km
02May / Day 06 – Aubrac ~20km
03May / Day 07 – Saint Côme d’Olt ~26km
04May / Day 08 – Estaing ~20km
05May / Day 09 – Le Soulié ~23km
06May / Day 10 – Conques ~19km
07May / Day 11 – Conques ~ 0km (Rest Day)
08May / Day 12 – La Roche ~22km
09May / Day 13 – Figeac ~26km
10May / Day 14 – Thémines ~33km
11May / Day 15 – Rocamadour ~28km
12May / Day 16 – Labastide-Murat ~24km
13May / Day 17 – Cahors ~32km
14May / Day 18 – Montcuq ~30km
15May / Day 19 – Dufurt-Lacapelette ~28km
16May / Day 20 – Boudou ~26km
17May / Day 21 – Auvillar ~15km
18May / Day 22 – Lectoure ~33km
19May / Day 23 – Castelnau-sur-l’Auvignon ~16km
20May / Day 24 – Montréal ~27km
21May / Day 25 – Éauze ~17km
22May / Day 26 – Nogaro ~22km
23May / Day 27 – Aire-sur-l’Adour ~26km
24May / Day 28 – Arzacq-Arraziguet ~27km
25May / Day 29 – Arthez-de-Béarn ~25km
26May / Day 30 – Navarrenx ~28km
27May / Day 31 – Aroue ~16km
28May / Day 32 – Larceveaux ~25km
29May / Day 33 – Saint-Jean-Pied-du-Port ~19km