Behind the Albergue Door: Inspiration Agony Adventure on the Camino de Santiago

we might be seeing a subtle shift in the pilgrim demographic. With the rapidly growing popularity of the Camino in recent years there is also far more information available about it. Past pilgrims, dedicated websites, opportunistic books (much like this one), all serve to create a much more informed and prepared pilgrim (mentally, at least - see the Packing and Advice chapter for ways to dispute this theory). Anyway, from what we have heard the Camino was actually relatively empty in mid-summer in 2012, probably the result of people actually listening to everyone telling them to avoid the hottest and busiest time of year. We also heard that, in fact, it was mid-September that produced the densest concentration of dirty moaning walkers, resulted in the longest albergue lineups and, as a result, the most winner take all games of marbles using old ball bearings collected here and there from farms along the way.
    But the bottom line is that when you choose to go will definitely affect everything about your overall experience so, just like when being offered wishes from Arabian genies or picking out skinny jeans, be sure to choose carefully. Based on the small sample size we personally experienced and everything else we learned from one source or another, I would summarize your choices thusly:
    June/July/August
    Still too busy for my liking, and way, way too hot. On the bright side, though, you won’t need to carry as many clothes and just the thinnest sleep sheet will probably suffice in place of a much heavier sleeping bag. And dropping ten pounds a day in sweat will help give you that borderline anorexic look that has become so fashionable these days and goes so well with your super-tanned calves. You’ll probably find yourself getting up earlier and earlier each day to beat the heat and at least give yourself a fighting chance of finding a bed for the night. A downside for most people, an upside if you usually get up to pee around 4am anyway, and just decide to head out from there.
    May/September
    The “shoulder seasons” theoretically provide ideal weather with warm, pleasant days and cool nights. There used to be fewer pilgrims on the trail during these times but they are now considered prime time for those in the know. Which, unfortunately, leads to more competition for beds, tables in restaurants, band-aids, and the like, not to mention far more trail-jockeying*.
    April/October
    Less predictable weather, and some places may be closed, especially around the fringes of these times. Uncomfortably cold mornings and a lack of heated albergues means more evenings spent huddled in your sleeping bag reading with a head lamp. On the other hand, the trail is far quieter, there is no need to get up particularly early since daytime heat is no longer a concern and there should always be beds available. And you know what they say – fewer people means fewer Greeks.
    November to March
    Colder than a witch’s tit, as the Shell station attendant would say, and lonely, so lonely. But you get to revel in the satisfaction that comes from having it harder than most, you will rarely break a sweat and should have a much easier time following the trail in the snow, assuming there is actually anyone hiking ahead of you.
    * The fine art of passing, being passed by, and re-passing pilgrims who, by chance or the inescapable realities of a communal breakfast, started out the same time as you that day. Expert trail-jockiers search out fat Americans hiding their sweat stains under voluminous wind jackets and spend the hottest part of the day drafting behind them. Despite increasing in popularity among the common folk in the 21 st Century, trail-jockeying was originally considered a hereditary skill of the nobility along with condescending laughter and convincing dogs to kill foxes, a sport typically dominated by Englishmen named Harold.
    Of course, all of these are just vague generalizations. No one can predict the weather in Northern Spain with any real accuracy, so expecting the usual and being prepared for the opposite would seem to be the best course of action. As for us, we started out from St. Jean Pied de Port on October 1 st and rolled into Santiago de Compostela itchily triumphant on November 5 th . And overall we felt very lucky about the weather we got, approximately a week of rain out of 35 days, and it never got so cold as to be much of an issue, especially once you were actually hiking.
    We had nothing but sun for the first