Will I find a place to sleep? Will I find food? Will it rain the entire time? These are questions all pilgrims ask when getting ready to walk the Camino, but none more so than the winter pilgrim.

Imagine walking the Camino when most services are closed, when only 75 of the 450+ albergues on the Francés route keep their doors open for the winter. Imagine walking into a town after a long day out in the cold and discovering the one albergue you thought would be open isn’t.

In this episode we are talking with Chris, who walked the Camino Francés in the winter. But believe it or not, that is even the most interesting part of his story. What drew me in was why Chris walked, and that he is the father of Savannah, who you met in the last episode.

To find open albergues on the Camino Francés in the winter: http://winterpilgrim.com/

The pilgrimage in Japan Chris talks about is called the Kumano Kodo. Learn more here: https://www.tb-kumano.jp/en/kumano-kodo/

Here's where to find my new video format on social media:

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@nancyreynolds-CaminoExperience/shorts

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TheCaminoExperience

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thecaminoexperience/

Tik Tok: Nancy @ the Camino Experience

#youonthecamino #caminodesantiago #firsttimepilgrim #thecaminoexperience #caminopodcast

Is the Camino safe for a woman traveling alone? What about for a young woman, say one in her early 20s walking alone?

You may hear many different answers to those questions – many different experiences from the various Camino routes, and many people will argue with you about the safety of the Camino if you try to say it’s not safe.

In this episode you are going to hear the real-life experiences from Savannah. She is young and she walked the Camino alone. She encountered some of the legendary Camino magic, but she also encountered some truly unpleasant experiences.

Here are the safety tips Savannah shared:

Download the AlertCops app

Know the emergency help numbers - 112 for medical and fire emergencies, and 062 for the Guardia Civil (Civil Guard) to aid with other urgent issues.

#youonthecamino #caminodesantiago #firsttimepilgrim #thecaminoexperience #caminopodcast

If you’ve been contemplating a winter pilgrimage on the Camino de Santiago, this episode is for you. But even if you haven’t been thinking about walking in the winter, this episode may still be for you – especially if you are worried about getting blisters or becoming injured and not being able to finish.

In this episode, you are going to meet Sarah from Seattle who is going to tell you all about her first winter Camino on the Francés route. She also shares about her second winter pilgrimage, which will be on the Camino Mozárabe.

You may discover a winter pilgrimage is exactly what you’ve been longing for.

Here's where to find me on social media in video format:

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@nancyreynolds-CaminoExperience/shorts

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TheCaminoExperience

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thecaminoexperience/

Tik Tok: Nancy @ the Camino Experience

#youonthecamino #caminodesantiago #firsttimepilgrim #thecaminoexperience #caminopodcast

This week we are hearing from Richard, who you met back in episode 127. Richard’s story really stood out because he is living with a significant vision impairment. But it didn’t stop him from walking the Camino Francés from Saint Jean Pied de Port to Santiago and then on to the coast, to Fisterra and Muxía.

And his pilgrimage didn’t stop there. Here’s the question Richard answers for us: What do you do when you realize that what you had planned wasn’t going to be enough?

Here is some information about the free lunch Richard talked about. Available to the first 10 pilgrims to present themselves at the Pilgrim's Reception Office each day.

#youonthecamino #caminodesantiago #firsttimepilgrim #thecaminoexperience #caminopodcast

How often do you have the time – or inclination – to ask deep, existential questions? My guest today – Michael – had just about two weeks on the Camino Portuguese to do just that.

And he really made the most out of the opportunity.

This conversation that may just change the way you see this pilgrimage.

After years of dreaming, months of planning, days of walking, Michael shares his story of how he is getting the most out of his pilgrimage experience.

Free pilgrim gratitude walk!

Join your host, Nancy, and pilgrim and author Jen Manglos for a reflective and contemplative gratitude walk on Friday, November 28, 10 am to noon, at Carkeek Park in Seattle, Washington. Free.

Not in the Seattle area? You can host your own gratitude walk! Nancy and Jen will provide the reflective guide to share with your walkers.

Get the details and register for the Seattle walk or to host your own walk here: https://thecaminoexperience.com/gratitude

The most daunting part of walking the Camino is getting started. Why go it alone then? Two spots have opened up in my May 2026 Camino Experience group. Grab your spot today: https://thecaminoexperience.com/walk-with-me/

#youonthecamino #caminodesantiago #firsttimepilgrim #thecaminoexperience #caminopodcast

There are times in our lives when we just need something. Something different, something new, something challenging, to shake things up and show us who we are right now.

Something is what has called my guest this week – Marina – to walk the Camino. Marina is asking a really important question as she embarks on this journey. It’s an existential question, really, like who am I? But it goes even deeper and broader.

Free pilgrim gratitude walk!

Join your host, Nancy, and pilgrim and author Jen Manglos for a reflective and contemplative gratitude walk on Friday, November 28, 10 am to noon, at Carkeek Park in Seattle, Washington. Free.

Not in the Seattle area? You can host your own gratitude walk! Nancy and Jen will provide the reflective guide to share with your walkers.

Get the details and register for the Seattle walk or to host your own walk here: https://thecaminoexperience.com/gratitude

The most daunting part of walking the Camino is getting started. Why go it alone then? Two spots have opened up in my May 2026 Camino Experience group. Grab your spot today: https://thecaminoexperience.com/walk-with-me/

#youonthecamino #caminodesantiago #firsttimepilgrim #thecaminoexperience #caminopodcast

We don’t talk about this enough. It’s something almost every pilgrim feels: the emotional and spiritual challenge of returning home.

After all the walking, the quiet, the moments of connection and clarity, it’s jarring to come back to schedules, noise, and expectations. You may feel disoriented. Disconnected. Even a little lost.

That’s not a sign something went wrong—it’s a sign that something changed.

This is sacred ground.

Today I am sharing two audio sessions from the Bringing home the Camino guided journey inside our new La Terraza online pilgrim community:

• The post-Camino blues
• Why integration matters just as much as the journey

These are the first steps to life after the Camino and the start of your next pilgrimage.

Join La Terraza, where pilgrims gather to share in the spirit of the Camino de Santiago. https://thecaminoexperience.com/laterraza/

Enrollment is open from noon on Tuesday, November 4 through Friday, November 14, 2025.

Join your host, Nancy, and pilgrim and author Jen Manglos for a reflective and contemplative gratitude walk on Friday, November 28, 10 am to noon, at Carkeek Park in Seattle, Washington. Free.

Not in the Seattle area Why not host your own gratitude walk? Nancy and Jen will provide the reflective guide to share with your walkers.

Get the details and register for the Seattle walk or to host your own walk here: https://thecaminoexperience.com/gratitude

#youonthecamino #caminodesantiago #firsttimepilgrim #thecaminoexperience #caminopodcast

You walked the Camino de Santiago and met YOU. Maybe it was the best version of you, maybe it was the worst. Maybe it was your authentic self that you were longing to meet and had suspected was hiding somewhere within you.

My guest today is Kathy Kehe, pilgrim and life coach who is passionate about you finding and bringing home the gold from your pilgrimage. She and I really get into it, as that is my passion, too.

We are all about what happens after you walk the Camino. We are about how you bring home the gifts of the Camino to change your life for real.

It’s not just about tending to the inner landscape, which is, of course, important and necessary. It’s also about adjusting the external features of your life – what you do each day, who you share your time with, and how you find your post-Camino dream and go after that.

Find out more about Kathy's work here: https://www.kathykcoaching.com/

Check out Camino Wisdom Stories here: https://www.heroscamino.com/wisdomstories

Join La Terraza, where pilgrims gather to share in the spirit of the Camino de Santiago. https://thecaminoexperience.com/laterraza/

Enrollment is open from noon on Tuesday, November 4 through Friday, November 11, 2025.

Join your host, Nancy, and pilgrim and author Jen Manglos for a reflective and contemplative gratitude walk on Friday, November 28, 10 am to noon, at Carkeek Park in Seattle, Washington.

Not in the Seattle area Why not host your own gratitude walk? Nancy and Jen will provide the reflective guide to share with your walkers.

Get the details and register for the Seattle walk or to host your own walk here: https://thecaminoexperience.com/gratitude

#youonthecamino #caminodesantiago #firsttimepilgrim #thecaminoexperience #caminopodcast