The highlight of my busy summer was walking the Camino de Santiago in June. For 10 days, I walked with a church group from Sarria to Santiago, 110 kilometers or 68 miles. We had beautiful, cool weather, and I met pilgrims from all over the world completing the same walk, or longer ones.
The Camino is a pilgrimage route through Spain to Santiago, where the remains of St. James are said to be buried. Thousands of pilgrims from all over the world walk the Camino each year.
So, I found it so disconcerting to learn that John Adams, second President of the United States and diplomat, had made his own way on an emergency “reverse Camino,” in 1779. Apparently, he had a miserable time walking through many of the same towns I had. I couldn’t believe there was an American Revolution crossover Camino event, well-documented in this article Take a look to learn about the near shipwreck that necessitated his trip by mule, overland across Spain to France.
On my walk, my fellow travelers remarked that we were on the “Bougie Camino.” Indeed! We were not staying at albergues, but small hotels and we were well fed.
The temperature was in the mid 60’s most days and we chatted, drank cafe con leche, and strolled our way across northern Spain, meeting travelers from all over the world.
So was there any truth in John Adams’s pronouncement?
Mean clergy?
John Adams found himself in a Catholic country, quite different from America and England. The contrast between the poor townspeople and the well-fed clergy was evident to him, and offensive to his Congregationalist/Unitarian sensibilities. The Catholic clergy I most often encountered were in small towns where passing pilgrims keep the small churches going by stopping in for a visit, or perhaps attending Mass. To me, the clergy looked much like the other town residents.
Poverty?
I learned after I returned that Galicia, the region of Spain I walked in, is one of the poorest in Spain. I didn’t see people living in dire conditions, but I noticed a number of unoccupied houses and buildings in the small towns. The number of residents is dwindling as generations have fewer children, and those young people in search of higher-paying employment make their way to larger cities or other countries.
Bedbugs?
Bedbugs are a reality on the Camino and a couple of my fellow travelers had a bite or two. Fleas? Fortunately, we didn’t encounter any fleas!
Exhaustion?
While I was elated to reach Santiago, and then happy to return home, I was soon leaving for Historical Novel Society’s biennial conference in Las Vegas!
I felt a touch of John Adams’s exhaustion going from a 6-hour time difference going one way and back, to a 3-hour difference going the other way!
I love Vegas, and the conference was great, but after a month of travelling, I was very happy to be back in Massachusetts for the summer. I’m sure John Adams would have enjoyed a New England summer after the Camino!
What are you doing this summer?
Kate
P.S. I continue to update HNS-NYC’s website. There are so many great presentations available on both video and on Spotify podcasts. Take a look if you have an interest in writing or reading historical fiction.
P.P.S. I have completed a very rough draft of my third novel! For those along on this journey, I haven’t published any of my novels yet, but I have a plan to kick things off in 2026!