The Camino Preparation Handbook is a guide to prepare pilgrims for walking the Camino de Santiago or Way of St. James. The handbook contains extensive and extremely useful information for pilgrims about to begin their first journey.

Not only are topics such as selecting the right backpack, footwear and packing lists covered, insight into the spiritual preparation one must make is also covered. Avoid having to learn the hard way, by getting the inside tips before you go!

The 3rd Edition features 47 extra pages of expanded and updated content on selecting the right backpack and pole use, as well as new content including; safety on the camino, courtesy on the camino and a chapter on bed bugs.

This new paperback edition also features new photos and detailed illustrations.In addition to metric, the units of measurement are also provided in US imperial, as well as temperatures in farenheit and distances in miles.

Available on Amazon in paperback and Kindle versions!

Foreword

My original intention wasn’t actually to write a book, but instead to maintain a camino blog, which gradually expanded from just diary entries to practical information after learning the ropes through trial and error on many different caminos over the years. As the topics and information expanded and after a considerable amount of blood, sweat and tears (not to mention money), a peregrina friend of mine said one day, “Hey, there’s so much good information here, you should put it all in a book!” So here it is; the updated 3rd Edition.

There’s nothing worse than being ill-prepared and to find yourself alone and in trouble with no immediate solution to the problem at hand. I have written this book to help 1st time pilgrims better prepare themselves for the journey ahead, but there is certainly some great information here even for the more experienced pilgrims as well, as most of what has been written in the following pages has been learnt “the hard way”, which is something you can avoid having to endure. Taking heed of this will surely lead to a far more enjoyable camino and may serve as the “make or break” catalyst for you. It will help you find the optimal possibilities for your own camino experience and enable you to get the most out of this epic journey. It will surely provide you with an excellent basis from which you will undoubtedly fine tune your own pack list and camino strategy. This will become evident in the training phase prior to embarking on your first camino.

There is no precise science of walking a camino however. We are all different; having different levels of fitness, different shaped bodies (particularly our feet) and walk the camino for different reasons. Let’s face it, an 815km (506.42 mi) journey (in the case that you are planning on walking the Camino Frances as most 1^st-timers do) across Northern Spain is not something to be taken lightly. Undertaking such an adventure will surely test your fitness just as much as your will power and being better prepared to face each day’s challenges as they present themselves, will undoubtedly contribute to a potentially more enjoyable camino.