In the months before we walked the Camino, I thought and planned a great deal about what I would bring. I was constantly aware of the rule: your backpack should weigh no more than one-tenth of your body weight. I chose to bring two items that weren’t necessary, but which did a great deal for my mental well-being: a tube of rose cream so that I wouldn’t always smell like a pilgrim, and a comfortable, attractive skirt to wear after I was done walking each day.
Here’s what I bought:
Clothes
- Underwear (2)
- Socks, midweight (2)
- Short sleeve shirts (2)
- White long sleeve shirt (SPF 30 or more) (1)
- Marino wool long sleeve shirt (1)
- Good quality raincoat with hood (1)
- Skirt (to wear after walking)
- Wide-brimmed hat (covers both face and back of neck)
- Lightweight all-purpose scarf
- Midweight hiking boots (broken in)
- Lightweight sandals for post daily walking wear- 1 pair
Feet Care:
- Walking soles for shoes (superfeet from REI)
- small bottle peppermint oil for soaking the feet (refreshing effect)
- Needle and thread to treat blisters
- Bandaids for blisters (various sizes)
- Medical plastic glove to use when helping others with blisters
Personal Care
- Water bladder to carry inside of backpack (with a tube for drinking)
- A lightweight sleeping bag that can be squeezed into a small pouch
- Sleep sack with a pillow cover. Good for placing over the bed for a sense of hygiene. Also good on nights when the sleeping bag was too hot
- Camping style towel that dried quickly: large enough to cover me when using communal shower areas
- Earplugs to block out the noise of other pilgrims when sleeping
- Sunglasses
- Suntan lotion, 35 SPF
- Several large safety pins (used to hang wet clothes out to dry on clotheslines or my backpack)
- Mini flashlight with a strong beam (could be worn on my forehead)
- Nail clippers
- Little nailbrush to use for nails and tough stains on clothes
- Swiss Army knife with scissors
- Soap (for showers & washing clothes)
- Toothpaste, toothbrush, retainer
- A small tube of cortisone cream for rashes
- Essential oils for pain and disinfection
- Arnica (homeopathic) for muscle trauma
- Rescue remedy (homeopathic) for trauma of all sorts
- Rose cream
- Tampax
Other:
- Very large plastic bag to line backpack to keep the rain out (Ziplock)
- Passport
- Bank card for cash withdrawals
- Credit card
- Insurance card
- Shell for backpack to identify me as a pilgrim
- Rock to leave at the Cruz de Fero
- Small travel alarm clock
- Digital camera and extra memory cards, charger
- Journal and pen(s)
- Earrings (one pair)
- Small water bottle for use in afternoons and evenings
- Tape (for adding things to my journal)
- Reading glasses
- New Testament & Psalms (lightweight)
Didn’t Bring: Wish I Had
- Small binoculars for looking at the facades of churches