Day 0: Epsom to Saint-Jean-Pied-de-Port

Off on another hike—this time I’m going solo, tackling the most popular of all the Caminos: the Camino Francés.

I travelled from Epsom to Gatwick, then a 6:00 a.m. flight to Biarritz, followed by a bus to Bayonne and a train to Saint-Jean-Pied-de-Port (SJPdP).

Up at 3:30 a.m.—thanks to Penny for being my airport taxi (without complaints!). Doing this by public transport just wasn’t realistic at that hour.

Caught a bit of sleep on the flight. Arriving in Biarritz gave me Porto flashbacks—wet and windy—but the forecast promised it would clear by 14:00. From the airport, I took the ‘3’ bus to Gare de Bayonne and grabbed the 11:20 train to SJPdP.

Arrived and it was still raining, but there was an awful lot of pilgrims getting off the train. 

Had lunch and checked into a hostel that is quite basic. The rain eventually cleared. 

So, how long will I be away? How far will I go? Honestly—I have no idea. I had a one-way ticket and nothing planned until the end of May. The full Camino Francés is around 775 km, which Gronze estimates takes about 33 days at 23.5 km per day (14.6 miles). But I’ll just take it day by day.

Tomorrow’s stage is a big one—crossing over the Pyrenees. SJPdP sits at 150 metres, and I’ll be climbing to 1,350 metres before descending into Roncesvalles at 1,100—a tiny village in the mountains. I’ve booked a hostel there, as there’s not a lot of choice.

Here’s the route as per Gronze: