Cam Bostock

The Camino de Santiago… The next adventure begins. Almost 1,000km on the French Way from Saint Jean Pied de Port to Santiago de Compostela and beyond to the end of the world! I’m excited to experience something new, a long walk very different to those I’ve embarked on before. A pilgrimage across Spain, through towns and cities alongside thousands of other pilgrims on their own unique journeys. I’m walking with my PCT fam, @Daniel McKinnon 🇦🇺, Emma and @Route To Happiness plus my wife, @Karis Bostock! Follow along for the next 30+ days and join us on this adventure!

Multi-day hiking in Japan!🇯🇵 The Kumano Kodo - Nakahechi Route 70+km through the mountains of the Kii Peninsula in Wakayama Prefecture. 🥳 Day 1 Recap: I’m excited to finally be back in Japan and even more excited to be walking the Kumano Kodo with my wife, @karisbostock! This will be our first ever multi-day walk together and I’m so grateful Karis agreed to join me. 🥳 We will be trekking for 5 days on the Nakahechi route, from Takajiri to Nachi. Day 1 was incredible! Stunning forest walking all day as we climbed up into the mountains. The trees, the light, the vibe - all immaculate! This is an ancient and historic pilgrimage route and we could definitely feel the significance as we walked along a path that so many have walked before us. It’s really an honour to be here. We passed two villages: Takahara, which was stunning and Chikatsuyu, where we camped for the night. I’m super excited for the next few days! Follow along.🙂 Distance walked: 18.7km Elevation gained: 1,117m Total distance: 18.7km Total elevation: 1,117m

With another scorching day forecasted, we were off early to try and beat the heat. We are learning fast that beating the heat is pretty much impossible though, with temperatures rising with the sun, it’s been 30+ degrees celsius from 9am to 9pm the last 3 days. Regardless, beautiful town stops throughout the day give opportunity for respite; shade, rest and cold drinks at local cafes. Today was another great day, passing by a handful of stunning churches and beautiful countryside. I had some great conversations with new and old friends on their own pilgrimages and arrived at the town of Estella around 2pm to settle in for the afternoon. How has it already been almost a week! Distance walked: 22.1km Total distance walked: 128.4km

The Camino de Santiago!🇪🇸

Ever since completing the Pacific Crest Trail last year, and saying goodbye to my trail friends, Dan, Emma and Dedra, we’ve been planning our big reunion hike! The Camino de Santiago was always one that we were interested in and I’m so excited to finally be here in Saint Jean Pied de Port, ready to begin the journey. I’m also very excited that my wife, Karis, was keen to join us as well! 

We will be walking the French Way on the Camino, almost 1,000km starting in Southern France and crossing Spain to the west coast. We expect to be out here for the next 30+ days and it will be a very different trek to what I’m used to. Less wilderness and solitude and more culture, history and connection. I can’t wait.

Day 1 is typically considered to be the hardest day of the trek, ascending into the Pyrenees mountains from Saint Jean Pied de Port. We had 1,500m of elevation gain throughout the 27km of walking today and we were walking through clouds most of the day. It was beautiful throughout, green pastures, lush forest and a fun mixture of trail and road. We arrived in the town of Roncesvalles with plenty of light left in the day and secured a bed and dinner at the local abergue. Cya tomorrow! 👍 Distance walked: 26.9km Total distance walked: 26.9km

And here comes the heat!🥵 The cloudy, cold weather yesterday was both a blessing a curse. We didn’t get many views, but the walking was extremely pleasant. We know this hike will be warm though, as we are walking through the heart of European summer. We got a taste of the heat to come today, but it was manageable and we were treated with open views of the surrounding country. We descended off the Pyrenees, through stunning little towns, taking advantage of the cafes and supermarkets along the way. We walked a little over 20km today as we ease into bigger milage days and it felt easy and enjoyable throughout the day. We met heaps of other pilgrims today, from around the world, each with their own unique story to share. I’m really looking forward with connecting with others on this journey as we all inch towards Santiago. We arrived at the small town of Zubiri before 4pm, and setup at one of the local albergues. Dinner, editing and some solid relaxation filled the remainder of the day. Onwards to a bigger town(Pamplona) tomorrow! Distance walked: 24.5km Total distance walked: 51.4km

We left the small town of Zubiri early in an attempt to beat some of the heat today. We had another relatively short day planned, only 20km or so to the city of Pamplona - one of the biggest population centres on the Camino de Santiago route. It was beautiful walking all day, a mixture of lovely countryside and small towns. We visited churches is a couple of the towns and got to ring the church bell in one as well! The trail was busy, we crossed paths with many pilgrims today, most of which will also stay in Pamplona tonight. The heat really kicked up a notch towards the middle of the day and we were glad to be making good progress, and arrived in town at about 1pm. We secured a bed in one of the local albergues and explored town a little bit, eating and drinking along the way. Great day! Distance walked: 22.9km Total distance walked: 74.3km

We left our alburgue in Pamplona as the sun was rising and the streets were empty, a stark contrast to last night! There was a coffee shop open on the way out so breakfast and caffeine was consumed and we began our journey for the day. It was about 8km of walking before we reached the edge of town and then spent the day walking through wheat fields and beautiful countryside. Dan, Emma and I took a 5km detour to see a church from the 12th century, Santa Maria de Eunate which was beautiful. It got really hit from about 10am today and by 2pm it was 34 degrees celsius. There isn’t much shade out here but we passed through plenty of towns for breaks and a cold drink at the local cafe / bar. We got to see a bunch of other beautiful churches throughout the day as well, I really awesome day on this pilgrimage and our longest so far. Distance walked: 32km Total distance walked: 106.3km