Drumaness man spends summer walking historic Spanish trail

Drumaness man spends summer walking historic Spanish trail

2 September 2015

A DRUMANESS man has spent his August summer holiday tackling 679 kilometres of a personal pilgrimage.

Edmund McCullough took on the Camino del Norte, one of the walking routes for pilgrims making their way to reputed burial site of the apostle James at Santiago de Compostela.

The French Way, or Camino Francés, is the most popular route but the Camino del Norte along the north coast of Spain is a somewhat rougher trail.

Involving some steep climbs and harsher weather, pilgrims are nevertheless rewarded with breathtaking views and architectural gems in a route skirting the foothills of one of Europe’s great mountain wildernesses, the Picos de Europa.

Starting at Irun near the French border, the Camino passes through the western Basque, Guernica, Bilbao, Santander, Lianes and along the coast before it swings inland through the hills of Galicia.

Edmund nearly reached the end of the 825km route in his four weeks and will be returning in the near future to complete the final section. He has already completed one of the alternative routes.

“I just ran out of time,” he said. “I was doing 25 kilometres a day, sometimes 30, sometimes 35.

“You spend part of it on the beach but there is also a lot of it on hard road.”

Describing himself as a “weekend walker”, Edmund said his knee felt it at times, but added: “Everybody has strains, everybody has pains, that is all part and parcel. There is a great atmosphere and camaraderie. It is the people who make it. People come from all over the world, people from all backgrounds.

“It’s 200 kilometres to the finish but we were only there for four weeks and plan to go back.”

Accompanied by brother Jim and niece Siobhan, the party stayed in the hostels known as alburgues for pilgrims along the route.

“They are very basic,” explained Edmund. “There are bunk beds, so everybody is in together, you have to be back out in the morning by 7am and you can’t stay at an alburgue more than one night.

“Compared to the Camino Francés that has facilities established it is very underdeveloped.

“A few nights people had to be resourceful and sleep in bus shelters or park benches, not us.

“It can be hard to get places to stay, particularly difficult in August, when the entire north of Spain is on holiday. 

“There is a great togetherness, though. People help each other out.”

Edmund said there were many motivations prompting a Camino, from those on a purely spiritual quest to those seeking a walking holiday. 

For Edmund, formerly working with the Simon Community in Downpatrick and now involved with the Utility Street men’s hostel in Belfast, it was a chance to reflect on the lives of some of the people he helps.

“It’s a chance to get away from the hustle and bustle, to take time to think and hopefully ponder,” he said.

“You have one back pack weighing nine and a half kilograms, with one change of clothes, a sleeping bag, and a small bag of toiletries, that is all you have to do you. 

“It teaches you how to be resourceful. You start thinking about migrants and refugees, and to a degree it gives you an idea what it must be like.”