Camino Pilgrim

When the temperature hits over 25 degrees Celsius (77 Fahrenheit), then the amount of sweating goes up significantly. I start to feel tired just breathing in air, not to mention hiking great distances with a backpack.

Water rations will start to run out much faster and the need for taking breaks increases. There is nothing comfortable about hiking when it is suddenly too hot during the day.

Hiking in Spain around Summertime is great for the lack of rain, but a nightmare for others because of the temperature climbing quite fast around midday. What are the best options to make the best of an uncomfortable situation?

Air out your shoes regularly

Other than having enough water in your pack, this is the most important thing to keep in mind. During hot days your feet will be way more in danger of developing issues that cause you pain or injuries down the road.

Your feet are your most important tool for hiking, so take care of them. Whenever you are stopping on a roadside bench or a cafe, take off both your shoes and your socks. Just sit away from other people so your stinky feet will not make them uncomfortable. If there is a stone floor around, then that is perfect to quickly reduce muscle swelling.

Rest stops are perfect for drying out your socks. At least once per day, you should swap out for a fresh pair of socks. This way, your feet can remain dry. This will reduce friction inside the shoe and keep you safe from blisters. If, during hiking, you feel a hotspot on your feet, then your body screams at you that a sock change needs to immediately happen.

Start hiking before sunrise

This is the easiest option for gaining huge distances even before the day normally would start for you. Maybe someone is snoring too loudly. Maybe you just woke up naturally an hour too early today and consider going back to sleep. You know that around 1pm the temperature will start getting so hot that you will die under the sun.

Use your phone screen light to find your stuff (not flashlight!) and quietly leave the common sleeping area. Get dressed in the bathroom or some other area and make sure you have some water with you.

Each hour that you hike earlier than normal is up to 5 kilometers of distance gained on extremely hot days. Pushing yourself through extreme heat is way harder than hiking at night. 

Modern phones have a really strong flashlight function you can use to see the trail until sunrise. Have a Camino related app on the phone to show you your GPS location and the trail, so you will not get lost.

Enjoy the stars and find beauty in solitude. Most likely, you can manage your whole daily distance before its even midday.

From bed to trail fast

Pack your hiking backpack already in the evening before. Make sure you have done trail planning. Have some snacks in the pack to eat breakfast on the go or just walk to the nearest café to eat there. Being prepared beforehand is especially important if you plan to be among the first to wake up in the albergue.

If you can manage to get from waking up to hiking in under 30 minutes, then you have succeeded. Compared to pilgrims that take an hour (or more) for morning activities, you have won 2 kilometers of distance.

Plan your route ahead

If you already know more or less about what town or village you will take as your first stop of the day, then being efficient the next morning becomes easy.

If you want to hike an extremely long distance (40+ km) on a hot day, then I suggest you book your accommodation a day ahead. It’s pretty miserable when you will need to walk to the next village because the albergue you had in mind is full.

The hotter it gets, the faster people want to finish hiking. Many will cut their day shorter than average.

Prepare food and water

Every day when you are hiking, check the weather for tomorrow. If it is too hot for you, then maybe carry a bit of snacks with you to cut down on time in cafes. In particular, the time it takes for your first meal of the day makes a massive difference in the distance you can cover during a heatwave. 

I usually have snacks with me for several days, because not always there is a shop around when you need it. Or maybe you did not find a good place to eat a proper meal and get extra hungry.

If you take an hour for breakfast in the café to soak in the morning, then you can let go of any plans on where you plan to finish the day. Let things go as they may. Its important to also relax and not stress about the heat too much.

Remember to enjoy the day

While extreme heat is definitely not your friend, then still use the opportunity to appreciate what you have. Spain is beautiful even in the flat and hot Meseta. Unless you are in Carrion and next village is 17km away, then worrying too much about heat will shift your focus from what you actually came to Spain for. I doubt you travelled to a foreign country just to do challenge your athletic self. You could have done that back at home too.

Find your own personal rhythm and way to Santiago.