I’ve found a video on YouTube called “How difficult is the first day on the camino”. It’s a computer-generated view of the 24km/15m hike from St Jean Pied de Port on the French side to Roncevalles on the Spanish side. By all accounts the first day on the road is one of the hardest. Well, that’s good to know!

I suppose the first starting point will be the train from Ashford International Station at 06.24 on Thursday 9 May. Hopefully this will take me to Paris Gare du Nord where I will get the Metro across town (for a bargain€1.19) to Gare de Montparnasse. Here I will get the SNCF train (travelling first class for an extra €5), arriving some hours later at Bayonne. From there it’s a suburban train to St Jean Pied de Port, a town in the foothills of the Pyrenees (on the French side). This will be from where I start walking two days later.

This allegedly is one of the best guides to have so we shall see. I’ve also got two apps on my phone which means I have three chances of getting lost!

This is what will be following me very closely. It will probably vary in weight depending on how much stuff I decide not to take but it will likely be in the region of 5-6 kilos. FYI One litre of water weighs one kilo but this will be a necessity on the road.

Just in case anybody is wondering where the header photo was taken it was at a Pueblo village in Arizona.