And more planning. . .

Well the Michelin guide, Chemins de Compostelle : Le Puy-en-Velay Saint-Jean-Pied-de-Port has now come in the mail.  It is very small and thin, but with heavy glossy paper and with pages I am not going to need, so I am going to do some double-sided photocopying of some 12 pages.  The elevation maps will come in handy, as will the road maps in case the GR65 is not clearly marked.  Although I may not need the gite information given, it could prove useful to have in an emergency, and it even gives the months of the year each is open, along with the daily opening hours.


I have also posted on various forums about what to take in terms of clothing, since the temperatures may vary widely due to the high elevation of portions of the route, whether to take a sleeping bag (or just a sleep “sack”), what type of shoes/boots to wear, and whether gaiters or rain-pants were recommended. 

Answers have varied somewhat, but having the input of those who have walked there, and the reasoning for their suggestions, is helpful.  From the responses, it appears that serious hiking boots are not necessary,  gaiters may keep the stones out of low boots, and the possibility of cold nights on the Aubrac given the high altitude, makes a summer-weight sleeping bag a serious consideration.  Rain pants have their adherents and detractors, so I suppose it depends somewhat on the weather conditions, the quality of the fabric, and the individual.   I already have a backpack cover and a lightweight rain jacket, and do not want to deal with a poncho or cape which I, personally, would consider cumbersome, so I’ve easily eliminated that option. 

I read one blog where the writer encountered abnormally cold conditions one year and that it actually snowed lightly a good portion of the time during his walk in October, so I guess need to do the 10-day extended forecast the day before I leave and pack accordingly.  I can wait until the last minute because I can leave items I don’t really need in Paris, so this is definitely a plan.
 
One of the contributors to the Facebook page :   Camino/Via Podiensis / Le Puy / Chemin St Jacques / la Voie du Puy-en-Velay saw a news clip on the French TV channel TF1 which he posted to site and I have added it below. Unfortunately you need to endure a commercial before watching it.
Click here for video clip of the Via Podiensis from TF1

And now the sleeping bag I ordered has come as well—it is made in China—no surprise—and once I took it out of its stuff sack I had enormous difficulty getting it back inside.  It weighs a little under 2 lbs, so heavier than I really wanted.  The label was apparently written by the math challenged: 860 grams or .84 lbs.  I think the grams are correct, so it should read 1.89 lbs, which is what it feels like.  Too bad—will have to think about this.  It’s also fairly large to be carried on my back for two weeks, and it would take up a huge chunk of my backpack.  But as it was on sale and quite cheap,  I’ll probably end up keeping it. . .

And then in visiting the Rockville Library yesterday, I stumbled upon another book on the pilgrimage route, in French, that I must have bought for the library system several years ago and forgotten about, Saint Jacques : Le Chemin des chemins, du Puy-en-Velay à Compostelle, by French travel photo-essayist Jean-Yves Grégoire.  The format is a little unfortunate, as the photos would benefit from being a little larger, but it is enjoyable just flipping through the pages and enjoying the photography.

I had also previously checked out another book, L'âme des maisons d'Auvergne, with its text by authors Matthieu Leclerc du Sablon and Catherine Fouquet-Doucet.  It also is lovely to look at, interpersed with photographs and sketches of the Auvergne region of France.  Although my walk through the Auvegne will only include the immediate region around Le Puy, it gives me more of a feel for the area. 

Robert Forrester, of the  Camino/Via Podiensis/Le Puy/Chemin 

St Jacques/la Voie du Puy-en-Velay Facebook-page fame, has also posted his own 2-sided single page lodging information sheet on the site, and it looks quite useful.  In his first installment he has covered just the portion I need, from Le Puy to Conques!

Download here

He says he prefers to hike unencumbered by heavy guidebooks, so he has reduced his information to a single sheet that can be easily plastic covered (water is the enemy of ink!) and slipped weightlessly into a backpack.