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Mr Stanley Port walked the start of the Pilgrims Route to Santiago de Compostela in 2006 on the Sherpa trip 'The Way of St James'. He is a keen painter and walks armed with a camera and notebook, taking photographs and copious notes about the light, colours and textures of his subject. On returning to his studio he has produced a number of pieces that capture the character and atmosphere of towns and villages on route. Here he describes his holiday. Also known as El Camino de Santiago, this is the pilgrim route to Santiago de Compostela in northwest Spain, where it is believed the remains of the apostle St James were found at the site of the Cathedral. Pilgrims have trekked various branches of the route across Europe since medieval times. The whole walk from Le Puy in Auvergne in France to Santiago, using the most popular branch, takes most people around 80 days.
Leaving the volcanic area of Le Puy, the walk climbs to a plateau, crosses valleys and threads through delightful villages, passes castles and numerous ancient churches. Some areas, such as the Margeride plateau and the plateau of Aubrac, are remote and lonely places, yet covered with wild flowers in many places. Eventually the route follows grassy drove roads to the secluded village of St Chely d'Aubrac. Then it descends, winding through vineyards and chestnut woods, and provides wonderful views of the River Lot. It passes through numerous villages and small towns, all filled with architectural gems, such as St Come d'Olt, Espalion, Estaing, Espeyrac and Senergues. A highlight is undoubtedly the destination hill-town of Conques, with its narrow cobbled streets and the wonderful Romanesque abbey that greeted and welcomed pilgrims almost 1000 years ago, as indeed it still does today.
To see more of Stanley Port's work click the link to his own website |
My wife and I followed Sherpa's route, starting at the
Cathedral in Le
Puy and walking southwest to the delightful town of Conques. The total
distance is 200 km (124 miles) and it took us 10 days. This was one of the most
enjoyable linear walks we have done, and that is saying much because we
have walked the English Coast-to-Coast and the Tour de Mt Blanc. Some who
follow the route are modern-day pilgrims, while others undertake the
journey for non-religious reasons such as to enjoy the beautiful scenery,
for travel, companionship with other walkers met en-route, or simply for
the challenge of walking in such an interesting area of France. For us,
the luggage transfers between hotels provided great freedom. When setting
out each morning with just a lunch and raingear, we always had the welcome
prospect of a tasty evening meal, with a bottle of wine and a bed at the
next hotel - usually a small family-run establishment - that Sherpa had arranged.
With route description and maps provided, there was rarely any difficulty
in finding our way. Despite the number of pilgrims, the French countryside
easily absorbs them in the enormous variety of terrain.