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Useful video. I am actually responding simultaneously to this double sock vid and the one you briefly mentioned on the waterproof socks. Last spring I walked 400 miles on an Injinji and Smart Wool combination and have been using the same combo on my local 12-mile urban and rural walks with not a single blister or discomfort other than the mention below. I had been advised by a wonderfully helpful staff at the little hiking store in SJPDP to get a smaller size Smart Wool pair than I was buying, which was a good decision. Also I had brought a pair of the waterproof socks from your vid, which I had bought online a size up to accommodate my double-sock protocol. That became a big problem in sloshing several hours through ankle-deep water between Orisson and Roncesvalles. My feet stayed dry and warm, but I ended up with the beginnings of black toe. THIS WAS ENTIRELY MY FAULT, because of the poor size choice and my insistence on using the double socks underneath, where just the Injinjis should have been best. Two weeks of wearing gel toe sleeves resolved the problem and allowed me to continue walking. So, I am suggesting, if I may, that a lot of new trekkers know about these products because of you-tubers like yourself but really don't know how to buy or use them and we largely buy online independently of associated products and without trying them on together. On your next sock vid, it might be very helpful if you put all your sock experiences together and talked about how to select and use the various items properly. I find you have a great channel that objectively evaluates product or process based on but rather than your experiences. If I decide to put something out there based on my 46 days on Camino, you will be my model. Thanks for being out there.

I came across your recent videos just preparing for my second Camino (in three weeks!), and I thought you looked familiar. Turns out you started your Camino a day after me, so we were actually on the Camino together!! I was with my friend Addy and we did a lot of singing. So good to come across your channel!

Ojalá algún día dejen de llamarlo "el camino de Santiago". Otra manipulación y apropiación indebida más de la Iglesia, como tantas otras mentiras con las que construyeron su multinacional

I walked the CF last September in Injinji toe socks (no liners just socks). I loved them except I found the toe socks gave me really painful toe "wedgies" so I had to weave hikers' wool between my toes to prevent the rubbing. I'm not sure what I'll use next time. Double socks would've been too hot for me. I have Creeper socks too and they're fine but haven't been on any multi day walks yet to really test them out. Cheers from Australia :)

Thank you for sharing. I've not done a camino yet and am planning to do the Camino de Santiago next year. This is definitely one of the things that scare me. I honestly think I'd feel more comfortable with pepper spray, although you need to make sure the wind isn't blowing in your direction if you feel the need to use it.

Those Injinji sock liners cost about $50 Canadian dollars on Amazon and about the same price other places. Mountain Equipment Coop (MEC) - Canada's version of REI had them cheaper but discontinued them. I was in MEC looking for them, no luck. But I saw women's medium - large Injinji toe socks, crew sock, maybe the running sock, marked down to about $3 and there were 2 left so I grabbed them even though I'm a small foot. They worked well for me beneath my Darned Tough socks. No blisters.

Hi Katie, so your talking socks now? Its great, its just that i have rather fool heartedly decided to try, a life or season without socks. At the moment i'm winning. I dare say though, that i'll be relistening to this session, in the nearl future. I hope you and Cashew (and not forgetting wifey) are well.

Great vid Kate - my advice only is for women who get hot feet - don't do double socks!!! I did on my first day and got a blister - slipped back to single injinji toe sock and happy feet for the rest of the hike. SO FOR HOT FEET ONLY :)

ahhh the great sock/shoe debate...wonderful synopsis of your system! the screen share worked fine! I think in the end it is the system that works best for you...I know people who have done all of the one sock/two sock/liner/no liner/heavy wool/light wool/light synthetic et al. Regardless of your system I am a true believer in the 2 hour rule. Change your socks every 2 hours, let the 1st pair dry on your pack and so use 2 pair each day. So have 4 pair in your pack (and maybe a spare for the evenings) I have only gotten blisters when I neglected to follow the 2 hour rule...you be well, Kate! and take care of your loved ones! many blessings, and, of course, bc!

Other great video from our favourite lawyer!

My wife and I were shocked at the amount of toilet paper trailside on our 2019 Portuguese Camino de Santiago. Obviously nature calls when nature calls, but boy, what a mess at every place that offered privacy for folks who needed to “go.” Yes! As you mentioned, please carry small ziplock bags and place your toilet paper in it and dispose of later and, yes, pick up after yourself the way you would your dog. And yes, patronize the businesses and buy something small when using their toilet. And no, don’t take toilet paper out of their WCs to have on the Camino. This is one topic rarely discussed in the many, many Camino videos but one that is important. Bom Camino!

Where do you get an air horn when you start a camino? Because they're prohibited on airplanes (both hand luggage and check in).

So excited for the winners but sad I wasn't one. That's okay, I just ordered a set of the earplugs. Thank you for the recommendation.

I was born in Cuba so I speak Cuban (which came handy in Miami), but I will learn Spanish for the Camino 🤣

Basic vocabulary: "Estrella Galicia", "repetiré paella" and a blue joke about blisters mixing spanish and english: <<-¿hay ampollas? -ok, Hello mister pollas">>

Second runner up here. Let me know if you need my email/address. ❤

I didn't win; therefore, this election was rigged 🤣😛

Good stuff

TOPOS for the Win! Love them so much, I bought my highly opinionated “you do you, I’ll do me” a pair. He wore them one week just to show me I was wrong…and then he ordered a 2nd pair. LOL!

Thank you

Thanks for answers to to some of the questions that, no doubt, many of us have. Oh and .. nice teeth 😬

Hi Kate! Thank you for your helpful advice videos. I enjoyed watching them in preparation for my first-ever Camino a year ago. I completed Camino Frances and my favorite albergues are: Ágora Hostel in Estella, Albergue Los Arancones in Tosantos, Albergue Santa Brígida in Hontanas, Albergue Vía Trajana in Calzadilla de los Hermanillos (single beds, wardrobe, real towels) Albergue La Corona in Salceda. Also, I would love to mention the unique vegan albergue with the best-ever vegan dinner - Albergue Ecológico El Beso in A Balsa. Cheers ~

Hi Kate, glad to see you back on the tube.

Interestingly, I had a bedbug encounter on the Ingles last year (I was a few days ahead of you, iirc). I still don't know exactly where I was bitten ( seems they don't always 'come up' immediately) but I noticed the bites while in the Municipal Albergue in Betanzos. I do react and omg, my histamine reaction to bed bug bites was WAY worse than how I react to mosquito bites or other insect bites. Had to go to the health clinic in the next town as the Pharmacia people seemed shocked at how bad they were. Antibiotic , cream and 2 strong anti histamine tablets helped ease them somewhat. But it did kinda marr the rest of that walk and exactly a year later, I still have scars. BTW, nobody else in my Albergue was bitten that night so I might have been bitten the previous day when I stayed in a hotel! That said, I'm still going to walk the Primitivo this year, starting on 1st June. But I AM quite nervous. Thoughts and prayers please 😊.

Katie, I haven’t knowingly come across bed bugs yet. I’m so disappointed. The uPVC, mattress covers are for infection control purposes. Basically a wipe over with a disinfectant agent. These have been de rigeur since COVID. Nothing living seems to penetrate them. Interestingly, most of these mattresses are blue. However have you noticed the brown ones in the parochial donativo? I’m almost sure they’re coloured like that so it looks like you’re sleeping On the floor….. My best to Cashew.

32 days on the Camino without a bed bug and then I spent the night in Samos. Specifically Tras do Convento which has a bar/restaurant on the ground floor. Prior to my stay I checked the Wise Pilgrim app and it had decent reviews. I was in a private room and woke up around 1:30 due to a sore wrist, just the way I was sleeping on it. I turned the light on and as I looked back at the bed I noticed a couple of small blood stains. Then I saw the dead bed bug near one of them. Then I saw the live bed bug walking up the wall. I've never seen a bed bug before in my life! That night I must have killed a dozen of them, smushing them on the wall. I could hear a lot of activity coming from the dorm with the bunk beds so they must have been under bed bug attack too. I pulled up Wise Pilgrim to leave a review only to notice someone who'd stayed there 3 days earlier had posted a few hours earlier about bed bugs. That information would have been a whole lot more handy if he'd posted immediately so I could have chosen a different albergue! No sleep for me. I finally got my gear together at 5:30am and left in the dark. Not ideal, but neither is sleeping with bed bugs. Very creepy! I emailed the albergue later - I'm not fluent but I've been speaking Spanish for over 40 years and I can get around in Spanish - and they responded with thanks for letting us know. I'm sure they won't do anything especially due to the food service, they'd have to shut down for awhile. No refund. But I left honest reviews everywhere. I didn't have an allergic reaction. But a woman I met in Saint-Jean-Pied-de-Port got bed bugs in Estella with a severe allergic reaction. She saw a doctor, got creams and antibiotics, but after a couple of days had to quit and go home. So beware in Samos! This is not the only albergue with bed bug sightings in this town.

What do lawyers and bedbugs have in common? 🤣 Sorry Kate, couldn't help myself 😂

Hi Kate, totally of topic but it relates to one of your previous videos. I’m in Sevilla and finally tried the CruzCampo beer you mentioned( they also have an alcohol free and a radler) 👍🏽 I’m enjoying the variety and quality of the 0.0 beers in Spain

Devouring all of your videos with my first Camino coming up! Thank you so much for the time you put into them for the rest of us!!! Light sleeper over here and definitely worried about the snoring

The Happy Ears sound wonderful . Hope to do the Camino in 2025 or 26. Night sounds are bothersome so I definitely could use these.

Just came back from walking the camino and earbuds were definitely a must for me! these ones look way better then the ones I used 🤣My favorite albergue has been the Nacama hostel in pontevedra! The showers were by far the best and each bed had curtains.

The video was great. The sound was just fine too. Thank you! My son and I are going to do our first Camino (SJPDD to Burgos) at the end of August. I’m most nervous about the long flight and culture shock. I’ve never even been to Canada, and that’s only a five hour drive. Bed bugs would be number two, but that’s a fear for any travel.

Thanks for sharing all the information. Haven’t been yet to albergues, going next month. Just hope I can get a real good nights sleep.

According to the AVMA, you should NOT make loud noises when a dog is threatening. That provokes a dog attack. Stand tall, keep your ground, don’t look a dog in the eye, but keep your head so that you can see the dog from the side. Carrying a stick is better than trekking poles. Put it in front of you as a barrier, but don’t move or wave it around. Just be cool. I had a large German shepherd escape under a gate to come after me. I kept my walking stride. I could sense the dog near me, i tried peering left, didn’t see him, tried peering right, didn’t see him. I didn’t stop to turn around, i kept my same stride. The dog was inches behind me. I was on his territory and took a wrong turn. I walked back the way i came, the dog’s nose was probably a few inches from my back. A very well trained animal. He didn’t bark or growl. I’ve encountered more boisterous dogs, i do the same thing. If a dog were to approach, your best defense are your knees. Just lift the knee up if the dog jumps or comes at you. I’d prefer that over trekking poles, but a big walking stick is best. That’s how the Dog Whisperer uses a stick or even something as simple as a tennis racket. My attitude towards the situation is completely different from yours - the dogs are there for a reason and you are guests in somebody else’s land in another country. Hiker beware. Respect not just the law, but the customs. Custom is more powerful than law anyway. People in those communities know which dogs to watch out for, and the dogs are probably good at distinguishing community members from strangers. Your horn looks pretty useless and could endanger people by provoking an attack. A whistle is easier to carry (many bags come free with a whistle on the chest strap), in case you want to make noise. But experts recommend not making noise with a threatening dog. The dogs aren’t pets, they are there to serve a vital purpose, and that purpose supersedes the interests of passing tourists. Travel with somebody else, at least one of you can carry a large walking stick, it’s a sufficient barrier to ward off even a large dog from an able-bodied person. It’s not the job of poor people on countrysides to make sure their home is an adequate tourist attraction. They have livestock to protect, from coyotes, wolves and thieves. Respect that or don’t hike there.

Hi Kate. I haven't hiked the Camino yet but hope to in next year or two. Thing I'm most worries about when it comes to staying the albergues is on one of your videos you talked about co-ed showers without shower curtains. That's so unsettling to me. I'll get over it and try to remember it's all part of the Camino experience. Just like snoring! Would love to be entered into the drawing.

Great video Kate! I always love the product reviews/recommendations. My favorite albergue was Casa Banderas in Vilachá. Such a peaceful oasis.

Hi Katie, I have a small set in a grey case. A pair of large ones for the lugs (ear holes) and I presume the small pair for the nostrils, to guard against the phantom windbreakers, in the middle of the night. Best Albergue to date? Not sure but La Perla Negra in Azqueta-Azketa. (Navarra) was good. Ok it was a bit expensive, it was a bit ye olde worlde hippy….. but the vegetarian meal was the best I’d ever had and so much of it. The hosts name I cannot remember but she worked the better part of the day to produce such a fantastic meal, for so many people. Then when she had the time we talked about the old Spain of her parents generation……

Thank you for all the info you are sharing with us! I just walked my first Camino this past April “Camino Ingles”. My favorite Albergue was San Lorenzo Bruma. Can’t wait to walk my next Camino!

Thank you for sharing the love <3

I’m trying to buy those but I think they don’t deliver to Canada Thank you

Great review! Earplugs are definitely a must on any Camino and in real life in my opinion. I’ve been trying out different ones and have never heard of them. Will definitely look into them.

Hi! I can’t think of the name of my favorite albergue, but I remember it was in Sarria. It was one of the ones farthest away from the entrance of town. The hospitalera was awesome.

What a great shout out to a great company!!! Here's to a Nova Scotia winner!!! My fear in an albergue would be others complaining if I am too loud at night or in the early morning. No video lagging as far as I could see.

Like the new set up. Frances - Albergue Verde. Portuguese Central, without a doubt it's - Casa De Fernanda 🥰

Enjoyed your review of the earplugs. I love that they come from ocean plastic and that they work well. A great find! I was training to go on my first camino in 2020 but that got derailed! I am happy to report that my husband and I will be doing The Way of Saint Francis at the end of the month. Heat with no A/C would be an issue for me!

These look incredible! Would save my life! One of my favorite Albergue was in Gonzar, Spain - Casa Garcia.

Gracias Kate! What an essential tool for a good night sleep on an albergue! Too many albergues to choose from to pick a favourite but I echo the concern of bedbugs (not fun waking up in the middle of the night to creepy crawlers) and too much humidity to properly dry clothes in time for the next day. Sending good vibes from Canada!

Thanks for being real, Kate. Your videos often touch on the little, ordinary, day-to-day challenges that most people don't think about. I'm not too concerned about visiting albergues except maybe bedbugs. They're not common but still occur.

I haven’t had a chance to stay in any albergues yet, I’m most nervous about getting a good nights sleep. I’ve stayed at a lot of hostels in the past, but that was quite a while ago.

Hello!! I am less than a month out from the biggest adventure of my life on the Camino Frances! I am a super light sleeper so snoring is definitely a concern for me. I have learned so much from your videos already. Keep them coming!