Dare I say I have everything I need? No, probably not. Will I ever have everything I need for El Camino? Jury’s still out on that one. However, as of last night I think I am ready for this trek (gear wise). I had my last day at one job on Tuesday, so I am officially down to just one job for this final week before I leave. That has allowed me time in the afternoon to make my final purchases which included things like a giant sun hat (which surprisingly enough I am obsessed with instead of completely abhorring) and a new hydration skin for my pack. My previous one that I have been using for as long as I can remember had been looking like it was growing some nice black spots in the water tube as of late, which you know, probably isn’t good for anyone’s health. I was also able to get Maverick to the groomer’s now that I have time in the afternoons, although that didn’t go as planned. Apparently he doesn’t like going on a grooming table. So much for getting all his undercoat brushed out and ready to go before we leave so he isn’t so hot in the baking Spanish sun. And now, we’ll be using this final week to walk each day and become accustomed to our packs.
I packed up everything I’ll be bringing last night and was pleasantly surprised to find I have so much room left over in my pack and it is still very light. When you break everything down and list it all out, it seems like I’m bringing so much but once it’s all packed away, it’s surprising how little you really need to survive on the trail for almost 40 days. As you can see from my cover image of my packing list, it seems endless. In reality, it takes up not even a full 33L Osprey pack. The sad thing is, Maverick’s pack seems heavier than mine! I think that’s mostly due to his pack being a heavier material though, because he’s definitely not carrying as much as me. I’m all excited now about how light everything seems, give me a week on El Camino and I’ll probably be complaining about how I have way too much stuff. I guess only time will tell.
The most common thing I’ve been hearing lately is, “Aren’t you scared?”. My answer each time someone asks me that? Honestly, no. I’m not at all scared. Maybe that makes me dumb. Maybe that makes me unnatural. But I truly am not at all afraid of this journey. As so many people feel the need to point out to me, I am going alone. Shouldn’t that be terrifying? But I’m not alone; I have Maverick and to be honest, I would put money on him being a much better defender than any of your boyfriends you want to travel the world with. For the most part, I’m prepared. I’ve planned what I can. I know what I’m getting into. I trust that I have a good head on my shoulders. And when it all comes down to it, I know some things in life are out of my control…but that’s okay. That’s more than okay; it’s what makes life interesting. I know things are going to go wrong, plans aren’t going to happen as I hoped, but then you just figure out what to do next. You just keep going, one step at a time, much like the entire Camino.