On the trail from Lyon to Le-Puy, France 2009.
Longwalking Resources
Here are some of our recommended sources for information, stories, tips, equipment, clothing, tools, and supplies for healthy, fun, successful and happy longwalking adventures. If you have a favorite, please let us know so we can check it out. A number of resources may appear under more than one category, either because they fit, or two make easier for you to find them, depending on how you search, and what your looking for.
All listings are alphabetical. All businesses are US, unless otherwise noted. If we’ve had a particular experience with something, there’s a brief comment.
Blogs
AMAWALKER : : : Info, tips and stories about the many Caminos de Santiago de Compostela. >>>
WeekendWalk : : : Stories and cool ideas about short-distance walks that are perfect for training. >>>
Books
Trail Guides, Topo-Guides, Journeys, Adventures, Dictionaries…
AbeBooks is one of the best sources of books on the internet, representing thousands of booksellers. A great place to find out of print books. Here are some of the selections about walking in France. Free Shipping is pretty cool, too! >>>
AMAZON
AMAZON (France)
AMAZON (UK)
CSJ BOOKSHOP (UK) : : : The Confraternity of Saint James runs one of the original websites devoted to pilgrimage on the many Caminos to Santiago de Compostela. They produce a number of simple, effective and inexpensive English-language trail guides. I’ve used their guides in Spain a couple of times. The website itself is rudimentary and tends to ramble about, but their bookshop is well-stocked and the service is excellent. I’m a fan. >>>
FFRANDONNÉE (France) : : : The official French authority of the GR® trail system and publisher of the fabulous Topo-Guide trail guides. Here’s the first section of the most-walked trail in France, the GR 65, the chemin de St-Jacques-Compostelle trail from Le Puy-en-Velay to Roncevaux. A very helpful organization. Read more about FFRP here.
POWELL’S BOOKS is the venerable and innovative book dealer from Portland, Oregon, with a vast collection of new books and a terrific used book section. Here is a sample of their books about The Camino de Santiago. I’ll be adding suggestions to the walker’s library, so check back when you want to browse. >>>
Clothing
CAMPMOR Most of the Major Brands, at good prices. >>>
EASTERN MOUNTAIN SPORTS is a great source for name brand hiking clothing. They carry the excellent Icebreaker 140 Merino Wool Teeshirt. This is a great choice for one of your base layers. I was very pleased with this versatile shirt on my 2007 walk, and it’s still in great shape, and in service! Highly recommend. >>>
EX OFFICIO : : : All sorts of tried and true travel clothing, including the Ultra Lite Vest, one of my two favorites, and the ultralightest one of all. Highly Recommended. >>>
MAGELLAN’S has a a really nice selection of travel gear and clothing. One of my personal favorites is the unique, simple and rugged Travel Vest, available exclusively from Magellan’s. It’s one of the few vests available in black (as well as a khaki), which makes it a bit “dressier”. I wore this vest on both my 2005 and 2007 walks, and highly recommend it. They also have a very packable pair of Travel Tech Slippers. Pop in the insoles from your walking shoes, and you have something to change into for dinner, or poking around town. The women’s model is HERE. Visit Magellan’s. >>>
PATAGONIA : : : Venerable, dependable, and environmentally responsible. I don’t travel anywhere without my Houdini Jacket, the lightest windshirt I’ve found. Highly Recommended. >>>
Gear
CAMPMOR is a great source for a wide variety of hiking, camping and outdoor gear well-known for lots of economical prices. >>>
Knowledge
APPLE iTunes : : : iPods and iPhones are no doubt the best ultralight high tech gizmos on the planet. If you own one and are thinking of taking one on your long walk across Europe, don’t forget to check out the many Apps
, Audiobooks
, and Podcasts
about, because, and in spite of the places you will be. Or want to be… >>>
BackPackingLight is the main website run by ultralight wizard and evangelist Ryan Jordan. BPL is based in Bozeman, Montana, and its mission is to “promote multi-day, backcountry travel in a self-supported (“backpackable”), lightweight style.” Lots of great articles, mainly about wilderness travel, but also about the full range of relevant longwalking topics, including clothing, destinations, equipment, gear and more. Lots of field tests and a very active forum. The BPL Shop has a lot of hard-to-find solutions. A great and inspiring resource. >>>
The Teaching Company has an incredible collection of courses on many subjects taught by renowned university professors. I like studying the history of the world I plan to walk through, and you can even download the files and carry them along. >>>
ZEVISIT (France) : : : This interesting site has many free, downloadable English-language audio tours (mainly of cities and museums in France). Most of them are available in English.
Lodging
Hotels, Hostels, Gîtes, Chambres d’Hôtes…
WEGO : : : This is a great search engine that scours over 150 other travel websites to bring you a list of hotels, flights and other deals, just about anywhere you’d want to go.. It’s fantastic for basic research about where to stay and prices. What I really appreciate about WeGo is that you only need to type in a city and it will bring up the list. You don’t have to enter all of those annoying details like dates and how many guests, etc., that really bog down research. When you find what you’re after, you just click through and book. Cool. >>>
Maps
IGN (France) : : : The Institut Geographique National is the primary French government mapping agency. They sell many maps of various scales, including the 1:25,000 Serie Bleue topographical maps, the same ones used in FFRP topo-guides. When in Paris, be sure to check out there store, Espace IGN. Read more about IGN here. Highly Recommended. >>>
STANFORDS (UK) : : : One of the oldest map and travel businesses, with an enormous collection of maps for walking in Britain.
Services
VoxCall offers excellent and cheap International Phone Calls. I really like the simple, no-nonsense way they work. You just pay by the minute, with no bogus monthly account fees or connection charges. You can set up “auto-recharge” so you won’t run out of minutes, and when you get home, if you’re not going need the service, you can cancel and get a full refund of any unused credit. Sweet! I just discovered these guys, really like their service, and on my 2011 walk, I’ll be calling home with VoxCall >>>
Shoes
Shoes.com is one of the best places on the internet for shoes. One of the key things I like about them is that they stock wide widths, when available. After pounding your soles day after day, your foot tends to spread out, and I find a wide toe box much more comfortable. That’s one reason I’m a fan of New Balance 1520 trail shoes, which are available at Shoes.com. They’re also one of the only good online sources for Merrell shoes that I’ve found on the web.
Supplies
Travel
WEGO : : : This is a great search engine that scours over 150 other travel websites to bring you a list of hotels, flights and other deals, just about anywhere you’d want to go.. It’s fantastic for basic research about where to stay and prices. What I really appreciate about WeGo is that you only need to type in a city and it will bring up the list. You don’t have to enter all of those annoying details like dates and how many guests, etc., that really bog down research. When you find what you’re after, you just click through and book. Cool. >>>
For more information, and full disclosure about our recommendations, check out our Ground Rules. In short, we only recommend people, places and things we like and respect.
