Keith FoskettThe Journey in Between: A Thru-Hiking Adventure on El Camino de Santiago

Foskett is wanderlust and admits it. He loves to walk distances, to see what’s out there and to tell the world about it. He walked around 1600 Kilometers in about 3 to 4 months. He really wasn’t in any hurry to finish this hike. (He took extra days off now and then during his hike.) He wanted to find the perfect walk and The Camino fit right into the distance and time frame it would take to finish. As he said most pilgrims start at Saint Jean Pied de Port in France, cross immediately over the Pyrenees into Spain and finish the hike in Santiago de Compostela at the Cathedral of St. James. Fosett’s route was longer and he would walk one half the total distance through France before crossing over to the Spanish portion of the walk. His actual starting point was Le Puy en Velay, France.Like all other hikers, he gave himself a nickname: Foozie. Women on the Trail flocked to him. He was never in want of a hiking companion. In fact, females clamored to hike with him, even for just one day. And, he never discouraged the attention. LOL. As a single guy, he certainly had his share of fun. You will enjoy the book. At times it is hilariously funny. At other times, you may wonder whether he will ever arrive at the Santiago destination, or even wants to finish his original quest. You will learn to relax, unwind, and go with the flow, just like Foskett did. Oh, and I should tell you he did get blisters on his feet, just like every other hiker. Eventually, he was told how to turn those blisters into hardened callouses – and it worked. Yes, he got lost once or twice on the trail, but managed to either find his way back to the trail markers or go forward and let his instincts correctly find the path again. There was one time at the last of his trip when he hiked way ahead of his female companion who never caught up to him. That seemed to be a scary time for Foskett. I almost think he thought his companion had deserted him. However, with frantic backtracking he managed to find his companion in a bar enjoying life – not concerned about him, at all. Interesting!Not all Camino travelers walk the extra distance to Finisterre. They don’t seem to connect this hallowed ground with the Saint and the Cathedral. A day or so later, Foskett, with his companion, returned to the beach outside Finisterre and stood on the ground the ancients considered to be “the ends of the earth” and looked out over the Atlantic Ocean. You will have to read the book to know Foskett’s final thoughts .Foskett said his next hike would be the Pacific Coast Trail, PCT, which starts from Campo, CA, near the Mexican border, to Canada. Most hikers who attempt the trail drop out because it is such a challenge. I won’t continue reading about this hike since I am still enamored with Cheryl Strayed’s book, Wild. However, if he decides to hike the AT (Appalachian Trail) at some future date and writes about his experience, I will be with him on his journey as an armchair travel companion.I am curious to know how, and if, Foskett will continue his Camino style of hiking since the majority of thru hikers on the AT are men who set a fast pace to complete the course before winter sets in. Also, there are no youth/hiker hostels on the AT, only open shelters, if you get to one before it fills up, as I read in other accounts. Also, a hiker has to leave the trail and drop down into a nearby town, maybe some miles out of the way, in order to get a nightly hot shower, mail call, and resupplying food essentials. This may be a problem for Foskett.He is a good writer who hikes with his head up looking at his surroundings. He hears the tractor in the neighboring field, sees the flowers along the roadside, feels the wind rushing around his body and lets the reader know how the rain feels when it peppers his face. I love how he sets up the scene through which he is hiking. I have even earmarked chapter #12 in order to re-read his descriptive passages. Is he an uncommon hiker/writer? Yes, I think so, and that’s why I will continue to read his books.

Keith wanted to walk, an adventure, without time tables. A place with history, culture, good foods. Bob gives him the name Camino de Santiago.To get a completion certificate one only needed to walk 63.mikes.Or the whole 1,000 miles, taking several weeks. For him he had three months, not just a walk, but an experience awaited him. The blisters were a problem, until a doctor said, to keep walking the feet will toughen up. The language of my English, with very poor French. The one annoyance was the bag rustlers, plastic bags from grocery stores, about 5:30 am, put night clothes in them, to set off earlier, so they could stop by noon. The experience taught me to live in the moment. Delightful story of one who walk this trail and took the time to enjoy the beauty and friends along the way.

Another great read from the Camino de Santiago. In this book the author started his walk along Le Puy route (The Le Puy Route or Chemin du Puy in French is the most popular pilgrimage route in France. It starts near Lyon, in the town of Le Puy-en-Velay until Saint-Jean-Pied-de-Port where the Camino Frances commences.) Almost all of the other stories I have read about this pilgrimage, the people have started in Saint-Jean-Pied-de-Porte, so it was interesting to see what the french walk was like as well.I am always amazed by how different each persons experiences are on the walk, as they all go to the same places, and see the same things, yet each story is so individual and that is what the experience should be. It never gets old for me, as I think each of their experiences, makes me open my eyes to things as well.. They always seem to meet fascinating people, who help shape their experiences, give us their different views on what they see and I learn something new each time.This author had a very easy and likable way of writing, which made me feel as if I were part of the walk, and he was just telling me about his adventures, and that was fun. I loved living vicariously through his words.Here is a note that another pilgrim wrote, and which summed it up for the author, as he interpreted it for himself.“I have just begun to realize, that Santiago is only the destination”I cannot wait to read about his two other distance walks, which he did after this book.

Keith Foskett's first book is his thru-hiking adventure on the Camino De Santiago. Although not nearly as long as his subsequent Pacific Coast Trail hike, he used this first long distant hike to figure out that life is more about the journey than the destination, which probably allowed him to enjoy his subsequent long distant hikes much more. At the end of the book Keith admits he grew up while walking on the trail. "Grew up" meaning matured rather than aged. Although Keith does have a cast of fellow pilgrims he walks with occasionally he does not delve into those relationships like he does in his subsequent books. He mainly focuses on a few female friends whom he clearly enjoys. Most of this book is comprised of finding the refuges (or places to stay) at the end of the hiking day, including plenty of good food and drink. He does provide beautiful descriptions of the sights along the trail and his sometimes humorous encounters with the locals or fellow pilgrims, but my favorite sections are when he pauses to just enjoy the view. That is when I appreciated this book the most.

The Journey in Between: Thru-Hiking El Camino de Santiago - Keith Foskett4 out of 5 starsKeith has written 4 books about hiking, this being his first and the first I have read. A funny and insightful book about hiking the pilgrims trail. Kieth’s dry sense of humour and wit are evident throughout, touching on everything from blisters to romance. The Journey Between covers everything from weather, the hostels he stayed at to the people he met along the way, including fake faith healers and a kleptomaniac.The Camino de Santiago, known in English as the Way of St. James, is a network of pilgrims' ways or pilgrimages leading to the shrine of the apostle Saint James the Great in the cathedral of Santiago de Compostela in Galicia in northwestern Spain, where tradition holds that the remains of the apostle are buried. Keith starts his walk in central France before heading into Spain.At 257 pages it's a pretty quick read, and as such it can feel a bit jumpy in places, making it a bit difficult to keep track of the timeline. Keith seems very keen on similes and metaphors, which can get a bit annoying, but it is his first book. I would have loved some more information about the trail itself and the technical side of things, rather than the focus on food and lodgings. I felt that it missed out on the whole “adventure” side of the walk somehow,Overall a good book and will be buying the rest.

I'm so gutted that I've finished reading Fozzie's tale about his thru-hike of the Camino de Santiago. I totally loved it, and read it having already read his story about his thru-hike of the PCT called "The Last Englishman" - which I also highly recommend. The Journey In Between covers all aspects of the hike such as blisters, bad weather, good weather, scenery - including attractive French sunbathers! descriptions of the towns and refuges he stayed at, food and making friends with like-minded souls. The best element for me is his rather dry sense of humour. It had me folded in two at times. Unfortunately I read it too fast, except for the last few chapters as he was approaching the end of his thru-hike as I was trying to savour every last drop of the book. Thankfully he's written his book about the Appalachian Trail, so I have more Fozzie-fix lined up. Then I'll probably re-read all three books again. Can't recommend them highly enough. Pleeease Fozzie, hurry up to write another....!

Having done a small part of the full Camino de Santiago...starting in Ponferrada, it was good to read another person's perspective to this great journey. Unfortunately we were limited to time due to work holidays so every step of the journey was well planned and our party of three included my daughter and her partner. We had booked either small hotels or hostels in advance so we were sure of a bed for the night at each stop. We had rest days in the middle, which were very much needed to give our blisters chance to heal. I can understand the need for solitude occasionally and although we passed many faces we recognized many times on the journey we didn't get other pilgrims needing to tag along. The greeting to and from all pilgrims was "Bon Camino" One aspect of the book baffled me. No mention of mosquitoes. I agree with the author's determination to complete the journey of a lifetime. It was well worth the pain. A well written book that I thoroughly enjoyed and it brought back many memories.

I often toy with the idea of walking the Camino de Santiago. Walking rather than hiking and probably just a short section. Keith Foskett hikes the full length of it and the experience changes his life.His storytelling is first class right from the start and the quality of his writing improves over time. I felt drawn in to the experience, from horrendous blisters to finding a rhythm to his days and enjoyable encounters with others on the Camino with so many varied reasons for being there. His dry sense of humour comes through, along with his restlessness and search for a way forwards in his life.Keith’s love of the outdoors is obvious and I shall be reading all of his books, to experience at a step removed the rigours of long distance, long term hiking.

Having read a number of memoirs on El Camino de Santiago, and enjoyed the movie "The Way," I am getting more discerning about the books I read on the topic. Keith Foskett's "The Journey in Between" is among my favourite reads thus far.I really enjoyed his descriptions of the energetic qualities of the places he visited on this 1000 mile journey. He walked at a pace that suited his abilities, and took time out when needed rather than racing from place to place.He obviously enjoys the outdoor life, choosing to camp whenever possible, instead of sleeping in busy hostels.It was nice to learn of the effect of the walk on his life in the following years. A transformation that heralded a successful writing career amid more long distance walks.