For many people, the idea of walking the Camino can seem daunting.
Images of rugged terrain, long days on the road and endless kilometres can be enough to put people off before they even begin.
But Pat O’Neill, 64, who grew up on Albert Road in Cork city and now lives in the Canary Islands, believes people are overthinking it.
Speaking to All About Cork from northern Spain, where he is currently undertaking another Camino challenge, Pat’s advice is refreshingly simple.
“You put one foot in front of the other, keep walking, and stop when you’re tired.”
Pat should know.
The Cork man, who now lives in the Canary Islands, is currently taking on a Camino challenge through the mountains of northern Spain. It follows an extraordinary adventure last year when he walked more than 1,000 kilometres across Spain despite having never walked more than 25 kilometres in a single outing beforehand.
Looking back, Pat tells All About Cork that people often make the Camino sound far more difficult than it really is.
“Anybody can do a Camino,” he said.
“Anybody. If you have an average level of fitness, you can do it. I certainly wouldn’t describe myself as a great athlete. I’m overweight and it’s not stopping me.
“Don’t let anyone tell you that you need to be a certain type of person or have expensive boots and all that sort of thing. Anyone can do a Camino.”
Pat’s own journey into long-distance walking came not from a passion for sport but from a passion for exploration.
A few years ago, while working online, he travelled to Gran Canaria to escape the Irish winter. After spending time in Las Palmas, he fell in love with the island and eventually made the move permanent.
Today he has lived there for more than four years.
Despite the sunshine and relaxed lifestyle, however, Pat insists he remains a proud Cork man.
“Once a Cork man, always a Cork man,” he said. “One hundred per cent a Cork man. I’ll never be anything else.”
Living in the Canary Islands has allowed him to travel extensively around Spain, visiting 13 of the country’s 17 regions so far.
It was that curiosity about Spain that ultimately led to his biggest challenge.
“Last year I asked a Spanish friend what was in the middle of Spain,” he recalled.
“She said, ‘There’s nothing there.’
“That’s when I knew I had to go.”
What followed was an epic journey that saw Pat walk more than 1,000 kilometres through parts of Spain rarely visited by tourists.
Remarkably, he never seriously doubted he could finish.
“Even though I’d never walked more than 25 kilometres before, I always felt I could walk 1,000 kilometres,” he said.
“I felt it was more of a mental challenge than anything. Walking is easy. You put one foot in front of the other and keep going. If you’re tired, you stop.”
While Pat downplays the achievement, the reality of the journey was far from easy.
In fact, he now admits he feels fortunate to have completed it safely.
Between severe weather conditions, dangerous situations and unexpected setbacks, there were moments when things could have gone very differently.
“At the end of it all, I felt lucky to be alive,” he said.
“Between the storms, falling into water, running from a fire in Salamanca, and the day the internet went out across Spain, I was just grateful to get there in one piece.”
Yet those experiences have done little to discourage him.
This year he is back on the road, tackling a very different challenge through the mountainous terrain of northern Spain.
Unlike last year’s journey, which he viewed primarily as a mental challenge, this year’s route has tested him physically.
“I’ve never walked up mountains in my life,” he said.
“I genuinely wasn’t sure I could do it.
“But I’m halfway through now and after a big walk today, I think I’m going to make it.”
Life on the Camino is not always as romantic as people imagine.
Most days begin before sunrise in an effort to avoid the heat.
Pilgrims spend hours walking before reaching small villages where there may be little more than a handful of residents.
“A lot of the towns don’t even have a shop or a bar,” Pat explained.
“You’re carrying your food with you and then you arrive at maybe 2pm and have to pass the time until the next morning.”
Fortunately, fellow walkers provide plenty of company.
Over the years Pat has met people from all over the world, including one memorable traveller from Taiwan whom he nicknamed “The Camino Priest”.
The man constantly offered advice on everything from footwear to washing clothes and even the correct way to wash socks.
After several days of unsolicited guidance, Pat eventually stood his ground.
“He told me I wasn’t washing my socks properly,” Pat laughed.
“I told him I’d wash my socks whatever way I wanted.”
Thankfully, the pair later became friends and shared many conversations on the trail.
For Pat, encounters like these are part of what makes the Camino so special.
Every day brings new places, new people and new stories.
It’s also taught him a lot about himself.
“I always thought I was mentally strong,” he said.
“I suppose I’m determined and a bit stubborn too.”
But perhaps his biggest lesson is one he hopes others will take to heart.
Too many people, he believes, talk themselves out of adventures before they’ve even started.
His message is simple.
You don’t need to be an elite athlete.
You don’t need expensive equipment.
And you certainly don’t need to be fearless.
You simply need to start.
As Pat continues his latest Camino challenge through northern Spain, he’s already thinking about what might come next.
Every year he tries to do something that takes him outside his comfort zone. One year it was living alone in Buenos Aires. Another year it was walking across Spain.
As for next year’s challenge, even he doesn’t know yet.
“Things just come into my head,” he said.
“A few days later I can be off doing them.”
One thing is certain though.
Whatever adventure comes next, the Cork man who went looking for the part of Spain that supposedly had nothing in it will almost certainly find another road worth walking.
If you’d like to follow Pat’s latest adventures and read more about his travels, visit his website: https://vamoscanaryislands.com/ or follow him on TikTok @vamoscanaryislands.
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