How did the Asheville Camino group grow so quickly?

It all started with Tom Sanders, a leader and a fixture of the Carolina Mountain Club.

Ten years ago, he approached several men in CMC to see if they would go to Spain with him and walk the Camino de Santiago. No one had heard of this trail in Northern Spain but thought it was intriguing. Four guys took him up on it and they became the Five Amigos.

The next year, with one change of amigos, they went on a different section in Europe. See the photo above – Don W., Tom S., Chris S., Carroll K., and Jay B.

And the idea of walking 500 miles in Europe and staying at hostels (albergues in Spain, gites in France) took hold of our imagination.

Now we have hundreds of hikers from Western North Carolina who’ve walked some part of the Camino in Spain, France, Portugal, Switzerland and more. You can attend a monthly meeting at REI Asheville, the first Monday of the month.

On Tuesdays at 9 am, you can join other enthusiasts for a tertulia, an informal meeting of people, at Green Sage Cafe at Westgate.

We’ve created an 18-mile walk through Asheville which we’re dubbing the AVL Camino. We have a Facebook page and soon will have a website.

Inspired by all this knowledge and enthusiasm, I walked Le Chemin de St. Jacques in 2013 and will soon start (or continue) in Spain. So whether you’re a dreamer, a planner, a veteran of the Camino, come on out and meet us.