Two Williams Lake nurses walked 780 kilometres together to complete Camino De Santiago.
Shannon Jackson and Patti Boyd started the Camino on April 25 and ended on May 30.
Camino De Santiago, Jackson explained, is a pilgrimage that Christians have been doing since the year 800. It can be completed through various routes, all of which lead to Santiago de Compostela, where they believe the apostle Saint James was buried.
Jackson heard about the pilgrimage 30 years ago and had been thinking about doing it since.
“The whole idea of doing a pilgrimage to a holy place in the Christian faith appealed to me personally, but also the idea of laying down your burdens. There’s like a physical challenge, a mental challenge, and a spiritual challenge, and that all just seemed to be something that fit for me at this time in my life.”
Boyd had a different reason to pursue the journey.
“I’d never travelled before, so I got the chance on this particular trip to see three countries because we started in France and then walked through Spain and then ended with a week in Portugal. It was, for me, a dream to travel, and then I thought, what better way to see Spain?”
However, Boyd added that by taking on the journey, she learned from a traveller how the experience is threefold.
She said the experience is physical, mental and spiritual. It begins with the challenge of navigating difficult terrain, including uphill and downhill sections. As the journey continues, participants have time to reflect on their lives, their families and what they see along the way. By the end, she said, many feel a deeper connection to themselves and a strong sense of accomplishment.
“The last week of our journey really felt very spiritual. You get lots of emotions. I was quite emotional, and it kind of peaks when you walk into Santiago and you hear the bagpipes, and you know that you did it. It still makes me emotional.”
Both of them said that their favourite part of the journey was the simplicity.
Jackson said that all you had to do each day was walk, eat, sleep and repeat.
“So it was a very simple, peaceful way of living,” she added.
The pair did the trail independently and explained that they followed the markers along the path, which were sometimes in the form of scallop shells or arrows.
In the first night that they left, there was about 50 people from all around the world that they met. The pair took off on their own and did the walk by themselves the whole journey, meeting people occasionally along the way.
Jackson said that the longest day was when they walked for 10 hours straight. On average, they would walk seven hours or 25 kilometres a day.
They stayed at albergues along the way, which were hosted by people who had been accommodating pilgrims for generations. Sometimes the villages had no utilities, and the pilgrims had meals in communal halls.
Jackson said participants received passports that were stamped at each stop along the route before being presented at the final destination, where they received a Compostela, a certificate recognizing completion of the journey.
At first, the pair had decided they would never take on such a challenge again. Boyd injured her ankle, and both of them ended their journey with blisters. They experienced harsh weather, both very cold and wet, but also hot.
But after returning home, they said they would do it all over again.
Boyd said that the community they saw and experienced was really profound. Jackson also said that they felt utmost mindfulness and connection with themselves and the community around them through the journey.
They said that after recovering, they might plan to do it all over again, but with a different route.
“It’s the most present I’ve ever felt my whole life with myself, and I don’t think I’ll ever be the same person again after that,” said Boyd.
Boyd shared that this is the kind of experience that you could never prepare for, no matter how much you try, but one that is impactful.
“If people are lacking direction in their life or even young people, older people too, I would highly recommend it as a spiritual, mindfulness journey that might help you find direction,” she said.
By Yashvika Grover, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter
Original Published on Jun 18, 2026 at 11:08
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