Camino No-No
 

An article in The Olive Press reports that towns along the Camino are outraged by walkers defecating along the way and have put up signs forbidding this. The signs show a person squatting over a pile of poop with a slash going thru it. Beware.

Geez, how crude! The behavior, not the sign.

It seems to me that there, as well as many other places, visitors are encouraged but appropriate facilities lag far behind. Local authorities and business people are happy to suck up the profits that flow in but balk at investing in necessary infrastructure, like toilets along the way. Visitors need toilets, and failing them, the result is predictable. I feel for the walkers.

News which was copied form the Galician newspaper. This was written 9 days ago.
http://www.lavozdegalicia.es/noticia...4L10C10991.htm

Boy the British press sure know how to keep up with the latest headlines.

True enough, Perdu. And Spain, all over, has lacked good facilities forever. Portugal, on the other hand, is just wonderful in this respect. We've been to really isolated beaches, etc., and toilets have been provided by the govt., I believe.

The walkers should clear up their mess. Carry a spade and bury it, or poop bags like dog owners have, and dispose of it correctly.
I can see that walkers can get taken short and need to go in the countryside, but like wilderness campers they should leave nothing but footprints.
Make use of facilities in towns and villages along the way - most cafés, hotels and restaurants allow use of the toilet, either for a small fee or for free, or clear up your mess, and don't go where you can be seen.

Really, don't these people know how to bury their sh_t? Blech!

Having long ago lost track of the time I've spent walking long-distance paths, I'm constantly confronted with the problem. As I get older it gets worse, needless to say, and I spend parts of each walking day keeping an eye out for shrubbery. Only once have I experienced the exact difficulty described in the OP, but it was a nightmare, business people denying me use of their facilities until I was reduced to going well off the path to a spot in a thicket where no one would ever find my shame. I now carry a plastic trowel with me on all my long walks and while I haven't needed it since, and hope I never do, it's a precaution more inexperienced walkers might not think of.

When we walk along well-traveled, well promoted paths, who would think it necessary? If the countries or municipalities want to just pocket the resulting profit and not take appropriate care of their visitors, they might instead consider sending crews of prisoners out along the routes daily to clean up, instead of spending money on ridiculous signs.

Crews of prisoners to clean up the s*** of tourists?

I think I have finally reached the limit of how much stupidity I can bear to read on this travel website.

SELF-CENTERED stupidity.

I value the views of fellow long-distance walkers who have found themselves in similar circumstances. The rest, less so, and some, not at all.

I'd like to restate my comment above. I value the comments of those with the experience or imagination to empathize with walkers who find themselves in such a situation. For those with no such empathy, not.

I wasn't kidding about the prison crews. Having lived out in the boonies in SE Arizona for decades, it isn't unusual to come across crews of prisoners cleaning roadsides. The men choose such duty as it gets them outside and they're paid a small amount. It benefits the community as it wouldn't otherwise be affordable to have the trash picked up along the streets and highways for such long distances. I'm sure, on occasion, they remove obnoxious items. I see no difference between cleanup in Arizona or Spain. Most of it would be ordinary trash, the worst might be buried off the trail, as it should have been when it arrived. It benefits everyone involved.

I dont doubt that once in a while such "debris" is left on the open (which obviously is not a nice thing), but cant say I saw any of it when I did my segments of the Camino Frances and Camino Portugues. On the other hand, cow dung was everywhere. I guess the locals are not upset at that because I never saw anybody cleaning after their heard of cows.

Mme Perdu, that's not a bad idea at all. They do it in NJ too. And I dont mean they should be sent to clean exclusively poop, just any debris.

Mme Perdu,

I knew you weren't kidding. I find this unbelievably disgusting. Next time, trying remember to take a d+++ before you go for a walk in Europe. And please try not to come to Italy at all -- even with your plastic shovel and all your ideas.

cruiseluv,

I never thought I would need more reasons to be soooooo glad I will never again live in New Jersey or deal with the government its citizens prefer, but thanks -- I guess -- for adding one more to the list.

But what so many of you can now rejoice at is -- bye bye folks. If American tourists can post on Fodor's that they want prisoners cleaning up their s*** in Europe and be proud (and then get confirmation! Hey, just like New Jersey!), it's just too disgusting to ever even want to look at again. You people are flabbergasting. And you disgust me.

promises, promises.

Mme Perdu - I know exactly what you are talking about, and if SL has never found herself incommoded in the same way, she is very lucky. sometimes one's body betrays one, no matter how assiduously one makes use of facilities along the way.

True enough, Perdu. And Spain, all over, has lacked good facilities forever.>>

many years ago we were touring France and I was suffering horribly all one day, having to endure the most disgusting public toilets. the next day we crossed over into Spain and found lovely clean, modern facilities. if Portugal is even better, that's where I'm going next.

"..bye bye folks."

It's been proclaimed before and if only it were true.

"...you disgust me."

The feeling is mutual. Shall we take a poll?

It must be difficult to live with all that pent up anger...

I sometimes thought that whatever i posted, the person in Q would post the opposite, just to be contrary, though at other times she could be most helpful.

it'll be quieter round here without her, that's certain.

I have every expectation that we haven't heard the last, although a new alias may be in the offing. Or is that only when she's thrown off? I forget. I've long thought the vitriol, here and on other forums, has always outweighed the contribution.

Mme P - she can come back here with a new name, any time she likes.

She can only contribute to the lounge in her old name as it's closed to new members.

like you, I doubt she'll be able to keep away. where else could she get such a captive audience?