Somewhere Between Reality & Potential
A Camino journey does not teach. It strips away conditioning, beliefs and identity. Layer by layer. Step-by-step. Until there is nowhere left to hide from yourself.
A life-defining experience worth every single step.
Walked, Photographed & Written by Briseis Onfray
THE JOURNEY: CAMINO PRIMITIVO, SPAIN
The original and the oldest pilgrimage route to Santiago de Compostela, starting at Oviedo in Asturias. It was first walked by King Alfonso II in the 9th century. Considered the most difficult pilgrimage route, crossing mountainous landscapes of Asturias and Galicia, it offers stunning scenery and UNESCO status. Crossing the Cantabrian Mountains makes it the most difficult pilgrimage route, until the point at Lugo where this ancient way joins the most well-known Camino Frances way for the final stretch to Santiago.
Direction: Oviedo to Santiago de Compostela, Spain
Distance & duration: approx. 320km / 12–14 days / av. 25km per day
Date of pilgrimage: 20 April to 3 May 2026
SHEDDING THE ARMOUR
Somewhere along the way, the nervous system begins to reorganise itself around presence instead of anticipation. Time softens. Perspective shifts. The body reclaims its inner authority. Thoughts lose their dominance. Meaning stops being something conceptual and becomes something lived. It is no longer embodiment as an idea. It becomes a profound reconditioning. No titles, no distractions, no timelines, no armour, just breath, movement, presence and beauty.
The Camino has a way of removing abstraction from wisdom. It becomes less about chasing clarity and more about learning how to protect it. And perhaps the most confronting truth of all… I began to feel another way of being. In the space between reality and potential, something quietly reorganises itself within. I knew the Camino Primitivo would challenge my body, but I didn’t expect it to reveal who I am beneath the complexity of modern life.
ABOVE THE CLOUDS
This experience goes far beyond words, photographs or physical endurance. Every step fostered a deeper connection to life itself, awakening a profound respect for the miracle of being alive and the extraordinary simplicity so often overlooked.
Somewhere along the silence, exhaustion, mountains and endless walking, I realised there is something far more elegant to align with than the constant noise of modern life. Something honest. Something pure. A deeper intelligence. A quieter truth. A way of being that infuses life with crystal-clear purpose and meaning.
This was never simply a physical journey for me. It became an embodied experience, walking alongside some of Spain’s most breathtaking landscapes while sharing the oldest pilgrimage route in the world with my younger brother, fellow pilgrims from all walks of life, and the lingering presence of those who have walked this path for centuries.
As my inaugural Camino, I carried no expectations. Only gratitude. And somehow, that openness allowed the Camino to give me exactly what I didn’t know I needed.
Even two weeks later, my body, mind and soul still seem to be gasping for that crystal-clear Asturias air. I wouldn’t say my ego crash-landed back into reality, but part of me definitely arrived home before the rest of me did. A deeper part still feels suspended somewhere above the clouds, gently descending with a completely new perspective on life. My Camino bubble has not fully burst yet. And truthfully, I hope it never fully does.
PURITY OF THE CAMINO
Transformation occurs when we dare to venture beyond the familiar version of ourselves.
Filled with pride, humility, respect, love and luminous memories that will stay for a lifetime, my first Camino experience exceeded every expectation because it brought me into a purity of existence I had never known before.
No distractions. No performance. No unnecessary complexity. Just walking. Breathing. Feeling. Being. The beauty of the Camino is not only found in the landscape, although Asturias is breathtaking beyond words, it is found in the honesty it demands.
Body, mind and soul eventually stop resisting each other. The body softens first. The mind follows. And then something deeper awakens. Step by step, day by day, noise dissolves until there is no overthinking, no rehearsing life, no urge to impress.
The Camino becomes less about overthinking or rehearsing life, and more about protecting the space where our greatest potential begins to illuminate.
THE PILGRIM FAMILY
One of the most endearing parts of this journey was the pilgrim family that formed along the way. People from all over the world walking one shared path, carrying entirely different life stories, yet meeting each other with remarkable openness, kindness and humanity. We shared meals, stories, photographs, laughter, tears, gear, encouragement and moments of deep reflection.
Looking out for one another becomes instinctive on the Camino.
There is something deeply moving about stripping life back to its essentials and witnessing how naturally human beings reconnect through authenticity rather than identity. No titles. No status. Just souls in motion.
“Buen Camino!” is more than a greeting. It is a way of pure being.
THE JOURNEY
My Camino Primitivo journey left me breathless, figuratively and literally.
After months of preparation, Monday 20 April finally arrived. We began walking the 320km ancient path from Oviedo at around 8am, with no real idea how far we would go, how our bodies would respond, or how many mountains would rise across the Asturias range.
The first few days were intensely physical. Adjusting backpacks, footwear, sleep, nutrition and recovery. But by day four, something shifted. My body surrendered into its own rhythm, and although I was exhausted, sore and completely outside my comfort zone, I realised this was becoming one of the most powerful experiences of my life, not because it felt like freedom, but because it revealed the most honest version of me.
As we climbed higher beyond the clouds, perspective expanded alongside the landscape. The clarity was overwhelming.
The Camino Primitivo awakened something profound within me, teaching me that life’s beauty is shaped not only by what we experience, but by how we choose to perceive it… how we see the world, how we live within it, and the impact we leave behind.
PIVOTAL MOMENT
After 207km and nine unforgettable days, I reached my pivotal crossroads in Lugo. My feet ached. My body was exhausted. My right little toe had become almost unrecognisable. Yet somehow, my mind had never felt clearer.
I came to an unexpected conclusion: my pilgrimage would end here. Not from defeat, but from alignment. The hardest part of the journey had already been walked, across the breathtaking mountains of Asturias. For the first time in a long time, I listened fully to my inner authority, and when my body spoke, I honoured it.
RETURNING
Returning to the ‘real world’ felt surreal. For ten days, I had no idea what the outside world was doing, and strangely that felt spacious and liberating.
The Camino reminded me how much noise we carry every day. Stepping away from that chaos and immersing myself in nature, simplicity and presence created space for something many people are searching for in the everyday… clarity. Not manufactured motivation or external validation, but a grounded knowing of who we are beneath the pressure, performance and expectations of modern life.
THE GREAT REVEAL
Camino Primitivo revealed to me that transformation is not about becoming, but about remembering who we were before the world pulled us away from ourselves. It revealed exactly what I didn’t know I needed.
*I walked 207.6km in 9 days. My brother and fellow pilgrims completed 318km in 12 days.
SEEDS OF BRILLIANCE
Little pieces of wisdom, wonder and reflection gathered along the way.
Three months after completing our Camino Primitivo, a fellow pilgrim responded to my invitation to shine their light for others. (Postcard above.) This is a deeply sincere and beautiful reflection on their wanderings — a collection of songs, encounters, moments of grace and the ‘angels without wings’ he met along the way. (I personally love the way Detlef sees the world. Ed.)
A PILGRIM'S SONG
Reflections by Detlef Guth (Camino Primitivo)
“Before beginning my Camino, I asked our priest to bless my pilgrimage. She came especially to our 600-year-old village church, and we began with a song about angels accompanying us.
They need no wings, only a friendly face.
Those words brought tears to my eyes. Perhaps that was the beginning of my Camino.
Along the way, the journey seemed to speak to me through music. In the rain, a fellow pilgrim sang Raindrops Keep Falling on My Head. On the long and winding road, I found myself thinking of The Beatles. Near Santiago, songs appeared in my mind almost as naturally as the people and landscapes around me.
There was rain before Santiago and the rain stopping afterwards. There were songs of longing, songs of faith, songs about heaven. Sometimes the smallest moments became the most meaningful.
Walking beneath the trees after Santiago, we could not tell whether the drops falling around us were rain or dew. I thought of In the Garden and remembered how, when I was working in my garden at home, I had imagined heaven might feel something like that. At the very end coastal destination of the Camino, Finisterre, a piper played Mull of Kintyre, my favourite song, and I was so happy to hear it there.
And then there were the people.
So many angels without wings.
Some I knew by name. Others I never knew at all. But they appeared when they were needed — in a song, a conversation, a kindness, a shared road, a moment of laughter.
Perhaps that is one of the gifts of the Camino: you begin by walking a physical path, but somewhere along the way, the path begins to walk through you.
There were difficult moments too. At Finisterre, I had an experience that was painful, though not because of another pilgrim. It was something I had to carry in my heart. But perhaps even that was part of the preparation — a reminder that the real journey continues after the Camino, when we return to ordinary life.
Now, when I think of the Camino, I think of those songs. I think of the people. I think of the rain and the dew, the long and winding roads, the moments of happiness and the moments that hurt.
And sometimes, when I hear You Raise Me Up, I think:
For a little while, the Camino felt like a small piece of eternity.”
Detlef (Germany), Camino Primitivo, April/May 2026
CONVERSATIONS ALONG THE WAY
One of the greatest gifts of the Camino wasn’t just the breathtaking landscape, but the people walking the same path, each carrying different stories and wisdom to share. Every pilgrim walks for their own reasons. Different questions. Different hopes. Different experiences.
Along the journey, thoughtful conversations often become beautiful wisdoms to share. These are a few that have stayed with me. I can still picture the landscape where their words landed. I’m deeply grateful for these moments…
“I found myself facing hard truths, I neither expected nor wanted to surface. Somehow the physical journey helped me move through them so I could finally let go. It has taken many years for these to reveal themselves so clearly. The Camino brought tremendous relief without me forcing anything. Without facing my past hurts and demons, I realise why I could not release them.” Christopher (Denmark)
“I found a dead field mouse on the road today, and it made me reflect on time. What if there is no tomorrow? Why do we postpone life into an undefined future? Life will pass anyway. If we focus only on what we cannot do, we become frustrated. If we focus on what we can do, we feel empowered. You can walk — so walk. Because one day you may not be able to, and you will miss it deeply.” Pawel (Poland)
“Mission from god!” Marc (Australia)
“I have walked many Caminos over the past 12 years. This time I needed space to think. I was close to leaving my job but unsure because of my family responsibilities. I chose the Camino Primitivo to gain clarity. It is hard, but it brings perspective. I now feel more certain about the direction I need to take when I return home.” Paul (Dublin, Ireland)
This story is proudly sponsored by @apricusbynatureuk
