Tom Cartwright: Pilgrim & Camino Gin Founder
Homage to the Way
The Camino de Santiago has held a special place in my heart since I first walked the Camino Frances (the French Way) in 2016. At the time of my pilgrimage, I had recently dropped out of University and was at a loose end. I first heard of Europe’s oldest pilgrimage route through a friend who had walked the route the summer before. His Chaucerian tales of adventure sparked a fascination within me, I knew I had to go.
Three months later I arrived in Saint Jean Pied de Port, the medieval Pyrenees village which marks the starting point of the route. I was nervous at the prospect of walking 800km alone through France and Spain but within a matter of hours, these fears were set aside. I joined a global community of pilgrims, from all walks of life, united on this ancient trail by a common goal to reach the Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela on foot.
The Camino is a place where strangers become pilgrims and in turn friends. It hosts a wayfaring community stripped of status and many material things. It is a collective journey of every pilgrim’s personal tale interwoven into the rich tapestry of the trail. I saw a phrase written on an underpass in Rioja which I believe sums up the feeling of community on the way.
“The road is my job, the rucksack my home, the pilgrims, my family”
The Camino Frances snakes its way through some of the most bountiful and culturally rich regions of Europe: the Basque Pyrenees, Navarre, Rioja, Leon, Galicia. It traverses mountain ranges, rivers, desert-like plains, and lush forests. As I walked, I met people who spoke of The Way’s healing powers. An 83-year-old artist who had walked the Camino every year for 33 years and claimed the route (and the wine) was the source of his vitality. I met a man who had walked in a pair of converse shoes from Austria and slept every night outside on the ground stating that the earth was the reason for his strength.
As I was walking, I met an Italian poet, who was foraging berries from the side of the path. I asked him how he knew which berries to collect and he showed me his reference book, a botanical guide to the Camino Frances written by pilgrims who had travelled the route some years before. I was amazed by the wonderful array of plants, fruits, mushrooms and herbs that were native to the regions of the Camino. It truly is a gin makers paradise: I knew something beautiful could be crafted using these ingredients as a starting point.
When I returned to England, I began making plans to create a personal homage to the Camino de Santiago this eventually manifested into the marrying of my two passions: artisan handcrafted spirits and the Camino de Santiago. Camino Gin.
![](https://i0.wp.com/caminogin.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/3E7F04DA-DBC6-4480-A39D-D6CC7016D51B.jpg?fit=828%2C466&ssl=1 ""where strangers become pilgrims and in turn friends"")
