Walk this way: Join a diverse group of pilgrims on the final 71-mile leg of Spain’s Camino de Santiago

If you like walking and your knees don’t bother you, the Camino de Santiago is for you. Think of it as gentle walking in the Lake District – but instead of rain, there’s glorious Spanish sun on your back.

This former pilgrimage route, also known as the Way of St. James, will change your life – I promise. You’ll meet people from all over the world, see beautiful landscapes, lose a pound or two, learn more about yourself (good and bad) and end up at the beautiful cathedral of Santiago de Compostela in the northwestern region of Galicia, Spain.

Some believe the Camino should only be walked from one of the starting points that take you over the Pyrenees (Saint-Jean-Pied-de-Port for example). I say good. If you have the time – and like heights – do it.

However, the last part of the pilgrimage – from Sarria to Santiago – is 71 miles long, fulfilling and still worthy of a well-deserved certificate at the end. If you like it, you can come back for more.

This is the route I took and it is the Camino option that most people choose: young and old, Spanish and international tourists. They don’t have time for more. And while there are hills, they are manageable – but trekking poles will help.

Many young people do the Camino by staying in cheap albergues de peregrinos (pilgrim hostels) that can be found along the route. Youth hostels, for you and me.

My decision, which became popular, was to book accommodation with a specialist travel company (Macs Adventure) and arrange for my luggage – just one bag – to be transported to the nearest hotel each day.

Having used them on the UK Coast to Coast Walk in 2012 I knew they were good and still are.

“Some feel that the Camino should only be undertaken from one of the routes that take you over the Pyrenees,” says James. Above are pilgrims climbing the Alto del Perdon peak of the mountain range

Feet of Endurance: St. James Almond Cake, a local delicacy

My journey began on a Sunday morning in Sarria, after a sleepless night – the result of a full-blown ding-dong of a downstairs wedding reception that lasted until dawn (with crackers announcing the end of the festivities!) .

Having explored the Camino the day before, I knew what to look for: yellow arrows and shell-shaped signs. It didn’t stop me from getting lost, only angry farm dogs stopped me from going too far off course.

However, it’s pretty hard to go wrong as the trail is very busy from April to September.

The scenery is beautiful; it’s rural with robins galore, magpies galore (annoying), sparrows and the occasional swallow performing their usual exciting diving stunts.

The fauna is green and the eucalyptus trees are spectacular and spiritually soar to heaven. Modern roads have cut off parts of the pilgrimage route, but there are underpasses and bridges to get through the busiest ones.

Churches abound – many of them very beautiful. And cafes galore to sip fresh orange juice and refill cortado coffee.

“For all the therapeutic scenery and delicious food, it’s the other Camino ‘pilgrims’ that make this journey special,” says Jeff

The Camino’s “pass” must be stamped at least twice a day at cafes and churches along the way to prove you’ve done the walk

The hotels are good. My favorite was in Palas de Rei, where I lived in the 80s in a house owned by three sisters.

Guests sat around the breakfast table in the morning and were treated to poached eggs on a bed of potatoes and onions. It is called “Camino Egg”. Beautiful. I dreamed about it the next night.

Galician food is rustic and cheap. At Portomarin I spent €11 on a menu of chickpeas and tripe (interesting, brings me back to my offal-laden days as a child) and veal chops. For an extra €2 I got implant-threatening bread, a pineapple tart and a jug of strong red wine.

If you like chorizo, this is the place, although my favorite meal was just outside A Rua. There I had Galician soup, a juicy chicken leg and scallop and almond cake – again washed down with a jug of red wine. With a beer before dinner it was €16. Real value for money.

But for all the therapeutic scenery and delicious food, it is the other “pilgrims” of the Camino that make this journey special.

Although I traveled alone a lot, I met interesting people. For example, a beautiful Mexican opera singer, Claudia, who sang the Ave Maria in the Palas de Rei church the night before. Her Camino adventure began with her 15-year-old daughter going to summer camp, which gave her a chance to have some “me” time after the divorce. A spiritual journey for her, like many others.

“I shed a tear when I first saw the cathedral,” Jeff says of the Santiago de Compostela Cathedral (above), which marked the end of his walk.

Then there was Mohita, an impressive 39-year-old biotech professional working in Canada. I walked her six miles and heard her life story: arranged marriage, divorce, success in business – but so far her search for lasting love has remained unfulfilled.

As we walked, she received videos from young men she met on the Camino. Judging by that, suitors won’t be skinny. I left her exhausted and quite old, although surprisingly I met her again in Santiago de Compostela.

Was I better for the experience? Yes, I have rarely felt happier. I shed a tear when I first set my eyes on the cathedral three miles away, distracted to look at a sculpture of the pilgrims who entered the city several thousand years ago. Fatigue? Emotion? A bit of both.

Although it took me a while to get to the cathedral offices to have my Caminopass checked (it has to be stamped at least twice a day at cafes and churches along the way to prove you’ve done it), i euphoric And if I can do it when I’m older, I’ll bet money you can too. Good Camino.