The Albergues had beds but we carried special sheets and towels. The special sheet was made of silk and very light weight. The special towel was made of some weirdo material that somehow absorbed water but the material itself was extremely thin and close to weightless, even after you used it to dry off.
In addition to the sheet and towel we carried tiny lightweight sleeping bags. Our packs were also extremely light, made of a material like parachute cloth, with a little padding at the back.
We carried small mesh bags. If you washed your socks and they did not dry, you put them in this mesh bag and tied it to your pack. The socks would presumably dry in the hot sun as you walked. A side benefit is that if you turned suddenly, the mesh bag would swing around and hit you.
Clothing for trekking:
Before this trek, I imagined that Spain would be really hot. My plan was to hike in a running bra and fast-drying shorts, using my midriff as sort of a radiator. Here is the problem with this approach: my backpack absorbed all my sweat! By late in the hike it was reeking!
A more practical approach is to wear a sleeveless mesh t-shirt that dries fast like the shorts. That way some of the sweat goes into the t-shirt instead of the pack!
Also, everyone on the camino wears the pants that zip off into shorts. It is a fashion necessity.
It is freezing in the mountain passes, so some kind of jacket is necessary. I did well with Liz's rain jacket since it was an effective wind breaker.
Footwear for Trekking:
I wore running shoes. I discovered that my feet hurt less if the shoes were laced as loose as possible.
Closed shoes make your feet very hot and sweaty and more likely to blister. Many people wear sandals.
Anselmo wore geeky sandals with socks. They worked very well for him except he had to stop every few seconds and shake the gravel out of his shoes. This gave me lots of time to stretch and get bored.
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