Final Project Proposal

For my map, I am going to replicate my 2013 trip on the Camino de Santiago Frances. For a month I walked from southern France to the west coast of Spain over mountains and high plains, through sweltering days and freezing nights, and traversed 500 miles of awe-inspiring land. 

For centuries, Pilgrims (peregrinos) have travelled from all over the world in the hopes of completing the journey in the city of Santiago. As of late its popularity has increased, with a record number of people on the Camino in 2013. Certain nationalities had shot up since years prior, helping the numbers go from around 75,000 in 2003 to over 300,000 ten years later. The presence of Americans and Canadians has increased ten times over after the release of the movie “The Way” starring Martin Sheen in 2010.  Since the journey was such an amazing adventure, I would like to map out what I experienced during my time on the trail.

 

http://almentzer.files.wordpress.com/2013/06/camino-de-santiago.png?w=630&h=374 

http://www.spain-holiday.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2010/04/caminofrances3.gif

Even though there are countless maps on the topic, I cannot emphasize enough that every pilgrim’s experience is unique. My goal with this map is to personalize the pilgrimage and distinguish the physical attributes that stuck out in my mind the most. I am hoping to get a base map of northern Spain and southern France off of ArcGIS. The path of the Camino Frances can be found on the Santiago- Compastella website. On top of the map, I would include the best airport to fly into at the start, as well as 100 extra kilometers past the traditional finish to what is known as the “End of the Earth” or Finisterre on the Spanish coast. Also, since the landscape changed so drastically with each region I walked through, my map design would include a depiction of the changing physical landscapes along the way (i.e. mountains shifting to desert on the map). Along with the background, I will include the path I took,  towns/ cities I passed through, and the places I slept. The audience is for anyone who would enjoy taking part in the Camino experience. I can’t say enough good things about it, so this will be another opportunity to speak highly of the trip while providing a cartographic design based on personal experience.