a pilgrim walks on the Cammino di Francesco

THE Cammino di Francesco is it your first pilgrimage route?

Yes. Two years ago I walked two long distance walking routes in Scotland: the Rob Roy Way (154km) followed by the John Buchan Way (22km), which were a training exercise for long distance walking. I already had in mind the project of Cammino di Francesco.

How did you catch the “virus» walking?

During my stay, as a French teacher, in Cairo (Egypt), I traveled on foot the desert and mountainous paths of Sinai to reach the summits of Mount Moses, Mount Sainte-Catherine, the monasteries of Saint Paul and Saint Anthony, and Mount Nebo, in Jordan. In 1992, I traveled by bus from Cairo to Jerusalem, then explored on foot and by bicycle the biblical highlights scattered between Israel and Palestine. These walks made me love wandering, with a spiritual high place in my sights.

How did you discover the Cammino di Francesco and what motivated your departure?

My mother, Adrienne, a mountain farmer, loved her animals. She often prayed to Francis of Assisi, patron saint of animals and nature. When our dog Titi, seriously ill, spent three days between life and death at the veterinarian, Mom said to me: “Let us pray to Saint Francis, and if our Titi survives, we will go to Assisi to thank him!” Titi survived, but Mom was far too old to go to Assisi: she was 95 years old.

One day, she declared to me: “Lionel, you will go to the Cammino di Francesco and you will take me in your pocket!” I made him this promise. I left Rimini on April 21, 2025, Easter Monday and the day Pope Francis died, and I walked for fifteen days, until Monday May 5, 2025, when I arrived in Assisi.

What is the route of this path?

The northern route of Cammino di Francesco offers two departure possibilities: Florence or Rimini. The two branches of the path meet at the sanctuary of La Verna, in the heart of the Apennine mountains, then they form a single path that continues to Assisi. I covered the Rimini branch, 110 km long, in 5 stages. From La Verna, the pilgrim has 200 km and 10 walking stages to reach the city of Saint Francis.

Where can we sleep and eat?

Accommodation is very varied: Bed and Breakfast, small hotels, monasteries, convents, hermitages, and even a beautiful mountain refuge where you absolutely have to book to have a place. Everywhere, the welcome from the people who hosted me was extraordinary! I was given something to drink, made cakes or offered fruit before I left in the morning.

As for the food, it is cheap and delicious. You can have breakfast in village cafes. In grocery stores or markets, you can buy your picnic (sandwiches, fruit, etc.) for lunch. And in the evening, you can always find a good little restaurant, even in the villages.

How is the path marked and what is the nature of the paths?

The markings differ slightly depending on the regions crossed (Romagna, Tuscany and Umbria), but we most often find the yellow tau (the letter T, symbol of Saint Francis), on a light blue background, accompanied by the red and white markings of the Italian Alpine Club.

The pilgrim walks most of the time on forest tracks in stabilized soil, but also, sometimes, along country roads or on small forest or mountain paths. The difference in altitude between Rimini and Assisi is significant: for my part, 13,300 m of positive altitude difference in 15 days, or 900 m per day (but I followed variations to see, for example, the beautiful summit of Alpe de la Luna or the source of the Tiber).

What landscapes do we cross?

Starting from Rimini, we cross a great diversity of landscapes: from the great beaches of the Adriatic, we quickly pass through a green countryside to reach the first mountains of the Republic of San Marino. And almost the entire rest of the route passes through very green mid-mountain landscapes, with wooded peaks and often wild valleys.

The path crosses abandoned villages or isolated hamlets, where elderly people, sitting in the sun, call out to you to chat for a moment.

What places remember the passage of the saint?

I would cite Villa Verucchio, where the secular cypress (called “Cipresso di San Francesco”) would result from the stick which would have been offered to the saint to support his walk; the sanctuary of La Verna, where Saint Francis received the stigmata of Christ in 1224; Gubbio, where he met and tamed the famous Apennine wolf. Finally, of course, in Assisi, the magnificent three-story basilica where people worship in front of the saint’s tomb.

Which site struck you the most?

The Buon Riposo hermitage, with the Poverello cave (nickname given to the saint). In this place, nestled in the side of a mountain, I met an extraordinary hermit, Andrea. We had a very simple exchange: water, a few words in a low voice, silence, prayer. The beauty of the site also captivated me, so much so that I didn’t want to leave. “Normally,” Andrea told me, “it’s the place of Bon Repos!”

Your best and worst memory?

My fondest memory was my arrival in Assisi. When I saw the city, my enthusiasm made me forget the markings and I got lost! By taking a tiny path through a field of olive trees called “the garden of the Angels”, I found myself at the very top of the city.

I entered Assisi through a beautiful medieval gate, and walked down the narrow streets. I came out onto the main square and moved forward, until I touched the wall of the magnificent Basilica of San Francesco. The noon Angelus was ringing! I had no more strength in my legs and I burst into tears of joy. At the pilgrims’ reception desk, where I showed my credential (pilgrim’s passport), a woman named Paola, seeing me so moved, took me in her arms and hugged me.

My worst memory was a fall in the mountains near San Leo, which could have prevented me from continuing my pilgrimage. I escaped with a few wounds on my hands and large bruises on my left shoulder and right leg. At the Bed and Breakfast where I was staying, a couple, Rosanna and her doctor husband Marco, looked after me and gave me the strength to get back on the path.

How is this path different from the Assisi path, leaving from Vézelay?

First of all, by its almost confidential side: we meet few pilgrims on this path. Then, by its difficulty and its demands on a physical but also mental level, in the heart of a beautiful, wild, soothing and strengthening nature.

It is also distinguished by the omnipresence of Saint Francis of Assisi: in the tau that we follow when we walk; in churches, chapels, hermitages; in statues, paintings, Christmas nativity scenes, the songs of monks during morning prayers or services.

I also felt his presence in the songs of the birds along the way, in the beauty of nature in Umbria, the green heart of Italy; and also in the smiles, the kindness and the simplicity of the people I met; finally, through reading the book by Christian Bobin that I had taken with me, The Very Lowand which I recommend reading.

How does Saint Francis touch you?

His spirituality is based on the simplicity and beauty of Christ’s message, on a form of gentleness, of leniency towards others and everything around us: everything that lives on Earth, he taught, must be respected. Its message is in fact very modern, because it is fundamentally ecological and humanist.

What advice would you give to those who would like to take this path?

I would advise them to go in spring, but not too early, as there may still be snow in the Apennines. Easter is a good time, with nature in bloom. Autumn too, with pleasant warmth and colorful foliage. In summer, it’s really hot, so you have to walk very early in the morning.

Your next pilgrimage walk?

In April 2026, I will complete the southern route of Cammino di Francescowhich connects Assisi to Rome, where I have never been. A great way to end this pilgrimage!