Of beds (and bugs)

Having just read a post on Facebook about an albergue being closed on the Finisterre route because of an outbreak of bedbugs my mind has been drawn to one of the most important considerations on the Camino- of the beds, bedding and those infernal bed-bugs.

I have sampled quite a few of the albergues on the French Way, the Portuguese Way and the Primitive Way I am so pleased, and relieved, to say I have not once shared my bed with a bug- well not knowingly and have definitely had no bad effects if  I have done so unknowingly.

The beds themselves vary from albergue to albergue. In some places they are metal bunk beds that rattle and squeak with the slightest movement, have supports that roll you to the middle and mattresses that are thinner than most good sleeping bags.

Sometimes the metal ones have good enough mattresses but are so cramped into the spaces that one ends up almost sharing a bed with total strangers

Then there are others that are made solidly from wooden supports with proper support underneath and mattresses that are thick enough to provide even the most insomniacal of pilgrims with a good night's sleep.

Occasionally the dorms are kitted out with single storey beds, this is almost the height of luxury.

No matter how hefty the bunks I always worried when I climbed into the top bunk that I might pull the whole structure over as I hefted my non-slimline form to the top.

Some albergues provide bedding - this is usually a flimsy throw away under-sheet and similar style pillow-case. I have never found that these stay on the mattresses all night as they should and usually end up in piles all over the albergue, despite most places providing bins for their disposal. Some of the better albergues even provide blankets, often large snuggly blankets which are delightful to curl up under after a day on the road.

In the past I have always taken a sleeping blanket, although many nights had no use of it when it was hot, or with a blanket when it wasn't so warm. This year, however, Janey has found some fleecy sleeping bag liners which we will be using instead. This means another reduction in weight and bulk, and hopefully sufficient for a good night.

As for the bedbugs; we have on our travels heard some unsettling tales, and even heard one hospitalero tell a pilgrim who had found bugs in her bed that she should keep quiet and leave before she upset other pilgrims. In general though we have found places to be infestation-free and dusted against the critters. Hopefully this year, fingers crossed, we will again be alone in our beds, but if not apparently the best way to get rid of the bugs is to expose everything to bright sunlight and wash everything in piping hot water.