I Guess I'll Just Keep on Walking

by Noel Braun

Since the suicide of Maris, his beloved wife of forty-two years, Noel Braun struggled to find himself. All his life assumptions were over turned and he lost his sense of identity. Endeavouring to find some anchorage, he embarked on a spiritual journey of self-discovery. He decided to walk the most popular routes of the Camino; the ancient pilgrimage route that lead across France and Spain to Santiago de Compostela in the north-west of Spain. This journey is described in his earlier book The Day was Made for Walking.
The journey was far from over. Noel felt compelled to resume his quest. At the age of eighty, he returned to France to pursue a less popular route that took him across France and into Spain. Two years later, the urgent need to continue has him walking through Portugal into Spain. Despite his aging body and his many doubts, he has the confidence and faith in himself to face the arduous physical demands and reach Santiago de Compostela. Woven into his spiritual and emotional journey are fascinating stories of the people he meets.
I Guess I’ll Just Keep on Walking is a sequel. The physical and the spiritual merge with the ancient and modern. It delves into history and, at the same time, is a memoir and travel guide.

266 pages, Paperback

Published May 1, 2017

Reviews

[Chris Waterford]

I was drawn to this book by my own Camino experiences, and though a good book to read for prospective walkers, it was not so interesting for me as the Camino routes were not familiar to me. I enjoyed his description of his time as a hospitalero in Rabanal and some of his personal reflections.
6/10

[Teresa Brandau-Stranks]

This was a great book and a very good account of how exhausting but also enlightening the Camino can be in different sections of the walk. I would definately recommend to read if you are thinking of doing this walk like I am.

[Dianne Morton]

I'll keep walking on too

Thank you Noel for your honesty and for writing this book.
I actually found you on my Facebook web page at a time when I've been debating if I'm too old to walk Te Aroroa a dream of mine for decades. Your book is so well written I felt like I walked with you.
Thank you, I'm going to keep trying to walk again after many years of illness and handicaps like hip replacements.
P.S. we only live 100 kms apart.

[D'face]

I read this on the plane on my way to walking the Portuguese and it made me nervous, but now I am on the Portuguese I can see that much has changed since Noel walked it with green routes gradually replacing older routes along highway verges. But the litter and commercialisation continues. Noel’s combination of practicality, vulnerability and spirituality make for an interesting read.

[Colin Timbrell]

A tale of a man searching for meaning by walking the Camino in his eighties. Some interesting encounters and friendships along way proved to be catalysts for healthy self reflection. Some of the prose was a little repetitive and too detailed for my appetite. But Noel's achievements are an inspiration for anyone wanted to take a journey into the unknown.