One step at a time
My name is Steven Bloom. I started this blog when I was about to embark on the journey of a lifetime, visiting 88 temples on the island of Shikoku in Japan. It was fantastic, so in 2019 I went back and followed several of the beautiful Kumano Kodo routes on the Kii Peninsula.
During the Corona years I walked 1200km through Denmark following the Danish Pilgrimage.
In 2023 I stopped working and I decided to walk from Sagres on the Algarve in Portugal, to Rome in Italy, which led me to walking various paths in Portugal, Spain, France and Italy.
Scroll down to see my latest posts, or my walking adventures (by trail).
Go to the blogSagres to Rome
When I stopped working in June 2022, my wife said that I needed a project! Whilst walking the Fisherman’s Trail, Camino Portuguese and Lighthouse Way during 2023, an idea developed that I should continue to Rome. That should take a few years! At the end of 2024, I have now walked 5 of an expected 8 stages to cover the more than 5.000 kms between Sagres and Rome. In 2025 I plan to continue from Toulouse to Vence in France, La Spezia to Rome in Italy, and fill in the missing bits in Spain and Portugal that I didn’t walk.
The eight stages
Latest posts
Day 4: Boussens to Saint-Gaudens 
August 29, 2024 A longer walk than expected after I made a rookie error, but otherwise a pleasant day walking mostly along paths; 29km and 730m elevation. As I was staying on Boussens, I'm not on the official path that goes north of the town. Instead of tracking back to the path I took the main road out… Read more >
Day 3: Carbonne to Boussens August 28, 2024 A (very) long and (very) tiring day in the sun, with a lot of it walking on hard surfaces, at times on roads with some, but not heavy, traffic. A total of 35km and only 500m in elevation. So at least it was flat. Todays destination was 66m above the start. Temperatures hit 33C from… Read more >
Day 2: Muret to Carbonne August 27, 2024 Today it was hot. 11C when I left at 8.00, 33C when I arrived at the hotel at 16.30 after 34km and over 1.000m elevation - before even reaching the Pyrenees. I left Muret without seeing a statue for Clement Ader, despite seeing several other statues of (very) historic people (men). Walking back towards the… Read more >
Day 1: Toulouse Airport to Muret August 26, 2024 A long first day, with a 7am flight from Copenhagen, leaving Toulouse airport by 10.30. The first five days follow the Garonne river from Toulouse towards its source in the Spanish Pyrenees. In total the river runs 529km with its mouth at the Gironde estuary, north of Bordeaux, I will be walking ca. 150km along… Read more >
Ribadeo to A Coruna – Conclusion/Hotel list 
June 5, 2024 My overall conclusion is that this is a fabulous walk. This is the ultimate alternative route on the Camino del Norte, staying on the coast after Ribadeo and joining the Camino Ingles in Ferrol for those wishing to walk to Santiago. The views are spectacular, the signage excellent, at least whilst still on the Ruta… Read more >
Day 23: Pontedeume to A Coruna May 10, 2024 My last day before flying home and the day I missed a turn and walked almost 2 kilometers before realising and having to walk back. Typical on my last day and typical on the hottest day so far. I slept well, and went to one of the four bars in the town square to eat… Read more >My walking adventures
Explore
Temples and Shrines
Vajra and Ema, Tori gates and Shitenno, Jizo and Omikuji. There's a lot to learn about Japanese Temples and Shrines. Read some of the things I've learnt when in Japan, many that I'd wished I'd known the first time I visited.
Japan is just different
Plastic food, white gloves, love of trains, pachinoko, toilets, manholes, social distance and futons. Japan is just different in so many different ways. Read about some of the differences I've experienced in Japan during my visits.
About me
That I was just following my feet, was something I often thought about during my pilgrimage to Shikoku, Japan, in 2018. I walked for 38 days, and at times it felt like my feet were walking, and the rest of my body just following.