By Anthony Barich
Perth pilgrims trekking the Camino Salvado trail suspect they may have stumbled upon the actual trail that colonial-era Bishop Rosendo Salvado trod in the mid-1800s.
Bishop Salvado – Benedictine monk, missionary, musician and author – walked from New Norcia – Australia’s only monastic town that he built – to Perth to perform piano concerts to raise money for his outback mission.
Pilgrims have been walking the Camino Salvado since 2009, organised by Subiaco parishioner Dr Duncan Jefferson who was inspired by his own experience trekking the Camino de Santiago – The Way of St James – in Spain with his wife.
The previous route used by the Perth pilgrims detoured around sections where it was thought there were no trails, but Dr Jefferson discovered a long-forgotten, uncharted road through Julimar State Forest which travels “precisely where we want to go”.
In a development that aligns it closer to its progenitor in Spain, more landholder farmers are allowing the pilgrims to cross their land, allowing a clear path away from Great Northern Highway all the way to New Norcia.
Similarly, over the course of centuries, small communities sprang up along the Camino de Santiago route to provide the pilgrims with shelter and food.
Karen Derwent, committee member of the independent, ecumenical, non-profit organising group Camino Salvado, said they know they are close to Salvado’s trail as it is known the Bishop went through the Chittering Valley.
“Colonial authorities gave them (Salvado and his company) easements for them to stop for the night – including huts and wells – including one in Chittering valley in the corner between two hills and a road just across from the river,” Karen said.
Here can be seen remains of a hut and even a horse’s trough.
“We have no proof yet that this is Salvado’s trail, but we believe we have stumbled across his original path and we are investigating further. Some of the older local residents said these easements are where the monks used to camp.”
Today’s Trail
The Department of Conservation and Land Management told Camino organisers that there was no path through the forest, “but we found one” which takes pilgrims straight through to Old Plains Road, which is part of the wildflower trail, a renowned tourist attraction for six months of the year.
“We’re not sure whether the monks used it, but it’s very quiet. We were there two days and we saw two cars. It’s more conducive to prayers and chatting,” Karen said.
LotteryWest has given organisers a $14,000 grant to employ a Trails Consultant to produce a Draft Strategy for the Trail. The Camino committee is now applying for more funding from Lotterywest, the private and government sectors, to carry the Strategy forward.
The funds will be used to build trail structures including picnic tables, water tanks and eventually accommodation, a lack of which is currently limiting the Camino to 30 each time.
The trail starts at St Joseph’s Catholic Church in Subiaco, where pilgrims are given a blessing and a hand-painted scallop shell, symbolic of pilgrimage as Santiago pilgrims often arrived by boat to start the trek.
It is also redolent of the Shell of St James, a scallop shell often found on the shores in Spain’s northwest.The Camino trail follows the Swan River up to Walyunga National Park, through the Chittering Valley to Bindoon.
It is believed the pioneering monks would have continued along the Avon River towards Toodyay then up via what is now Old Plains Road to follow the accessible watering holes. But this would take current walkers an extra day, and at this stage accommodation is hard to source in those sparsely populated areas.
The city section of the pilgrimage includes St Mary’s Cathedral on the way to Guildford.
Their 2009 pilgrimage was filmed by the ABC and turned into an episode on Compass, while last year 30 pilgrims each undertook two pilgrimages. There will again be two this year, from Sunday to Sunday starting on 21 August and 4 September for the 140km, seven-day hike.
The pilgrimage costs $800 for eight days and seven nights, which includes all meals, accommodation and transport. Walkers carry a small day pack and water; baggage is transferred direct to the accommodation.