Would You Hike 500 Miles With Your Teenager? Andrew McCarthy Said Yes.

Unpacked by AFAR

Hiking Spain’s Camino de Santiago trail is one of the world’s great pilgrimages. And actor, writer, and director Andrew McCarthy has walked the 500-mile Camino Frances, not once but twice, most recently with his teen son. It’s a journey he documented in his new book, Walking with Sam (Grand Central Publishing, May 2023), and shares with us in this week’s episode.

Some of you may know Andrew from his work in film and TV—he starred in such ’80s classics as St. Elmo’s Fire and Weekend at Bernie’s—but here at AFAR, we’re more familiar with his work as a travel writer and editor. In 2010, he participated in one of AFAR’s first Spin the Globe trips: We spun the globe and sent Andrew to Ethiopia with less than 24 hours’ notice—a trip that culminated in his near arrest.

But his latest book is a quieter adventure. As his son took his first steps into adulthood, Andrew wanted to recreate his own first Camino walk—and cement their bond. As they walked (sometimes together, sometimes apart), they faced blisters and hours in the baking sun, the paradoxes of solitude and companionship, and the transformative power of the Camino pilgrimage.

Resources

• Read this week’s show notes, including a full transcript of the episode: https://www.afar.com/podcasts/unpacked/s2-e14-andrew-mccarthy
• Read Andrew's Spin the Globe for AFAR: https://www.afar.com/magazine/spin-the-globe-andrew-mccarthy-in-ethiopia
• Read Andrew’s new book, Walking with Sam: https://geni.us/2RERJ
• Read the book that inspired Andrew’s first Camino pilgrimage, Jack Hitt’s Off the Road: https://geni.us/H6uG0
• Read Andrew’s first book, The Longest Way Home: https://geni.us/g7I5JM
• Watch some of Andrew’s films, including St Elmo’s Fire and Weekend at Bernie’s

Walking resources

• If you want to tackle the Camino de Santiago: https://santiago-compostela.net/
• If you want to tackle Japan's Kumano Kodo: https://www.afar.com/magazine/disconnect-from-the-modern-world-on-a-pilgrims-path-through-japan
• If you just want to walk: https://www.afar.com/magazine/7-famous-pilgrimages-around-the-world-that-you-can-walk-or-cycle