Gallery • 7 Photos

Dorely Leal-Drago

A sign marking El Camino de Santiago.

Pascack Valley Spanish teacher Dorely Leal-Drago saw people screaming and bursting with excitement after completing the El Camino Francés trail. The image seemed to stay with her; intrigued, she researched what she had witnessed.

El Camino Francés is a pilgrimage from St Jean Pied in France, over the Pyrenees, and across the north of Spain to Santiago de Compostela. One of nine major Camino de Santiago routes, El Camino Francés sits as the most famous route, depicted in Hollywood movies like “The Way.”

“There is a tradition that has been in Spain for 1,000 years,” Leal-Drago said. “People have been walking from the French Pyrenees to Santiago de Compostela on their own.”

Five years after seeing the effect of El Camino Francés, Leal-Drago realized the trail was something she wanted to pursue, and she decided to embark on the climb during the summer of 2021.

The trail is 500 miles long and takes 30 days to complete. Leal-Drago has always been fond of the outdoors as she grew up appreciating nature and being outside. 

“I grew up in the countryside, in Venezuela, and my whole childhood was about enjoying the outdoors. [We] were always outside playing after school,” Leal Drago said.

Leal-Drago still held on to her love for nature after moving to the United States and pursuing a career in teaching at PV.

“Now that I’m getting older, walking outside really relaxes me,” Leal-Drago said. “I connect with it and I make sure I don’t bring my phone so I also disconnect from the real world.” 

On El Camino Francés, Leal-Drago was nearly completely disconnected from the real world. Lack of cell service on the trail forced her to connect with the nature around her. It was only when she made it to different resting spots that she could briefly look at her phone.

The first day on the trail was exciting for Leal-Drago; however, as time progressed some days were more difficult than others. 

“On the first day, I was so excited to travel,” Leal-Drago said. “[But some days] I wanted to just get up and just stay in bed.”

Staying in bed, however, was not an option. There are rest areas along the trail that Leal-Drago refers to as “destinations.” If you do not reach each destination, then you risk getting lost without any form of communication on the trail.

“If you don’t make it to your destination, you have no place to sleep,” Leal Drago said. “There is no place that you can just stay.”

Not only do you have to fight the urge to get up, but also the hot temperatures of summer in Spain according to Leal-Drago. 

“Sometimes you just want to sit under a tree in the shade and take a break,” Leal-Drago said.

But that was not an option for Leal-Drago. The only way to complete the trail was to keep walking and much like her other endeavors, Leal-Drago’s passion led the way for her perseverance. 

Leal-Drago enjoys teaching and was recognized in the 2021-2022 Teachers and Educational Services Professionals of the Year report.

Andrew Lewis is a Spanish teacher at PV and learned of Leal-Drago’s passion for teaching and for her students 16 years ago.

“She’s become an excellent teacher over the years,” Lewis said. “She’s very kind and very giving to her students. Aside from teaching language, I know she’s been very influential in the heritage class with a lot of other native Spanish speakers.” 

After completing the trail, Leal-Drago said she learned things about herself that she hadn’t realized before embarking on El Camino Francés. 

“What we have is precious,” Leal-Drago said. “[On El Camino Francés], you don’t have the comfort of your home. You really have to appreciate the people that are around you, but you sometimes feel lonely in this place and it’s up to your strength to continue doing it. You don’t want to disappoint yourself [or] others either.”