I needed to ‘find myself’ after ending my engagement — so I walked a 500-mile pilgrimage

A woman ended her nine-month engagement and booked a spontaneous flight to walk a 500-mile pilgrimage in her Crocs — to “find herself.” 

Kayleigh Castle, 36, and her ex got engaged after just five weeks together but she decided to end their relationship on Boxing Day 2024 after realizing “marriage wasn’t for her.”

After watching a video on TikTok, she spontaneously booked a plane ticket to Porto, Portugal, to walk the Camino de Santiago — a network of pilgrimage routes leading to a cathedral in Spain.

Kayleigh spent five weeks in Portugal walking through the historic route in her white Crocs before arriving back in the UK on February 13, 2025.

She said the walk gave her the time and space to “find herself” again and left her feeling “energized” to start her life again.

Kayleigh, a life coach from West Yorkshire, said: “I had the realization that marriage can be limiting.

“Marriage is all about making compromises and sacrifices and I wasn’t willing to do that so I realized that maybe I was not a marriage girl.

“For me, marriage is about stability but I actually don’t want stability — it is boring.

“A relationship isn’t the be-all and end-all — the most important relationship you’ll ever have is the one with yourself and that’s why I set off, to feel like me.”

In April 2024, Kayleigh got engaged after five weeks but nine months later she started to realize marriage wasn’t for her.

On Boxing Day 2024, Kayleigh ended the engagement and decided she wanted to put herself first.

She said: “I change all the time, I want to do different stuff all the time — I am chaotic.

“I loved traveling, I didn’t want to give that up.

“This isn’t on him, I just realised that marriage can be limiting.” 

Kayleigh was scrolling through TikTok when she saw a video of people walking the Camino de Santiago. 

So on January 6, 2024, Kayleigh booked a flight to Portugal to walk the 500-mile pilgrimage on her own.

On her way to the airport, Kayleigh found her bag too heavy and threw out her walking boots — leaving her with her trusty Crocs.

“Being in a relationship for nine months I didn’t feel like myself,” Kayleigh said.

“I love walking and I think it is the best therapy.

“If you walk far enough you can fix all your problems and that is what I did.

“Walking is the best therapy, I feel amazing. I have cleared my head and can focus on new things.”

Kayleigh spent five weeks in Portugal and walked 200 miles of the 500 mile route in her Crocs. 

She said the walk allowed her to process her thoughts and next steps.

Kayleigh said: “Beforehand I felt lost, I wasn’t sure what I wanted to do. I spent the walk processing and deciding what my next step would be.

“I would rather start over again a million times than stay in a relationship I am unhappy with — everyone deserves to be happy.

“When you are walking, you have no distractions, I didn’t see a soul while I was walking.

“I processed my thoughts with nobody else’s opinions.”

Despite the peaceful nature of the pilgrimage, Kayleigh did find herself accidentally gatecrashing a wedding.

“One night I went to do my laundry which was an hour’s walk away from the hostel,” Kayleigh said.

“I didn’t want to walk an hour so I sat in a bar and had a glass of wine.

“I inadvertently gatecrashed a wedding, there is me in this camouflage dry robe and Crocs in the middle of this wholesome wedding.”