130 km Off-Grid: Unplugging from AI to Connect with My Son

A few days ago, I posted a quick update on LinkedIn halfway through our Portuguese coastal route. I shared that we had 65 km to go, that my 13-year-old travel companion had way more energy than me, and that being off-grid for almost 12 hours a day—which should be a crisis for a guy running an AI company—was going suspiciously fine.

Well, we finally made it to Santiago, and the experience exceeded every single expectation.

From Solo-Founder to Team Player

Last year, I did the Camino Francés solo, driven by that typical entrepreneur's need to prove something to myself. This year, the challenge was different: doing it together.

On the trail, I learned an expensive lesson (paid for in blisters): my AI agents don't need me hovering over them all day. In fact, they work better when I just let them be. Letting go of that control allowed me to dedicate 100% of my attention to the person walking right next to me. And thank God I did.

The Miracle of Pain and My New Motor

In my previous post, I joked about how my kid had gone from communicating mostly in sighs to giving me pep talks. The real reason behind that was that, starting on day three, my Achilles heel decided it had had enough.

Used to always being the dad who solves things, the one who is a step ahead and carries the load at home, I found myself completely vulnerable. And that’s where he left me speechless. When the pain forced me to slow down, he became my motor. He turned into the kind of guy who tells his dad, "Come on, we're basically there," when we are, in fact, not basically there.

Something almost miraculous even happened: there were times when he was on the verge of collapsing from exhaustion and, suddenly, out of pure empathy, it was as if his pain transferred over to me. He would get his energy back, walking lightly, and I’d be left dragging my feet in pain next to him—but weirdly happy to see him move forward. We were the perfect balance: when he was struggling, I held him up; and when I couldn't go on, he pulled me forward.

Connecting with the Real World

It wasn't all physical suffering. The amazing dinners we had at the end of each day became our reset button. After hours of walking, we would sit down to process everything we had experienced, talk at length, and rediscover each other.

I took the opportunity to teach him how to connect with the world: how to approach people, how to start a genuine conversation even if we had nothing to offer at that exact moment, and how to listen and learn from other pilgrims. We ended up totally aligned, operating on the exact same wavelength.

The Finish Line

Over these almost 130 kilometers, I learned to read him in a completely different way. I better understood his likes, what bothers him, and realized that my job as a father isn't just to guide him, but to learn how to grow alongside him.

My AI agents proved they can work without me, but I proved to myself that I don't want to walk without him.

Verdict: We came back home with our feet wrecked and not a single snack left in our backpacks, but with the absolute best version of our relationship. 10/10, would walk this trail with him again in a heartbeat.