John first encountered El Camino in 1998, when he hiked the trail with a group of students. In May 1999, he led Agape's efforts to convert a house along the trail into a refuge, naming it the Pilgrim's Fountain. Travelers get free coffee, clean showers and a dry bed. Beside meeting physical needs, Agape workers help to meet the spiritual hunger of pilgrims. They pass out an evangelistic booklet which redirects walkers from Jesus' disciple, James, to Jesus Himself.
Note cards list a psalm to ponder for each kilometer of the hike.
Pilgrims could even borrow a portable tape player. Along the trail, an eight-inch streak of yellow, painted on buildings or stones, pointed pilgrims toward the city. After the first day's journey, John suggested that the Bible serves as life's yellow arrow, guiding the Christian pilgrim onward. EuroCamino offered evangelism built on relationships, a kind of endurance test where skeptics saw the gospel lived out, not just spelled out. MariCarmen Morente, from Malaga, Spain, was one such skeptic.