Well, after several weeks absence, due to a close family bereavement which scuppered any thoughts of training, I'm now back and very behind my schedule. So behind, in fact, I had to throw my plans out the window & start again. It's fascinating how a lapse in walking puts you right back to where you started! Still, I managed to get some walks in in April, mainly along the coastal area round here, but also a few gentle hills in Scotland, and a rather steep hill in Surrey with some old school friends.
And now it's May- the walk is only 9 days away and I'm finding the word 'EEK' flashing across my brain every morning when I wake up ;) Doesn't mean I can do much about it, not at this stage but here's a brief recap of my last 2 training walks.
Friday 24th May
So it wasn't the rain that drenched me today, but the field of rapeseed (such an unfortunate name). Who knew those bright yellow flowers could hold so much water–my boots had their own personal waterfall going on! But at least I now know which bits of my equipment are waterproof– and not these particular trousers, that's for sure. And sadly not my boots either, but maybe that's unfair and it was just exceptional circumstances (it was raining heavily and I was walking through a field of waist high flowers). I'm glad I brought a spare pair of trousers–the sheep surrounding me look rather amused as I wriggled out of the sodden ones into my nice warm fleece lined ones. Good thing I'm not shy! Amazingly, my wool mix liner socks, once wrung out, feel quite dry–no squelching at all :)
Today's equipment:
-Day pack
-an almost full platypus
-lunch & snacks
-spare trousers
-Hat, gloves, scarf thingy (snood?)
-Nano pod (it gets boring walking alone all those hours and it's much more fun being accompanied by the assorted teams on the Christmas 'I'm sorry I haven't a clue' episodes)
-Iphone with pedometer app
-maps
-money
-plasters, just in case
-spare insoles (in case the new ones don't work)
- a sit upon
Today's tally:
13.111 miles
5.25 hours
1132 cal
2.5 average speed
26,766 steps.
Lessons learnt? Carry spare dry clothing & change wet socks as soon as possible to prevent blisters. And don't rely on old boots before leaving it too late to buy new ones when you find out they really are not waterproof. And carry waterproof over trousers! And gloves- essential- it really got cold!
Monday 27th May
So today's walk was a good one- the sun was shining, the birds were singing & it was the beginning of half-term so there were many families around necessitating many 'Hellos', Good mornings', and other assorted greetings. I didn't get round to listening much to my nano pod as I was enjoying the scenery and the sounds of nature so much. Also I found myself giving directions to people who'd got lost on the path (one advantage of following the same route many times is you get to know the distances and the different reference points) & avoiding the many cyclists zooming along the paths.
Today's walk seemed much easier because I had taken my walking poles with me. I discovered to my amazement that I was speeding along quite happily and merrily without any discomfort and without any strain on my knees. They really are quite amazing things and I would recommend them heartily to anyone who is daunted by the idea of a long walk- they really do help with support and provide extra balance and make walking so much easier.
I didn't however reach the destination originally planned as it dawned on me that I didn't know what time the car park shut where I had left my car at the beginning of this walk, so I had to turn round and beat a hasty retreat. I did manage to check on the Internet enroute to find the car park closed at 'dusk’ - however at this time of the year who knows when the exact hour of dusk is! I made it back in good time though and used it to my advantage as the car park happened to have an extremely steep slope down to the beach so I walked briskly up and down it several times much to the bemusement of the elderly couple sitting in their car sipping tea.
Today's tally:
15.086 miles
5.5 hours (though it really took approximately 7.5 hours as I paused the time every time I stopped for lunch or for snacks- and I had a nice cup of tea with some fellow walkers at the Southwold Sailing Club. Oh yes, & I had to wait ages for the foot ferry to carry me back across the river to Walberswick)
1315 calories
2.6 average speed (though I started off at 3.2, thanks to the poles)
30, 278 steps
Lessons learnt? Marathon/ Snickers bars are much better than Mars bars for replenishing energy, Lucozade sports drink tastes much better than water, & I don't need to carry 2 litres of water with me all the time.
While I was away from the blog, a lot happened with the planning of the 3 Peaks walk (there are now 16 of us doing it), and the reasons for doing it changed slightly too- we need to raise money for a project we are starting up in Western Nepal, still with Tibetan refugees but working in communities instead of with the children in transit. The walk is now called 3 Peaks for Pokhara: '3 Peaks, 3 Problems, 3 Practical Solutions' and with your help by sponsoring us we aim to help and empower the Tibetans in the Jampaling settlement to create a better future. See our website or our Facebook site for more details, and please help us raise the £6000 needed for thes project.
And now it's May- the walk is only 9 days away and I'm finding the word 'EEK' flashing across my brain every morning when I wake up ;) Doesn't mean I can do much about it, not at this stage but here's a brief recap of my last 2 training walks.
Friday 24th May
So it wasn't the rain that drenched me today, but the field of rapeseed (such an unfortunate name). Who knew those bright yellow flowers could hold so much water–my boots had their own personal waterfall going on! But at least I now know which bits of my equipment are waterproof– and not these particular trousers, that's for sure. And sadly not my boots either, but maybe that's unfair and it was just exceptional circumstances (it was raining heavily and I was walking through a field of waist high flowers). I'm glad I brought a spare pair of trousers–the sheep surrounding me look rather amused as I wriggled out of the sodden ones into my nice warm fleece lined ones. Good thing I'm not shy! Amazingly, my wool mix liner socks, once wrung out, feel quite dry–no squelching at all :)
Today's equipment:
-Day pack
-an almost full platypus
-lunch & snacks
-spare trousers
-Hat, gloves, scarf thingy (snood?)
-Nano pod (it gets boring walking alone all those hours and it's much more fun being accompanied by the assorted teams on the Christmas 'I'm sorry I haven't a clue' episodes)
-Iphone with pedometer app
-maps
-money
-plasters, just in case
-spare insoles (in case the new ones don't work)
- a sit upon
Today's tally:
13.111 miles
5.25 hours
1132 cal
2.5 average speed
26,766 steps.
Lessons learnt? Carry spare dry clothing & change wet socks as soon as possible to prevent blisters. And don't rely on old boots before leaving it too late to buy new ones when you find out they really are not waterproof. And carry waterproof over trousers! And gloves- essential- it really got cold!
Monday 27th May
So today's walk was a good one- the sun was shining, the birds were singing & it was the beginning of half-term so there were many families around necessitating many 'Hellos', Good mornings', and other assorted greetings. I didn't get round to listening much to my nano pod as I was enjoying the scenery and the sounds of nature so much. Also I found myself giving directions to people who'd got lost on the path (one advantage of following the same route many times is you get to know the distances and the different reference points) & avoiding the many cyclists zooming along the paths.
Today's walk seemed much easier because I had taken my walking poles with me. I discovered to my amazement that I was speeding along quite happily and merrily without any discomfort and without any strain on my knees. They really are quite amazing things and I would recommend them heartily to anyone who is daunted by the idea of a long walk- they really do help with support and provide extra balance and make walking so much easier.
I didn't however reach the destination originally planned as it dawned on me that I didn't know what time the car park shut where I had left my car at the beginning of this walk, so I had to turn round and beat a hasty retreat. I did manage to check on the Internet enroute to find the car park closed at 'dusk’ - however at this time of the year who knows when the exact hour of dusk is! I made it back in good time though and used it to my advantage as the car park happened to have an extremely steep slope down to the beach so I walked briskly up and down it several times much to the bemusement of the elderly couple sitting in their car sipping tea.
Today's tally:
15.086 miles
5.5 hours (though it really took approximately 7.5 hours as I paused the time every time I stopped for lunch or for snacks- and I had a nice cup of tea with some fellow walkers at the Southwold Sailing Club. Oh yes, & I had to wait ages for the foot ferry to carry me back across the river to Walberswick)
1315 calories
2.6 average speed (though I started off at 3.2, thanks to the poles)
30, 278 steps
Lessons learnt? Marathon/ Snickers bars are much better than Mars bars for replenishing energy, Lucozade sports drink tastes much better than water, & I don't need to carry 2 litres of water with me all the time.
While I was away from the blog, a lot happened with the planning of the 3 Peaks walk (there are now 16 of us doing it), and the reasons for doing it changed slightly too- we need to raise money for a project we are starting up in Western Nepal, still with Tibetan refugees but working in communities instead of with the children in transit. The walk is now called 3 Peaks for Pokhara: '3 Peaks, 3 Problems, 3 Practical Solutions' and with your help by sponsoring us we aim to help and empower the Tibetans in the Jampaling settlement to create a better future. See our website or our Facebook site for more details, and please help us raise the £6000 needed for thes project.
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