On reflection….now I’m finished.

You may have noticed that a bit of time has passed since I finished my last walk and therefore since my last post (excluding the one I just sent by mistake which was unfinished!!). I’ve been meaning to do some sort of summary or reflection back on the year but I have to say I’ve found it harder than I expected. I was actually really sad that it was all over come New Years Eve but then come New Years Day I felt very much as if I was ready for the New Year and keen to get on with my new challenges. I guess I must be rather more action-orientated and less reflective than I thought. Who knew?

Anyway now that a bit more time has passed I will give it a go. First of all then a few facts and figures for you.

Number of walks completed 67

Number of people sharing my walks 99 plus 1 baby, Libby

Total miles walked 335.2

Average number of miles per walk 5

Amount of money raised for charity £2000+

Number of blog followers 43

Number of blog post views 6257

Most popular walk post Barefoot at Curbar Edge

So how does all that compare with what I thought when first thrashing the idea out with Pete way back in Dec 2012? Yes I completed way more than the 50 walks I set out to, we raised way more money than I ever imagined we might and I completed the entire Cotswold Way, which I never dared mention in writing at the outset because I really wasn’t sure I could do it within the year. The most amazing thing though and what I really am blown away by,  is everyone’s generosity of both time, enthusiasm as well as your contribution towards our fundraising. You may recall that when I started this I said I just wanted to DO SOMETHING. So I did and just look what happened? Incredible really and I’m so glad I did.

From here on in these reflections are probably going to get a bit more random but here goes.

Which was my favourite walk? I couldn’t possibly say. I honestly feel every single one of them has been like a little gem- special and perfect and I wouldn’t change anything about any of them.

Oh come on. Surely there’s something I would change? Well…..maybe that bit up on freezing cold Cleeve Common where I used the immortal words ‘I am completely lost, I have no idea where we are, the path has disappeared.’ If I remember rightly Jane didn’t take that too well…

Which was the toughest walk I did? Physically it’s a toss up between Haystacks where coming down my legs had turned to jelly and then The Dolphin Trail where the climbs up were pretty relentless in the heat. However, for unpleasantness that has to be back to Cleeve Common again walking into the face of the biting cold wind.

What have I learned? Well where shall I start?
1) Just saying ‘yes’ without hesitation can lead to something wonderful. In my case reconnecting with Leera after all those years.
2) It’s never too late to try something new and it doesn’t have to cost a thing. Barefoot walking…go on…..try it!
3) Camping – it’s great but don’t expect to get any sleep. However, hearing the sound of a cuckoo and an owl for the first time ever was worth it.
4) Fitness and fatness are not the same thing. Yes, I am way fitter than when I started the year but I am also now fatter than I’ve ever been. About 3 months in I decided trying to be sensible was not going to work. This was probably about the time I posted that picture of myself eating that enormous slice of Lemon Meringue Pie in Grasmere. Oh well, we can sort that out this year!! I had way too much fun last year.
5) Walking and talking is good for the soul. I have to say this is one of the best outcomes as I’ve found that my walks have helped me be more ‘mindful’. In other words focusing on ‘being in the moment’. It’s been fantastic to help switch off from work. I think it’s made me better at listening and connecting with others. I’ve learned that what might be difficult conversations are made easier by walking because you walk side by side …not face to face. Try it.
6) Nature is an incredible resource right on our doorstep and no matter where we are its a big adventure waiting to be discovered. Get out there- there’s probably a Geo-Cache waiting to be uncovered.
7) Blogging has made me realise that I have quite a lot to say. You may have noticed this already….I do really enjoy writing and I found that it helped give me focus. It was great to hear other people were enjoying my posts. To be honest I’m a bit sad that I’ll be stopping until we go to China later this year. I’ve also enjoyed following other peoples blogs who have set their own walking challenges.
8) Jane is a star. She came on an unbelievable 43 of the walks with me and she doesn’t even like walking. I know that I couldn’t have done any of this without her support, encouragement and understanding.

That’s enough reflecting…what about the future. Well of course it’s already here. 2014.
Naturally, we’re not really going to stop walking and in fact have in mind to do some more county bagging (which I will probably blog about) but it is nice to be able to say ‘no, not today….thank you’. In fact I did this yesterday and it felt quite liberating…sorry Joyce! I would really like to do some more high Lakeland Fells and maybe one day another long distance footpath.
Meantime this year I have enrolled on a Mindfulness course that starts in February, we’ve started a strict diet regime for January and I’ve even taken my bike in to get new tyres…..that’s funny because I remember somebody saying to me ‘oh next year you can start cycling and blog about that’. Well maybe I’m not quite ready for that…let’s see if I now get the bike out of the shed before the end of January first eh?

So to finish I’d like to to say a HUGE thank you to everyone who said ‘Yes, I’m up for it’ and who walked, talked, contributed, followed and generally encouraged me.  See what we have achieved together. I thought  the two pictures below are lovely. The first  is a famous Pooh /Piglet conversation which just reminds me to make the most of EVERY day. The 2nd was a small sign on a bench outside the pub on the walk I did with Carol and her  Mum. This one sums up my 50th year of walking. Thank You.

Walk 67- ‘Ave a Bath, the last of the Cotswold Way.

Bobblers

Great day

Nice t-shirts

Jane descending

Yuk

Avenue

Bath backs

The End

Made it

Abbey door

Refreshed

Rooftop pool

Indoor pool

So did we or didn’t we?? I know that’s the question on everyones’ mind. Oh, did we or didn’t we what? Well, I mean – get that one last walk in before the year end, that seven mile stretch into Bath. What do you think? Of course we did!!! Now let me tell you all about it..

The final stretch of the Cotswold Way had been saved up to deliberately be the last walk of the year. We tried to persuade others to join us but in the end it seemed totally apt that it would be just me and Jane. We started this together on 1st Jan this year and by god we’d finish it together! As we know the weather here in the UK has been pretty shocking and so it was touch and go what we’d wake up to on Saturday, which was the day we planned to walk. All week Jane’s forecast thing on her phone had been saying there’d be cloud with a little sun peeking out. Could we really be that lucky? And the answer of course was yes. I’ve been so lucky all year why would this be any different?

We drove down to Bath through some rain but by the time we arrived at our start point we’d got through the heavy dark clouds and emerged into bright blue skies, fluffy white clouds and sunshine. We parked up where we’d last left off, up near the Lansdown monument, got dressed up and set off on our way. I say dressed up because we had been given some items we had to wear today. Firstly the nice Christmas t-shirts that Enid had bought us both, insisting that we wore them on our last walk and then also the matching bobble hats that Sian, my niece, had given us for Christmas too. Fetching aren’t they? Jane’s seems to sit nicely on her head but mine seems just a little bit pert because of my big Allen head!! No, we didn’t look quirky at all. At one point Jane wanted to get a picture of us displaying our t-shirts. This meant considerable stripping off for me and the poor woman walking passed as I was getting re-dressed must have wondered what I was up to. Nice one Enid.

The walk basically meanders around for a few miles at the top of the hill, going through a nice golf course and skirting the racecourse up here. I am sure we could have taken a short cut but of course we had to stick to the CW. There are some terrific views over Bristol especially from the point called Hanging Hill. As you get a bit further round the views change to those of Bath although today it was a little too sunny to see too much this way. I won’t complain though!!

The descent into Bath is very pleasant as you come down the grassy slopes to a part of the city called Weston. This is very popular dog walking territory and we saw more people on this stretch of the CW than we have seen anywhere else ( except when we bumped into the mad crowds doing the overnight forty mile challenge). At the end of the descent it became incredibly muddy and Jane struggled to stay on her feet. Even with our Leki’s and holding each other up, we struggled. As I said earlier, we didn’t look at all quirky!!

Eventually we did arrive at the bottom of the hill and back in civilisation as we entered the edges of the city. Now you might have thought it’d be all straight forward from here. You forget, however, that we’re talking the CW here and this means that if there’s a hill around, then the CW will search it out and make you climb it. So, of course we found ourselves going up again, steeply. I had omitted to spot this and tell Jane who I’d told we’d be going downhill all the way. Oops.

Essentially we were climbing up Sion Hill in Bath so that we could then edge our way into town via the grassy slopes up here. Then we came down through an avenue of chestnut and beech trees and entered into Victoria Park. This was a very busy spot especially as we then walked out below the Royal Crescent. There were loads of tourists lolling about and now we did look a bit out of place. Our bobble hats were removed…but we still stood out a bit. One nice lady smiled at us sympathetically and said “Well done!”. This cheered us up enormously although maybe she thought we’d walked the CW in a couple of days!!

From here we had to walk right into the City centre down some very popular shopping streets which were heaving with post Christmas shoppers. I hated it. There were so many people and even Jane said she wished she was back on the CW. We still were of course but not exactly as we know it. It was like reverse culture shock. Aaaargh, get me out of here!

We then walked the final few streets to Bath Abbey which is the official end (or start) of the CW. Again, it was crowded with people but I posed for some pics by the Abbey door. There was no sign of a plaque or anything marking the CW so we popped into the Tourist Information office to ask where it was. Kindly she told us that there was a large circular plaque on the ground in front of the Abbey. We went back and took some more photos.

So how did it feel then to finish the CW and to reach the end of my challenge? Well, if I’m honest I felt a bit flat. I felt that the crowds of tourists ought to be waving banners and clapping and cheering us. But no, nothing.

Never fear though I had a plan to cheer us up. We walked over to the Bath Thermae Spa. This is a very modern spa right in the heart of the city and I’d set my heart on finishing the walk with a dip in the pools here. Jane was slightly concerned that they’d turn their nose up at us in our muddy boots and dirty clothes but they didn’t care. We walked straight in and got changed into our swimming cosies and robes and found our way up to the open air, roof top pool. In we got and it was gorgeous. Hot, steaming and ever so floaty. Just what we needed to ease our aching muscles and feet. Oh and when the bubbles started it was even better. The only slight disappointment was that a) I’d imagined myself with a glass of something bubbly in my hand and that wasn’t allowed and b) no photography allowed either.

After a while we decided to go and explore the indoor pool which was nice but nowhere near as special as the roof top one. Then finally we went up to the Steam Rooms. These are four round glass rooms where each one has a different fragrance going on: sandalwood, menthol, lemongrass and ginger and franckincense. Oh they were ever so hot and we couldn’t bear to be in any of them for long! I’d highly recommend the menthol one if you have a cold though!

We could have had a nice light meal here in their cafe but we’d seen something else earlier on that caught our hungry eye rather more. Once we got dressed again we wandered back over to the pasty shop which claimed it sold ‘the best Cornish Pasties in the World’. Very popular with Indonesian tourists it turns out.

Now all we needed to do was catch a taxi back up to my car. No problem.

And that was it. We’d conquered the CW, completed the seven miles and I was all done. I think it will take a bit of time to sink in that I’ve finished so no time now for reflections. Those will have to follow.  In the meantime Happy New Year everyone!

Walk 66- Avoiding Beatrix Potter

Calm waters

Up top

Not today

Lovely view

Barn door

Pete on ancient track

Nasty

Fast flowing

Now what?

Snowy tops

Rainbow

Flooded boathouse

As we know I had to the delay the ‘big walk’ with Pete due to inclement weather. We waited until Christmas Eve to see if weather would get any better and in fact no matter what it was going to be like, we were going out! However, when we woke up it seemed rather a pleasant and calm day but the forecast was saying it would get worse again, strong winds and storms and 60% chance of rain by 1pm. How exciting!

I’d had loads of different ideas about where we might walk today but had decided to knock Helm Crag on the head. For starters it wasn’t really a long enough walk in itself and also we risked getting blown off it. I needed to do a seven miler today to try and get my average back upto five miles for the year. I have developed some sort of OCD thing where I need it all to be tidy. Oh dear it’s a good job it’s getting near to the end of the year.

As we left the house Mum looked worried as she thought it was already too windy (even though the tall trees behind their house weren’t moving that much) and Dad warned us to avoid fast flowing rivers.

Today’s walk would take us into the lovely fells and countryside between Lake Windermere and Esthwaite Water, territory most famous as the home of Beatrix Potter. The walk starts from a car park near the ferry on the western shore of Lake Windermere. It was quite a wild drive over to the start and when we parked up, at 10am, we were the only people on the car park.

We got all our gear on and although it wasn’t raining yet, we put our waterproof trousers on. Off we set up through the woods where the path starts out very steeply. It was like being back on the Dolphin Trail- surrounded by ferns but rather wetter. I was soon feeling the burn and had to keep stopping to catch my breath. The back of my calves also started to cramp up. Excellent. This was going well, we’d hardly covered 100m and I was struggling. Still up we went. Pete was, as always , very patient. As I carried on though I started to feel worse, now my stomach began to cramp and by the time I’d reached the top I felt like my bloomin’ waterproof trousers were cutting me in half. I pulled the trousers off leaving me wearing just a flimsy pair of summer trousers. Pete considered whether we should go back but I said we should just walk on and it would wear off. I had no idea if this was true as last time it happened Jane had to come and rescue me from up near Broadway Tower.

Luckily, today it did work. We reached ‘The Station’ which is under renovation by the National Trust and it’s where the day trippers used to come to look out over the lake in Victorian times. The wind was really strong up here and the trees were getting badly blown about. It was slightly nerve wracking but on we went. The good news is that once you climb up that first 500 feet in as many yards it does level out. There are good views over Windermere and the path undulates pleasantly through rusty bracken, verdant ferns and rocks. We could also see the Coniston fells which were lightly covered in snow.

We passed a hotel and then made our way down the lane to Far Sawrey and a typical Lakeland farm. We avoided going towards Near Sawrey, which was home to Beatrix Potter at Hill Top. It’s actually a beautiful house and I have nothing against Peter Rabbit and his friends but today’s walk meant we didn’t go that way. Instead we walked past the small church and through some very wet fields. One particular kissing gate was completely flooded by water. Pete decided to just ‘go for it’ stepping heavily in a very boggy bit and sinking right in up to his left knee. I, on the other hand, sidled up to the gate and crossed via some small hidden stones and stayed perfectly dry. Hare and tortoise comes to mind.

The scenery was lovely and it was great to be out and about and even the wind had calmed down here. We followed some ancient tracks and then arrived back onto another lane. Now the path turns back in towards the lake and we followed the well made path at the side of Cunsey Beck. Now this really was fast flowing water and for a while we walked right alongside it. We even had to cross our own fast flowing tributary where Pete put his serious face on and told me to put my camera away and stop prating about. Around about here we got a bit lost and nearly missed out a chunk of the walk. We retraced our steps and picked up the path again.

At this point, of course, it started to have a downpour and I had to put my waterproofs back on again. It didn’t last long though and then the sun came out and it was gorgeous. The path now goes down to the lakeshore and is supposed to go all along the lake side for about two miles, back to the start. As we walked down we could see ‘white horses’ on the lake and it was very windy again. As we got closer we could see the waves breaking on the beach and it was clear that the path was flooded and there was no way we’d be walking along here. A closer inspection showed that the path was under about two feet of water. Back we went to the lane. We decided to have our lunch here – very civilised salmon and cucumber rolls which Mum had made for us and of course, the obligatory Aldi Stollen bites. Pete and I had our customary Christmas rant about this that and the other- as tradition dictates. I do love a good walk with Pete!!

There were various other points along the way where we potentially could get back down to the lakeshore. One of these is at Cunsey Bridge where they’re doing some sort of work trying to control the river. The beck here was very, very fast flowing indeed and although we thought it might be interesting to try and go down to the lakeshore to cross via the footbridge, the path was blocked and we couldn’t even find a way down.  Oh well probably for the best.

Further on, we tried one more time to get lakeside near some boathouses that have been converted into lodgings (very nice). Sadly there was still no sign of a path and even some of the boathouses looked flooded.

So we finished the walk along the road and I think that with all the little detours we’d added about another mile to the walk. We’d been really lucky with the weather today and although other parts of the country had been devastated by the storms we seemed to have avoided the worst of it up here.

Excellent news, what this means is that all I have left to do now, before the end of the year, is the last stretch of the Cotswold Way….another seven miler…let’s hope the weather picks up for that!

Bonus Christmas Outings

Up The Hoad

Flooded

Mad dog

Pete, an englishman

Stone circle?

Setting out with Dad

Dangers

Bardsea beach

Pete and Dad

Stare bears

In Cartmel

Pub lunch

We’d arrived up at Mum and Dad’s here in the Lake District on Sunday. Pete arrived before us and we’d both been able to avoid the majority of nasty traffic and the really foul weather.

We had planned for me and Pete to do our big walk on Monday but the weather forecast was horrendous, guaranteeing 100% rain all day in Ulverston. Also the threat of some nasty blustery wind. So my plan to climb Helm Crag near Grasmere had to go on hold. Instead I drove my Dad to the dentists in Barrow and then went shopping with Jane to Booths, the local supermarket for the last minute emergency items (sprouts, beer, bread sauce, pork pies of different sizes etc).

The rain really started to come down when I was with Dad and even just filling my car with petrol, I got absolutely soaked. It was blowing a gale with rain sheeting horizontally across the forecourt. Naturally, when I’d done my chores I wanted more of this wild weather and persuaded Pete that we needed to go out. Especially so I could keep up my record of at least one walk per week this year. It was already by now quite late and so we couldn’t go far. I decided that we should climb The Hoad. This is a 450ft hill and has a famous monument on the top that you see as you enter Ulverston, where Mum and Dad have lived for the last 23 years. I’ve never actually climbed up the steep hill to the tower and so now was my chance. We drove down to the car park below the Hoad and walked past the cafe and little kitchen garden. Surprisingly, we were not the only mad dogs out today. The lighthouse looking thing at the top is in fact a monument to Sir John Barrow. Not to be confused with John Barrowman, this fellow was a son of Ulverston born in 1764 and he was a naval administrator and explorer. Of course, the other famous son of Ulverston is Stan Laurel of Laurel and Hardy fame. He has his own more modest monument near the Coronation Hall.

The path spirals up to the top and was rather steep but Pete kept the pace up keen not to finish in the dark. It kept threatening rain but for the most part it stayed away and we made it up to the top quite quickly. It was really windy up here and after a quick turn around the ‘lighthouse’ admiring the views over the town, the Glaxo factory by the sea and the Lakeland fells, we came back down.

When we got back I hadn’t really had enough so we went with Dad down to Bardsea beach and had a short walk along there too. It was going dark by now and we could hear the sounds of the oyster catchers and other unidentifiable birds on the shore. We enjoyed reading the sign that threatened all sorts of danger on this path especially as we’d arrived in the dark! Quite lucky then to get back to the car in one piece.

I was kind of glad in the end that we hadn’t gone for our big walk today. It really was a bit blowy but it was nice to get some fresh air. Pete and I did get to do our big walk on Christmas Eve but I will write about that separately. However, we did also have one more outing on Boxing Day when we all went to visit Cartmel village, home to Sticky Toffee pudding. Even Mum and Jane joined us here.

Although none of these little outings involved walking much distance, I’ve included them here as a bonus. That’s because, although I’ve been focused on completing numbers of walks this year, the best thing about all this has been spending time with friends and family, no matter how far we walk. And for me, that’s what Christmas is all about. Bonus!

Walk 65- Pam’s post party potter

Pam potterers

Ashby Castle

My Jane, Mad Jane, Pam

Girl Guides

Martin and M.Jane

Frogs. Why?

Drying off

Wet look

Happy in the pub

Springers

Puppy love

Gentleman Guy

Last weekend we were invited over to Pam’s in Ashby De La Zouche and her pre-Christmas party.
Having been to one of Pam’s parties earlier in the year (see Walk 45- Draycott Water smells like Venice) we had high expectations of a wild night. It seemed only appropriate that we should try to get as many people as possible to go for a walk on Sunday. As it turned out though the party was a sedate, pleasant affair and I enjoyed drinking champagne all night. That’s just the way we over 50s roll- hurrah! Even Pam managed to stay up past 8:30 and we were all in bed by midnight.

The next day Jane and I arrived from our hotel, back at Pam’s house ready for the walk, as agreed at 10am. Things in the house were a little more laid back and the walkers were still showering and waiting for Guy to cook their full English breakfast. We decided to go for a little drive round as Jane started to feel the effects of the dogs that’d be accompanying us on the walk today. This turned out to be quite a good break as I popped my car into one of those hand cleaning places. It was fab- we had about 7 nice East European chaps working on my car which came out gleaming and it only cost £7 altogether. Excellent service.

The walkers today roped in by Pam were: Pam and Guy, my Jane, Mad Jane and Martin, Emma and Jamie. Emma’s dogs (Molly, Frank and Harry) also joined us. They’re a family of Springer Spaniels and are very lively. Pam had planned for us to take a 4 mile potter around Ashby itself. The weather was not too bad as we set out although I think Mad Jane’s sunglasses were a bit optimistic! Apparently that’s something to do with crows feet prevention. She maybe mad but she’s also very glam!! She’s also very kind as she lent my Jane some walking shoes as I’d forgotten to pack her walking boots in the clean car.

The walk is one which Pam and Guy have done regularly over the past few months. So what is Ashby de la Zouche famous for? Well, it is home town of fictional character Adrian Mole and where Pandora became MP in later years. It is also home to a big United Biscuits factory and of particular interest, where they make Hula Hoops. Not that we could smell them today- disproving Pete’s theory that towns smell of the product they make. Mind you, it was Sunday .(note to self: return on a Tuesday and have a sniff)

We walked across the park where the dogs were let off their leads and ran crazy living upto there energetic name. As we left the park we passed the castle- an English heritage site. Sadly the local tour guide (Pam) was unable to impart too much info about this point of interest (POI). Luckily there was a very informative sign telling us that this was a ‘prominent Royalist stronghold’. There’s a visitor centre here too but today we felt that this was all we needed to know.

Next door there was a very smart looking tennis club which attracted my attention somewhat more that the castle. It had some very nice AstroTurf courts and I wondered if Adrian Mole and Pandora were members. We didn’t walk through the town itself but rather skirted around the edges. We passed the Regional headquarters of the Girl Guides. Pam and I posed for a pic as the only ex guides amongst the group.

Next we passed the St Helens church where there are some unusual patterned shields around the door. The various shields had wheatsheafs, farm implements and then one with three frogs on it. Maybe a reference to the towns connections with France after the Norman Conquests.

We then started to leave the town and walk down a main road. It was here that the weather took a turn for the worse and suddenly it was having an absolute downpour. I’d been spoilt in South Africa and not experienced anything like this for a while now. We put up our hoods and ploughed in. I have to say though, I was enjoying being back outdoors again walking, even in this weather, after being back at work for a week and indoors all day with my laptop.

As we walked along the road I found out that our fellow walker, Emma, was in fact Guy’s sister. You’d never guess this as they don’t look at all alike. Pam explained that Emma had grown up in S Africa with their Mum whereas Guy had chosen to stay in this country with his Dad (after they separated). Emma had only returned to this country five years ago after their mother passed away and when her concerns about security became too severe. Four attacks in a short period in Joburg was enough to convince her the time was up.

We got thoroughly soaked but it wasn’t cold and we were all in good spirits. Especially when we came across the pub!! It would have been rude not to pop in..
Inside Mad Jane and I warmed ourselves up on the radiators trying to dry our trousers. Bad idea ..very irritating On the legs apparently. We all had either a coffee or a ginger wine. Not much hair of the dog going on.

Then we were on our way again and made our way back for the final mile through some fields. This was my chance to catch up with Mad Jane and we chatted about star signs and compatibility. She has a strong belief that it is no use at all a Virgo dating an Aries. We’d already had a pretty comprehensive discussion about camper vans as Emma and Jamie had theirs parked on the front drive. Jane and Martin dream of having a camper van but they enjoy their caravaning in the meantime. This always amazes me as Mad Jane seems like the last person you’d expect to see camping in any form. But good on her- she loves it.

It was all quite civilised and not too muddy. Soon we were walking back down the streets again to Pam and Guy’s house. When we got back there was talk of mulled wine and mince pies but Jane and I were good and got off home as we’d got so much to do to get ready for Christmas having both been away.

I’d really enjoyed this walk, despite the weather, which is good because it looks like it might get even more challenging as we get to the end of the year. What’s that you say, Shefali? Snow…….eek.

And in other news this week….I won the team bake off competition at work. This is a competition that has been running all year and it was my apple, walnut and maple syrup tray bake that won the day. I mention this in connection with walking because I had hoped next year to lose some weight again. As those of you who have followed this blog regularly will realise, I have been having a lovely time and this is not, it turns out, necessarily good for the waistline. I thought maybe next year I’d put this right….but my bake off prize is a whacking great cake cookbook and the recipes look yummy….oh dear….

Walk 64-The Long Walk to…….

Back to the floor

The workers

The office

Optimistic start

Gloomy lane

RIP

Megan on big dune

Push ups

Dune runner

Our view

Here we go again

Go girls

William, Laura, Megan

Awesome and empty

Beach walkers

It’s Sunday and I’m home now after a reasonable trip back from SA. It’s cold here and I’m waiting for Jane to return from Sharm El Sheikh where she’s been having fun with the tropical fish, Joyce and Enid. Have I got the punctuation right there I wonder?

Whilst I wait I have a chance to post my last walk in South Africa. After we returned from the Dolphin Trail we stayed one night at Laura’s house and then we packed up to go down to William’s family beach house at Cannons Rock further along the coast in the Eastern Province. Before we went, I had the chance to go and visit Laura’s workplace and I have to say it was very impressive. As I’ve already said, Laura runs one of Port Elizabeth’s only recycling collection services and she does this with her partner, Louise. Poor Louise had been left holding the fort whilst I dragged Laura off on holiday and it was clearly quite stressful.

The place is full of waste materials – as you might imagine. Paper, cardboard, glass bottles and jars, plastic, cans and goodness knows what else. I had a desperate urge to ‘tidy the place up’ (a bit like I did in India) but I think you’d be fighting a losing battle on that one! Greencycle employs 14 workers in total, some of whom come from the next door Walmer ‘Location’ (or township). We’d talked a lot about the workers and it was nice now to put some names to faces. I helped sort some jam jars for the jam makers- not as easy as it sounds as apparently jam makers are incredibly picky and jars have to be sorted by number, brand and size. Nightmare memory game. Next I had a go at shredding the confidential waste. I went into the room where the girls, doing this particular work, were all busy. Rebecca showed me the ropes on the shredding machine and I was soon away. I think I preferred this work to jam jar sorting! All too soon though it was time to leave.

Having spent some time in the warehouse and office I realised just what a complicated business this is that Laura runs. It’s giving good employment to people locally and it’s obviously extremely hard work keeping on top of it all. I might call her ‘The Womble’ but as I said before I am very proud that she puts all this effort into something she passionately believes in and creates employment at the same time. William also showed me his current property development where he also creates employment for the builders, electricians etc. None of this running your own business though is easy especially here.

Anyway, sorry, got a bit side-tracked there…walking…yes.. so then we drove down to the beach via Addo Elephant Park and I’ve already shared my photos with you from there. Cannons Rock itself is a small village of what seems to be just one long beachfront road. There are houses on either side and nothing much else. William’s house is right on the beach and his parents bought it in 1989 for just 24k rand. It can sleep 14 people and although it needs some work, it is a perfect beach house and estimated now to be worth 2M rand plus.

We (Laura, Megan and William) set off for our walk from here on Friday morning with the aim of walking down to the cannons at the far end of the lane. Then we planned to come back via the beach. However, when we woke up today, William told us the news that very sadly Nelson Mandela had passed away the evening before. We watched a little bit of the coverage on television and were therefore a bit late leaving on our walk and the weather was starting to look suitably somber and grey.

As we walked down the road we admired some of the giant, newer houses and I have to say there was no sign here that a major world event had taken place so close to where we were. Sky News had been taken over by it but here in this corner of the Eastern Province it was as if nothing had happened. I think that everyone was sad but they knew he was very ill and very old so I suppose that it wasn’t exactly a surprise. Megan, on the other hand, had been down to the beach to pay her thanks to ‘Madiba’ writing her message to him in the sand.

As we reached one of the 3 landmarks in the village- the campsite shop- it started to mizzle. We had a look in the shop (v poor retail experience) and then carried on. As we left the rain started to come down properly. I wasn’t exactly dressed for this as it was now rather cold and wet and I was wearing ridiculous shorts and a t shirt. I suggested we should give up and turn back and no one argued! We even had to shelter back at the campsite for a while. Then back at home we settled in for a quiet day and night of playing games and William cooked up an excellent Braai including some very tasty kudu sausages. We also sat and watched the whales playing about splashing and waving to us just in front of our house. Awesome.

The next day the sun was out again and Laura got us all up earlier to have another go at the walk. Off we went again and this time it was gorgeously hot and sunny. It all looked even more lovely as we walked down the lane. The other two landmarks in the village are the tennis courts and the cannons. That’s it. I found it quite strange that there isn’t a selection of little cafes and gifty shops but maybe it’s just a bit too exclusive as William said the people just don’t want it.

Megan led the way today and we soon found ourselves at the halfway mark of the cannons. These are believed to be from some old portuguese shipwrecks. Then we went down onto the beach and headed back. This had to be one of the most stunning beaches I’ve ever seen. It is vast, empty and beautiful with rocks, pools, dunes and sandy bits for swimming (mind the sharks). There was hardly anyone else on this beach and it is the start of the summer holidays. Amazing.

It was hard work walking along by the waves but we stuck to our task and stayed on the beach until we found our way all the way back to William’s house. As we plodded through the sand William told me about some of the houses and their owners as well as some of the history behind the farms around here.

The total walk was 3.1 miles today and it was good to have a second chance at this walk. As soon as we’d finished we had to pack up and leave for PE. Then the guys dropped me at the airport and we said our farewells. I’d had a fantastic trip and I was sad to leave -it all seems a bit surreal now.

Finally today, I liked this quote from Nelson Mandela that I saw in the papers here, as it makes me realise just how lucky I am to have been able to do all the walks I’ve done this year.

“I always knew that someday I would once again feel the grass under my feet and walk in sunshine a free man.” Nelson Mandela, Long Walk to Freedom

Bonus Elephant Walk

Okay, let’s be honest, we weren’t walking. However, when we visited the Addo Elephant Park here in the Eastern Cape, the elephants most certainly were. Right next to our car. Here are some of my pics.

Walk 63- The Dolphin Trail part 2

Carefully down

Amphitheatre

Anti sunburn wear

Whale behind you!

Rock hopper

Laura and Jane

Parallel lines

At the gate

Human again

Made it

Luxury

Great group

Eventually the peacock did wake Laura up and so bright and early we went over to breakfast. There was no Internet access at MMR which was slightly annoying. I think they just pretend they have it because they used some excuse about cloud cover as the reason it was down. I was pleased to report that I didn’t ache at all after the previous day and Laura said the same.

By 9am we were ready to go again. I think if it had been sunny we might have been more keen to stay by the pool but it wasn’t, it was rather dull and overcast. At least it wasn’t still raining though. Today’s walk started with a steep climb back down to the sea through the woods. It was quite slippery because of the rain and there were lots of steps again made with logs. In other words there were lots of places to trip or slip- the logs, the rocks ,the roots, the mud!

However, we made our way very slowly down and all arrived in one piece. The trouble with down bits is that it does make your feet rub in your boots. Laura decided this was giving her a blister under her big toe and I came to the rescue here with a blister plaster. My own feet felt sore but I decided best to leave things alone.

Today it was also very muggy and we got terribly hot climbing down and the day was only just beginning. Marius had told us that it was 5 hours of walking before lunch today. At the bottom we reached a similar spot to the lunch spot the day before. Right by the sea and with great parallel rows of rock in stunning colours. We continued to walk along the sea now, across rocks and then up and down through woodland. We passed though the amphitheatre which is a huge rock hollow and cave.

From here Laura and I took the lead as she decided that it was best to try and stay ahead of the group today and not to lag behind. We climbed high up out of here and Marius spotted dolphins and then whales. They were both a long way out and I didn’t really see the dolphins myself. Then we came across a sandy bit with a stream and waterfalls. Henry told us was otter alley. They are freshwater otters but he said they actually hadn’t been seen for a while.

We had a break for some snacks at a spot with particularly huge boulders. Here we sat and ate our apple and energy bars. This was a welcome break and luckily the rain that had started soon went away whilst we sat here. The flowers and plants along our way today were amazing and varied between typical English, country garden plants like forget me not and geranium to more exotic forest orchids and canna Lillies. The variety you see in just two days walking is quite incredible and it made it all very pretty.

We had some more spotting of whales and then at one point, a small pod of bottle nosed dolphins swam right along the waterline. I was quite high when this happened and had a good view. Laura, who was back with the rest of the group, kept shouting ‘where are they? ‘ and I very helpfully replied several times ‘they’re just behind the big rocks and the mushy water.’  I was very excited. This strangely seemed to leave the group slightly confused and looking in all directions.

Next we came back down to the rocks and there was a choice to go swimming in one of the big rock pools. It did look tempting but again I’d not brought my cozzie. No one else wanted to swim either and Laura said she would have but didn’t like the look of the added bonus of climbing up and down the rocks to get there.

This next bit was one of my favourite stretches of the whole walk as we strode purposefully along the parallel rocks. It was really beautiful as the orange and cream/grey colours of the rocks and lichen rubbed shoulders with the blue sea and sky. By now we were all easily able to cope with this terrain although every now and then Mariuss held his stick out to support us as we climbed down an awkward bit. Nice man. I loved the way that we could now do this rock hopping with great confidence not like the first day we arrived, when I was clambering over the rocks on all fours.

Next Henry told me and Laura we now had just two more small ups and downs before the big climb up ahead of lunch. These passed uneventfully and soon there was no more putting it off- we needed to climb up and out. We could see our initial target high up above- a kind of gate between two rocky outcrops standing above the tree line.

By now the sun was out and we set off partly through trees and partly not. They’d told us this climb was steep but not as bad as Stielkop (Steep Hill) the day before. However, unfortunately they also said this one was longer. I asked for some extra water only to be told they had just one small bottle left between us all. I said we should keep that for emergencies. Running out of water was not good though and the whole group looked slightly concerned as it was still a long way until lunch and more water.

The climb up was steep and very tiring. I did most of this by myself as I really had no energy to talk to anyone else. Laura meanwhile had slipped to the back with Henry and Bruce and I could hear them chatting away behind me. Even after we made it to the ‘gate’ there was another really steep, exposed bit before we entered the woods again. I was incredibly slow getting up here.

Eventually though we all made it and the path now flattened out through the deep woods. Once again this was tick territory and today I did find two on my trousers but none on me thank goodness. The guides told us it was now about 20 minutes to lunch but it turned out to be much more than this as we walked through pine forests. I really, really needed water now as did others and Marius rationed out the remaining bottle of water until it ran out. Then Bruce shared his half bottle with the more needy until that went too. I was on the verge of having a sense of humour failure when finally we came across a picnic table. But it wasn’t laid and there was no-one else about. It turned out this was just a joke picnic table. Yeah right, very funny.

On we went for probably another 20mins. Now everyone was pretty fed up and people started to worry about Michaela and her lack of water intake. We’d used up all our supplies and so it was just in time that we came across a 4×4 vehicles blocking our path. This was it, the sign to turn off and we found our picnic lunch all laid out on three tables. To start with I could not speak and definitely could not eat. I just downed some really cold fruit juice too quickly and then some slightly warmer water which Jane gave me. Apparently you are not meant to drink the really cold stuff too quickly . Oops, too late….

After a few minutes I started to feel slightly better and drank a lovely cup of tea made by Laura. Laura, who ,by the way, now uses birch bark in her tea instead of sugar. She also thinks that not using deodorant is a good idea but that using garden snails to treat skin conditions is perfectly acceptable. Cracker– it’s time you came to see her to sort her out! I also ate some quiche, a salad kebab stick and some bread. This was followed by a delicious slice of milk pudding. Kind of like a custard tart and very lovely.

Now we all started to liven up a bit and after a decent break we were ready to set off again. It was now just a two hour walk to our next desination. The Fernery and it’s swimming pool to be precise. The walking now became much easier and we all returned to being human again. I walked with Michaela, who works in the tourist industry, and Jane the Doctor, who is both an emergency Dr and Sports Physician. She was also the Doctor for the entire length of the torch relay for the Vancouver Winter Olympics. We had a great chat all the way to The Fernery and the time flew by as we compared notes on life changing moments. Meanwhile, I had rather abandoned Laura who was struggling with overall tiredness but who arrived at the Fernery not long after us.

It had been an incredibly tough days walking especially the bit just before lunch. We’d walked 6.2 miles in total in muggy, muggy heat. But we’d made it and we were all absolutely delighted.

More than that we were really impressed by our latest residence. The lodge here has amazing verandas overlooking a waterfall and deep gorge down to the sea. Our individual chalets were just outstanding. Ours was huge and with the most amazing bathrooms with windows that folded open meaning that you could have your shower or bath entirely open to the elements and baboons (not that we saw any).

After some excitement we arranged to meet Jane down at the jacuzzi instead of the swimming pool as this looked a lot more inviting. The jacuzzi itself was outside and overlooking the waterfall. There was young couple in there but we soon scared them off as Laura and I got in. We found out the next day that it was their wedding day..oops poor things. Jane, Laura and I sat in the jacuzzi putting the world to rights with a glass of wine and having a great laugh too. I think we could have happily stayed here all night but we had to go and get ready for dinner…

So we’d done it then- completed the Dolphin Trail. Not the longest walks I’ve done this year but almost certainly the toughest. The second days stretch was x miles. I don’t think I could have enjoyed this earlier in the year. I probably would have made it still but I would have ached like crazy whereas really now I don’t. Laura also did spectacularly well to compete the course as did the rest of our group. Earlier on in the day Marius had told us that quite a lot of people do give up after the first day and that made us feel pretty proud that we’d kept going and now we were at the finish. We enjoyed our last dinner together and had a nice night. It’s great that we’d had such a friendly group to walk with and how quickly we’d bonded.

The next day we had breakfast, visited the Fernery packing room and then travelled back to Storms River Mouth by 4×4. We took the old road through the pine forests and woods and finally arrived back in civilisation. We had our group photo taken in front of the view of where we’d just walked. We were impressed with ourselves as we looked back and then went our separate ways, sad that it was all over.

Walk 62- The Dolphin Trail part 1

Setting off

Small beach

Suspended

Henry looking back

Viewpoint

Protea view

Lunch spot

Rock pools

Swim anyone?

Laura and me

Laura still breathing

Heaven

Today the Dolphin Trail proper started and whilst I may have said ‘bring it on’ previously, in truth, I was quite anxious. Standing looking at where we were due to walk, I realised just how high those cliffs were. I hoped that we would be up to it.

We got up in time to go for breakfast at just after 8am. As we know I hadn’t really slept so that wasn’t brilliant. For breakfast I ordered the healthy option whereas Laura went for the full English. Both were very good.

We met our guides for the day, Marius and Henry, who were very nice ranger types. We were all ready to go by about 9:30 and our bags would go in the bakkie up to our next stop – Misty Mountain Reserve and we were on our way.

The walk initially goes along a boardwalk to the suspension bridges. It goes through indigenous forest and is quite gentle, although as soon as we started out I realised it was going to be hot and I probably wouldn’t be needing that fleece I’d stuffed in my backpack! The suspension bridges are quite exciting and since Jane and I came before, they’ve built two new, smaller ones. They wobble quite a lot but are very sturdy.

On the other side we reached a small cobble beach where Marius chose himself a nice stick from the driftwood and encouraged the others to do the same. Laura and I were the only ones with proper walking poles. I’d brought Jane’s over for Laura to borrow but no sooner had I repaired it, after she nearly pulled it apart, than she lost her balance and decided it wasn’t for her!! She packed in into her backpack and continued to be quite lethal with it all day.

The path from here starts to climb steeply. It is after all a cliff face. However, it is a really well maintained trail and they have put in lots of steps made from logs on many of the steep up and down bits. We were told by Marius to take the climb at our own pace and indeed we did. It was tough and we kept stopping for breathers or to take a photo and although we did lag behind the main group quite a bit, we would soon catch up with them. Every now and then Marius would stop to show us an interesting plant or other. This gave us chance for another breather and to catch up with the others. He’d told us that when we reached the bench we were getting near the top and it was a big climb.

We did eventually make the bench though and the views back to where we’d set out were amazing. From here the path did continue to climb up but slightly less steeply. I found this stretch pretty hard going and I think it was mostly in full sunshine so pretty hot. Eventually things levelled out and we reached a lookout point. This again had tremendous views and we were now very high up. We were greeted here by a bakkie from Misty Mountain Reserve and they had laid out refreshments for us. Fruit juice and apples and water – it was a very welcome break.

Now it was make or break I guess. This was our last chance to say ‘No not for me’ but of course none of the group did and on we went. Now the path continued on the level for quite a long period which was nice and we started to walk through Fynbos biome. This smells lovely and fresh and Marius told us that it can consist of 300 different species in just a small area.

We were warned to be careful on the next bit as the path went close to the edge and the wind was getting up. To be honest we couldn’t really see how the path could get any closer to the edge but it did and I did have to hold onto my hat in the breeze.

Next we started the long descent to our lunch spot. This was more like walking through an English wood . There was grass and leaves everywhere it was like being back on the Cotswold Way. We were also told that this was tick country and every now and then we had to stop and check we didn’t have any ticks. Yuk! Luckily I didn’t get any. They all seemed to be attracted to one of our group – Bruce – but only to his pale cream trousers. The walk down was steep and in parts there weren’t very good steps. It was here that I suddenly heard Ann slipping behind me. She’d been using a piece of wood as a staff but it didn’t go into the ground like the Leki and so wasn’t really very good. She slipped quite spectacularly (maybe because she was wearing white trainers) and although she pretended she was ok I think she was a bit shaken and she also grazed her arm quite badly. Jane the Doctor came to the rescue as she seems to be carrying all her emergency supplies with her. It was lucky that I was a few steps ahead of Ann at this point as otherwise I think she would have taken me out too.

The path continued down and after crossing a stream we made it down to the rocks and the sea at the bottom. It really was a stunning spot. The rocks are very jagged and carved into parallels. There was a huge pool where sometimes the hikers go swimming but Marius said it was too cold today. Hadn’t brought our cozzies anyway…

We ate our picnic lunch here and then sat about a bit. Eventually I decided to join the others in climbing down over the rocks to get near to the big waves. Once again here they crash tremendously ashore and all along the big pool they form temporary cascades as water is left foaming over the rocks. Amazing sight and I ended up taking lots and lots of photos. There were pretty yellow flowers and rust coloured rocks and it was all very photogenic.

Of course the only problem now was that we were back down by the sea. Misty Mountain Resort is back at the top and so we knew what was coming next. A mighty great climb back up again. This time the path was extremely steep. We climbed lots of sets of steps followed by a short flat bit as we zig zagged our way back up. Again Laura and I lagged behind but not too far. It was seriously hot by now and my Lucozade energy drink was just about keeping me going. I got another bottle of water from Marius as I’d decided I needed to drink more water in this heat. Laura had started to go quite red in the face too. I am sorry to say we were quite sweaty in fact I’d go as far as to say we felt like we were melting. We think it was about 29 degrees… still we kept going and it was very encouraging to look back and see how quickly we were climbing.

This is the bit where the ‘Talky’ part got forgotten although to be fair, I’d been quite quiet all day! It just was that intense heat that I found quite energy sapping. Others in the group were more chatty and of course the guides tried their best to educate us along the way. We found all sorts of plants – some of which had practical uses such as Witch-hazel, Bushman’s bed and the Inkflower. Others just had names that described exactly what they looked like such as the Conebush and the Blossom Tree.

At the top of the steep bit the path levelled out again as we walked through more forest along the tops of the cliffs and then inland a bit. The guides had told us that it was an easy two hour walk from here to Misty Mountain Resort. This was about right and eventually we knew we were getting close when we heard the cry of peacocks as they keep several of them here. After crossing another stream, where Laura did a pirouette thing trying to show me something and almost knocking herself and Bruce into the stream, we came across a fence. On the other side of here we entered farmland and the last stretch of today’s walk.

Upon arrival at Misty Mountain Reserve we were quite exhausted and were greeted by the very welcome site of a cold, mint drink and then a nice cup of tea and a huge, gorgeous slice of chocolate cake. We were taken to our cabin which was really lovely and after a short breather we made our way to the swimming pool. We joined Jane having a swim and despite being very cold (refreshing, Jane said) it felt wonderful on our poor, aching bodies. We then lay on the sun beds and enjoyed the late afternoon sunshine.

We’d walked just 4.3 miles today although with two big ups and one steep down it felt a lot more. We joined the others for dinner and this is where the real chatty took place. Laura and I nearly formed a splinter group but in the end decided not to be anti-social. They’re a really good group of people and so it was a pleasant evening. I slept well last night after putting earplugs in to block out the sound of the wind and the rain….and as I write this the peacock is doing its best to wake Laura up for breakfast. Let’s see what today’s 10km walk brings…..

Bonus walk- Warm up wander with The Womble

Laura at Big Tree

Big Tree

Fungi

Storms River Mouth

Big Wave

Crash!

The Impaler

Dassie

Intrepid explorers

Or Laura as others like to call her. Yes, after more than 24 hours travel I finally managed to arrive in Port Elizabeth via Paris and Joburg. I really can’t quite work out how it took that long and I blame it all on Air France. Let’s just leave it at that.

It was amazing to see Laura and her daughter Megan again – all grown up. That’s Megan – not Laura obviously. We’re all still waiting for that to happen. Haha. I should explain. Laura is one of my oldest friends from school and she moved to South Africa 13 years ago now. Her little girl Megan was born out here after Laura met Dave the Game Ranger.

Anyway she now lives in PE and runs Greencycle which is a recycling collection business. Hence I
Iike to call her The Womble. She works incredibly hard and I am very proud of her – although I’d never tell her that of course. Megan is now 12 and very tall and elegant. I also met William who is Laura’s boyfriend. He’d been out playing golf but came home for his tea. I know people back home have been waiting to hear the word and I can report people that he seems very nice and normal.

Well that was all on Saturday and then yesterday Laura and I packed up ready to start our walk – The Dolphin Trail. This is a walk that runs along the Tsitsikamma National Park coastline and it goes in the opposite direction to the world famous Otter Trail. I’d quite fancied walking the Otter Trail originally but it’s five days of serious hiking, carrying all your own supplies and sleeping in shacks. I’d also read that you have to wade across waist high rivers and that just didn’t sound like us. When I found the Dolphin Trail I thought ‘hmm, this is more like it.’ Two days of hiking, bags transported from one place to the next, luxury accommodation and the guides carry all you water etc for the day. It’s also know as the Princess Trail or The Slack Packers’ trail.

So this what we drove two hours over here to Tsitsikamma to do and more of which later. For now though we didn’t really have anything to do other than to check into our Forest Cabin and go for a little potter. Our first stop was before we entered the National Park as we went off to see The Big Tree. It was indeed a big tree and we had a little walk along the boardwalk to see it. It’s in fact a giant yellowwood and was impressive.

After this we went and checked into our accommodation and had a drive along to Reception. We had a spot of lunch and then decided to leave the car and walk back to our hut. The views here are incredible as anyone who has been here will know. The actual spot is known as Storms River Mouth and there is a campsite and cabins all along the edge of the coast. It has to be one of the most scenic campsites in the world. Laura and I have stayed here before and the thing you come to see here is the sea. The waves here can be massive but are always a great sight as they smack against the rocks and explode on impact into huge clouds of spray. It’s stunning and we walked all along the camp and road admiring the waves.

Back at our hut we sat on the balcony looking out to sea. It would have been nice here but today it was incredibly windy and it actually got quite cold. At one point Laura tried to create a windbreak with the plastic table but it blew across the deck nearly impaling us on its plastic legs. We decided to retreat inside.

Eventually we crept out again and decided to venture out onto the rocks. They are quite sharp and we precariously made our way down to get closer to the waves at various points. I had entirely the wrong type of shoes on for this sort of malarky and scrambled about on the rocks like a fifty year old woman. After checking out some Rock Hyrax (Dassie) – nearest living relative to the elephant – it was time to go back and get ready for our briefing and dinner. We walked back down to Reception to and meet our fellow walkers for the next two days.

The briefing pretty much consisted of being told be there at 9am for breakfast and then signing our lives away on some sort of indemnity. Then we all had dinner together. Our group would consist of:
Bruce and Ann – visiting vegetarians from Iowa
Jane – a doctor from Canada here for a meeting in Joburg that she extended for a month
Michaela and Michael from Germany who looked young and have very long legs.

It all took too long to serve our dinner but it was very nice and there was loads of it. After this we drove back to the cabin to try and sleep. I say ‘try’ because it turns out that’s very difficult when it sounds as if those huge waves are about to pound into your cabin in the middle of the night. Something I seem to have forgotten from last time…..

Not really one proper walk then but a nice little warm up for our big two days. Bring it on.