Sunday, September 23, 2007
Ain't No Mountain High Enough......
Well...maybe there is one - or two...or three......but not Benny!
Did you think I was lost then?? Sorry for delay in posting this final entry but have been waiting to upload pictures from a water logged camera. 'Water Logged' you say - 'how so'. Well, true to form, when Sturdy takes to the mountains the rain clouds are sure to follow. And last Saturday was no exception!
It was a bright sunny morning and I and around 35 other walkers gathered in the garden of the Ben Nevis Inn for our safety briefing before heading off on our charity walk for Marie Curie Cancer Care. The mountain guides were very clear in their talk - if you don't have waterproofs - you're not going! I was really surprised at how many people had turned up with out them and were, in fact, wearing casual trousers or tracksuits and hardly seemed equipped for walking to the summit of Britain's highest mountain. So, while part of the group waited for friends and colleagues to return with waterproofs, I headed off with another part of group ready for the big walk. We started off at 10am - at 10.13 the rain started and stayed with us for the rest of the day! 
The leader maintained a good pace but one of the group found it hard 
to keep up so, in true, would be aspiring mountain leader style - and not being interested in a race, I walked with her and tried to help her make it to the half way point. The problem seemed to be over strained calf muscles but, together, we made it. But it was grim - windy, raining and cold. At the half way point we were given another 'pep' talk and reminded that from here-on-in, if one wanted to turn back, we all had to turn back. My companion to the half way point decided not to continue and I admire her for taking the decision. I and the others decided to continue our battle against the elements and slowly - very slowly - made our way towards the summit. The weather was appalling - the wind picked up to gale force, the cloud drop, the rain got heavier, the cold bit deep and when we finally made it to the top, at about 2.30pm, I really could care less! We could just about see each other, never mind anything else and we only remained there for a few minutes. Then began the long, slow trudge back down - rain beating in the face. At one point my hands were so cold I could just about hold onto my poles - but I wasn't let go of them for anything - at times these were the only thing that stopped me being blown over.
After 8 and a half hours I finally made it back to the Inn, where my mother was waiting with a big grin, a bowl of soup and better still - a nice warming whisky! Oh yes, and a DVD she'd bought me in the visitor centre of the Ben Nevis walk and the views you can see on a good day - if you're lucky!
I can honestly say this was the most challenging thing I've ever done - physically and emotionally - but I did it. Yes....I actually did it. And it was only because of the extreme weather conditions that it was such a battle - otherwise the training and preparation paid off.
So, mission accomplished! Only a year ago I'd never done any real hill-walking but since I took up the quest to become a proper 'hill-walker type' I've learnt about safety, first aid, navigation, environmental issues, scrambling and endurance. And I've met some fantastic people and had some real adventures. I'm fitter, happier and healthier and that's how I intend to stay. And I love the great outdoors!!
Ben Nevis really brought home the fact that I am not a mountaineer and a hard core hill-walker/climber. I'm interested in the beauty of the landscape, of walking in breathtaking places and in having fun with friends and family. Last weekend, despite the bad weather there were, apparently, about 500 people on the summit - it was like Piccadilly Circus - and that's not for me. In future, I'll be looking for those quieter, less-frequented hills and peaks that I can explore with Sean and Basil, Mum and Pat and others I meet on the way. And I'm gonna have adventures and I'm gonna be out there - but in my own time, in my own way and far away from the maddening crowds.
Thanks for following my journey - hope it's raised a smile and/or an eyebrow or too and I hope you find your own path on the hills. Take care, be happy and keep walking - I will be.
So, in the words of Bugs Bunny....'that's all folks'.
Sturdy
Wednesday, September 12, 2007
The Road Is Long.....
With many a winding bend........or so they tell me!
Friday, September 07, 2007
The Final Countdown....
Leaving on a jet plane........
Yes, only a week to go and I'll be flying off to bonnie Scotland for my final challenge in my first stages of becoming a competent, happy hillwalker and head for the summit of Ben Nevis.
August was a bit of a wash out what with weather, family commitments and an extreme lack of real walking but I was able to keep up the general fitness and think I'm ready for next week- I think it's going to be more of a mental battle. Mind you, having said that, I've been having bad pains in my hip joint (left side) for a couple of weeks now - I know I've just had a birthday but come on.....I'm too young for that.......aren't I!!! As such, been taking it easy this week - resting up before a final boost next week before the big walk. So I haven't been out doing much for the past month but my friend Pat has - and boy did she go for it.
'Hi, I'm Sturdy Girl's friend Pat-from-Somerset. Last week another friend and I did a three-day 36.5 mile walk called the Coleridge Way. This is a newish trail, based on a walk that the poet Samuel Taylor Coleridge did from his cottage in Nether Stowey to Porlock. It's a fabulous route, going through the Quantocks (England's first Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty), then the less well-known Brendon Hills and finishing in Exmoor National Park. We printed off a brilliantly detailed itinerary and map and found it easy to follow, particularly as little quill-feather symbols appear on all the signposts. It's a reasonably tough walk due to lots of long ascents, but we were really lucky with the weather. Thanks to Sturdy Girl's advice I was properly equipped with good boots, lightweight walking trousers and especially comfortable socks. I even used a borrowed walking pole in some places to get me over uneven ground and a few streams. Another bit of SG's advice also proved invaluable, namely to carry a pack of nuts, seeds and raisins for much-need energy boosts throughout the day. We even remembered to do some stretching exercises before getting into the car at the end of the walk each day. I'm no spring chicken (next year I'll get the bus-pass), and at the end of the final walking day I vowed "never again!", but within 24 hours I was starting to wonder where my next long-distance trail might lead. I'd never before done three consecutive days of walking, so physically it was hard, it was sometimes painful (a blister, a dodgy knee episode, a couple of rather scary slips and three twisted ankles), and totally exhausting, but emotionally it's chock full of satisfaction, excitement and, I must confess, more than a little smugness. I did it! Thanks, Sturdy Girl, for your encouragement and support.'
Well done Pat and Rachel - proud of you both.
As my little blog is nearing it's end (sob!) and love to know if my mini adventures and/or insights have made any difference to you - why not drop me a line - I'd love to hear your story.
And don't forget - it's not too late to sponsor my efforts next week - all funds raised will go to Marie Curie Cancer Care and you can donate at: www.justgiving.com/sturdygirl.
All for now.
Sturdy