John Hee has written about how he suddenly noticed the seasons beginning to turn; there is Spring in his garden.
Yes, the sap is rising and nature is counting down to flourish once more.
Similarly, there are three hundred walkers from all over the world who may not know that, as of today, they are one hundred days away from their start on the west coast of Scotland for the TGO Challenge.
There is one American chap (Daryl) who is now packing and repacking his rucksack trying to squeeze everything in, who is now only eight days away from starting out from John O' Groats on his epic trip down to Land's End. (A JOGLE walk) This is his second go - having just done a LEJOG last year!
Then there are Mick & Gayle who are now 76 days away from setting off from Land's End for John O'Groats on their 1252 miler.
These are the days of preparation; of checking through the kit, trying out the new boots, and easing the body back into some sort of shape where it manages the days clambering up the hills and through the bogs without protesting too much.
These are days of nervous apprehension: Wondering if they have bitten off more than they can chew. But the planning will win through. At the end of their hikes, they will look back and smile at all those imagined terrors of this time.
Good luck everyone!
Maybe its about time 100 of them got their routes into Uncle Roger!
ReplyDelete"Cast them out!" I say. Make room for those suffering on the stand-by list.
ReplyDelete:-)
Having said that, I seem to recall that my first route, all those years ago, only just made it into Uncle Roger with a day or so to spare....