As I sit on my inflatable sofa writing this post I have two weeks and thirty six minutes until I land in Portugal to start my next adventure.
My preparation for this Camino has been markedly different from the last one. From January to April I walked as much as possible, along the coast, knee deep on muddy trails and up and over ridiculously big hills to prepare me for the Camino Frances.. This time I haven’t had chance to train at all.
My non-hiking girlfriend Claire has done a couple of days out walking without me and has discovered she rather enjoys it. I decided for her birthday I would get her some new boots and a pole (she falls over A LOT).. I could tell by the way she asked “what do I need a bloody pole for?” That she was suitably impressed with my present.
We decided on a 14 (ish) km circular trail, part of a larger walk known as the wanderlust way, through the Lincolnshire Wolds.
We parked in Barnoldby le Beck and set off toward Hatcliffe with our poles tapping merrily. (I’m one of the annoying people who’s lost the rubber tip so mine is extra annoying).
We strolled along through a few small villages (Hatcliffe, East Ravendale, Ashby cum Fenby, Brigsly)..separated by farmland hoping at some point we would encounter a pub for a well earned shandy and a cheese sandwich (even in England I crave a walking “bocadillo de queso”).. (spoiler alert.. we never found a pub).
It was a pleasant enough walk, a nice sunny day through quiet English countryside with no major dramas (I definitely wasn’t hoping that Claire fell into a ditch just so I could take photos for the blog).
By the end of the walk I could feel my leg muscles starting to stiffen up.. a reminder that I haven’t done enough training for Portugal, but I guess I’ll have to just start slow for a couple of days until I get used to the distance again.
On a more positive note, Claire loved walking with a pole.. I remember thinking I wouldn’t like using a pole and then giving it a go and loving it.. Claire’s experience was the same.. for those of you that haven’t tried a pole I suggest you give one a go.. if nothing else they lessen the chances of you falling into ditches.
I doubt I’ll get chance for any more walks before I set off so I guess I’m technically ready as I’ll ever be.. I’m hoping the next 14 days fly by..
I’ll leave you with a lovely photo of Claire from when we stopped for a sit down in Ashby cum Fenby because it’s her birthday.. (and because I never got the photo of her head first in a ditch unfortunately.. errm I mean fortunately).
Happy walking!
If you would like to support me in my Camino across Portugal you can do so by donating through the link below.
A Camino Adventure 