Gary's Coast to Coast Walk 2012: April 2012

Saturday 21 April 2012

Training Walk 20.04.12

Had to cut my training walk short today as I had problems with my knee coming down from Old John in Bradgate Park. I did just over 5 miles today in 2 hours 15 minutes, heading north out of Cropston, across to Swithland Wood, and through Bradgate Park. I felt my knee go coming downhill, and decided it would be better to head for home and rest it until my next training walk, when I intend to walk at least 16 miles. Also, because my phone has had to go in for repair I don't have any photos to show either!

Great tunes on the MP3 player today included Radio 4's The News Quiz, 'National Express' by The Divine Comedy and 'Hot Tamales' by The Ukulele Orchestra of Great Britain. And when I got home the tune I played on the Ukulele was 'Hot Tamales' by The Ukulele Orchestra of Great Britain!

Check out the link - it's a great song!

Cheers

Monday 16 April 2012

Latest Route

Here's a copy of my latest route information to give you an idea of where and how far I'm walking.

Managed to book a B&B using a great site run by an old school friend of mine, Mark Harrington. Check out his site http://www.bedandbreakfasts.co.uk if you need to find some accommodation.

Cheers!

Friday 6 April 2012

Training Walk # 6 06.04.12

Wow! Completed my own Three Peaks Challenge Leicestershire style!

The three highest points in Leicestershire - The War Memorial in Bradgate Park, Beacon Hill and Bardon Hill all bagged and over 16 miles walked. What a big day!

Was begging the rain to hold off all day and it did. Started at Bradgate Park Newtown Linford entrance, and walked up to Woodhouse Eaves, across Broombriggs Farm, Beacon Hill, under the M1, through Charley Valley to Bardon Hill, over to Markfield, and back to Newtown Linford.

Took some pics: -

View from the top of Beacon Hill - the shadow is the trig point

The 'Old Man of the Beacon' - see the face?

Had to cross the field full of cows - they were giving me evils!

Phew! Made it!

Came across the skeleton of a sheep - the farmer told me it had been killed by another animal . . . Could the Leicestershire Big Cat have struck again? Don't worry - I reported it immediately to www.bigcats.org.uk!

Nice arty shot of a pylon near Markfield

Crossing the M1 - practising for crossing the M6 on the Coast to Coast

Check out today's route here:

Training Walk 06.04.12

Feet started hurting at about 10 miles but pushed on through. I was thinking that it was amazing how, when you think you haven't got any more inside you, you can keep going when you have to. It also made me think again about the reason why I'm putting myself through this - our babies. It's coming up to the anniversary and even though life goes on I always think of the babies we lost, particularly at this time of year.

Doing these longer distances is really paying off as it's giving me a really good idea of how I'm going to feel when I do the walk for real.

MP3s that kept me going included 'Clocks' by Coldplay, various tracks by the Ukulele Orchestra of Great Britain and 'Interesting Drug' by Morrissey.

When I do the walk in August I will be taking my Ukulele with me, so if anyone would like to sponsor me per song, I'm putting a playlist for the walk together as we speak. I'll publish the list on here as soon as it is finished. Tune played on Ukulele today when I got home - 'Happiness Pie'.

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Thanks for taking the time to visit my website.

So why am I raising money for the Miscarriage Association?

Someone has to. They need a relatively small amount of money to keep going every year, and the work they do is really essential.

In 2009 and 2010, Helen and I lost 2 babies in the space of 5 months. The loss we felt was immense and still is.

So, in 2012 I will be completing Wainwrights Coast to Coast walk, from St Bee's Head on the Cumbrian coast, to Robin Hoods Bay on the North East coast, a walk of approximately 200 miles.

It should take about two weeks and I will be camping whenever possible to keep the costs down.

You can donate by jumping to my JustGiving page

Don't feel you have to give lots -

every penny really does help.

Send the website address to everyone you know - all I need is for 1000 people to give £1 each and I've made my target.

Donating through JustGiving is simple, fast and totally secure. Your details are safe with JustGiving – they’ll never sell them on or send unwanted emails. Once you donate, they’ll send your money directly to the charity and make sure Gift Aid is reclaimed on every eligible donation by a UK taxpayer. So it’s the most efficient way to donate - I raise more, whilst saving time and cutting costs for the charity.

So please dig deep and donate now.

Thank you so much.

So Who's the Fat Bloke?

Hi. I am a 38 year old primary school teacher who lives in Cropston, just north west of Leicester with my wife, Helen and 5 year old son, Lachlan. I've been walking in Leicestershire, Yorkshire, the Lake District, Cornwall, Derbyshire and the Malvern Hills, and love being outdoors. I've been camping in most of these places and in Norfolk and Devon. I enjoy playing the Ukulele as often as I can, singing, darts, golf and growing my own veg.

I'm looking forward to completing the walk, blisters and all, and being able to say that even while enjoying a great outdoor experience, I can raise money to help others who have been through the same experience as Helen and I. And yes - I will be taking my Ukulele with me and I'm hoping someone might sponsor me for a song played at each stop along the way!

What is Wainwright's Coast to Coast?

The Wainwright Society says this about the Coast to Coast:

'A Coast to Coast Walk was devised by Wainwright himself, and set out in his 1973 guidebook to the route.

The route is a 192-mile (although according to a recent re-measuring the real distance is almost 220 miles) unofficial, long distance footpath in Northern England. It passes through three contrasting national parks: the Lake District National Park, the Yorkshire Dales National Park, and the North York Moors National Park.

Wainwright suggested a way of breaking the walk miles into stages, each of which to be completed in a day. With one or two rest days, this makes the route fit into a two-week holiday. However, Wainwright explicitly stated that he did not intend people to necessarily stick to these stages or even to his route: for example, by reducing day-lengths to 10 or 12 miles, the walk becomes a much easier three-week trip with time to 'stand and stare'.

In 2004 the walk was named as the second best walk in the world according to a survey of experts.'

I'll be breaking the walk into 14 stages, walking an average of 14 miles a day. However, this varies a lot - my shortest day is only 8 miles and my longest day will be 20 miles.

Whichever way you cut it this walk is one of the best long distance walks in the world and I'm very lucky (as well as a bit bonkers?) to be attempting it this August. Let's hope I enjoy walking it as much as I've enjoyed organising it!