OK. I walked to PEI. Some 280+ kms of walking in 7 days, which works out to about a marathon a day on foot with a pack on your back. There was more pain than I expected and less bother about being uncomfortable. Pain became a constant companion somewhere in the middle of Day 2 and has not left me yet. What parts hurt? Basically, every thing that moved, carried weight or touched anything else. My mantra was...Keep WalkingWhenever one set of pains would lessen, a new one would start up or an old one flare up. As the days accumulated, so did the list of aches and pains. All in all, a very painful exercise. Much more pain that I anticipated.
Just Keep Walking
My concerns about being uncomfortable (ie: rain, being wet all the time, nights on the ground with no cover) were over-rated. You can only get so wet and so uncomfortable in this particular set of circumstances. This would be in contrast to the pain which developed into so many levels it becaime a mental battle as well as a physical one.
I'm going to do up a Gonzo web page story with more details to suit my requirements, but for now, it's the blog entry, some detail and the trip video, which shows a fair bit of pain etched into my facial features.
Walk to PEI - 280+ kms, 7 days, 6 nights, 3 in motel, 3 on ground, rain every day&night.
Halifax to Elmsdale - 41 kms, dinner at pub, sleep under bridge
Elmsdale to Truro - 51 kms, dinner Chinese, sleep in motel
Truro to Earltown - 35 kms, dinner beans, sleep in woods
Earltown to Tatamagouche - 21 kms, dinner Chinese, sleep in motel
Tatamagouche to Port Philip - 45 kms, dinner beans, sleep under tree
Port Philip to Port Elgin - 43 kms, no dinner, sleep in motel
Port Elgin to Bridge - 28 kms, dinner at Mom's, sleep in nice bed
Used Rogers cellphone where it worked....Called Sophie for her birthday, let Regina know where I was, let my Mom know where I was and when I was coming, had Bruce Duffy to share my experience with. Glad I had the phone. Nice to book a motel not having to show up like drowned rat at the only motel within 50 kms and you're on foot. Hard to haggle a decent off-season price. All in all a great tool to have in your backpack.
My self-indulgent writeup on the Gonzo site: Hey! My scrotum is wet!!!
Following is a little 2:18 minutes video with 7 little clips embedded:
3 comments:
Go, Bruce! Great way to start your retirement aka "change of direction", by coming over to the Island.....next stop...??
S & R
Well done, Bruce. Hope it shook the Dalhousie dust off. Build some rest days in your trek through New Zealand. You've earned your leisure.
K
So what was the gear you still never used? You can deal with a lot of Sh!$ on the road but painful feet is not one of them! Keep it simple.
Glenn
ps Well done!
Post a Comment