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December 2006
Julie died on 19th November 2006. After her funeral I can now begin to plan. Back in the summer, when it was already getting very difficult for Julie to walk, we stood on Chesil Beach near Abbotsbury (one end of the Macmillan Way) and I promised Julie that one day I would walk the whole route in her memory. Julie loved walking, she liked the idea, and we had a photo taken to seal the promise. But I did not want to set a date in advance that would imply any more than we already knew that Julie's life expectancy was limited.
Love is making such a promise. Commitment is about carrying it through. The challenge now is to persuade lots of other people, many of whom never knew Julie, to sponsor me in raising funds for two of the organisations that were so good in their care of Julie in her last few months.
Planning is the bit I enjoy. Well, we both liked the walking but I got as much satisfaction out of planning the walk; how to get to the start, how far to walk each day, where to stay? So over Christmas the planning started in earnest. Thanks to the excellent guide book written by Peter and Janet Titchmarsh of the Macmillan Way Association, I easily plotted the route from Boston in Lincolnshire to Abbotsbury.
Timing? Easy; it had to be spring, my favourite time of year. The days would be longer, it would hopefully be drier, the sun would be warmer but not sweltering, and the countryside would be at its best. And I would finish on Monday 7th May, a Bank Holiday so a day's office leave saved, but also as it happens, my birthday.
But how many days walking? Maximum 15 miles per day was our rule of thumb. Then my niece Natalie announced she had a job at Stow on the Wold Youth Hostel this season. Exactly halfway. That had to be one of my overnight stops so that settled it. The middle Saturday night at Stow, two nine day walks back-to-back, at 16 miles per day.
The intermediate division became easy and by the New Year I had my itinerary. Now to get some serious practice walking done. I had not done much in 2006, so I managed to fit in five during December, increasing mileage from 6 to 11 with no ill effects from the lay-off. Well, just one; I managed to slip off a greasy stile, fell heavily and suffered severe bruising to my thigh. Oh, and I broke the stile plank, that's how heavily I fell.
January 2007
A concerted go at getting all the overnight stays organised. Neither of us was into camping so the natural choice is a B&B or the pub. Most were easy, sometimes even a choice within a village. Some were more expensive than I would like, but when walking an extra 2 miles for a cheaper B&B is not usually an option. So location wins. They had better be good though! A couple proved difficult; one village is still not booked as neither of the B&Bs can do it. What's plan B? Kindly lift, taxi or a friend joining me that day. Some owners do not take one-night bookings, one wanted to charge me for the whole cost of a twin room as a single. Anyway, accommodation is nearly settled.
The training. Two days in North Wales, plus three other long local walks this month including two 12-milers back-to back. I must get a long day carrying a full pack under my belt, plus two 15-20 milers back-to-back, then probably a weekend with a full pack followed by 4 days at Easter with a full pack. So I should be walking every available opportunity.
I can now start promoting this walk. I've told various friends who may be interested in joining me for a day or two. Now we need to think of getting serious sponsorship, which involves more than just asking friends for money. It's about networking (horrible word) and getting sponsorship from people who don't even know me. The causes are sound, one national (Macmillan Cancer Relief which is what this trail is all about) and one local (Duchess of Kent House Trust). Ideas include a "guess the number of steps Graham will take".
I need a website, or a blog, or something - which if you are reading this will probably mean that problem is solved.
Go to February & March Diary
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