Endurance Adventures

This is the culmination of my training for the Peddars Way and Norfolk Coast Path- after this weekend I will have peaked my training and will be rolling down onto taper valley. I always look forwards to the taper phase!

As usual, events have conspired against me doing as much training as I would have liked, especially back to back walks. I have loaded up my rucksack in a similar way to what it will be when I do the walk, and as reports I have read of the Peddars Way mention that there are long stretches of metallised track and minor roads, I have included a lot of this type of terrain in my training. I have also tried to find routes that are relatively mud and water free!

Thursday night I did my usual stroll round the Regatta Lake at Holme Pierrepont- not walking on the tarmac but keeping to the hills and verges to the sides, and detouring round the nature reserve and into the woods. I walked down by the Trent to Lady Bay bridge and the point where the old Grantham canal meets the river, to make it slightly longer. It ended up being longer than I planned as I followed the path along the canal which runs parallel to the road, but in front of the gate at the bottom of the track a family of swans- mum, dad and 7 cygnets- had set up camp and didn't really want to let me past so I retraced my steps!

I took today off work as I can't walk Sunday, and decided to do roughly 17 miles. I settled on walking the 'big track' route as the paths are similar to the Peddar's Way tracks and I figured it would be drier and less muddy!

So I set off along side the Trent and over the Suspension Bridge;

                                         Suspension Bridge
My mistake was to wear a sock with a hole in the bottom on my right foot- it started rubbing the skin, got worse and worse and has made a blood blister. It's been quite sore to walk on so I have covered it with a compeed but it's annoying as I will need to cover 19/ 20 miles tomorrow!

The Big Track route was fairly quiet, and became a lovely poppy lined track;

 I decided to extend it by walking straight on at Beeston Locks and finding the Attenborough Nature Reserve; on the way I found a lovely friendly little cafe and stopped for a hot chocolate, getting a huge bowl like mug full for £1. I might or might not have had an ice cream as well!

I found the Nature Reserve and started to walk one of the tracks going all the way around it, although part of it was closed so I ended up retracing my steps. It's a lovely place though so I'm sure I will go back there.


                                         Attenborough Nature Reserve

At one point though I was having a loud conversation with mum on my mobile as she was struggling to hear me due to the wind, so I took shelter by a wooden building and raised my voice- before realising that the building was actually a bird watching hide... oops...

I started to worry about 9 miles in as my feet were starting to really ache! The further I walked the worse it got, and by the time I had retraced my steps to Beeston Locks and started down Beeston Canal I kept having to sit down and give them a rest. I was quite concerned as I will need to walk longer distances than this on the walk- day after day! I hoped it was just because I had done such a lot lately and decided to take a stash of painkillers with me!

I decided to stop at a pub at Castle Marina, putting my feet up with a welcome latte. This seemed to fortify me a little and I managed to hobble the rest of the way although all I could focus on was the discomfort from my right sock!

                                          Two Forms of Transport- Narrow Boat and Train

When I reached home, the Garmin said I had done 17.60 miles, so job done. I have a route planned for tomorrow, again involving the River Trent but going the other way, from Gunthorpe up past Fiskerton. I'm annoyed about my foot- just hope it's going to bear up!

Labels: Attenborough Nature Reserve, river trent