Equipment: Maps and Books

The 8 ordnance survey maps that cover the route arrived this week from the UK. Quite a nostalgia-trigger...first time I've handled an OS map in probably 20 years. They were such a fixture in my home growing up. I still remember the day when daddy finally bought the last OS map to complete his collection. He sure loved maps!

Funnily enough, though, I think maybe these Harvey maps will be more useful than the OS maps:

Two of these Harvey strip maps cover the whole route.

Finally, the best descriptive resource I've found so far is Henry Stedman's "Coast to Coast Path". It's a good read, with snippets of Wainwright's original, lots of good advice, and information about facilities along the route.

The April 2013 Planning Meeting (First in a Series?)

Fun evening at the L's yesterday. RL, FL, CL, MM, IM, NM, LM, LC, DC, MC, KC. And Maisie (who hid her disappointment admirably after being immediately excluded from the adventure.)

With Julia Bradbury's Coast to Coast DVD playing as a backdrop, we discussed the trip. Current thoughts:

• Take 3 weeks to do the hike, so it ends up more like 10 miles a day rather than 14 miles a day. 
• US schools are out June 17th, UK schools July 19th. So probably some time during that 4.5 week span. Most important thing is to clear the Lake District before the UK summer holidays begin.
• Maybe book in the early fall?
• Is LM (eight by then) able to walk this? The youngest walker ever was a 6 year old girl, so possible, but surely challenging.
• Meet monthly for trip planning (including comparing mileage logged?!!??)

Equipment: Boots

There is one part of any new obsession...er, I mean hobby...that I am quite talented at, and that's acquiring stuff. I am determined that my Coast to Coast focus will remain mostly on actually walking rather than shopping for walking accessories, but I've made some purchases already. Today's acquisition: boots.

In my day to day life, I wear "minimalist" shoes almost all the time--zero heel lift, very thin soles. I was hiking in the most minimalist ones: "toe shoes"...those lizard-like Vibram Five Finger shoes. But some intensive Googling couldn't find any evidence that people have walked super long distances in those shoes.

I was not feeling very enthusiastic about switching up to clomping traditional hiking boots, with thick soles and heel lift. I really enjoy the sensation of feeling the trail beneath my feet. Then I found that Vivobarefoot has come out with a minimalist hiking boot, the "Off Road Hi". I found it for sale online and took the risk.

They arrived today and were comfortable right out of the box. I walked 6.5 miles in them and they remained comfortable. So I'm thrilled with the purchase....perfect compromise between true minimalist and foot protection on a long hike.

Next equipment post will be on books I'm reading about the hike.

The Training Schedule

Only 64 weeks to go now.

Training so far:

Week 0 (3/30-6/5) (LC: 10.5; DC: 6; MC: 12)
6 mile round trip hike via the top of Squak Mountain. (LC, DC, MC)
3 round trip walks to the bus stop (each total 1.5 miles) (LC both ways, KC/MC one way)
1 4 mile walk home from school (MC)

Week 1 (4/6-4/12) (LC: 13.3; DC: 2.8; MC: 10.5)
4/6: 2.8 mile brisk walk around Green Lake (LC, DC)
4/8: 4 mile round trip to Starbucks at Redmond Ridge (LC, MC)
4/11: 6.5 mile to Starbucks at Redmond Ridge (back the long way) (LC, MC)

The Coast to Coast requires an average of 14 miles a day. They say you're probably ready if you can feel OK doing two 10 mile days back to back. Hope to achieve that mid-summer. Between now and then:

GOAL--miles per week:
6 miles a week in April with bonus points for 8 miles.
10 miles in May with at least one 6 mile walk
15 miles in June with at least one 10 mile walk
20 miles in July made up of two 10 mile walks
30 miles in August with at least one 10 mile walk

That feels far enough out to be useful.

Public Declaration of Intent

Summer 2014, I will walk across England.

Should be a piece of cake, right? I'm not the fittest I've ever been, but there are 65 weeks between now and then, so it's entirely doable.

FAQ

Why 2014?

I turn 50 in December 2013. So summer 2014 is my 50th summer. I'll have to do a whole blog post on where I was all the other summers.

DC will also be 50. DC & I will have been married for 25 years. My in-laws will have been married for 60 years. My stepfather will be 80. My niece will be 10. It's just a significant year. And not one I'm willing to just loll through.

What Route?

Wainwright's Coast to Coast. It's a hike across a reasonably narrow part of the UK, from St Bees to Robin Hood's Bay. A total of approx 200 miles through some stunning areas of England...the Lake District, Yorkshire Dales, North York Moors. About 14 miles of hiking per day, with enough terrain that it's the altitude-equivalent of hiking up and down Everest.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coast_to_Coast_Walk

Why the Coast to Coast?

Oh goodness knows! How the heck did the idea even occur to me? It's in my DNA--daddy did crazy stunts like this. As a teenager, I was dragged along for one of them--walking the length of the Kennet and Avon canal, while it was mostly a disused, nettle-infested museum to industrial Britain. He, at least, had some sense of pacing. We did chunks of it a weekend at a time. I have no such sense. I will do the Coast to Coast in one gloriously blistering trek.

I have no recollection right now of why I thought of this specific expedition. There must have been a TV show or a blog post or a dare-after-a-couple-of-glasses-of-wine. I will mine my email archive for the truth.

On Your Own?

Well, not ideally. At this point I'm sure DC will join me. MC says he will. KC is saying no way. RL & FL are threatening (FL in a team support role, meeting us for lunch, bringing us supplies, cheering us in at the end of each day).  DC's friend ChCh is saying he's interested. MM & IM are interested. VS maybe? The idea of an American mob marauding across the UK is very attractive, but I suspect in the end it may come down to mostly DC and me.

Are You NUTS?

Yes