Getting ready to go again

It's been a wet and miserable Spring. My hiking so far this year has been trudging around the same local fields and woods in the wet, sliding in the mud and telling our dog that she's having fun, when even she is looking uncertain about the weather. It's been a very tough couple of months personally too, and I am having to turn the page of a new chapter in my life. And, as always, walking long distance has been calling me. So tomorrow David and I set off for Winchester, for me to start the South Downs Way solo on Wednesday. The forecast is very poor for the whole week and I've done no proper training. But I have a brand new rucksack, and I am trusting that my legs will remember what to do, and that the act of putting one foot in front of the other, over and over again, will help me get a sense of balance back, and maybe some joy.

I hope to write about this 100 mile or so National Trail walk every day for the next 8 days, and knowing that's what I'm doing will keep me going when the poor weather might be suggesting I throw in the towel. I was so lucky with the sunshine in Scotland, it's probably my turn for some demanding weather anyway, and I don't want to be only a fair weather walker. Life isn't always fair weather, so I'm packing my metaphorical raincoat as well as my actual waterproofs, and hoping that at some point the sun will start to shine on me.