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Seven Sisters, blisters on blisters and a misty dawn…

Tuesday 29th August and I’m currently sitting with my feet up nursing some very sore blisters after my most recent 100km walk along the South Coast. Two days later and I can barely shuffle from room to room, what a difference a day or two makes. I’m happy though that I completed this one in just under 23 hours, my fastest time. Thames Path took me 19 hours but that is all flat ground, a very different walk to these hilly ones.

Taping and padding my feet is a priority and I had covered heels, toes and balls of my feet but I hadn’t banked on the massive amount of rough flint paths we would be covering and it’s really tough on your feet. Consequently I’ve ended up with my worst blisters yet and boy do they hurt. It is amazing though how the power of adrenaline, with the help of Nurofen,  gets you through pain, I must have walked over 20km with my feet on fire but I was so determined to get to the end that I just kept going, putting one sore foot in front of the other.

I wonder if this has any correlation to the inner strength that comes to the fore when people are dealing with cancer and other awful diseases. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not trying to make out what I do is anything like that but it does seem like the body and the mind can cope with far more than we sometimes realise and I have been astounded how sufferers of cancer and other dreadful illnesses can rally round and often be the strongest person dealing with it all. To a lesser degree you see people on these challenges who are battling along with all sorts of physical pain and often mental anguish too but a huge majority of them still cover massive distances, another testament to human resilience.

So back to the title and the Seven Sisters…for anyone not aware, these are a series of cliffs between Eastbourne and Seaford. From the beach they appear to be gently undulating hills but trust me when you are walking over them they are anything but gentle, each one is a steep ascent followed by an equally steep slope down. What’s more, I’m sure there are more than seven of them, it felt more like twelve!

But before we even got to these though we had set out from Eastbourne along the seafront, “we” being myself, Alex, the daughter of my best friend Pat who is a large part of my motivation for these walks, and a lady called Stella who we had met up with at the start and who was walking alone. From there we were almost immediately heading up the first hill towards the sadly, infamous Beachy Head. It should just be another clifftop with a stunning view but unfortunately it is where many people have chosen to end their lives and consequently there is an eerie feeling especially where the small wooden crosses and flowers have been placed.  Many of the walkers are raising funds for suicide related charities and I sincerely hope they all manage to get their targets and beyond to save too many more of these being put here.

Coming down from here we reach the first rest stop at Birling Gap. Here the sea is fighting back against the land and taking huge bites out of the cliffs, spitting out chalk and even houses and gardens onto the beach below. Apparently the erosion averages around 1 metre a year, I can certainly remember taking my girls there back in the 90’s when you parked your car near the cliffs and walked back to the café. Today the café is at the cliff edge and the car park level with it and what was a row of seven or eight terraced coastguard cottages are now down to just two. Thankfully the rest stop marquee was a way back from the cliffs so no worries there!

After a quick top up of water and use of the facilities…we called it “water in and water out”, we were off over the aforementioned Seven Sisters and then on to the Cuckmere river, a welcome long walk along flat paths.

Initially we were all pretty evenly matched for pace but I found that all my hill training really paid off again as I was managing to stride up the hills fairly easily. They made me out of breath but the legs were good, no burning calves or tight thigh muscles which I was really pleased about. Alex and Stella found them a bit tougher though, not helped by them having considerably shorter legs than me to be fair. By the time I had used my new found sidestepping down the last hill I could no longer see them behind me so I messaged Alex to say I would carry on and wait at the next stop.

Following the Cuckmere meanders as they are known it was nice to be alongside the river but very hot and absolutely no shade for several miles. As one side of my face and arm got warmer and warmer I did contemplate walking backwards to cook the other side but decided that would no doubt only lead to a spectacular fall. Anyway, I managed to save that until I was almost at the stop when somehow I tripped over in a gateway and ended up on my hands and knees in some mud. Dry as a bone in most places but I managed to find a small stodgy patch to fall in. Thankfully I could clean up shortly after while I waited for the others to join me and pretend it never happened.

Soon we were all off together on the next sector and back up more hills to Firle Beacon, one of the higher points on the South Downs. From here you can see across to Lewes, the County town and another hill, Mount Caburn,  which was surrounded by paragliders, a popular spot for the sport. After a lovely trek across the downs we could see the Amex stadium which meant Brighton and halfway was coming closer. A mini stop at Woodingdean was a chance to patch up Alex’s blistered feet which were quickly becoming more plasters than skin and turning out to be very tough to walk on.  Stella and I were still ok and keeping up our pace which Alex said she couldn’t manage so we ended up heading into Brighton separately.

Somehow we missed the sign for the side street to the seafront which wasn’t a problem as we headed down the next parallel one. It did mean however that we missed the 50km marker which is always a good psychological boost, silly women! Brighton alternated between very quiet residential streets and a real buzz of nightlife on the seafront, together with the lights on the pier, promenade and the stunning new i360 observation tower which was slowly rising up above the seafront like a giant doughnut on a stick.

Into the neighbouring town of Hove and the much anticipated halfway point, although actually at 55km but who cares, it was a chance to remove the boots for a while and have dinner. This was probably an absolute highlight for Stella as she was tucking away the snacks and food at every rest stop. It became a joke that she made a beeline for the food each time leaving others in her wake and restocking her backpack with snacks. She’s right though as you do need to keep fuelling up so you have enough energy to keep going, especially through the night.

Sadly Alex arrived here in a very desolate state having endured extremely painful feet and a panic attack and she knew she could not continue any further particularly as it was toughest bit coming up. We got her sorted with some food and spoke to the organisers to make sure she would be helped to get home, fortunately she lives in Hove so not too far to go to the comforts of her flat. For Stella and me though  it was boots back on, the glamorous head torches out and joining a group to leave on the second half.

Now we came to a very interesting part of the route… back onto the downs and Devils Dyke, a deep valley which is a popular beauty spot. It’s also popular with a particular group of people who like to gather in a car park there for dogging sessions. Anyone who doesn’t know what that means can Google it, I’m not explaining it here!  Suffice it to say that I’m not sure who decided it was a good idea to send us right through the middle of this particular car park but that’s exactly where we went and I think it probably added enormously to the participant’s pleasure to have several hundred potential voyeurs striding past, in our case quite quickly.  As Stella commented as we got to the other side, we weren’t sure whether to feel relieved or a little offended that we didn’t get propositioned. Anyway it seemed fitting that the very next point on the downs route was Fulking Hill….my thoughts exactly!!!

After all that excitement the next couple of stops were fairly uneventful apart from being two of the steepest and highest climbs and the start of the unrelenting flint and chalk paths. They are awful to walk on, hard and unforgiving and great knuckles of flint sticking up all over the place. Absolutely perfect for stubbing toes, rolling ankles and generally making your feet hurt, hence the hideous blisters.  A lot of the time you can’t even walk on the verges as they are sloping and at night with the dew on them the grass was pretty slippery.

The first night stop was north of Shoreham where my friend Pat lived and the second was near the A24, directly south of my home. As always the night stops are a much quieter affair, a lot less people as walkers become more spread out and several people withdraw at each stage. Everyone is drained from the concentration of walking with a limited field of vision as well as obviously being tired from lack of sleep. It’s important to eat and drink still though and keep those reserves topped up…I didn’t need to remind Stella, she managed to find something to eat ok! Black coffee, as ever, is my friend here.

Once again though I hit my wall at 75 to 80km, my nemesis, it never fails to be the harshest part for me, the bit where I do actually wonder why I’m putting myself through it and I retreat inside my own head, full of thoughts of mum and Pat and I keep telling myself it’s nearly done. I even told myself I would never do another challenge…hmmm, I have said that before! The last stop however, was in a stunning location and that helped lift my spirits again. Heading down the last hill to the River Arun at dawn it was all shrouded in a low mist, absolutely beautiful and very atmospheric. Crossing the river on a footbridge with the mist swirling around our feet and on the river below us was one of the sights I won’t forget.

We hadn’t intended to stop here other than the water in and water out bit but we both felt so exhausted from the hard paths that we did take a bit more time. It was sad to see a couple of people having to withdraw at this stage with injuries. I cannot imagine having to give up when you only have 8 km to go, they looked gutted, poor guys.  Once we left here I was relieved to find that we were walking through woods on fairly flat dry mud paths. Unusually this was the only woods we walked through on the whole route. It wasn’t quite so straight forward though as there were loads of large tree roots to negotiate, not easy on tired drunk legs that want to go in a different direction to the rest of your body. You end up looking like you are doing some sort of demented Irish jig trying to negotiate them!

On one small downhill section I felt two blisters burst which is far more painful than if they are manually popped. At least I thought I would get a bit of relief once the initial pain subsided but it wasn’t to be. I discovered later that I had secondary deep blisters under the top ones…I don’t recommend them, they’re not pleasant, every step of the last few kilometres hurt. Another short stretch along the river though and we were soon passing the majestic Arundel castle and heading into the football grounds where the finish was.

Despite our tiredness and extremely sore feet, Stella and I held hands and managed a short and painful jog across the finish line at 2 minutes to 8am Sunday 27th August, 22 hours and 59 minutes after we had set off from Eastbourne.

Prosecco in hand, medals round our necks and with congratulations all round we posed for the obligatory finishers photos and then collapsed into chairs for the recuperation to start. Mark and Amy came down to meet me with Brodie and after a brief chat it was time to give another new walking friend a hug and head home…leaving Stella to wait for her next train home. She didn’t waste her waiting time though, I left her tucking into breakfast, bless her!

So now I’m done for another year, it’s been different again, not all in a good way as I don’t much like this foot pain but it will soon heal and I’ll be back out walking the hills round here with my woof. Aside from that though, it was a stunning walk and through a lot of my home county so it was nice to be reunited with it for a while and I was lucky again with walking buddies, thanks ladies. Stella was great through the night and we managed to laugh a fair bit as well as keep each other’s spirits up.

South Coast was definitely challenging but I did it and most importantly the fundraising has gone up a bit more… Macmillan have now received over £5300 and the overall total for all charities is £6800…I’m chuffed with that. Thanks again to everyone for the donations and also for the ever present support, it really does help me get through it.

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Fancy a walk?

Saturday July 1st and I’m at the start line of my next walking challenge, 100km or 63 miles of the Cotswold way, Bath to Cheltenham in a day! I’ll admit that even though this is my 4th of these challenges I was feeling particularly nervous this time. This was the first time that the organisers had put on this challenge and in true Masterchef jargon it was billed as their ‘Toughest challenge yet’. Easy to dismiss it as hype but having read comments from walkers who had already hiked part of it and then looking at the elevation map it looked like it might live up to its billing. There were lots of hills and very few flat bits so I was apprehensive about what lay in store over the next 24 hours or so. I train pretty hard and although the experience of having 3 previous walks under my belt means that I am pretty sure I’m able to complete it I had no doubts it would be tough. I live at the foot of the Surrey Hills and I’m lucky that I can get a fair bit of hill walking in right out of my house but it also means I know that a few hours of going up and down steep ascents can sap your strength and turn your legs to jelly let alone spending a whole day doing it. Consequently I was late to the start, due to leave at 8am I was delayed by nerves. Without being graphic it was playing havoc with my stomach! Although I was registered and ready about 10 mins before my start time I felt I needed to try and relax a bit more so asked to be changed to the next starting slot. They agreed and so I waited for the 8.30 group to be called. I now feel that fate was kind to me because while I was waiting and chatting to the guys on the Macmillan stand I met Simone who was also taking part. This was her first challenge and we started chatting and went to the start line together. We decided to head off together and see how we got on and if our pace matched. We had a brief chat about our motivation for taking part and I felt bad that Simone got upset as her husband has cancer and her reasons are very current and at the forefront for them both. So two strangers shared a brief hug and then after encouragement from both our husbands we headed off into the Cotswold countryside. The day was cloudy but warm and I was relieved that the temperatures had dropped somewhat as we had been experiencing hot days of around 28c in the previous couple of weeks. I have done a 26 mile walk in that heat before and it really slows you up so the much cooler 20 – 22c was welcome. In the first 4 miles we had already climbed up to 800ft which was just a taster of what was to come. The views however were absolutely stunning and there were times when we could see the river Severn in the distance and across to Wales. Interestingly even when you are really tired and have clambered up yet another steep ascent you can still appreciate the view from the top…just before you head back down, get to the bottom and go straight back up again! It was in fact not until we got to around 28 miles that we actually had a mile or so of flatter ground when we were heading to the mid-way rest point. At the top of a couple of the hills there were churches, perched high above their parishes, and I couldn’t help imagining how in days gone by when cars were not commonplace the congregation would have walked up the hill in a steady procession for family services and for the inevitable christenings, weddings and funerals. What a beautiful final resting place though and I feel it must have alleviated the sadness a little to visit lost loved ones in such lovely surroundings. Certainly there was a noticeable but pleasant quietness and we all seemed quite deep in thought as we took a brief rest up there. One of the few level stretches took us through deer parks and past the boundaries of some pretty impressive walled gardens and landscaped grounds. All we could see of the mansion that stood in these grounds was a glimpse of roofs and chimneys but it was obviously huge. As we left through one of the many gateways to Dodington Park we Googled the name and we discovered it belonged to James Dyson…there’s a lot of money in vacuum cleaners and hairdryers it would seem! Soon we would be climbing again and up to the first of a couple of monuments then down and on to the halfway point and that welcome hot meal and the knowledge that this would be a slightly longer rest to eat and drink and check feet etc. before the night-time section. Sadly this was where Simone and I parted company as she was heading off to her tent for the night before she started the second half early the next morning. I think that although she said she was looking forward to the rest, there was a little bit of her that thought it might be better to continue and just get it over with! Certainly I would never do this 2 day option, not because of any arrogant reasons but mainly because I have heard other people say that they do not sleep well and then the psychological part of getting up the next day to do it all again is tough, especially knowing that other people who’ve carried on walking through the night will be nearing the finish line when you’ve only just started on your way. Anyway, I didn’t mention any of this as it wouldn’t have helped so we ate our meal together, our own little last supper, and then Simone came with me when I went outside to wait for the next group to set off and we had a longer hug this time having become friends on the way. Although it was still light at this point it would become dark before we got to the next rest stop so you the organisers do not let you leave alone or in less than 3 people. I had already decided I would join a group and then look around at people’s number bibs which also show their start times and I would find someone who had a similar or later time to me so that I knew their pace would be a match. Luckily I saw a couple of ladies with 9am start times and as I walked up to them they were saying that they were doing much the same and looking for one or two people with similar times. I spoke to them and we agreed we would set off with the group then find our own pace. It was fortunate to find then as the rest of the group were fairly slow and we soon headed off together. Loz and Debbie were probably half my age and PE teachers which daunted me a little and I’ll admit I did think at one point that I might be struggling to keep up. However, they were first timers and admitted later that they had headed off a bit too quickly initially and Debbie had some pretty serious blisters erupting. She was giving it her best shot though and although you could see she was in pain she was desperate to try and keep up the pace. Immediately after the bliss of the halfway stop we were heading uphill on one of the toughest and longest uphill stretches of the whole walk. It seemed to go and on. Sometimes it’s better when you are walking straight and you can see the enormity of what’s ahead but when you are on a winding path your mind keeps telling you that round the next corner it will be level and then there is a deflating moment when you reach that corner and ahead is yet more climbing. I think this was around two miles of uphill slog but it felt more like five by the time we got to the top. The next sector was some steep climbs and descents and where I learnt a new way to go downhill which is easier on the knees and joints. Loz demonstrated by basically turning at right angles to the slope and stepping or skipping sideways. She showed me slowly and then went hurtling down the hill at full speed. Debbie and I followed at a far more sedate speed behind her. I had visions of tripping and tumbling head over heels all the way to the bottom. I was pretty pleased with myself though when I managed to get up a couple of the hills before Loz, not bad going for someone twice her age. By this time poor Debbie was really suffering and as well as her feet, which we stopped to help patch up a few times, she also felt sick and unwell which was partly dehydration. I was surprised that they had not refilled their water bottles at the fifth stop but I know you tend to slow up on drinking at night when it’s cooler, not a good idea though. It became fairly obvious she was going to have to stop as she was in a lot of stomach pain. At the next stop she decided she would have to stay there and rehydrate herself and get her feet checked but she was keen for Loz to continue and finish. So we joined up with another couple and carried on through the night. This last quarter was really hard going. We had made the ascent up yet another very long winding hill and knew that a lot of the walk was now on the ridge of the hills. However there were still a lot of very steep gradients, shorter yes but lots of them like a rollercoaster! Although it was too dark to see what was ahead you could generally tell from the voices drifting back to you saying things like “they’re having a fucking laugh aren’t they, not again!” , which sort of gives it away. We also found ourselves on a mud path which looked and felt initially like it was hard packed mud and pretty dry. Halfway down a slope we discovered it was actually very boggy in places but it was almost impossible to see where in the limited vision you have from a head torch. Several times I thought I was about to lose my boot as I trod in a squelchy spot. Around this time I could feel the balls of my feet starting to feel sore and soon I knew that I had the dreaded blisters, they can be so debilitating for something relatively small. I decided against removing my boots to look at them, my feet were taped up and I was more concerned about causing more damage. Also I felt if I saw how bad they were it would make it mentally tougher so I popped a couple of Nurofen and carried on. I’m pretty sure they were a consequence of the steep downhill slopes especially those with loose stones which are always bad news! As always the walking in the dark is tiring mentally and really tests you. Loz was now feeling despondent, partly because Debbie had to drop out and partly because she realised they had pushed themselves a bit too hard in the very early stages and she was tiring fast. Pacing yourself is hard and the inclination is always to start off faster but its best to try and keep a constant pace as much as possible then if you have anything left you can speed up at the end. It’s definitely worked for me on the last couple of walks! At the last stop with only 6km to go and back into daylight at last, Loz heard that Debbie was feeling better and was going to try and get a bit further which boosted her a little. After a couple of kilometres we walked with a small group who were varying paces. Loz decided she would stick with the slightly slower paced ones and myself and a couple of others headed off a bit faster and even managed to jog now and then. Gradually we split up and I found myself heading alone along the final bit of tarmac (flat!!!) where I did my now signature run across the finish line to be met with a hug from hubby Mark and my training buddy Brodie, who was barking furiously at the applause. Photos, a medal and the welcome glass of bubbly and then a sit down to remove the boots and finally let those blisters have some air, they weren’t pretty! It’s amazing how your body reacts once you’ve finished. At each of the rest stops you can sit and have a drink and something to eat, change socks, use facilities, then up you get and off you go. Sometimes it takes a few minutes to get back into stride but otherwise all is fine. You get to the finish and sit down though and when you go to get up and leave… nothing works, it’s as though you’ve been sat on by an elephant! Joints seize up, feet ache and you generally just feel like you want to be carried to the car and that’s definitely not going to happen with a big girl like me! Then I spot Loz coming across the field and hobble over to congratulate her only to be told that Debbie is now well and truly back on track and should finish in the next hour…what a girl, good on her. Somehow, I plod a few yards to the car and plonk myself down inelegantly knowing it will be a huge effort to get out again later but I’ve done it…100km in 23 hours and 36 minutes, fab, I’m absolutely exhausted but elated. After a shower, breakfast and a couple of hours sleep we headed back to the finish to wait for Simone to cross the line. She had no idea I would be there but I really wanted to see her finish and congratulate her and also thank her in person as she had spent part of her overnight rest logging on and donating to me, so lovely of her. A quick introduction of her dogs and ours and we said our goodbyes and headed back to our B&B for a well-earned rest. So why do I do it again and again, that’s what I get asked a lot. It’s exactly what it says on the tin…a challenge. It hurts some of the time but a lot of the time it doesn’t and adrenaline is an amazing drug to get you through the pain. I get a real high from completing it and it gives me a focus each year to make me get out and walk that extra few miles and work out a bit harder and that’s good for me. I’ve met a lot of amazing people from the organisers to supporters to fellow walkers. It sounds clichéd but they truly restore your faith in humanity. Everyone is so supportive and they all look out for each other. If you see someone sat at the side of the path you immediately ask if they are ok and if they need anything. People will stop to help patch up feet, share water if you’ve run low, offer energy bars or sweets if you’re in need of a boost and words of encouragement if you are struggling. I’ve never heard a negative comment, I’ve heard a fair bit of swearing…especially when there was yet another bloody hill to go up, but genuinely it’s a positive vibe all round. Many of them are walking because they or someone close to them has been through something awful and that empathy is evident. Even at the B&B we stayed at there was some lovely moments. A couple who had chatted with Mark gave him a donation for me and the owners kindly let me have breakfast a bit later than usual. We had a lovely room with an ensuite shower which was absolutely ok but they offered me the use of a bath in another empty room so I could have a proper soak and the lady also gave me a big white fluffy bathrobe of hers and some of her own luxury bath foam, so kind and thoughtful. My first walk was with my lovely friend Katie and we laughed and cried our way from London to Brighton. I’ll never forget how emotional that one was, the pain of losing my mum and best mate was very much to the forefront and then one sister in law passed away just before and another shortly afterwards. Despite being adamant that I would never do another one I signed up for The Isle of Wight and took part with a friend Rob and my stepdaughter Eloise. Sadly Rob didn’t complete the challenge but Eloise battled through some fairly awful blisters and although we didn’t finish together she did an amazing job to run across the line a short while after me. Both my last 2 walks on my own I’ve been lucky enough to team up with amazing ladies who I didn’t know beforehand. Lisa on Thames Path last year who was doing it for her brother and Simone walking for her husband and just as importantly they were doing it for themselves too. To give them a sense of being able to do something at a horrendously difficult time, I understand that. I do it for mum and Pat and my family, all women, who are no longer with us because of the bloody awful disease that is cancer. Five women who should have had longer with us and who should not have had to deal with the horrors of cancer but who did so bravely and with strength, stubbornness and humour. I walk because I can and because I want to remember all these ladies and everyone else that has a rough deal in life, they are all my inspiration and motivation. I hope that the money raised will ease some of the pain for others unfortunate enough to have to deal with illness and offer support to their families and friends. To date myself, Katie, Eloise and Rob have raised a total of around £6,764 (including Gift Aid) for Macmillan and Médecins sans Frontières. All in all an Ultra Challenge walk is a good place to be and I’ll be there again this coming weekend. South Coast Way, Saturday August 26th 2017, 9am, Eastbourne, I’ll be on the start line once more………… wish me luck!