Parish Walk Training Diary

I've been feeling good since the Begoade Road walks so I decided to see how long it would take me to get to Ramsey today. It was pretty hot so I took some of those water bottles on a waist belt and filled them up again at the Dhoon. Again, I was suprised that I arrived in Ramsey feeling quite fresh. It always seems so far when you're driving. The road can seem a bit relentless but when you're walking, you notice things you don't see when you're rushing past in a car.

Road walking is great if you're of a basically nosey nature. You get to see into people's gardens on the way past: you see whose house is up for sale; how people like to spend their Sunday's - cutting the grass, washing the car, panned-out on the lawn reading the Sunday papers. Then of course, there's all the flora and fauna- the lambs are in the fields at the moment and as for the totally heavenly smell of hot gorse: why has no one ever bottled and sold the smell of hot gorse? It has got to be the most beautiful of all natural scents.

It took me just fractionally under two and a half hours to get to Ramsey. So again, I must be walking at just over four miles an hour.

I think I'll do the same route a couple more times then the week before the Parish, I'll walk back to Laxey again. That'll be about 20/22 miles. Then I'll know that I can definitely get to Rushen and, at a push, I could perhaps get to Peel. But for today, I took the bus back.

I must get out in the car and measure the route I've been doing for the past few weekends: Laxey to Baldrine along the main road, over to Lonan Old Church, down onto the Groudle Road, up to the top of the Whitebridge, up and around Coan Rennie on Begoade Road then down into Laxey, along the Glen Road and back up Old Laxey Hill.

I've been doing this in two and a half hours, just going at a fairly quick but steady pace and just enjoying being out for a walk on my own, without pushing a pram! )In fact, part of the route is what I used to do with the pram so it just seems so much easier now.) I've felt good afterwards and haven't felt stiff at all.

I have to say, the right gear does help. The t-shirt does keep me cool and the because the leggings are stream-lined, they somehow make you more aware of  how you're walking - your style, I suppose. The new trainers are great too. I feel like I'm floating along.

My Dad reckons this route is 12 miles which suggests I'm walking at quicker than 4 miles an hour. It just goes to show how far you can get if you just get out there and have a go!

During the week, I haven't had much chance to walk. If I get a lunch hour at work, I do a walk along Marine Drive, just to keep moving. But the weekend walk is the one chance to have a proper walk.

it's feeling good though.