Thankfully the taxi arrived at 7:40 am and took me to the start. I started walking at precisely 8:00 am. It was still a bit chilly but a cloudless blue sky bode well.
As expected all the walking is flat with one or two gentle exceptions. All the paths are well tended with friendly surfaces - not a tractor track or horse and cattle plugging to be seen. I don't ever remember walking a whole day on good paths.
At one point I could hear dogs and thought I must be nearing kennels, but then the howling and screaming went up to fever pitch then silence. Then in the distance I saw something bright red in the wood at the edge of a field a few hundred yards away. There was a female on a horse with the full hunting pink jacket - I'm nor sure why they say pink when it is bright red. There were three or four foxhounds with her and they were scouring the surroundings. My conclusion was that this lady was out on her own private hunt and the noises I heard were undoubtedly the result of something being killed - ugh!
A bit further on I met a dog walker who had done quite a lot of serious walking in the UK and the Alps. I mentioned the hunting lady and he said we should have a new sport of hunting and shooting the hunting pink brigade.
The walking has been varied through woods, tracks and paths in short sections which maintains interest and creates the illusion of progress.
I am now in The Park Hotel at Diss having walked a most enjoyable 14.5miles.
I will try one again to show some photos but do not intend to try adding captions.
I play around with the concept of "serious walking". Brexit-harassed ambulants passing each other on rain-swept paths uttering codewords like "referendum" and "WTO". The hotel TV offering only News in Welsh. Retiring to bed at 20.35 with The Anatomy of Melancholy for comfort. Salted porridge for breakfast. A text message saying HMRC wants to get in touch. Deliberately choosing to wear old boots with a hole in the sole. A cup of tea with curdled milk at Ye Olde Englysshe Tea-Shoppe Well-Knowne for its Ripp-Offe Practiffes. Men in pink jackets (Hate! Hate!) who turn out to be chasing Jacob Rees-Mogg (Whoops!). Two lavatories in a row which fail to flush.
ReplyDeleteI wonder how you'll misunderstand this comment. Can't see any reason but I know you will. I Google "quotations using clear or clarity" and find only obnoxious sermonising - eg, Being clear on what you want will drive you in the right direction. Sounds like a further coded message for "Have you ever thought of going by car?"
I ask myself whether my sedentary days could ever be considered as serious but laugh myself into a coughing fit. Decide I'm a burden on the NHS and opt for protracted suicide - ie, death from boredom through reading the final twenty novels I haven't read in Trollope's oeuvre.
Oh s--t! It's diet day.
An excellent start (bar the lack of random offers of cups of tea). Wishing you more of the same for the rest of the walk.
ReplyDeleteRr - I think your imagination is taking over your mind - there could be an erudite philosophical discussion debating whether that is possible. If it progresses it could provide the basis for a novel by somebody like Colin Wilson - he wrote something called The Mind Parasites. or Ian McKewan
ReplyDeleteGayle - I seem to be walking through no- mans - land so no offers so far . ‘‘Tis a good walk. I am waiting to find out what you’re up to.
ReplyDeleteAs it's going to be a Bertie trip the planning will be minimal, making it difficult to share in advance what we intend to do. However, we do now have enough of a plan to know that we'll be heading up to Scotland to start with and that the trip will involve the TGO Challenge Reunion, some hill-bagging and some parkrunning. Beyond that, we'll be making it up as we go along, quite possibly based on weather forecasts.
ReplyDeleteGood to hear that you are enjoying a trip to the east, on a trail I'd never heard of! Some of those old (1984) reminiscences are very entertaining as well.
ReplyDeleteKeep it up!
And we look forward to seeing M & G in a couple of weeks.
RR - keep taking the tablets … ?
ReplyDeleteGayle - that sounds like a hood “plan.”
ReplyDelete———————-
Ogre runner - I do have some mor ancient accounts will post more when back him.