Over The Hills and Far Away...

“How do you doing fancy the London 2 Brighton challenge with me for charity? All we have to do is walk it” said my friend.

“How far is it?” said I.

“A mere 100km” said she.

“Just walk it?” said I.

“Just walk it!” said she.

“LET’S WALK IT” said us both.

How young, foolish, and slightly drunk we both were.

On the 24th and 25th of May, me and a pal decided to take on the challenge of walking from London to Brighton, that’s from Richmond Park to Brighton Race Course. That’s 100km. That’s 62.5 miles. That’s a long, long old way. 

#wildduck

As delightful as walking the distance may sound, conjuring images of us sauntering along the british countryside, pointing at the hills and cooing at the sheep. You don’t get to sleep, (something I really didn’t consider when agreeing), there is a lot of up hill, therefore a lot of downhill, and it rained... a lot.

I’d love to be able to do a breakdown of how we felt at each 10km, but as a result of either exhaustion or misery, I really can’t remember. It will have been one of those two things though. I’d love to tell you that the experience was life changing; having completed some soul searching and put the worlds to right, whilst taking in the glorious british countryside, with the fresh air having filled our lungs and filtered the smog that London has infected us with out. Perhaps even leaving the challenge thinking ‘I shall never take transport again! I shall only need my walking boots from now on!’... and then maybe even joining a rambling society. 

JUST LOOK AT THAT VIEW

Alas, no. Instead we were left feeling broken, damp and numb. Shells of our former selves. We in fact wouldn’t be using anything but walking boots again, as our feet had swollen inside them so they were now fused to our ankles.I’d forgotten a time when I wasn’t walking, If such a thing had even existed.

However, the one positive we could muster from the experience (bar the sensational variety of free snacks, at no other time in my life will a snickers bar, packet of mini cheddars and hunk of red Leicester seem acceptable at 3 am in the morning whilst being completely sober), but it was the money and awareness we had each raised for our chosen charities.

So whilst we were ambling away; at 4 am in the morning, knee deep in mud and me clinging onto a branch I’d adopted on route (because it made me feel like Gandalf when he does that “YOU SHALL NOT PASS” in the first Lord of the Ring film) I went through the slightly delirious thought process of other reasons we were doing this to ourselves. 

We all on some level like to be challenged. Whether it is in the gym, in our work, or personal life, we like to see how far we can push ourselves. The sense of achievement and pride from obtaining goals we didn’t think we could hit is a feeling that is hard to replicate. I can whole heartedly say that completing this challenge was one of the biggest achievements of my life, having very nearly thrown down my Gandalf stick and ordered a taxi a dozen times. It wasn’t only the physical aspect that was challenging, but it was mainly the mental; which felt quite in keeping with the charity I was walking for. Alzheimer's Society is a fantastic charity, that is not only very close to my heart, but it provides support and helps those whom suffer from the mental challenge of Alzheimer's and dementia everyday. The charity had recently tweeted prior to the walk, which had really hit home with me, stating “it’s not forgetting your keys - it’s forgetting what your keys are for”.. and this, somehow, kept my feet moving.