Swans and tea bags. the Pennine Shakedowns 5
As Scruffy and I walk along the gravel path theres a swan standing on the edge of the undergrowth to the left. The bank is full of brambles, long grasses, bindweed and all the usual suspects taking advantage of an untended verge on a roadside.
As we get nearer, I am trying to decide whether I should put Scruffy on the lead. Ultimately deciding that discretion is the better part of valour, I do.
As we approach the swan, a cob, the male, the sheer magnificence of the bird becomes clear, swans are big birds. White, imposing, and for the most part the gentle benefactors of our lakes and waterways. Graceful in the extreme, it’s easy to see why they are loved and when roused into action with their wings held above their back are best described as ‘graceful aggressive’.
One of the most beautiful birds on this earth, its easy to see why they all technically belong to the monarchy, although that may have more to do with the taste, not that I’d know about that.
What I do know though is that the old wife’s tale I was told as a child is not true. They cannot break your leg with a wing beat.
I am in awe of this beautiful bird as we approach. I am glad we have put scruffy on the lead, as we get closer, he starts hissing at us with a vengeance, on the dyke below and his pen and a signet. Without Scruffy I might have lingered, even taken a photo. We continue on our way, privileged to have got this close to the avian behemoth.
As this is the last shakedown, I have got a slightly heavier load than I’ve taken on the other shakedowns. Its important to have a change of clothes for the evenings, even if freshening up is by baby wipes and not a shower. It marks not being on the trail. The only downside is climbing back into your damp smelly walking clothes the next day. I also have a towel, for when I do get the chance to use it.
I have more toiletries, and whilst on the subject I also have a trowel, and a hammer, I don’t expect to need it in Kent, but suspect I will not be able to push tent pegs in on the Pennine way.
The guidebook says I won’t see a shop for between five to seven days after leaving E dale, so I am testing out packet noodles and pasta as food. I need some idea of how my energy levels will run on this kind of diet. I also need to be aware of hydration levels and this is reflected in the amount of water I can carry, for both me and the food. There are pools and streams along the way; if you boil it, running water is generally OK. Anything else needs sterilising, so I have tablets too. The water will taste like a swimming pool, but at least I’ll be alive. I’ll take approximately four litres of water, two in my camelback, so I can drink at anytime whilst walking and two in a bottle. It’s a trade off between wanting as much as possible and the weight of water. It will be the heaviest thing I carry.
Everything in my pack will get used. I know this. I am also going to take some smaller binoculars, because having included a small bag to my kit so that I can access maps and the like as I need them, my usual ones are a plain. That’ll save some weight too.
I met a fella whilst out who reckons he got the weight he carried down to thirteen kilos. Can’t see how he did that. Along with everything I’ve mentioned, I also need to be able to stay warm and dry. The Pennine Way will probably throw all variations of weather at me. Fully loaded I’m carrying about twenty-four kilos.
Posture becomes very important too. Its easy to learn forward with a heavy weight on your back, but far better to stand tall and keep looking forwards. Its better both physically and mentally, never mind what you miss if you’re not looking.
It’s a good job you can shift the load with a hiking rucksack. Sometimes on the hips and sometimes on the shoulders. I remember when I walked the West Highland Way I came home with the best feeling back I could remember at the time. I hope that that is the case here too.
The plan for the Pennine Way is to walk ten miles a day on average. There will be lots of ups and downs, so the distance I can cover each day will vary. I’ve really pushed it each day on this shakedown. I did seventeen miles on day one and fifteen on day two. It was a real battle to be fair. A lot of positive self-talk and pure determination, But I did it. And I was exultant!
This walk will be challenge that for sure. I have put the time in, and I am going to get to the end.
………
And I haven’t mentioned that I forgot to take teabags, thanks to the lovely lady who gave me a whole packet and the dragonfly orgy I found myself in when I stopped for lunch and ill-advisedly took my boots off. Or the wheatears, the massive flock of geese, very noisy Jays and the always awesome buzzards!
Pennine Way! Bring it on!
Simon Pollard Urban Countryman August 2024
