Crisis
you people last time my kids to be transported from one location to the next
some of inquired about my support vehicle. In the ocean they have benefited
from such luxury wing twice completed the wall from lands end to join a great's…….
No, the
pressure hasn’t got to me - yet! I’m just testing out my new dictation app, which
will hopefully facilitate writing my daily blog on the walk. Perhaps I need to
practice my elocution or maybe this is as good as it gets and I will just have
to edit the occasional nonsense. The real version is below:
Quite a few people have asked how my kit will be transported
from one location to the next and some have enquired about my ‘support’
vehicle. Ian Botham may have benefited from such luxuries when he twice
completed the walk from Land’s End to John O’ Groats, but the simple fact is
that in my case there is no support vehicle and the transportation solution is
me. Everything I need for the journey will be carried on my back, so the objective
is to minimise weight. This was re-iterated to me by Rhona, who runs the Dunbeath
bed & breakfast I’m booked into for Day 2. “Be ruthless with what you think you need -
remember you're not going to Outer Mongolia”. She went on to state that
she sends a lot of big parcels home for walkers! I was broadly aware of this early
de-cluttering process from various blogs I’d read, with some walkers ditching
more than half of their original load within the first week!
So, ruthless I would be. The secret formula would be to
minimise the number of items carried and to minimise the weight of each item,
supplemented by a few carefully planned drop off and collection points en
route, allowing me to discard a few used items (maps, clothes) in exchange for
new ones. I consulted the equipment lists of other long distance walkers, then made
a few revisions to reflect my personal requirements (I decided to include a
Cancer Research UK collecting tin – my luxury!).
The basic kit can be broken down into six categories:
·
Walking kit (including waterproofs)· Casual clothes (for evenings and rest days)
· Toiletries
· Medical (first aid kit and blister pads)
· Other (maps, phone, camera, chargers, compass etc.)
· Food & drink
My target weight is 10kg (22 lbs) excluding food and drink (13kg including). In the next week I’ll be loading my rucksack for the first time and will find out just how ruthless I’ve been!
