Preparing for the last 280km

I'm training hard for the last 14 days of walking, from Siena to Rome, and I hope to stagger into St Peter's Square on Tuesday 2 May 2023.  Keep your eyes peeled for that post! Could be emotional. 

Sadly, since my last post, another family member who had dementia has died, and we'll be gathering soon to share our memories of her.  It's yet another reminder of what the past three years' hours of training, planning and preparation as well as the eventual walking on the Via Francigena, have all been about.

Once more I'm making ample use of the tracks and paths around Tal y Bont reservoir, as well as the Monmouthshire and Brecon canal.  To stave off boredom, however, I've also been challenging myself with newer paths discovering hitherto unknown gems in the Black Mountains, to which I shall return in summer. 

If you are new to this blog, hello! and thanks for following me at the end of this journey.  To explain:  WG refers to "winding gear", basically any kind of mechanical device, the older and rustier the better.  I've developed a fair following of WG enthusiasts, who get grumpy if I wax too lyrical about the beautiful scenery or ascend into airy reflections on my feelings (heaven forfend), so apologies if you are not at all interested in WG, just bear with them.  I blame the "Bro", an exaggerated version in my imagination of an actual brother with whom I travelled in Patagonia (see Wrinklies on the Road - link at top of page), whose penchant for landscape scenery with WG at the focal point is the butt of many a jest.

 

 

I'm also pushing hard to make my fundraising target of £1,000 for Alzheimer's Society, Dementia UK and City Hospice.  I still need £207, and have been selling cakes in the local shop and have been supported with flyers and stickers by the excellent fundraising team at City Hospice, which needs the most in donations at the moment.  Please, please, if you enjoy this blog, do make a donation.  I need £1 for every kilometre travelled.  Click here to go to the fundraising pages and thank you for every donation, no matter how small.