By: Blonde Two
Anyone who has climbed a mountain will understand that feeling of triumph (mixed in my case with a touch of relief) upon reaching the summit. The goal has been attained, the challenge conquered and the feel-good points won.
Well, I discovered recently that you don’t necessarily need a mountain to achieve that feeling when you are out walking. I have recently been in London doing some research into the Thames Path (more to be revealed about that at a later date) and have thoroughly enjoyed the experience (freelance work at its very best I would say).
Last week I walked 20km from Wandsworth Bridge (noisy but interesting) to Canary Wharf (not a canary in sight). Well, in truth there was a short river ride (with obligatory Cockney commentary) in the middle because I didn’t fancy swimming to the other side of the river (have you seen the tides on the Thames!) What with research and stopping to take selfies, I hadn’t expected to get that far, so I was very pleased with my efforts. The walk hadn’t all been easy, I had had to guess how to do the Lambeth Walk, negotiate the narrow pavements of Grosvenor Road, sneak past the MI6 building without being spotted by James Bond, fight my way through approximately six million school children all queuing to get on the London Eye and then negotiate the cobbles and alleyways of Wapping.
The walk had challenged me in new and exciting ways, not least my first ride on a London bus to get to my start at Wandsworth Bridge. However, there I was, approaching Canary Wharf and feeling every bit as excited and pleased with myself as I did when I recently reached the top of Cairn Gorm.
It all goes to show that challenges are to be encouraged… as are National Trails with very few hills! (Mind you, there is a fair amount of height gain to be had crossing all of those bridges!)
