I was anxious before the hike began. The entire church group planned to walk ten miles in preparation for the Pioneer Trek we’ll be taking in July. The trail was a fairly flat bike path, but ten miles is still a long way to walk for people who aren’t used to walking very much. I worried that one or more of my children would, at some point, sit down on the trail and declare they couldn’t go any further. I worried that there would be blisters and pain. I worried that if one of the kids had to be rescued part way by a vehicle, then that kid would refuse to go on Trek at all. But we needed to know what ten miles of walking would do to us, because if we did need to be rescued, perhaps the trek was inadvisable.
We were all good until mile eight. That was when Howard’s legs began aching in new and interesting ways. It was also when Link slowed down and began to limp. By the end he was hobbling along and wincing, but he continued. He did not stop. He did not give up. And we made it to the end.
The remainder of the day was spent sitting on cushy pieces of furniture and wincing any time we had to move. Yet I can tell that all we suffer from is some sore muscles. We’ll be better fairly quickly. There were a few small blisters, but we can attend to those. We all did ten miles with very little advance training. If we do more walking in the two months between now and the trek, we’ll be fine.
Invest in nylon socks. Saved my feet in all the miles I marched as a boyscout.
Already did. We were wearing them yesterday. Thanks though.
Yay! Fun, fun, fun!
And my vote is “invest in blister plasters” – and apply them as soon as sore spots develop (or even “where you know sore spots _will_ develop”). Don’t wait for proper blisters.
Also, 10 miles on the flat is a Sunday afternoon stroll – *IF* you are used to walking. If you aren’t, it’s a tough slog. Well done!
Yay!