Hidden treasures

After a day of feeling grotty, and wishing I had been hungover, then I at least I would have known why I felt so horrible, of food shopping, then sleeping (I rarely sleep during the day) I was persuaded to go for a walk to chase the sunset. 

Despite living here for 26 years Peter only recently found this path around the edge of one of the hills here and tonight was my first time.  It was lovely, amazing views, loads of blackberry bushes. an amazing Oak and Hawthorn hedge, millions of midges (ouch, ouch, ouch!, sadly they REALLY like me).  As we were watching the sunset something caught my eye, at first I thought it was a cat but soon realised it was a fox.  The Peter spotted a second one but it ran off really quickly.  It was a delightful surprise. The first one had stopped dead still however, and just stared at us! It didnt move for about 5 minutes. It was wonderful, as if it was daring us to move towards it.  Of course we didnt, but moved further up the path, when we spotted the other one, just its head, peeping over the brow of the hill at us.

The sun didnt set in a blaze of glory, more sank down behind Drummau, quietly, with no fuss, beautiful all the same. So it was a short but lovely walk and I was really glad that I had been persuaded to go, again being outside made things seem so much better.

The walk back brought one more surprise.  Something I had never noticed.  A small group of trees which look like a Tortoise making his way slowly up the hill.  It seemed appropriate that this is actually on one of the hills behind our house, reminding me of me.  Of slowly making my way up those hills, those mountains.  Reminding me that I will get there, what ever I decide to do.

Pen y Fan ... again

This morning all four of us ventured up the path from the Pont ar Daf car park towards Pen y Fan.  It was the first time that we managed to persuade Becky to come with us. As we set of it was cool, slightly overcast, but we could see Corn Du and Pen y Fan clearly.  'B' and I let Peter and Sarah head off ahead of us.  I remember all too well attempting this path for the first time and I knew that B's hypermobility was going to have some impact on her walking, that she was going to struggle at some so I felt it was easier to let the other two strive ahead.  She made a great start, not too fast and she managed a good third of the way up before she was in obvious discomfort.  We had paused a few times but as we caught up with the other two I could see that she was getting despondant.  We swapped walking partners for a little while which proved to be a disaster.  As much as these two are great friends, they are sisters, and sisters ... well ... are sisters.  Sarah's happy mood and 'encouraging' chatter drove her up the wall.  A cry went up to basically ... 'take her away please!' So Peter walked with her a little while and Sarah and I forged ahead.  We stopped and looked back and we could see Peter waving at us.  B had given up, couldnt face going any further. We waited whilst he caught us up and took the car keys and he and B headed back down.  Sarah and I carried out but by this time I felt awful at carrying on without her and the rain was coming in so we headed back down ... to be met by them coming back up (this sound familiar ... like my first attempt).  By now the rain was driving into the four of us and we stopped for a few minutes to discuss 'up' or 'down'?  Down was the choice. 

So down we came and by the time we were almost at the bottom the sun was out and the day was beautiful again.  Typical.

Anyway, I fully expected B to say ... im not doing that again ... BUT she said ... I will do it, I will get to the top ... and then im never doing it again LOL ... attah girl!

Sarah struggled as well, at some points, as she has an ongoing knee problem.  She doesnt find it as hard as B does, but my word I have seen her in some pain as well. She gets a 'dizzy' problem too and gets light headed and then we have to feed her. Its a bit like feeding a chick LOL ... or a Furby .. remember they used to say 'Huuunggryyyy' when they needed fed ... thats Sarah .. its normally a 'Oh oh, cant see, need food' type thing.  Aparently its because she is so tall! Hmmmm. 

But I am so delighted that they try, especially that B finally tried; I know what its like to try to do things like that when things can hurt, when joints dont do what you want them to.  Neither have arthritis, thank god,  and I need to help them to keep active so hopefully they never will, but I need them also to know that im incredibly proud of there efforts and that, for Becky, that when she does finally get up that hill ... im going to be there with her.

Weather

I went on a trip today, for work, a jolly if you like.  I didnt want to go, cant really afford the time out, but my word what a great day and Im so glad I went.


I went to the Met Office in Exeter! It was in connection with some work we are doing at our site but what an amazing place.   The work that the guys down there do is incredible! The technology is second to none.  You see the weather forecast and think thats all they do but that only just scratches the surface! Wow, wow, wow. 


So next time I watch the Countryfile forecast, or the Channel 4 forecast, or any weather forecast in fact, it will be with new respect.


On the wall, in the meeting room we went into, in silver lettering, was this quote:


Summer is delicious, rain is refreshing,
wind braces up, snow is exhilarating;
there is no such thing as bad weather,
only different kinds of good weather.

John Ruskin

Of course lots of us have already read this quote, but it reminded me how I feel about the weather, in fact about the seasons, that there is always, always something good and positive to see, that unless it is making your situation dangerous or taking the roof off your house (etc) that our weather is fabulous and should be appreciated.  That our seasons may appear to be all over the place but if you pause for a moment and look closely, our year is really always following its expected path.


So appreciate our weather, our seasons, our climate - and stop moaning about it.  Just get out, safely, and enjoy it!

Magical moonlight mountain

Saturdays often end up being about chores for us.  Though we try hard to get as much done during the week so its not the case, sometimes we fail miserably.  Today was one of those days.  The morning was about cleaning and clearing.  Then we headed off to do the shopping.  Before we turned around it was 5pm and we were back in the house cooking the evening meal.  The day had been changeable anyway, weather wise, sunshine for a bit, rain, hailstones, thunder and lightening! A real mixed bag.  It wasnt surprising then that by 7.00 this evening I was desperate to just get out.  Get out and do something, walk, ride the bike, run ... anything ... but not sit staring at the goggle box in the corner. The weather seemed to have settled into a beautiful evening so we got our stuff and jumped in the car and headed towards Brecon.  As we got closer to Pont ar Daf car park we could see that there were some ominous clouds but we decided that they seemed to moving away so we would give Pen y Fan a try.  As we pulled into the car park the place was absolutely packed! Then we realised that most of them were there to do the final leg of the Welsh Three Peaks, raising money for Ty Hafan.  At the bottom, by the finish line, some people were set up with Champagne ready to celebrate when their friends reached them. 

As we started our walk up the hill progress was really slow as there were so many people coming down.  We could hear people cheering as friends and family reached their goal!  You had to smile every time a cheer went up, you couldnt not smile, people were sharing in others success and surely in the success for the charity. It was amazing, heartwarming, if a little sad when you thought what the charity are there for.  One poor man passed us very gingerly.  I asked him if he was okay.  'Yes' he replied 'My knees went two mountains ago'  'Oh no!' I said 'Would you like us to help you back down?'  'No' was the very definite reply 'Im determined to finish this, and theres my girlfriend coming up to meet me'  Cue the sound of a very excited girlfriend, calling his name and running up the hill to meet him, Cathy running to reach her Heathcliffe.  Hats off to that man; brave, determined and probably a little mad but it persuaded us to make a donation to the next walker wearing the Ty Hafan tshirt (complete with passes etc - so no worries, we didnt hand money to any random walker)

We pushed on up the hill, by now the sun was making its way down but we were keeping up with it, climbing higher so we could keep it in sight.  The walkers were getting fewer and fewer and as we were about 15 minutes away from the bottom of Corn Du, the remaining marshalls were winding their way back down the path.  Then 10 minutes later, two (non charity raising) walkers passed us.  They were the last, we were on the hill on our own. We reached the split in the path just as the sun was throwing amazing deep red glows across the mountains around us. We watched as it disappered quickly and then the sudden chill hit home and we abandoned all ideas of continuing to Pen y Fan. 

We could have continued but by this time it was 9.50 and although we could still see clearly we knew that that could change really quickly and that the temperature would only fall further.

If you had asked me before hand, 'Would you be upset not to reach Pen y Fan' after getting that far, I would have said 'Yes' but just being out on the hill, no one close to us, was amazing.  I would have sat there all night had I had a sleeping bag to snuggle into.

We started our walk back down and as the sun had been setting on one side of us, a beautiful half moon had been rising on the other side.  It was magical walking down, watching the sky change from reds, into purples in the blues, darker blues and finally settling into a more navy hue which hugged round the moon pefectly.  I would have never dreamed  six months ago that I would have been confidently striding down a hill (and yes of course, we were on a well defined path),in an amazing twilight, with moon gleaming, birds still singing and sheep calling quietly to their lambs.

Two thirds of the way down there was no noise at all apart from the occassional car in the distance.  So I started to sing, not because I wasnt loving the silence, wasnt enjoying the hearing the odd whisper of the wind, but because I could.  I could sing out, as loud as I wanted (and as tunelessly) because there was no one there to hear, no audience to critise or gripe.  Well unless you count the sheep, and hubby, they may have other views.  Show songs started to fill my head; Miss Saigon, Oklahoma, My Fair Lady, Jekyll and Hyde.  I finished off with Bill Barclays version of the Twelve Days of Christmas (yes its June, but its funny... even funnier as I couldnt remember all the words).   At the very bottom we were still talking pictures but those without the flash on were just pitch black, but we could still see really clearly, fantastic.


It was a fantastic experience, made all the better by being totally unexpected.

After passing through the kissing gate I took a picture, a shot into the trees ... the mist in the picture was also unexpected and a little eerie.

So running will have to be tomorrow now but now there is yet another new thing to add to my list.  Spend the night on a hill somewhere, maybe a tent, maybe a bothy, but its a must now, the idea is there and it has to be done!

C25K

Well ive started it! App onto phone and two runs completed this week.  Quickly realised that my 'good' trainers are all wrong and my ankle is turning in - so need a trip .... somewhere (no idea where though) ... to get a decent pair before I do some damage! Still I could always run in my Asolo walking boots ... 

 

I think not!  

Its just so weird to be doing some structured (well sort of) running /jogging after all these years.  Though it was mentioned that I jog really slowly .... hmmm .... let me see, 10 plus years of not being able to run .. you work it out!

To do list is getting longer but lately seems to be so much harder to actually get to do the things I want to do, probably because new ideas come into my head daily, I see others doing things and I think 'I want to do that .... ' There isnt time to fit it all in!

Still the day will come when I can run that 5k not walk it, that I've been to the top of Snowdon, Ben Nevis and maybe even Scarfell Pike, that I've got the dry suit on and gone diving, that I've bitten that bullet and gone over the edge on some cliff (with ropes I might add) and maybe even jumped out of that plane. 

Till then, its Walk for 5 minutes, jog for 1 minute, walk for 1.5 minutes etc etc ... well its still week one!

C25K