Mike Brockhurst’s Walking Englishman is one of the most popular walking websites there is. There’s always something to enjoy as he shares his old favourites and new discoveries. This time Mike’s really gone and done it. He’s about 3 weeks into a 3 month trek from the far north-west of Scotland to the most southerly tip of England, or as Mike calls it, his 1,000 mile walk in 80 days.
A thousand miles! I’ve never done anything like that. The furthest I’ve walked in one go is the Coast to Coast path. It took us just under a fortnight and it rained every single day. Even so the whole experience is right up there in my top ten of the best things I’ve ever done. There is something about setting off and not coming home that is quite different from even the greatest of day walks. You leave home and your everyday life behind and around day 3 something happens – to me at least. I stop worrying about whether I’ve left the gas on and what my boss said and everything concentrates down to the single fact of putting one foot in front of the other. Walking becomes who I am - what I do. Nothing else matters.
Friends have asked me what I think about when I’m on a long distance trail. The answer is not a lot. Occasionally the thought of a mars bar might float into my head but mostly my mind just empties and the rhythm of the walk takes over. A kind of detachment sets in and I end the walk calmer, more relaxed and at peace with myself and the world.
So Mike, I wish you the very best of luck and if you’re anything like me, by August you’ll be so laid back they’ll have to hang on to your backpack to stop you slipping off the Lizard and floating out to sea.
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