Sunday 3rd May - 20 freakin miles!!

I did it!! 20 miles and I did it!!

I spent all day Saturday hoping that Sunday wasn’t going to be as hot – what a thing to say on a bank holiday!

Anyway, the original plan had been for four of us to walk together, but that shrank down to two for the actual day, myself and Diane. When I got up on Sunday it was very sunny again so we put our start time back an hour to miss the midday sun. I picked Diane up and we drove down to Folkestone, and round in circles trying to find a parking space. It was 12:45 by the time we got going. We walked through the market, under the arches and along the bit of beach there and turned back to make our way towards Hythe. At this point we got a text from Sam, she had dropped out of our walk but was doing it back to front, we were walking Folkestone>Hythe>Folkestone and she was doing Hythe>Folkestone>Hythe. Well she was just coming up to Folkestone Harbour, and with just a minute or two of waiting round on our part, we met up and walked back with her. We were all wearing our bright pink caps and passed a group of others doing the same.

We headed along the sea wall towards Hythe and although the sun was out, it kept going behind clouds so it didn’t get too hot. 3 miles in I managed to pop my contact lense out. I always use a mirror to put my lenses in so I immediately started to panic, then the wind blew the lense on the gritty floor, twice. But I managed to get it back in somehow, which made my eye water and thankfully Sam had some spare solution on her. I only had a spare lense, but the one I had in was a brand new one and I didn't want to waste it (monthy continuous aren't cheap). Panic over. As we came around the point into Hythe we could see the Imperial Hotel which got closer sooooo slowly. We stopped for the loos and blister bursting (already!) and then headed up towards the canal to walk the bridleway. We were walking reasonably slowly at this point because, although myself and Diane had only done about 6 miles, Sam was about 14 miles in. But judging by how I felt towards the end I think this might have been a good thing. The canal path was lovely and peaceful, the sun had come out properly by this time but we were in the shade thankfully.

A few miles later, we joined a road to take us back down to the main road. We stopped for water refills and toilets at a pub and then went to the bottom of the road, at this point Sam was going one way with 3 miles left to go, and me and Diane were technically heading home, with another 9.5 miles left to go. We walked along the main road and back up to the canal, then we walked the north side of it until we got to the end. I did struggle along those 2 or 3 miles, my legs were starting to seize up, my feet felt like they were on fire, we had left Sam behind, and the view was quite restricted. I was bored and in pain.

But then we got to the end of the canal, we restocked on water, I moved a few plasters around/applied talc/waved my feet around to cool them down/took some more nurofen, and we crossed over to get to the sea wall back to Folkestone. I think the nurofen must have kicked in after a while as my legs didn’t ache so much and my feet had gone numb provided I didn’t wiggle them, if I did that, it felt like they were being branded by hot pokers.

As we walked along the seafront, the evening sun was out but it wasn’t hot anymore. It was a most beautiful evening and I was trying to focus on that, rather than my feet. The last 4 miles seemed to take forever. We could see the Burstin Hotel in Folkestone and although it seemed a long long way away, I knew it wasn’t far enough away to make up the 20 miles. We walked past where the car was parked with just under 3 miles to go – I so wanted to stop. We walked past the hotel and realised we would have to walk to the end of the sandy beach again to make up the distance. Unfortunately, to do that we had to walk over some cobbles and I felt like the princess and the pea, I could feel EVERY uneven surface through the layers on my feet, and I got my third ripping sensation in my toes. I didn’t dare look anymore. We hobbled past a chippy half a mile from the car and stopped for chips and a drink and made the final bit back to the car. Once there I checked my pedometer and it read 19.76 miles. That was near enough to 20 for me, and I just wanted to get my trainers off.

I took off the trainers, but not my socks – didn’t want putting off my food, and we ate the chips in the car. Mmmm. How I managed to drive home I have no idea. But once I’d walked through the front door I headed straight to the bath. I took off my socks and counted 11 lovely blisters, 2 full of blood (ach!) and one taking up ¾’s of my left little toe. Nice. Ironically, the one toe without a blister was the one I’ve had all the problems with. I think I need to get another toe separator.

And I think I’ve worked out what the phenomenally painful ripping sensation is I get in my toes (don’t read if you don’t want details). At first I thought it was the blister bursting, but they are often still intact when I take my socks off. I think it must be when a blister is so full, it spreads across the skin, it must be the ripping apart of the two skin layers that I’m feeling. And it is intensely painful for 5/10 mins and then it calms down (a bit) and that must be when the fluid fills up. I’m just going to have to take a pin and pop them as they appear. Puke.

At the moment I can hardly walk. I left my blisters intact overnight but they were so big and uncomfortable and every time I turned over in my sleep I woke myself up. Once I’d drained them most of them were fine, but I have one on the arch of my right foot which is more painful than a blister should be. I’m hoping that it’s not going to get infected. I don’t have time for another infection.

Anyway, that’s the end of that epic. Well done to everyone else who did their 20 miles this weekend. Wind down for two weeks now, and then the big night. I’m not sure how safe it is for me to do anymore walking, I need to heal my feet first. I’ll concentrate on bra decorating instead I think LOL