Walking In The Land Of Oz . . . Autumn 2012

Posted on November 1, 2012 by Woodswoman
Beautiful old stone steps in Provence

Beautiful old stone steps in Provence

When I began to think about training for walking the Camino, I didn’t imagine I would be doing so much walking in other countries this year.  But France, Italy, and Australia presented themselves to me and I walked in each of these beautiful places.

Walking around Paris is easy, and I posted a few months ago about that impressive city.  Then there was Italy.  My trusty pedometer on my hip throughout Rome, Siena, Florence, Lucca and Venice, my roomate and I logged over 100 miles on that trip, and it was oh, so painless!

This past month, I had the pleasure and surprise of spending time in various parts of Australia with my long-time partner Neil, my daughter Ashley and her husband Justin.  Ashley and Justin have been traveling the world for the past 14 months, mostly the southern hemisphere, (see theparallellife.com) and they planned their stops so that they could come from Indonesia and meet us in Perth for the beginning of our Australian adventure.  We began nearly four hours south of Perth, in Busselton and the Margaret River Valley area of Western Australia.

A walking path down to the beach near Busselton

A walking path down to the beach near Busselton

While we knew we would be tasting delicious wines, we hadn’t had any idea we would also be surrounded by soft sand beaches, red rocky coastlines bordering towns with aboriginal names like Nannup, Yallingup, Cowaranup, etc.

Even our time-share resort had winding pathways straight to the golden beige beaches, and from our resort property, we watched the sunset.  During the day, we drove to our chosen wineries, and at midday, took our picnic lunches, found a recommended beach, and walked.  We chose our picnic rocks carefully, perched with sandwiches and water, and took a break from the walking.  After a good long hike up and down the boulders to the beach and back, our next destination was another winery.  With a bottle or two to take with us back “home”, we reversed our road tracks and settled down to make our dinner, complete with the wine of the day.  Watching the sunset, and then walking again in the dusky dark or early the next morning, we were never very far from an accidental Camino training session.

Our first sunset in Western Australia - Busselton Beach

Our first sunset in Western Australia – Busselton Beach

Posted in Australia walking, Australian Beaches, Australian Sunsets, Italy walking, Paris training, Pedometers, Preparation, Western Australia, Wine tasting, Women Walking | Leave a comment

Now It’s Italy Walking . . .

Posted on September 26, 2012 by Woodswoman

Yes, I seem to be walking in all sorts of circumstances this year, though I thought my prep for the Camino would only be on trails near my Colorado home. But I just returned from leading a women’s trip to Italy, and as I did in France, I brought my pedometer.

My exceptional roommate, Anne, loves to walk. She came with me on every errand, no matter how irrelevant to her. Every day she’d say, “Do you have your walk-a-thing on? We have to get to five miles . . . eight miles . . . ten miles . . . ” And we did. On this trip, we walked over one hundred miles, despite the fact that at least part of four days were spent traveling. So am I training? Yes! Does it look the same as my spring starts, with boots, 1000 Mile Fusion socks, pack, water? No. The water, yes, a pack, sometimes, but the scenery was stimulating, exciting, my Italia.

The Spanish Steps – Roma

As in France, when things got harder, either because of the incline of the walk or the number of stairs, I just told myself, “You are staying strong for the Camino.” And that would be right and true. I think every day about the journey on which I will embark in less than a year. More on that later. But walking can be done anywhere, anytime, and the physical/emotional pleasures of a walk accompany me, with or without my “walk-a-thing”.

Thanks, Anne, for inadvertently Camino-training with me, and for being the best roommate I could have had on this trip!

Now it’s time to get back to the trails in my home arena.  For awhile . . .

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Musings, Collective Walking, and Ants . . .

Posted on July 13, 2012 by Woodswoman

A civilization of ants made a crowded pilgrimage up and down the edge of my garage floor where it met the driveway.  They weren’t there yesterday, but this morning, as I put the final touches on the packing task for the road trip to Vermont, I saw them.  Like a wide and wavy black line, they scurried along the demarcation between garage and drive, all the way to the corner of the brick edged wall.

My only line of defense was a Wasp Bomb.  It surely did the trick.  I felt like an insect Hitler as I sprayed in a long swath and watched the marching little squiggles turn into commas and periods, and finally . . . a sort of scattering of sesame seed carcasses.  Bleah!

If only they had stayed where they belonged, I thought.  And where would that be, I asked myself?  In the grass?  Interrupting someone’s picnic?  Up a tree with rotting bark?  Pilgrims, whether they be ants or people, just go where they are destined to go.  That’s probably why there are so many pilgrims on the Camino de Santiago every year.  And I will be another speck moving through the Spanish countryside, through the little villages, the towns, the cities, backpack on my back, boots or shoes, and those ever-wonderful 1000 Mile Fusion Socks.

Today I embarked on a different sort of pilgrimage . . . a road trip from Colorado to Vermont, a sole human traveler with two Golden Retrievers in the back seat, trunk and car topper loaded to the gills.

I will make my doggie and solo human trek 2000 miles at my own pace, rest at Stone Walls, my beloved Cavendish Retreat, and do whatever I please for three weeks before Neil joins me for the last seven days.  Then the pilgrimage home, accompanied by another human as well as the animals.  Extra humans change things, but the pilgrimage is no less important, no less valid.

I don’t know whether I’ll walk the Vermont country roads or just sit in my own back meadow on my own Adirondack chair, surrounded by Golden fluff with eight legs.  I do know that I desperately need this time to myself.  Especially after annihilating an ant country with a single spray.  I’ll do my penance, and I AM sorry.  I can only hope some raider from a lost ark doesn’t look down on me and my walking companions next September 2013, and get out her cosmic spray can, flattening all of us with one WHOOSH!

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In Memoriam . . .

Posted on May 30, 2012 by Woodswoman

May 30, 2012.  When I decided to walk the Camino de Santiago, the first question was “When?” though perhaps it should have been “Why?”  That question will be left for another time, but the “when” question seemed fairly easy.  Spring tends to have more rain, summer is way too hot and crowded for me in almost any country, but the autumn is my favorite time of year, so I placed myself in Spain in September and October 2013.

Then I realized that since September 1 was my mother’s birthday, I’d begin then for her . . . and that has stuck in my mind.  It would be her 92nd birthday in 2013, and given her circumstances, I would have been surprised if she were still on the earth when I begin my walk, but that September 1 date was anchored in my brain, my schedule, and became my firm answer when people asked, “When are you going to do this crazy thing?”

My mother has not been well for many years, and has deteriorated seriously over the past few months.  This morning she died, finally at peace, nearly reaching age 91.  While I was in France earlier this month, I lit candles for Mom in every church I entered.  I’m not at all a believer, but she is/was, and I have always loved lighting candles for her in Italy and France.

With each match to the wick, I blew her my wish . . . “let go, Mom, let go.  You’ve done enough, suffered enough, lost enough.”  And she finally did just that, though I don’t claim any power over such an action as death.

So she has flown on the wind today, and is out of pain and confusion.  And I, I still have my goal date set, it will always be Mom’s birthday, and I am filled with even more resolve than ever, to start on September 1, and to complete my 1000 kilometer walk for myself and for my parents.  They would each think I was a crazy person for doing this Camino, but their styles would be different, as they always were.  I’ll have to think more about that and imagine just what each of them might say to me as I prepare for my long walk.

For now, I’m just savoring that start date, thinking about my beautiful mother, and itching to begin training again . . . after we put her to rest this weekend.

In wavering but better days . . .11/15/03

Rosemary Teresa Mercurio Joseph

September 1, 1921 – May 30, 2012

Posted in Miscellany, What Goes on in the Mind | 2 Comments

Paris Walking

Posted on May 19, 2012 by Woodswoman

Well, I haven’t been reporting here about hiking the Cathy Fromme Prairie Trail because I am in France.  Though I am coming home tomorrow night, and will get back into all of my routines in Colorado, walking the Paris streets and bridges substitutes quite nicely as a training exercise.

One of the many exquisite bridges over the River Seine . . .

As we leave the Hotel Muguet each morning, my pedometer is clipped to my pocket, and I clock our miles every day. I am proud to say that since we arrived in Paris on the train from Provence, I’ve walked more than 50 miles.  Today alone, two other travelers, Etta and Anne, accompanied me for a distance of nearly nine miles.  It seems to be no effort to walk along the Seine, toward Notre Dame, St. Chappelle, the Latin Quarter, the Mouffetard Market.

And every time I climb those steep stone steps at one of Paris’ exquisite historical buildings, I remind myself that this will be nothing compared with the Camino!

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Walking My Mind As Well As My Body . . .

Posted on April 29, 2012 by Woodswoman

April 29, 2012.  It’s Neil’s birthday weekend, and I haven’t been out on a walk since the 21st up at Beaver Creek.  A medical procedure and its preparation took two days of last week, and preparing Julia Child’s Boeuf Borguignon for six people added a long list of steps for the meal.

So even though today is a second, more casual party for Neil, I had to get out on this beautiful, cool and breezy day for at least an hour.  The walking ritual was as usual.  Don the socks, boots, pedometer, iPod and headphones, make sure I have water, and head out for the trail.

I realized as I walked that this is a time, perhaps the only time, when my mind can wander without interruptions.  I watched as two children, perhaps 10 or 11 years of age, went up and down the trail, the girl with her scooter, her slightly older brother with his skateboard.  Their parents were videotaping them as they breezed down the faster hills.

I wrote letters to my son Tanner in my head.  He lives on an island off the coast of Thailand, and talking with him is difficult. A 13-14 hour time difference, delays and echoes in the phone connections, and a myriad of other things makes it easier to write the letters inside myself than to actually have an opportunity to tell him some of my thoughts.

The other thing my mind does on these hikes is listen to my body.  My knees, hips, fingers, feet, all send messages to my head, messages that tell me how I’m doing, how I need to adjust various parts of me so I won’t strain my joints. Sometimes I pretend I’m already on the trail, wishing I had my hiking sticks.  Sometimes I make mental adjustments to my equipment.  And always there is that thread of a question . . . “Do you know why you are training for this Camino?”

I don’t know why, really, but I also don’t think a reason is required at this particular moment. I just know I have to do this.  For me.  Just for me.  I’m not religious by any stretch.  An atheist on her own pilgrimage.

And I have a feeling that question might never be answered.  Does it make any difference to me whether I know a reason or not?  Not in the least.  So I’ll keep walking, keep writing those letters in my head, keep paying attention to the twinges, to the breath, to the music that encourages me on my journey.

Posted in Camino de Santiago, Preparation, What Goes on in the Mind, Why Walk The Camino? | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Boots, Shoes and 1000 Mile Socks

Posted on April 20, 2012 by Woodswoman

My Asolo boots now have friends . . . a pair of friends, to be exact.  The weekly REI visit, to consult with Kumar the shoe wizard about a bit of a problem with my left toes on my 6-mile walk the other day, resulted in two purchases:  hot pink boot inserts which might solve the toe problem, and a pair of Salomon XAComp 6 trail runners, which have enough support for a Camino trip and are waterproof.  Perhaps the Salomons will be the perfect second pair of footwear for the Camino, and in the meantime, they will serve me well this summer on walks in Ouray near Neil’s cabin.

I’ll need several walks with my new foot companions to see whether we are compatible with one another, but I’m learning that this is the way of all the equipment I will take with me.

Oh, and Kumar leads treks in his native Nepal.  He grinned as he told me I’ll be ready to trek around Annapurna after the Camino.  I think I’ll have to remind him that one elephant is all I can eat at this point.  But he’s planted a seed . . . don’t want to get ahead of myself.  I’m no longer 40 or even 50 or 60 years old, and try not to add too many things to my already long Bucket List.

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Shucking Superstition

Posted on April 15, 2012 by Woodswoman

Friday, April 13, 2012 I am not a superstitious woman. I have a black cat, I’m short enough to walk under ladders, and when I break a mirror, I simply gather the shards and put them in the trash, wrapped so the trash man doesn’t cut himself as he empties the container. I’m not sure I even thought about today being Friday the 13th when I headed out on my now familiar trail for a longer walk this afternoon.

The sky was grey and white, with clouds that sheltered me from the sun but didn’t look threatening in any way. A light day pack accompanied me, with a water bottle, a granola bar,and a tangerine. My newest pedometer (see previous post) was clamped to the waistband of my pants, and the “don’t lose it” clip was properly clipped. Trying to avoid having to buy a fifth pedometer is my first goal. My next one is to walk for three miles toward the western section of the trail, and then return.

A six mile walk/hike should be challenging enough for this late afternoon. The clouds cast a comforting mood over the surroundings, my iPod carried favorite songs to my ears, and my pace felt easy. The boots are still quite comfortable, and I pay attention to the different moving parts of myself, just noting this and that, a twinge, a click in the shoulder, the regularity of my breathing. Nearly six miles and an hour and three quarters later, I was nearly home. I only noticed my surroundings again when I realized that I had gone past the turn to get to my house. Daydreaming about what? I have no idea, but I felt that ease all the way home, and tried not to get too confident about the distance.

I only noticed the toes on my left foot numbing and shooting little pains intermittently. I guess now I have a new reason to visit my REI second home. Tomorrow, I’ll take my boots and socks and visit Kumar, the shoe expert. One bite at a time . . .

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It’s the little things . . .

Posted on April 8, 2012 by Woodswoman

Last Sunday, I again started off on I can tell will become my ritual.  A walk.  A longer and longer walk each week.  With each walk I try new bits of things . . . gel wedges between my toes.  A different combination of socks, though I’m sticking pretty closely to my 1000 Mile Fusion Sock model.  Ace arch supports.  A pedometer.  Oh, yes, the pedometer.  Neil and I have three pedometers between us, purchased long ago for a walking trip in Italy in 1998, but can I find any of them?  Of course not.

So I visited my friendly Walgreen’s and purchased a new one, set it for my weight and stride, and clipped it to my waistband last weekend.  Cell phone, iPod, day pack equipped with a Kashi bar, two small bottles of water, and a pack of kleenex.  Donned my brimmed hat for the sun, and began.  When I reached the end of the sidewalk that leads to the trail and turned to go through the tunnel under the busy street, I thought I’d check the pedometer, just to see how far it is from my front door to the actual trail.  The pedometer was gone.  I’d been on my feet for less than 15 minutes, walking on a straight neighborhood sidewalk, and the pedometer had disappeared.

After I had clocked an hour on the trail, I retraced my steps on the sidewalk, looking carefully for my lost (and brand new) step-counter.  Nothing.  Back home again, I made sure I hadn’t dropped the pedometer in the garage somewhere before I began the walk.  Nothing.  After breakfast, my Golden Retriever, Luna, and I took a short trip down the same sidewalk and my eyes swept back and forth over the path I had taken.  Absolutely nothing that looked like my pedometer.  How could it have disappeared so quickly?  The only answer I had was that someone had found it and picked it up.  Nice.

Not to be deterred, I purchased an identical one this week and set it up just like the lost one.  Today the same ritual began.  Gel toe separators, a pad on a sore spot near my left big toe, different arch supports, my trusty socks and boots.  And the pedometer firmly tied to the belt at my waist, doubly secured by a clip to my pocket.

Nearly four miles later I had made the round trip, paying attention to any part of my body that was trying to send me a message.  Most of the messages were smiley ones, and just a few parts of me complained, but they recovered quickly.  I can do this.  And I have 16 months to get really good at it!

Next time . . . the “final answer” for my backpack selection . . .

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1000 Mile socks . . .

Posted on April 4, 2012 by Woodswoman

On March 4, I hit the Cathy Fromme Prairie Trail and did a couple of miles with my partner, Neil and my dogs. I wore the new Asolo boots and two pairs of socks, the liners and the SmartWool.  It felt a bit too much, and though I got no blisters, that left foot and the bone below the big toe were sore.  First day out, though, wasn’t bad.

The next  Sunday, we again took the dogs out and clocked about 3-1/2 miles.  I tried a different combo of socks and felt pretty happy at the end of the walk.

Reading through two years of on-line posts on the Camino de Santiago forum, a particular category of posts that deal only with the ongoing discussion about whether hiking boots or hiking shoes are best for the Camino, I came upon a little reference to 1000 Mile socks.  Hmm, I thought.  Really?  Guaranteed to last a thousand miles and NOT give you blisters.  Another hmmm . . .Not only is this apparently a legitimate item, but there are sub-names within the brand.  The one mentioned on the forum was 1000 Mile Fusion socks.  Ah. . . now I understand.  Not really, but I did a search, and of course since Amazon sells everything, I was not surprised to find that they broker for this UK product. I ordered a pair and was delighted to find  these supposed wonder socks in my hands within the week.

The next day I attempted four miles, but got a bit re-routed on the trail and ended with about seven miles on those new boots. My feet felt pretty good, though if I were really on the Camino, I would have stopped for lunch and a foot-soak in the stream that ran beside my path. And if I were really on the Camino, I’d have another 487 miles to go before I reached Santiago de Compostela.  With a 25 pound pack on my back.

So I am beginning. I’m also keeping a Camino prep journal, and perhaps I’ll discover as I jot down notes in this little journal some of the reasons why I seem drawn to do this pilgrimage. I am neither a body nazi nor a strenuous hiker. But I love to walk.

Posted in Miscellany | 4 Comments