This week, I give a long overdue update on my plans to walk Hadrian’s Wall and how the training is going. 

The big news this week is that I’ve tried to introduce some new life into the chat forum - there are tons of new threads and some interesting discussions happening. I'm also trying a new format, called 'Official Threads', where I post semi-regular updates on single topics for everyone to follow along with. So, for example, I've set one up for the new Harry Potter TV shows (the trailer was released this week) and the upcoming Royal Visit of King Charles to the USA. Hopefully, this will be a fun and easy way for everyone to keep up with fast-moving events with lots of news. If you want to be notified when a specific thread is updated, just tap the bell icon for that thread, and the system should send you an update. I'm also open to ideas for other official threads to set up! 

Come along and see!

Here are some highlights:

Ted Lasso Rewatch - Thoughts and Discussion
First Look at Young Sherlock Holmes - New Guy Ritchie Series
Harry Potter TV Show First Trailer - 1st Season Updates Official Thread
King Charles USA Royal Visit Official Thread
Your Favorite Pub of All Time
Pressure - New D-Day Film
H is for Hawk Reaction/Review

What a difference almost two months makes. I’ve been walking almost every day since our last update, barring a few breaks due to rain or extreme cold (this is winter in Northwest Indiana...). Spring has properly sprung here now, so it's been pleasant almost every day.

The biggest walking adventure was that we went on a family vacation for the kids’ spring break to Paris, France (see previous Sunday Post about the British bookstore I came across).  I definitely got my steps in. The common joke is that when Americans visit Europe, they walk way more than they’re used to, eat good food, and somehow still lose weight. That’s exactly what happened to me. My goal with all this walking isn’t just to walk the wall, it’s to become healthier. I’m happy to report that with all the walking and some changes to my diet, my health is improving, and I’m losing weight.

We averaged about seven miles a day in walking while we were in Paris. This proved great for my training. It also proved to me that I could walk longer than I’d been used to, then get up the next day and do it again. Granted, we were going at a rather sedate pace, but it’s still a ton of walking. It’s a similar pace I plan to keep while I walk the wall itself. My goal isn’t to walk the walk as quickly as possible; it’s to savor every step and pace myself (and stop along the way for interesting things).

Paris acted as a bit of a reset for me after having not walked for several weeks. When we returned, the countdown had something like 150 days until my departure for the walk, and it was a huge wakeup call. I have less than five months to be physically ready for this walk. And Paris showed that I really wasn’t. Seven miles a day is great at any other time, but my body needs to do 10-15 miles a day in less than five months. I have a lot of work to do.

So, since returning, I’ve been motivated in a way that I wasn’t before. Nothing like a hard, approaching deadline to get things going! I’ve walked almost every day since. Sometimes, with my dog Hudson on the streets around my house. Sometimes on my own on local trails. Last weekend, I did a big 6-mile hike in uneven terrain in a local state park (with Hudson in tow). That was extremely hard, but I was surprised to see that the next day, I didn’t really feel any adverse effects. So, I must keep the momentum working.

My plan for the next couple of months is to walk a few miles a day during the work week, then on the weekends, I will take one really long walk (followed the next day by a short one). That will do for now, and I should be able to keep up the pace. Once June comes around, things will have to get a little more intense. Longer walks during the week, and then two really long walks on the weekends. I have a lot to work up to. What I will absolutely not do is follow my typical attitude of ‘it’ll be fine’ and just hope for the best when I show up in Newcastle. That is a recipe for failure.

There is too much on the line!

I had a minor disaster a couple of weeks ago. I wasn’t paying attention while watching TV with Hudson. He was lying under my recliner. He was chewing something, but I was so engrossed in what I was watching, I didn’t give any thought to WHAT he was chewing. It turned out not to be the bone I’d given him, but my prized walking shoes from New Balance that I bought last year. He completely destroyed them. Thankfully, they were almost worn out, so I was going to need to get new shoes in a month or so anyway. But that was annoying. But it turned into a comedy of errors when a few days later, the same bloody thing happened with my backup hiking shoes.

Sigh.

This dog cannot be trusted (and neither can I, apparently).

So, both my walking shoes had been destroyed. I was going to need new shoes as soon as possible. Thankfully, I live near a Columbia outlet store. I popped in last week and was able to get two pairs of shoes for the price of one. I got a nice pair of walking shoes and a pair of hiking boots for our hikes in the woods around here. They also had my favorite hiking socks on clearance, so I was able to stock up. I’ve walked all week in the new shoes and boots to break them in, and they’re working out really well. These likely won’t be the shoes that go with me to Newcastle. I will probably have walked them out by then and have to replace them before departure (and give time to break any replacements in).

In the planning department, a few things have been booked and finalized. In Britain, you can’t usually book train tickets more than 120 or so days in advance, so I didn’t have any of my train tickets booked. So, last week, I was delighted to finally book my train ticket from London to Newcastle. I’ll arrive in London early in the morning, take the Elizabeth Line, then the Tube to King’s Cross station. I’ll have a spot of breakfast at the station, and then I’ve booked a mid-morning direct train to Newcastle. I’ll arrive just after lunchtime. Then I’ll take a taxi to my hotel at nearby Lumley Castle. I’m only staying there a night, then I’ll go to Newcastle properly the next day, check into my ‘walk’ hotel, and start the walk properly. I’ve written about this before, but on that first day, I’ll walk the first five miles of the walk within Newcastle, to lessen the demands of the actual ‘Day One’, so it’ll be ten miles instead of fifteen.

When I posted on Threads about how I thought it was wild that you couldn’t book train tickets more than a few months in advance, I got some interesting replies. Many confused Brits responded. Most British people wouldn’t book that far in advance for a long-distance journey like I’m taking. Reason? Well, there’s quite literally a train to Newcastle almost every 15 minutes. So, there’s generally enough capacity to just turn up on the day and buy a ticket. Train fares aren’t like airfares, where you save a ton of money on early booking (but you can save a few quid). However, not booking in advance is a recipe for not having a seat. It’s important to me to have a reserved seat after an 8-hour transatlantic flight. I don’t want to stand for three hours! I have more train tickets to book, but I need more of the itinerary to be finalized before I do that (and I also need to buy Mrs. Anglotopaia’s plane ticket as the price for that is going up, quite literally, every day right now due to the current international situation - I have to do it soon).

I also wanted to leave some flexibility in case anything unplanned happens. I bought an open ticket that allows me to take any train service 90 minutes before or after my booked ticket (this costs extra, it added about 30% to the price). I’m not sure how that works with a reserved seat, but I guess we’ll find out. I have a nice window seat booked with a single table. I’ll get to watch all the beautiful English scenery speed by me while I enjoy a cup of tea. And probably nap.

I’ve also been able to book some fun things for after the walk is finished. I’ve rarely been in the UK at the same time as the summer/autumn opening of Buckingham Palace, so I’ve never been able to go. When tickets went on sale in February for the annual opening, I was able to book a ticket to tour the state rooms and do the ‘new’ East Wing tour. Tickets also went on sale for the Winston Churchill: The Painter exhibition opening this summer at the Wallace Collection, so I was able to secure tickets for that as well. Expect articles on those this autumn!

Anglotopia Travel Tip: It’s important to know months in advance of travel which special exhibitions you may want to see, because they will sell out. Buckingham Palace ALWAYS sells out, and the Churchill exhibition is expected to sell out as well. If you leave it until you arrive, you will be disappointed, and you can’t get last-minute or rush tickets, like you can for the theatre. If it’s sold out, you’re not going (at some museums, you can get around this by paying to be a member).

This trip is not long from now. It’s daunting but crucially, EXCITING. That’s it for now! More updates to come. It’s getting real.