May 2014 and, after a nightmare of mud and water on the Itchen Navigation I was hoping for a more sedate walk. Typically, the stroll along the shore I’d expected had turned into a battle against seemingly never ending shingle and strong wind. Hurst Castle was ahead but I was so exhausted I’d given up on reaching it and turned around to head back. Continue reading A windy walk around Hurst Castle – First published 11 May 2014
May 2014 and my first visit to Milford on Sea. The sun had been going in and out of the clouds all morning and, as I stood looking at the steep shingle bank ahead of me it came out briefly, making the quartz in the huge black rocks sparkle. This seemed like a sign to keep going so I did. In hindsight this may not have been one of my better decisions. Continue reading Hurst Spit, shingle wind and a long slog – first published 11 May 2014
On the Saturday night after my May 2014 battle with the Itchen Navigation I was trying hard to plot a short walk that didn’t involve the river. After all the mud and wet feet I’d had quite enough of the Itchen for a little while. Hamble came to mind but it was further than I wanted to go, Millers Pond wasn’t far enough. The old walls were a possibility with maybe a look at the work being done on Town Quay. Then Commando said he was thinking of driving out to the New Forest for a run…of course I jumped at the chance to go with him and have a wander. Continue reading Oh I do like to be beside the sea, Milford on Sea – first published 11 May 2014
22 December 2016
Our time in Iceland was coming to a close. We hadn’t got back from our aurora watching adventure until the early hours of the morning and it was tempting to sleep in and have a late breakfast. The lure of one more run and walk in the snow was stronger though. Bleary eyed we stepped out of the hotel into the icy air. In any other country this would have been the crack of dawn. In Iceland though daybreak was still four hours or so away. Continue reading The last Icelandic saga
28 November 2016
With the end of the last race our little Cypriot adventure was drawing to a close. This has been a holiday like no other. Quite a lot of our holidays have a race in them, usually a marathon but this had four races in four days. Between them, Commando has, understandably, spent a lot of time snoozing beside the pool and I have spent a lot of time wandering about on my own. Of course, wandering about on my own is one of my favourite things and, with all the interesting race venues, I’ve seen some places I would otherwise not have even known about. Continue reading All good things come to an end
26 November 2016
After a slightly hair raising coach journey down the winding mountain road with its precipitous drops to certain death, we arrived at Toxeftra Beach. As the coach crept down the steep, bumpy slope onto the beach I looked through the window, open mouthed, at the fantastical rock formations we passed. This was the mouth of the Avakas gorge, created over thousands of years by the Avgas River flowing through the limestone eroding a narrow pathway with sides up to thirty metres high. Continue reading From the mountain to the beach
25 November 2016
Once Commando was back safe from his epic run up the mountain we collected his bag from beneath the row of bronze busts on plinths, a memorial to the men who died in the EOKA struggle for unity with Greece in the 1950’s. Then I finally got my ice cream. The pleasure was short lived though. The first coach back to Coral Bay was preparing to leave and Commando was eager to get his tired legs onto a sunbed as soon as possible. With no food allowed on the coach, most of my ice cream ended up in the bin. Continue reading Really ancient history
25 November 2016
We were awake early this morning after what felt like a restless night, at least for me. We ate far too much in the restaurant, preparing for the day ahead, and that, combined with worries about how Commando would cope with an 11k run up a mountain with a gain of more than two thousand feet in elevation, didn’t make for a restful night. For once, Commando ate hardly anything at breakfast, a first for us on holiday, and he was waiting for me to finish my granola and gloriously nutty bread with homemade jam. Continue reading Akamas National Park, mountain running
24 November 2016
This morning was mostly about resting, sitting on a sunbed by the pool reading in fact. Commando wasn’t reading, he was mostly snoozing, because he had the first race of the Cyprus International 4 Day Challenge ahead of him. When I got fed up with reading and my eyes began to close I went for a little wander in the hotel grounds admiring the bourganvillia growing in huge stone pots in shady areas. There was no time to wander any further, besides, I needed to conserve my energy because, one way or another, I had a bit of a walk ahead. Continue reading The Coral Beach 6k Time Trial and a Cypriot sunset
23 November 2016
Although we had another day before the first of the running events, Commando went for another social run this morning. There was no chance for me to laze in the hotel room or sit dreaming on the balcony though. Eddie had invited me out on a walk. It was a challenge I couldn’t resist. I think he was trying to test my mettle. Continue reading Coral Bay, searching for a shipwreck