91 miles walked
What a first week. It’s been dominated by sore feet that have made the walking tough and the daily foot admin quite onerous. I’ve been treated to glorious weather (apart from the 1.5 hrs of rain on the way to Burnham). As always I found London amazing and Essex has been full of surprises for me; the long and wiggly coastline and the little gems like Burnham-On-Crouch. The people I’ve met have been lovely although my experience of walking through towns hasn’t been great as I clearly look odd (I blame the walking poles) and find people like to shout at me from the safety of their cars. Fortunately I can never hear what they shout.
This week I’ve seen too much of the A13 – It was present every day for the first 3 days reminding me that I’d probably only travelled the equivalent of a 30 minute drive. Crossing it near Pitsea was terrifying as it was rush hour and I was in one of my hobbling stages.
Why do we build so many rubbish tips by the coast/Thames? I have passed one every day this week, and even managed to walk through one at Mucking.
On a more positive note, Thank goodness for RSPB nature reserves; I love their cafes. I hope I find more and eat more of their cake.
Lots of wildlife seen already, highlights include: cormorants on the Thames, skylarks and lapwings at Mucking Flats, a weasel crossing the road, a tawny owl hunting near Rochford in evening daylight, lots of egrets and waders, but no adder. I was told by a man to look out for adders on the sea wall walk from Burnham-On-Crouch but, despite keeping my eyes peeled and walking poles handy I didn’t see one.