Lilies on the Common

Keeping walking. Enjoying the flowers on the Common.

• Walking log: 11th August

5km midweek speed walk.

Total kilometres to date: 1400

Salty sea air along the Atlantic Seaboard

Atlantic Seaboard walking

Yet another quite glorious morning in Cape Town. Clear blue winter skies, a fresh salty breeze and a great walk along the Atlantic Seaboard from Granger Bay to Seapoint. The promenade was busy with people out and about and I loved being part of it all.

• Walking log: 10th August

12km walk. Feeling more and more nervous, each niggle of my knee or an ache in my feet is getting me anxious. It is time to start the Ultra Walk now!

Total kilometres to date: 1394

Umbrella pines and fynbos

Map from Mike Lundy's book Easy Walks

Another fabulous walk here in Cape Town, the Pipe Track. I so love the huge Umbrella Pines along the way with their knarly roots exposed on the path. The fynbos is also coming into colour, lots of white, yellow and purple flowers dotted the mountainside.

It was much cooler on the mountain this morning as we stepped out as the walk is mostly in the shade to start.

The views, as always, are remarkable down to Camps Bay and Bakoven. The path was busy and social too.

• Walking log: 9th August

10km contour path walk along The Pipe Track. Always tricky underfoot with the broken stones, exposed roots and uneven steps. I can feel the exercise in both my feet and knees.

Total kilometres to date: 1382

A return to the starting point

Beauty of a walk along the shore from Muizenburg to the Kalk Bay Lighthouse

This walk from Muizenburg, along the St. James Walkway and into Kalk Bay was the first walk of our preparation, exactly 7 months ago, on the 9th January. Here I am again, this is a joyous walk, each and every time.

Everything is different and nothing is different.

• Walking log: 8th August

8km shoreside walk.

Total kilometres to date: 1372

The 'winter face' of the Rondebosch Common

The Rondebosch Common, Vibrant green.

Back in Cape Town. It seems fitting to be starting my last week of walking preparation here in Cape Town, where it all started 7 months ago.

The Common was beautiful this morning, a vibrant green and the spring flowers are starting to pop out too. This 'winter face' of the Common is so special and I am pleased I am here to see it again as I do my walking laps.

• Walking log: 7th August

5km speed walk around the Rondebosch Common.

Total kilometres to date: 1364

Final quick walk in Johannesburg

So here I am, seven months after making the decision to do the Ultra Walk in Namaqualand, getting ready to drive down to the Cape tomorrow.

This morning as we headed out for a quick final lap of Munro Drive and our golf course I am both nervous and excited to get going.

There is no answer about whether I have done enough preparation but I have put my heart and soul into the venture, done the work, done the planning and all that is left is to have the determination.

Fred and I celebrated with a good cuppa at our new local here in Norwood, the Coffee Exchange.

• Walking log: 4th August

8km power walk up Munro Drive

Total kilometres to date: 1359

The park in winter

Wow it was a particularly cold start to our Saturday morning walk, about 3 degrees and the wind was icy.

It warmed up though as we covered the kilometres, up and over Munro Drive and through the central suburbs as we made our way to Voodoo Lily Cafe in Birdhaven for our usual of poached eggs on rye and a large cappuccino, so welcome after the 10 kilometres and the cold.

We are certainly still in the grip of winter, our grass in the city parks is gold and trees still bare with no hint of buds as yet.

The landscaped 'erratics' looked marvellous today.

• Walking log: 1st August

14.5 kilometres.

Total kilometres to date: 1346.5

• Walking log: 2nd August

4.5km easy sunday morning walk around the golf course.

Walking companions: Ian and Julie Wedderburn

Total kilometres to date: 1351

David Whyte's "Learning to Walk"

LEARNING TO WALK

Walked out this morning

into a broad green garden

with the rising sun in my eyes 

and the first hint of the day’s heat 

touching my face,

feeling as broad as the garden

and young as the day

and soaking up the heat

in my black tee-shirt,

walked straight forward

out of the gate,

through the wood,

along the river,

toward the mountain

and thought of the future

I could make in the world

if I walked toward it

like this,

with my face toward the hills

and my eyes full of light

and the earth sure

and solid beneath me,

walking on

with a fierce anticipation,

and a faithful expectation,

with the sun and the rain

and the wind on my skin…

...

LEARNING TO WALK

From RIVER FLOW: New and Selected Poems

© David Whyte and Many Rivers Press

Leaving a desk behind

My desk bathed in sunlight

I have been holed up in a vacant office at the University of Johannesburg doing a block of work, drinking awful coffee, eating poorly and certainly not walking. And I have not done so for 4 days.

It makes me really appreciate my freedom to walk this morning, to be in the fresh air, to feel strong and well. And to have my own rhythm back.

I do appreciate when work comes my way but I am also aware of how I love my life without it.

• Walking log: 30th July

8.5km mid week walk, and a great cappuccino at the Oaklands Centre on our way back.

Total kilometres to date: 1332

Westcliff: 'Stairway to Heaven"

My lungs were burning, I was breathing hard, my legs felt like lead but I loved it all, our Jo'burg 'Stairway to Heaven, the Westcliff Stairs. They are fiercely steep and surrounded by high stone walls which make for an interesting experience.

It has been on the agenda for a while to find the start point along Crescent Drive in Westcliff and to navigate the many hundreds of stairs, which we did this morning and we did it twice.

Dog-walkers, serious runners, strollers and the Kersten's!

It was a cold winter morning, rather hazy too from the unseasonable rain so the legendary views were mostly obscured but I could get a sense of what it must be like on a clear day.

Reading the story of the stairs, they were carved by unemployed miners in 1922 from the base rock here in this quite beautiful Johannesburg suburb.

From Crescent Drive we crossed to Wexford Avenue and from there the stairs take you to Pallinghurst Drive. We then walked along Woolston Drive to the narrow road and stairs that took us back to Westcliff Drive.

Our glorious morning walk took us from Norwood, through Killarney, past the Jo'burg Zoo before getting to the Westcliff Stairs, we then continued along Jan Smuts to Park Cafe for loads of coffee and treats before heading home through Saxonwold. 

• Walking log: 25th July

19.5km stamina walk with some serious cardio on the Westcliff Stairs.

Total kilometres to date: 1323.5

A Johannesburg treasure - the Westcliff Stairways

A perfect white camelia

Winter is a fine time in Johannesburg. The white camellia in my garden is the first to flower and I so love these perfect white, waxy blooms.

Inspired by nature and loving my early morning walk.

• Walking log: 21st July

4.5km speed walking around the golf course.

Total kilometres to date: 1290.5

• Walking log: 22nd July

6km mid week admin walk to Killarney Mall.

Total kilometres to date: 1296.5

• Walking log: 24th July

7.5km admin walk to Pick n Pay.

Total kilometres to date: 1304

All weather readiness

My K-way.

The walk this morning was to Killarney Mall for my birthday gift, fully rain and wind proof jacket for walking and for the hiking we are going to be doing in New Zealand early next year.

Such a treat, thanks Fred.

• Walking log: 19th July

10km, up Munro Drive again for some hill work, into Killarney and home.

Total kilometres to date: 1286

A taxi home....wtf....

Today I am officially starting two years of celebrating my special milestone - the road to 60 next year, with a birthday breakfast voucher from Moemas, one of our little treat spots in Johannesburg.

The morning started off as a serious walk, the steep switchback of Munro Drive, the long route through Saxonwold to get to Moemas. The first 10 km with no problem. We were just getting going from Rosebank when Fred realised he had not checked when the South Africa vs Australia rugby test was due to start. Total panic when he was told it was about to start.

Bit of lateral thinking - he hailed a taxi for us.
A first!
What a start to my "Marvelous Year"........

• Walking log: 18th July

11km 'stamina' walk cut a bit short! I had a visit to the podiatrist yesterday to get my feet done and ready for the walk, so they did feel a little tender today, so perhaps a good thing to have a slightly shorter walk.

Total kilometres to date: 1276