We'd walked hundreds of miles in practice for our walk along a section of the South West Coast Path. Stupidly, not with a full, very heavy rucksack. Despite trying to pack as little as possible our bags are heavy, not helped by two litres of water each.
Angela delayed our departure this morning, so we just missed the bus, having to wait another forty minutes for the next, so by the time we arrived at Swanage, eaten fishcakes and chips and then finally set off it was a quarter to three.
That's O.K. we only had ten miles to walk!
So we set off out of Swanage along the path to Durlesdon Castle, and it's huge stone globe.
Next came Tilly Whim caves, it was nice to spot a Peregrine Falcon enroute. We soon realized that ten miles with a heavy rucksack isn't the same as ten miles unladen.
Should we stop at Dancing Ledge for the night or continue? The ledge didn't appeal to Angela, so we continued on. After about seven our ageing hips were complaining, time to look for our first wild camping spot. Angela's never wild camped, so this would be a first, and very interesting night.
So stopping at Seacombe we explored the disused quarry, and found a nice flat spot for the tent overlooking the sea. If she finds herself laying awake, she can reflect on whether it might have been better to pack just two pairs of pants instead of four in order to reduce weight. Despite the day being challenging, we were happy and felt upbeat. Once we were used to our packs, we were sure the walking would become easier. Forever the optimists.
