Yosemite's Half Dome.

I visited Yosemite for the first, and only time so far, in July 2007 and loved it. The whole experience made me realise just how insignificant I am in the scheme of things as everything was so huge and I, so small. This wasn't a bad realisation as it brought home to me the need to get less caught up in the small things that didn't really matter.

We spent 3 days in the park getting a feel for it, following some of the trails, spotting wildlife, including a bear and marvelling at the wonderful scenery.

For me, a walker, I just wanted to take off and hike but this wasn't really the right time for the big ones and on my 'to do' list is definitely the plan to return for the sole purpose of hiking the longer trails.

One hike that appealed took in the majestic Half Dome which I got to see from a number of places in the Park and I was able to get different perspectives on this amazing Rock Outcrop. Some day.

Today I read that on May 15th, just yesterday, the cables to the summit of Half Dome have been installed which now enables the completion of a grueling 17-mile round-trip hike during which hikers gain 4,800 feet of elevation and are treated with stunning views of Vernal and Nevada falls. Oh, I want to go......

The route means that after passing the falls, weary travelers reach the cables and are close to the goal of the trek. The series of metal cables are placed on Half Dome's steep granite shoulder and are an aid to help hikers reach the summit. It's a popular trail and as you can see, the route is sometimes crowded.

If you are planning on walking the trail, Yosemite advises taking appropriate precautions and be prepared for rapidly changing weather. Rain, thunder and lightning are all common in the Sierra Nevada, especially in summer and fall, and hikers should not attempt to summit the dome when lightning appears possible.

Enjoy this place and Half Dome and whether you hike it or just view it, you will be amazed.

Another section of the Thames Path.

Last March myself and the East End Girls started the Thames path national Trail at the Woolwich Foot Tunnel with the aim of walking to the source of the Thames about 184 miles away.

Due to the shorter winter days and the distance we have to travel to start walking, we stopped in September having done 6 sections of the walk covering approx 114 miles.

Here the girls are at the start of the walk at the Woolwich Foot Tunnel.

Walking the Thames Path has been a fantastic experience and it's amazing to watch a river change as you walk along it's length. We started back on the track last month and are now over half way.

On Sunday, we were walking a 10 mile stretch between Shiplake and Tilehurst and here are the motley crew at Shiplake Station rearing to go.

On this occasion, we were walking along a much more rural part of the Thames with interesting obstacles on the path almost as soon as we joined it. It required careful concentration as to where you put your feet!! not something we encountered on the Central London part of the walk.

Here, as well as house boats there were numerous cabin cruisers and a boat that caught my attention right at the start of the walk and continued to do so as it travelled the same direction as us.

Here's the Baltic Bear at Sonning Lock. The lock keepers cottage here was very pretty covered in Wisteria as you can see from the photo.

The lock provided a much needed loo stop and the opportunity for refreshments but on this occasion we were pushing on as we were only about an hour into the walk. Here are some of the girls checking out the map.

As you can see the sun was shining on us, something we normally achieve and my legs had their first outing of the year.

From Sonning it was on along the Thames to Reading sometimes walking on narrow paths such as this one below and at other times on wide expanses of meadowland.

On approaching Reading, office blocks appeared to our left and we were reminded of the industry, mainly new technology, along the Thames corridor and the interesting juxtapositioning of the gently, lazy Thames and the fast pace of the new technology and pace of life going on in these buildings.

Modern buildings, both residential and commercial appeared while on the river numerous people in family groups and couples enjoyed the sun and the river lazing on the banks, running, flying kites, cycling etc.

We were now starting to think of lunch and set our sights on one of the many cafes and pubs at Caversham Bridge and as usual we found just the right one. Thanks here to Lindsey, who being a local lass had done her research. In fact here's Lindsey looking happy and relaxed (some of the rest of the group in the background) - she's hoping to win the raffle we bought tickets for as the prize is a trifle!! This girl likes her food.

Only two and a half miles further to go from here which we walked in less than an hour and viewed the many amazing properties en route. Some were huge, one even had it's own helipad!!

We finished at Tilehurst at the station and the sight of next month's start then it's on to Cholsey another 11 3/4 miles further on and closer to the source. Figure with a long weekend in September that we can finish in September.

Why do we get swollen hands and fat fingers when we walk?

Ever get swollen fingers when you walk? It’s happened to me and most of my walking ladies so what makes it happen and what can we do?

The good news is that it’s not a serious problem and once you finish your walk, you’ll notice your hands and fingers returning to normal so that’s a relief.

Seems that there are a couple of possible reasons for it happening so read on and think about which one could be true of you, it may be a combination of two or more.

Do you move your arms when you walk? Keeping your arms by your side and therefore below your heart makes it more difficult for the circulatory system to work efficiently and this may cause swelling in your hands and fingers. So swing those arms and see what difference that makes.

In your bloodstream you have salts called electrolytes and when you sweat you lose these salts. They need balanced with more fluid so it may be that you’re not drinking enough water as you walk. This can lead to swelling. You can also drink sports drinks to replace these electrolytes.
Finally, there’s something called “blood pooling." During a walk, our leg muscles and help return blood from the lower body but even then our feet may swell. Our arm muscles are smaller and used less so they don't help as much in returning blood from the hands. Again this could cause swelling.
Does any of this resonate with you?
Below are somethings that are worth doing to prevent or combat this experience._
· Take off your rings before you walk and loosen your wristwatch strap. and elastic sleeves.
· Keep your hands relaxed and slightly open and from time to time stretch all of your fingers out for a few seconds and then make a fist.
· Circle your arms every so often.
· Stretch your hands up above your head for a few seconds to get them above the level of your heart.
· Grip a small object for a short time as you walk.
· Use a good arm motion with your arm bent at almost a 90 degree angle and swinging back and forth from a relaxed shoulder.
· Make sure you take in plenty of water as you walk and consider using a sports drink too.

Big Fun Walk Route again...

Not my best look but this is me about 5 miles into our 8 mile walk today!! However, at least I'm still smiling.

After Yesterday, I was convinced that Cathy and I would have been walking in T- shirts but not to be. We were following the route of the Big Fun Walk that some of the East End Girls and I did in early March. Cathy hadn't been able to join us then and I knew she'd really enjoy the walk as it takes you through wonderful parts of London and is varied and interesting. On that day the weather was much better although colder and the difference in the foliage was amazing, it was all so much greener this time with some daffodils remaining and a few bluebells out.

Cathy and I were not deterred and it did start out with very light rain.

After leaving East Finchley Tube station, the walk follows the Capital Ring path into Cherry Tree Park and soon has you climbing up to Highgate Woods which I love.

Below the tunnel of greenery that is Highgate woods now.

From here you walk through Highgate and then into Hamstead where we stopped for a very welcome coffee and a chance to get out of the rain for a while. It was lovely to do this walk at a slower pace and enjoy it all as on the Big Fun Walk we have a tendency to 'gallop' through it. One example was the coffee stop - never had time to stop in this way before.

Next it's into Hampstead Heath, then some more road walking which takes you through some of Hampstead Village and up the side of the Royal Free Hospital, through Belsize Park and to the Top of Primrose Hill where even today the view was great.

There's something nice about walking in the rain and you often have lots of places to yourself when others don't venture out. People don't get in the way of your photos such as this one of the Jubilee Gates at the Inner Circle of Regents Park.

Cathy and I decided on a bit of a detour so instead of walking down Baker Street, we choose Marylebone High Street, much quieter and prettier but very tempting when you look at all the wonderful shops. We did find a great deli for lunch though where for a while we were the only customers. Food was great.

After that I did get a bit fed up as it was still raining and I, who had only brought my light cagoul, was rather damp and now cold. We decided to call it a day and headed to Bond Street to get the tube home.

Hot bath and cup of tea later and I'm warm and cosy and feeling virtuous. I'm also 18,000 steps in today.

How not to have aches after a long walk.

The walk can be wonderful. You can feel delighted in your achievement but hobbling around the following day can render it all somewhat miserable.


Well I have a fairly simple routine for preventing this painful aftermath, so try it out and let me know how you get on.


1. Build up slowly to any major walk and start training well in advance.


2. Take breaks to stretch throughout the walk and ease out those muscles doing it gently.

3. Stretch for 10-15 minutes at the end spending the same time on each leg.


4. Lie on your back on the floor or bed and put your legs up against the wall keeping them there for at least 10 minutes and 20 or 30 if you can. This lets the lactic acid drain away.


5. Enjoy a hot bath or shower (if you don't have a bath). Treat yourself to a cup of tea, glass of wine etc when you're in the bath and reflect on your wonderful achievement.

18 miles of bliss

For those of you who've been following my blogposts, you'll know that I've been training a couple of wonderful women to walk the Moonwalk (a night time walk of 26.3 miles raising money for Cancer Research - http://www.walkthewalk.org/Home). We've been working since October building up the miles and on Saturday had reached the 18 mile walk so at 9.30, seven of us gathered at Ware station in Hertfordshire to start.

The rest of the group above, is made up of some of the East End Girls who are joining me to do one of the Pink Ribbon Walks of 20 miles on June 27th.

As usual, I booked the good weather and we were rewarded with amazing sunshine and blue skies as the day developed. The photo on the left was taken at the start of the day when it was still a little hazy and life on the canal was waking up.

People would emerge from their canal boats with mugs of tea and the smell of woodsmoke was wonderful.

As the walk was along the canal, inclines were not an issue but with 18 miles ahead it was never going to be easy.
Still everyone get into their stride from the beginning.

There was so much to look at and to wax lyrical about - the daffodils and other spring flowers along the way; leaves unfolding from their buds; geese and swans gracefully flying overhead and ducks in the reeds.

We managed to find a canal side cafe about two hours in giving us a change to refuel, to visit the loo (very important when your drinking loads of water) and also providing the opportunity to stretch out. This is so important especially on such a long walk, it doesn't have to take ages but five minutes of easing out those muscles gently does make all the difference especially the following day.

As we walked on, this was the sight we saw - just looking at it slows the pace down.

Further along, there was more colour injected into the walk with more canal boats and wonderful canoes and everyone was enjoying the weather.

By this time, we don't about 8 miles so we were on the look out for a good lunch stop and as usual we'd very clear ideas of what we wanted.

Having studied the map in advance I knew we were going to end up in an area devoid of pubs or cafes at the time when we'd want lunch so everyone had been warned to bring a lunch with them. Thankfully there were lots of picnic stops which we were only too happy to take advantage of....

and there were loos and somewhere to fill up water bottles too. What more could we ask for?

If you're the person planning the walk, all these things are really important to take into consideration as the absence of any one element can cause major problems.

Now we had 7 1/2 miles still to go.

Renewed and fed, the enthusiasm was high again, another important reason to have regular breaks, snacks and some stretching. Our next goal was to get past the M25 or in this case under it...and it soon loomed ahead.

Not long after we were into a more industrialised environment, no surprise there really, but also an area of longer straight routes taking us alongside some huge reservoirs and bringing us into near battle with cyclists who assume that they have priority, they don't actually, and who wouldn't know the phrase "excuse me" if it was to knock them into the canal......anyhow, enough of that.

At 16 miles and counting, fatigue was apparent - the last few miles always the worst, but it's amazing what a five minute stop can do.

I was being motivated by the chance to see the Wales v Ireland rugby and was delighted to see familiar landmarks as we approached Tottenham Hale, the experienced EEG were remembering that you don't do 18 miles for pleasure but for training or a challenge and our Moonwalk Ladies? Impressed by what they'd achieved and looking forward to a hot bath!!

Simple but wonderful tool.

I am a big supporter of the pedometer and its use in motivating you to walk further therefore upping your activity levels.

This short video explains it all so well.

http://icyou.com/topics/wellness/wearing-pedometer