Saturday 18 August: 40,479 Steps Of Twenty Arduous, Exhilarating Coastal Miles

Hundreds of participants prepare
Support, camaraderie and banter
For some its a race
Quick time
Position
First, second, third......
For others the challenge is different
A connection
To belonging
To undiscovered inner realities
To Mother Earth
All personal, some deep and rewarding
Whether realised or acknowledged
We all journey on a search
A new path awaits exploration
Its steep undulations
Testing the physical and mental
For me
The challenge is new
Horizons widened
A fresh focus
An enlightened meaning
I stomp the stunning new lands
I savour what physical exertion brings
A body bathed in sweat
Legs covered in mud
Heightened senses
The smell of the Earth
The sounds of the landscape
A connection with life
With its many levels to relish
Twenty arduous, exhilarating coastal miles
Four hours and fifty-six minutes

Saturday 4 August 2012: 72,671 Steps; Three Ships On The Horizon

Pebbles in my shoes
The pleasure of feeling heat on my skin
Purple thistle
Pastel blue butterflies
Red and black bugs
A cone of salty chips
A strong cup of tea
Soreness in my feet
The sea creeps closer
It's spray climbs the land's edge
Chasing a fisherman's heels
Three ships on the horizon
Ever present on my journey
The sun starts to sink
The light deepens
Crickets sing an evening song
The comforting sparkle of the day disappears
In the strange twilight hue
Perception alters
Senses heighten
The white of flowers and stones
Iridescent and surreal
As the colour drains away
I merge into the surroundings
I look down
My legs distinguishable only by their movement
My eyes seeing the blending
And the imagined separation
The heart is beginning to know and acknowledge
As the darkness descends
The fear rises
Of what can't be seen but imagined
An inner voice reassures
I take comfort
From the joy and marvel of a glow worm in my path
The haunting yet welcoming presence of the moon
And the familiar road that takes me home
Eleven hours and fifty minutes
Forty miles of coastal walking

Two Days Of Many Steps Taken In A New Place, Some Measured, Some Not

A King's Castle
Tales of mystery
A rugged, raw beauty
That inspires and daunts

Harbours and hilltops
A gleaming afternoon glare
Bright on the eyes
A wind cool on the skin

A valley of rocks entices
Geometric structures
Destined randomness
Sacred art misunderstood

A place of prayer
Quirky and peaceful
Gifts, wishes, memories
Water, painfully cold, pure and cleansing

56,546 Steps From Cury To A Field Between Prussia Cove & Perranuthnoe & Then Back Again

Another day of mist
The edge of the world
Enticed by the air of mystery
I eagerly persist
Long grass
Stinging nettles
Drenched and heavy
Soak my legs
Cool my feet
A path
Familiar
Comforting
A deep earthy brown
Succulent
Squelchy
I slip
I slide
Cautious steps taken
The body tense
The stride shortened
The usual glee of freedom
The usual soreness in the feet
An impatience
The half way point
Four hours and twenty minutes
A damp field
A soft seat
A quick rest
A flask of tea
Some needed food
The grey blanket rises
The sea starts to glisten
A hint of blue
At last.....
Some dry warmth
Wet muddy legs begin to dry
Rain covers come off
The skin can breathe
A surreal moment
Sugar levels low
I detach from my physical body
An unexpected thrill
A sensuous sensation is savoured
A mouthful of sweets
Nectarous satisfaction
The blood restored
Back down to Earth
Recharged
Highly focused
An avid stomp takes over
I'm carried home
Another journey completed
Thirty coastal miles
Eight hours and forty-five minutes

Wednesday 20 June 2012: 26,825 Steps Shrouded In Slate

Yesterday's playful sparkle
Now shrouded by slate
The beauty heavier
Colours less brilliant to the eye
Yet their splendours no fewer

Tuesday 19 June 2012: 33,811 Steps Through What Flows

No matter how tired
How much the feet ache
I am in my place
The ochre grasses
The soothing vibrancy of the sea
Is as much part of me
As the air I breathe
The blood and being that flows
Through every cell of my body
That something
That pure essence of all
Is raw
It shines through
In my place