£1,000 DONATIONS!

So... I'm pretty much famous in the Valley now. I wrote this article for the local paper and they included it with a photo which is awesome and will hopefully generate a few more donations. Wally, our octogenarian neighbour rang me from next-door to tell me I was in the paper and he had picked up an extra copy for me. That's village life.

Today we hit the £1,000 mark on the donations which is absolutely amazing so a humungous thank you to everyone who has donated so far.

Melzie and I travelled to Ulverston in Cumbria to interview a dude called Paddy Dillon last week. Paddy is a guide book writer who I had emailed a couple of times because I am using his book to plan my route for the SWCP. He was brilliant, a really funny guy, which is kind of surprising for someone who spends so much time walking around the countryside by themselves. He also let me borrow the coastline maps for the SWCP, so cheers Paddy!

Melze & I sampled a couple of miles of the Cumbria Way which was insanely beautiful and p.s. Ulverston is a cool little town with a Buddhist Temple nearby, they were actually expecting hundreds of monks that weekend for a festival.

Paddy walks long-distances all the time so the SWCP is no big deal to him, however I found a very comprehensive blog of a guy who walked Offa's Dyke with his dog (180 miles) which made me think I should be doing a lot more training & organising. So I'm going to get my ass in gear with the equipment etc. very soon. As for the training, Melze & I are going to be walking some of Offa's Dyke next week so we will see how that goes...!

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Press shot?

Take a look as this beauty! Melzie took this photo for the local paper article. I received the official gear from the MNDA, you get free t-shirts, reason enough to walk 630 miles...

Online donations seem to be slowing down a bit after the initial boom, so I hope this photo reminds people to sponsor me! I'm not making it up I promise...!

www.justgiving.com/Verity-Stokes1

Ode to Rudy

Some of you may be aware I am pretty fond of pooches, but none so much as the one above, Rudy. Harry & I have owned her since she was nine weeks old and she is a gorgeous, amusing and extremely clever creature. (We think anyway...)

Personally, I don't see how anyone could resist that face, but I am aware not everyone shares that opinion & I'm slightly biased...

So, walking the SWCP with a dog is arguably quite a bit of extra hassle. I have to carry her food, bed, more water on route, make sure campsites etc. are dog friendly and generally keep a constant eye on her to make she doesn't go careering over the edge of a cliff.

However, I walk with Rudy every single day so going on a 630-mile walk without would seem bizarre and very lonely. And there is a lot to be said for the constant enthusiasm and excitement of a dog on the days (hopefully not too frequent) that I just don't feel like getting up! Also, on the off-chance a deranged hiker accosts me on a remote hilltop, I'll have some canine protection...

In a nutshell, I adore her like no other and I couldn't even contemplate setting off on the journey without the little monster. So she's a-coming with me.

www.justgiving.com/Verity-Stokes1

Inspiration...

I read a book called "Two Feet, Four Paws" by a lady called Spud Talbot-Ponsonby, who walked the entire coastline of Britain (4,500 miles) in the 90's with her dog, Tess. She happened to be 27 when she started it too. She walked it to raise money for the charity Shelter, I think she raised about £60,000 which is incredible, especially given the lack of social networking and all that jazz back then.

I thought, well... I've got a dog so I'm halfway there already. I wasn't too sure I could spare the ten months it would take to walk the entire coast, so the SWCP seemed the next best thing. Also, the thought of the SWCP gives me a warm, fuzzy feeling as it's where I've grown up and holidayed my whole life. Although I'm sure I won't be feeling quite so warm and fuzzy when I'm stranded, alone, on a windy cliff top.

I'm quite jealous of Spud's tagline (Two feet, Four Paws) as I can't for the life of me think of a good one for our expedition, hence 'The Walk'. My imagination knows no boundaries. Suggestions very welcome...

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The Down-Low

So, I'm walking the South West Coast Path, which goes around Somerset, Devon, Cornwall & Dorset. It's 630 miles long. So quite a long way really. It seemed a good idea at the time... Actually I am genuinely very excited about the adventure coming my way.

I'm going to be walking with my dog, Rudy, & we'll be camping all the way around. It's roughly 45 days walking, but add on an extra week for rest days etc. All in all, about eight weeks on the road.

Why...?

I'm raising money for the Motor Neurone Disease Association. My dad passed away in 1998 from the illness, so it was the obvious choice when deciding which charity I would like to try and raise money for.

So that's a very brief run-down. I'm going to be posting on here what I'm up to training & fundraising-wise. So check back and see how I'm doing if you fancy...

www.justgiving.com/Verity-Stokes1

Welcome to the blog!

www.justgiving.com/Verity-Stokes1