We talked about Ro, and her friend Graham who died over 7 years ago and the walk she did in South America in his memory. I remembered when Ro and I stayed with Lucy many years ago and the three of us went for a walk and ended up walking further than we planned in shoes that weren't cut out for distance and ended up having to call her dad to rescue us when we couldn't walk any more!
I left at 10am and walked to Cuckfield and then continued on to Horsham. To arrive in daylight I needed to make up for my later start and as I powered up a hill started singing in my head 'get your pace on, get your pace on......' to Missy Elliott's Get Your Freak on, which had been playing in the takeaway on Thursday night and got stuck in my head as I know it's a tune Ro liked.
Anyway it helped up the hill but then got annoying so I listened to podcasts, an audiobook and music for a lot of the rest of the day. I have bone conductor headphones so I could also hear birds singing, and talk to people I pass. I've been asked quite a lot where I've come from/where I'm going with my big rucksack and I've had some lovely conversations.
I walked the whole day alone and although I don't feel like I've found my rhythm yet, I am settling in. The route was delightful and very well signposted, I was on a few different 'ways' and really enjoyed immersing myself in nature. I heard some dogs barking in the distance and got a bit anxious (due to having been bitten by a couple of dogs while I was on a walk in Portugal in 2017) so I got my walking poles out, and although I thankfully only encountered friendly dogs, the poles helped me keep my balance in the mud. I am grateful there hasn't been a lot of rain recently because there would be a lot more mud!
I remembered to take breaks to eat and drink, and always feel good with more energy after a rest stop. It's very much one day at a time, just thinking about today's destination and what I can do mentally and physically to get there.
I walked 16.5 miles today and arrived at Horsham train station at 4.20pm where I was greeted by Emma, Daniel and Ben who had travelled from Bournemouth to support me on my journey and remember Ro. It was so lovely to see them and we had a drink and brief catch up before they caught their train home and I walked for another 30mins to my overnight stop at Sarah's house.
Sarah has opened her home to a stranger and I really appreciate the warm welcome and care I've received. She invited Sue and Dave a couple of her friends round and they brought a delicious vegetarian rice dish and apple pie, which we had with custard (Ro LOVED custard!) We had great conversations about many things including lace making, speed awareness courses, baking, tractors and day of the dead.
I cried 4 times today, 3 times thinking about Ro and once when I was overwhelmed by the beauty of the nature surrounding me. This picture wasn't taken at that point, a photo wouldn't have done it justice, and I'm not really taking photos because it makes the walking harder but I did want to take this one, and I also saw a rabbit!!
