What a weekend. It involved some running, some supporting runners and a bit more running. Saturday dawned wet and windy. 300 runners were assembling in Wendover ready for a 43 mile run into London. The fields were boggy, the paths were waterlogged and it was cold. Well, what do you expect on January 8th. These hardcore runners set off while I was driving from east to west London. My first stop was Bushy Park. This, as many will know, was the birthplace of parkrun. On 2nd October 2004 13 runners completed the first 5k with support from Paul and Joanne Sinton-Hewitt. 17 years later it is a global phenomenon. This was my running pilgrimage. I have wanted to run Bushy since I ran my first parkrun in September 2012. This would be my 291st. A gentle rain was falling as I parked up by the Diana Fountain just across from Hampton Court. To stretch my legs - and kill some time, I was an hour early - I ran around the park exploring the tree lined avenues, gated gardens and open marshland. Tiny
As the sun began to set we realised there was no way we would reach Keswick before nightfall. Headtorches on, we began the climb up Barrow. An owl hooted in the distance and a full moon cast shadows over the fells. It was the last climb of many. One more push and we would have completed the George Fisher Tea Round. ----------------- Day one. I had been longing to return to the Lake District. It holds fond memories and is a wonderful place to run and take photographs. Matt S was already up there on volunteer duties for the Northern Traverse ultra event and had finished early. He asked if I wanted to join him for a couple of days to run some hills. I'd booked my train ticket before he had finished his sentence. My train arrived in Penrith at 12:30pm and an hour later we were setting off for the third highest mountain in England - Helvellyn. A clear sky with bright sunshine made a welcome change to the gloomy, cloudy wet days that had preceded it. We arrived in Patterdale where the ki
A post on Facebook caught my attention. This is how many of my running adventures begin. Bex Band, founder of the women's adventure community Love Her Wild had walked across all the bridges in Greater London. Obviously this meant the Thames River. Less obviously there are 33 bridges in total starting at Hampton Court and ending at Tower Bridge. Of these, 26 have pedestrian access and she had crossed them all. 'Hmm, that would make a good run' was my first thought. Seed planted. A couple of months later on a mild, bright January day I travelled to Richmond. My first run was Richmond parkrun with my friend Vicki and her pal Nicola. 3.1 miles, no dear and a warming coffee later, I ran the nine miles to Hampton Court. Twelve miles done and I was ready to start my run! My goal was to cross each bridge when I came to it. That meant crossing Hampton Bridge and a sign denoting entrance to Surrey before turning and re-crossing it to begin. Yes, I am a pedant. Hampton Court Bridge I