Rain rain go away, come again some other month

After day 1 of hiking I was pretty sure this was the worst idea I had ever had. And that says a lot because I have had some real bad ideas in my life. Real bad. For example, when I was a wee lad I thought it would be fun to play around with a hatchet with my neighbor. I thought it was best that we not wear shoes. You can see where that one is going. Sorry Elias and I am sure it will grow back. 

I thought hiking this was a worse idea. But that is understandable. I was just at the peak of my cold symptoms. Very sore throat, achy, fever, chills, clogged nose, the works. Not to mention I had just walked about 17 miles with a very heavy pack on. I found out a few days later that it weighs close to 60 lbs. Anyone that has ever walked a considerable distance knows that is a ton. I had even gotten so depressed that I had e-mailed my parents and told them it was the first time I was homesick since my first encounter with scout camp some 10 years ago. I was in a bad state.

Things are considerably better now. My cold is all but kicked so I am feeling much better. The pack still weighs a ton and has now contributed to my feet being constantly sore and half blistered. The feet aren't the real problem though. It is my knee giving out. I tore my LCL a few years ago playing rugby and it seems like that is rearing its ugly head as my right knee is beginning to buckle. Going down hill is incredibly painful. Some proper walking poles would help immensely. Unfortunately, fund are limited so I will have to make due with a stick. 

But here I am just complaining about my problems. I haven't even told you about the glorious English weather. Probably because there isn't much. It rains everyday basically. And the lack of quality water proofing results in a water logged pack. Unfortunately  that doesn't mean the weight is watered down. 

We have had a few spots of sunshine and blue sky which has been great and you can really see how beautiful the English countryside is. So far we have walked from Cheltenham to Tewkesbury to Worcester (It has a shire that is famous for some sauce) to Cookley (story about that to come) to Wolverhampton to Hilderstone/Stafford (another story as well) and to Leek. Today we are going to try and make Buxton tonight and after that we start in to the Peaks district and on to the Pennine Way. Should be gorgeous.

There is no denying that this is a remarkable experience and I hope that my knees, legs, and feet hold up so I can properly finish it out in Glasgow by the 30th.