The Pennines

Last weekend we visited my sister Vikki for a walk through the Pennines, a range of mountains and hills in North England.  Often described as the "backbone of England" the Pennines form more or less a continuous range stretching northwards from the Peak District in the northern Midlands, through the South Pennines, Yorkshire Dales and North Pennines up to the Tyne Gap.

L-R: Vikki, Michael, Graham...and me!

The walk Vikki & Michael had planned for us took around six hours, it included every terrain possible and was great training for me as it had lots and lots of steep bits.  We set off in proper Yorkshire weather - wind and rain.  We continued in proper Yorkshire weather, and at the end the day it was a typical Yorkshire day - windy and wet.

But that didn't put us off - onwards and upwards.

We stopped for lunch at a lovely secluded waterfall and enjoyed a picnic before heading back through the trees, around the rocks, up the slopes and most importantly to the pub at the end.

Coming back we walked through a National Trust area and walked a different route, along the river.  It was a beautiful walk but made that much harder by the weather.  Most of the walk was on rocks, which were very slippery from all the rain.  Every step needed to be carefully planned so you didn't slip - we did see the mountain rescue truck speed past at one point so it wasn't a lovely day for everyone unfortunately.

In total we walked 16.7 km, thats 25,134 steps.  In total I burned 1,142 calories so felt I had earned the cold, refreshing beer (and proper toilet) waiting for me at the end.

In contrast, I'm writing this blog post from the Maldives.  Hot and sticky, where you want to stay inside for different reasons, spending the day dreaming of the air conditioning.

This is my last 'treat' before the big climb so I'm making the most of it.  However, the all inclusive meals are proving a challenge.  I'm managing to maintain my high protein diet and have been continuing with my daily planks - I even packed my gym kit and have been weight training in the hotel gym.

That said, I'm not going to deprive myself of some of the luxuries the Maldives has to offer.....this is my view whilst writing this post from the decking of my beach bungalow.  It is not at all like the views I will get on Kilimanjaro, I love the diverse nature and cultures of the world, we should be doing everything we can to protect it.

It's not too late to sponsor me - every penny counts and is gratefully received!!

Nkhotakota Wildlife Reserve - Malawi

The Afromontane-cloaked Chipata Mountain presides over Nkhotakota's mambo woodland landscape, which is spanned by a network of rivers that form a major catchment area for Lake Malawi.  the park sweeps from the Great Rift Valley to within a few kilometres of the lake shore. Although the once abundant variety of wildlife has been depleted by decades of poaching, since assuming management in 2015, African Parks has already overhauled park management and law enforcement, and is undertaking a historic translocation project to restore former levels of biodiversity to Nkhotakota's wooded hills.

The stats....

• 280 bird species;
• over 1,500 animals reintroduced in 2016;
• 500 elephants aim to be reintroduced in the reserve by 2017; Malawi's oldest and largest protected area.

The Highlights

• Scouts have been trained and supplied with new uniforms and equipment for anti-poaching patrols;
• Vehicles, roads, radios and a digital radio network have been established or upgraded;
• Law Enforcement and Community teams have collected hundreds of wire traps from within the reserve;
• A 19,000 ha sanctuary has been fenced to allow for the safe reintroduction of species, including 261 elephants and more than 1,500 head of game species in 2016. 

What next for Nkhotakota?

• Complete the park's entire perimeter fence;
• Maintain the sanctuary where 261 elephants were translocated from Liwonde in 2016, and prepare for an additional 250 elephants to be added in 2017;
• Foster close community collaboration to mitigate conflict, sensitise people to the ,much needed perimeter fence, and to review the community programme to ensure local people receive tangible benefits from the park.

All of this information has been taken from the African Parks website.  If you want to find out even more about Nkhotakota Wildlife Reserve then why not grab a cuppa and click on the link below - happy browsing!

Nkhotakota Wildlife Reserve

PS - here is a link to my just giving page - click here to sponsor me 😘

Ranty Blog Post

Yesterday the UK Government announced a consultation on a near-total ban on the UK Ivory Trade.  This is obviously a step forward in the fight against elephant poaching, but does it go far enough?

Many conservation charities have welcomed the announcement with caution,  having already pledged their involvement in the consultation process that runs for twelve weeks, closing on 29th December.

As the news broke on Friday morning, and throughout the day, we heard quotes from senior Conservative figures such as "radical and robust action", "poaching shames our generation" and "this will put the UK front and centre of global efforts to end the insidious trade in ivory".  Additionally, many news headlines simply stated "Ivory Trade to be banned in UK".

This is something we have all heard before.  Twice the Conservative Party have included a UK Ivory ban in their manifesto, and twice they have not acted.  In the 2017 election they didn't even bother to include it in their manifesto, indicating that it was just not important to them.  Twice in the last year a UK Ivory trade ban was discussed in parliament and still no action was taken.  And lets not forget that the Prime Minister is friends with Lady (Victoria) Borwick, the Conservative candidate who lost her seat in Kensington this year, and who is the president of the British Antique Dealers Association.

The US announced a near total ban in 2016.  Hong Kong announced a ban in 2016.  China announced a ban in 2017.  The UK (the worlds largest ivory exporter) has only just announced a 'consultation' on a 'partial' ban.  Certainly not "at the front and centre of global efforts".

The proposal isn't for a full ban.  There will be exemptions, permitted items, loopholes that can be used by traders to continue to make money, and thus continue to feed demand.   So its not a ban.  It's just a day of misleading news headlines and sweeping statements by Government Ministers.

Whilst the government have said this action is a result of their concerns for elephants, lets not forget that in 2018 the UK is hosting a major illegal wildlife conference.  The Government needed to do something to avoid the embarrassment of being the host yet being the only one not taking action.

This week the Conservative Party Conference took place.  The conference included everything you would expect from a party in crisis.  Senior Government Ministers undermining their leader, the Foreign Secretary joking about dead bodies, mixed messages on the approach to Brexit, a series of mishaps overshadowing the Prime Ministers speech, a prankster.....all topped off by a plot to remove Theresa May from her post and seek a new leader.

The Conservatives have had an awful week.  They needed a good news story.  They needed something positive to hit the headlines and detract from the internal fighting and backstabbing taking place.

If they really were concerned about elephants why not use their party conference to announce the consultation?  Why wait until after the event when all the news about the Conservative Party was negative?  Why do they think we can't see that the timing  of the announcement was off?  Why now, when it was removed from their manifesto?  Yet another U-turn (albeit a positive one this time!).

Whilst I am pleased that, if nothing else, this has raised awareness - I, like many others, remain cautious.  I can't sing and shout about it yet.  We still have a very long way to go.

Whilst we should welcome the announcement, it is not good enough.  Until the new regulations are put in place, and effectively enforced, I remain cautiously optimistic.  The elephants still need us to keep fighting for them - a global total ban is what they need to survive.

Snowdon - steep, wet and very, very windy

Last weekend we spent the weekend in Snowdonia, North Wales.  The scenery was amazing but the weather was pretty grotty which meant we didn't get to see much.  We were really only there for one reason - to climb Mount Snowdon.

Snowdonia was formed approximately 450-400 million years ago (the Alps are 60 million years old in Comparison) as an oceanic plate, lapetus, slid under the continent of Laurentia.  At the time Wales would have been the site of huge amounts of volcanic activity.  As well as volcanic rock, you will also find lots of sedimentary rock in Snowdonia as the formation of the mountains was underwater.

It felt like we were underwater as the drive though the mountains to our hotel was through sideways rain and high winds.  We stayed in a lovely little hotel well hidden half way up a very, very steep hill.   I knew we were in proper Welsh Wales when we sat having a drink in to the hotel bar and a sheep casually wondered past the window as it was eating the grass.  It mowed the lawn of the hotel gardens and then wondered back up the hill.

A rare sight of some blue sky.

The weather didn't improve overnight so the likelihood of reaching the summit was looking slim.  This became even clearer when we arrived at the car park to a long speech by the car park attendant about the conditions on Snowdon and setting our expectation about how high we should go.  The advice was heard loud and clear - do not attempt to reach the summit today.

There are seven routes up to the summit of snowdon.  We opted to take the Llanberis Path.  The total walk was nine miles long, 3200 ft high and a six hour walk.  The Llanberis path is the gentlest and longest route up Snowdon.  The path is well defined and easy to follow with cafe midway.

The first 20 minutes or so of the climb was by far the worse.  Whilst the surface was the best (a nice cement road) it was by far the steepest part.  Every time you got to a bend and thought it was over, there was another section, and another, and another.  

Once we were off the road and on to rougher terrain I'd got a bit more in to the swing of things.  We had managed to lose the crowd that were following us up and had got into a rhythm - whilst still stopping for breath a lot!   As we got higher and higher the conditions got worse and worse.

I had every layer on I had with me, it was a great day for trying out my hiking gear.  But, it was truly awful.  I'm not going to lie, I hated every step.  The rain was getting heavier meaning the path was getting slippy.  And the wind....... it was blowing my clothes so much that I literally looked like I was wearing clingfilm!   I was not a happy girl!!

Strike a pose.

We finally made it to the halfway house.  A little cafe exactly half way up the route.....a VERY welcome break and mentally a massive boost.  We took full advantage of the facilities and stopped for a cuppa and a Welsh cake, and of course a toilet break before assessing the weather.

X marks the spot of the halfway house.

I wasn't the only one who wasn't exactly enjoying the day.  The lady sitting next to us in the cafe sent a text that simply said "words can not describe how awful this is".  It was such a shame as it was clearly the weather making conditions difficult for everyone.

The weather had taken a turn for the worse so rather than continue a little further up and risk getting caught, we decided to head back down so we had the rest of the day to explore a bit of the area in the dry car with heated seats.  Any views we had on the way up had disappeared and been replaced with thick cloud, with nothing to see it was really was "head down and get off this mountain as quick as we can".

Although I didn't make it to the top, fitness wise I could tell that I had it on me.  Had mother nature (and mountain rescue!) been on our side we would have made it to the top, I'm sure.  So the weekend wasn't a complete waste - I got an idea of what lies ahead of me, I got try out my walking poles and I got to eat Welsh cake!!

Here's hoping the tropics of Africa are kinder to us.

#goingbeyond

It wouldn't be right not to post today.  Four months today we start the climb.

We will have completed more training than I ever thought I would do in my lifetime.  We will have raised as many pennies as we can for worthy causes.  We will have collected donations of books, clothes and stationery for a school in need and shipped to Tanzania with laptops donated from work.  We will have packed and unpacked our bags a million times.  We will have waved goodbye to our families and friends and arrived in Tanzania.  And we will have probably laughed and cried about what is lying ahead of us.

Four months is nothing.  Its no time at all - and it shows, we have both switched in to panic mode and have suddenly become very, VERY focused on the task at hand.

The last four months of training is booked in the diary.  I'm not sure I'm going to have a social life now until its all over but I know my body will be in as good a shape as it can be.

There is still a lot to do.  Insurance, visa's, injections, school donations - the list that seems to get longer no matter how much I tick off each week.

At work we have a #goingbeyond hashtag, so that's what we're doing - in 3 months, 30 days, 8 hours and 24 minutes (its less than four months already!!)

Odzala-Kokoua National Park - Congo

Odzala-Kokoua totals 13,500 KM2 and has been an African Parks project since 2010.  It is situated in the heart of the second largest tropical rainforest in the world (after the Amazon), and harbours some of the rarest and most enigmatic species on the planet.  The park is home to the Critically Endangered western lowland gorilla, forest elephant, at lest 444 bird species, and an almost unparalleled floral diversity.

The stats....

• 22,000 gorillas confirmed in 2015 census;
• Over 106 eco-guards employed;
• Established in 1935, Odzala is one of Africa's oldest national parks.

The Highlights

• The "poacher to protector" programme, which permits poachers to become rangers in exchange for their firearm and full disclosure, has led to 56 confiscated firearms and improved park intelligence;
• A gorilla habituation programme is being implemented to improve tourism for local communities;
• Over 100 jobs have been created within park management;
• Since 2012, 5% of commercial revenue has gone into a Community Fund channeling US$82,000 in support of local projects;
• A mobile health clinic established serving 400 people in 39 villages around the park.

What next for Odzala-Kokoua?

• Provide new income streams for local communities, including planting 40,000 cocoa saplings outside of the park in rehabilitated cocoa fields;
• Following formal training from agricultural experts, communities are planting trees that are expected to start bearing fruit in two to three years;
• Continue with gorilla habituation at multiple sites within the park to aid tourism to deliver needed local benefits;
• Survey transects to evaluate wildlife population trends in order to better protect them;
• Implement a tourism development plan to increase tourism numbers and revenue.

All of this information has been taken from the African Parks website.  If you want to find out even more about Odzala-Kokoua National Park then why not grab a cuppa and click on the link below - happy browsing!

Odzala-Kokoua National Park 

PS - here is a link to my just giving page - click here to sponsor me 😘

The Thames Path Challenge

Yesterday I stepped up the training with a light 25k stroll along the Thames.  It was an organised walk by Action Challenge that took us along the Thames from Bishops Park to Southwark Park.  The 'Thames Bridges Trek' followed the Thames Path crossing 16 bridges and taking us right through the heart of London.

This was the longest I had walked in one sitting and I knew it would be a challenge but the scenery as well as the camaraderie with the other hundreds of people completing the walk made the time pass a lot quicker than I thought.

For those data geeks among you, here are the highlights:

• 25 kilometers walked
• 16 bridges crossed
• 43,254 steps stepped
• 1,043 calories burned
• 2 sore feet
• and the worlds largest blister

We started the walk at Bishops Park where we registered, warmed up and made the most of the free tea and toilets.  Then we were on our way - heading east.

Bridge One - Putney Bridge
Originally known as Fulham Bridge it was the second bridge to cross the Thames and was first built in 1729 out of wood.  It originally has 26 arches as opposed to the current five.  The replacement bridge was built in 1886.

Bridge Two - Fulham Railway Bridge
This bridge was opened in 1889 and is 418 meters long.  It was designed by Brunel's former assistant William Jacob.

Bridge Three - Wandsworth Bridge and the 4k mark
Opened in 1940 and is 200m long.  The steel panels on the side of the bridge were painted different shades of blue in an attempt to camouflage the bridge from air raids.

Bridge Four - Battersea Bridge
Build in 1890 it is the narrowest surviving road bridge over the Thames in London, it is one of London's least busy bridges.  The location on a bend in the river makes the bridge a hazard to shipping, and it has been closed many times due to collisions.

Bridge Five - Albert Bridge, reaching 7k along the way
Opened in 1873 it was known as the 'Trembling Lady' because it shook when being used by soldiers from the Chelsea barracks.  It is one of two road bridges over the Thames that have never been replaced.

Bridge Six - Chelsea Bridge, marking the 10k point

The bridge is self-anchored so there is no 'abutment' support at either end of the bridge.  The original bridge was built in 1858 with the replacement bridge being put in place in 1937.

Bridge Seven - Vauxhall bridge, the last bridge before the halfway rest point, at 13k

Opened in 1906, Vauxhall bridge is unique - attached to the bridge's piers are eight colossal (they're twice life size) statues of allegorical figures, the 2nd of which is is a figure of St Paul's Cathedral.

The halfway point at Vauxhall Pleasure Gardens was a very welcome sight.  We got 'scanned' in before being presented with a vast array of treats.  Crisps, chocolate bars, fruit, sweets - and the largest pastries I have ever seen!  We sat down for our only break of the day and enjoyed a quick toilet break and a refuelling before setting off again.

Bridge Eight - Lambeth Bridge

It was opened in 1932 and is 237 long.  Supposedly the red colour of the bridge represents the colour of the seats of the House of Lords.  Members of the house of parliament would walk along this bridge while those of the house of commons would use the Westminster Bridge.

Bridge Nine - Westminster Bridge, 15k

Opened in 1862 it is the oldest road bridge across the Thames in central London.  The detailing of the bridge was done by Charles Barry the architect of the Palace of Westminster.

Bridge Ten - Golden Jubilee Bridges

The first bridge was opened in 1845 as a suspension footbridge.  The two 4 meter wide foot bridges were completed in 2002 and were named the Golden Jubilee Bridges in honour of the fiftieth anniversary of Queen Elizabeth II's accession.

Bridge Eleven - Waterloo Bridge
Designed by Sir Giles Gilbert Scott who also designed the red telephone box who was not an engineer making the plans very difficult to build, however once it was opened it became London's first concrete bridge across the river Thames.  Opened in 1945 it is also know as the Ladies bridge - as whilst designed by a man, it was largely built by a female workforce during the war, after over 500 men were called to fight.

Bridge Twelve - Blackfriars Bridge
The original bridge was opened in 1769 with the replacement being opened in 1869 and is 281m long.  The piers of the bridge are decorated with stone carvings of birds, with the carvings of freshwater lords reflecting the role of Blackfriars as the tidal turning point of the Thames.  On the north side of the bridge is a statue of Queen Elizabeth, to whom the bridge is dedicated.

Bridge Thirteen - Millennium Bridge, 19k point half way across the bridge
The first bridge built and opened in over 100 years, in 2000 and named 'the wobbly bridge' after it wobbled alarmingly on the opening.  It was then repaired and opened again in 2002 - said to cost £18.2m.  Today there are over 400 different pieces of art on the bridge - which is the work of street artist Ben Wilson who paints scenes, shapes and figures on the trodden, dropped chewing gum of passersby.

Bridge Fourteen - Southwark Bridge
Over 13,000 litres of paint were used on the restoration in 2010.  It was originally built in 1921 - today Southwark bridge has its own website.  Check it out here.

Bridge Fifteen - London Bridge
This was the first bridge in central London crossing the Thames.  The first stone version was built in 1176.  there used to be buildings and shops on the bridge, but in 1758 all of them were removed.  The London Bridge that we refer to now was opened in 1973.

Bridge Sixteen - Tower Bridge, 22k, the last bridge!
The bridge was opened in 1894 and was considered the most sophisticated of its type in the world.  In 1952 while the bridge was opening the number 78 double decker bus was still on it so had to accelerate and it managed to jump the gap.

Once we had crossed the final bridge we passed through some beautiful streets - where apparently Pink Panther lives!  We also came across some quite dramatic weather but somehow managed to stay dry all day.

If I thought the half way point was a welcome sight, that was nothing compared to the end, where toilets, food, chairs and FREE PROSECCO was waiting.  Once we had rested up we needed to get home but my feet were having none of it.  Thankfully I had packed a change of shoes, they bought some relief for me feet but I was still struggling to walk by this point - but I did it!!

I need to get my feet back to walking fit soon as in a couple of weeks I'm at it again, but this time uphill on rough terrain.  Words can not describe how big the blister is on my little toe!

So, if you fancy a challenge, why not give its go yourself.  The route is below, green pin to red pin - I dare you.