Welcome to the South Downs Way and day one of my third 106 mile adventure.
Friday 8th June, Winchester to Exton, 13 miles.
It is always exciting to be at the start of a long walk, as well as being a little intimidating.
 Both Dawn and myself had been feeling a little nervous so it was good to actually stop thinking about it and do it.  As it was day one we were both fairly full of energy and it didn't seem long till we had a chocolate break on top of Old Winchester Hill'

This was followed by a beer break at The Milburys, where we were all made to feel quite unwelcome by the unsmiling landlord, before an afternoons walk to Exton.  Here we had a beer, wine and food break at 'The Shoe', which was as welcoming as 'The Milburys' had been unwelcoming.  Last year we stayed here to eat, and all during the afternoon both Dawn and I were hoping there was still the felafel
dish still on the menu, served with sweet potato fries.  And yes, there was, with the tasteful addition of some decorative violas.  Day one successfully completed.  One down, eight more to go.

Saturday, Exton to Queen Elizabeth Country Park, 12 miles'
Today I was very much looking forward to walking down Butser Hill, instead of climbing up it!
The views are spectacular everyday, but I was particularly delighted to find sheep that were also doubling as works of art.

I wouldn't say that I was 'delighted' to see this sign. Although it was good to see that we were now 22 miles away from Winchester, I could have done without being reminded that there were still 78 miles to go before we reached Eastbourne.  At least we were still going the right way!

It was good to reach Queen Elizabeth Country Park, and even better to discover that the cafe sold small bottles of wine, red, white and rose.  (Soft drinks were available too.)
After 12 hot miles, a  glass of chilled rose certainly hit the spot.

Sunday, Queen Elizabeth Country Park to Cocking, 12 miles.
It was a long, hot uphill slog before we actually left the park.  After that, it was lovely to be in more open countryside.  When we got to Harting Down we had a delicious and nutritious lunch before deciding whether we would go over or round Beacon Hill.
Surely only a very careless walker would lose a boot.......

We felt quite brave after vegetable sticks and hummus, and decided to tackle the steep ascent.
  This is the view from almost at the top.  Stopping to take photos is a very good way of taking a break without actually appearing too!

The start of the day involved a long trudge upwards, and the end of the day became a very long trudge downwards.  It was also becoming a painful trudge as I developed what all walkers dread, a blister!  After a quick stop to apply a Compeed plaster, it was downhill all the very long way to the coach at Cocking.  Happy birthday Sam!

Monday, Cocking to Whiteways, 9 miles.
Thank goodness for a shorter day, and Compeed plasters.  I was not actually in a pain-free position, but it was bearable.  Last year on the final day, Dawn and I had packed our bag with sandals, a summers dress and make-up which we then donned for the after-walk party.  Dawn wondered today what she would bring to wear this year, and I wondered whether I would actually get as far as the last day!  I did keep those thoughts very much to myself, and decided the best way forward would be to treat this walk as 'one day at a time'.  I must have been feeling a bit miserable as I didn't take many pictures at all.
 This one is from the end of the day where we leave the South Downs to walk about a mile on an overgrown and nettley path towards the cafe at Whiteways.  Not the best day I have ever had.

Tuesday, Whiteways to Washington, 9 miles.
Today proceeded at a spanking pace, perhaps a little too spanking for my left foot!
Dawn teaches yoga on Tuesday and Wednesday evenings, and had not been able to find someone to cover the Tuesday classes.  So today we had to catch an earlier bus which meant we couldn't hang around.  This did not mean we didn't stop to take photos, and this was a stunning view at the start of the day.

The next time we paused to look around us it was to find that the poppy field was now far behind us, hurrah!  It was with great sadness that we heard in the morning that the lovely pub in Washington, The Frankland Arms, was now closed.  It was always such a treat to end the walk there, especially as we usually got a voucher for a free packet of crisps.  The team worked hard to cheer us up, however, and when we reached Washington, supplied us with barley water and fig rolls.  What more could a weary walker want, apart from a pint of bitter and a packet of cheese and onion, of course.

Wednesday, Washington to Devil's Dyke, 12 miles.
Back to a longer walk today, but one of many parts.  My foot is still hurting, but I am able to get through the day.  Perhaps it is still a bit too early to plan my party gear.  A beautiful start to the day, past Chanctonbury Ring, then the middle of the walk finds us walking past fields of pigs.  Here I pause to take a photograph of a bowser for Mr Cooper, bowser being one of his favourite words.
In the afternoon we have a longish pause for a pot of tea and a Twix at the Truleigh Hill Youth Hostel.  After that it is a bit of a shock to see the pub at Devil's Dyke on the horizon, but a very distant horizon.  We got there in the end, but it felt like we had walked a very long way to get there.
However there was no queue at the bar, and there was just time to consume a rapid pint, hurrah!

Friday, Devil's Dyke to Newmarket Inn, 12 miles.
This was indeed a very interesting day, as we started the walk in the rain and strong winds.  It wasn't long before we reached Pyecombe church, however, where they were supplying tea and cakes to wet walkers.  Last year we had eaten our cakes in the churchyard in hot sunshine. This year we were huddled together in the shelter of the church as it began to rain even harder.  The church has one toilet, and Dawn spent thirty minutes in the toilet queue and I spent thirty minutes eating ginger cake and forlornly dripping in a pew.  The good thing about our protracted stay was that the rain had ceased by the time we left, to be replaced with a very low covering of cloud.
We had views like this for the next two hours!

We made extremely good progress during this misty time, as there was really was nothing else to do!  After marching for two hours the cloud cleared and we stopped to re-fuel.  I think Dawn was a little envious of my apparel, as she stopped to photograph what surely will become a 'new look', gaiters worn with shorts.  At least I think Dawn was envious.......what do you think?

The day ended happily at The Newmarket Inn, with a pint in the sunshine.  Altogether quite an interesting experience.

Friday, Newmarket to Alfirston, 14 miles.
There is no disguising the fact that today is the longest day!  My foot was now pain-free, thanks to Compeed during the day and Sudocrem at night, and I was ready for the challenge.  I did learn something today, and that was that lots of people are scared of cows.  Luckily I am not, and managed to help a few people safely through this grazing group.

We paced ourselves well today, and discussed our party-frock situation, as it seemed very probable that we would both complete the walk.  As well as this, we made sure to make time to enjoy the views, as they were stunning.
A very pleasant end to the day was to enjoy a pint in one of the many pubs in Alfriston, before joining the coach for our now lengthy journey home, tonight's journey taking two hours.
There was a treat waiting for me at home as Mr Cooper had returned from the Lake District, where him and Kevin had gone to walk, and to climb Scafell Pike, England's highest mountain.  It took them 6 hours to do the round trip, after which they were proper knackered.  Then there was another treat, as we went to collect an Indian takeaway, so no cooking or washing-up, hurrah!

Saturday, Alfriston to Eastbourne, 11 miles.
When we were on the coach this morning, we heard a couple of newbies say that they were looking forward to the day, as they had got the hardest one out of the way!  How we chortled at their innocence.  The day starts pretty much like any other, with stunning views and rolling countryside.
After a while you begin to climb until you reach a stone wall.

When you look over the wall you are not at all sure what you will see, and it really is the most amazing sight.  Goodbye rolling countryside and hello Cuckmere Haven, a beautiful place to pause for a while before embarking on those unfriendly and  brutal hills, 'The Seven Sisters'.

We managed to get to sister number two before Dawn announced that she had had enough.  Luckily as soon as you have completed the seventh sister you are at the Birling Gap, where tea and toilets await.  The trouble is that you are really only halfway through the clifftop endurance test, with Beachy Head still to go till you reach the end.
I have spoken to many people who think walking the South Downs Way sounds like a doddle.
I think some of these photos help to make it look like it is, a challenging walk.......

........as well as an extremely beautiful one.

But what these pictures fail to capture is the really strong and chilly wind that accompanies these stunning views.

The end is in sight!  Just a steep descent then off to the public loos for a transformation.

I can't think why me and Dawn feel the need to smarten ourselves up, can you?
Of all the signposts I have taken photos of, this one is the most welcome sight of them all.
We did it! 

Our party was lovely, at Brighton University, and we managed to eat enough sandwiches so there could be another evening of no food preparation.  It was really good to stop, but I am already looking forward to starting all over again, next year.

When we were walking over Beachy Head, our thoughts and talk turned to the awfulness of the plight of people who choose to end their life there.  Not only the awfulness of thinking there is no way forward, but also as to what a frightening and brutal way to go.  Just as I was nearing the end of this blog, Mr Cooper came to tell me that only this morning, Monday 18th June, the bodies of a young mother and her five year old child had been found at the bottom of Beachy Head.

Please pause to spare a thought or a prayer for this mother and her child, and the awfulness of feeling that jumping is the only way forward.

Please be kind to others on their journeys, and spare time to listen and help if required.  The world is not a happy place for many people, and after 9 days of experiencing some of the most beautiful and uplifting sights, it is very 'grounding' to be told of the tragedies that exist alongside.  So very sad.

Being outside and especially in the countryside does work to lift the spirits,  so find your boots and perhaps a friend, and be mindful of your own mental well-being.

There has been no blog for a little while, and now I have so many images that there are to be two, or rather one in two parts.  This way, you can skip the one devoted to The South Downs Annual Walk if you wish, but some of the photos are definitely worth looking it.  Not sure about the writing yet, as it is still in my head at this point!  It never rains but it pours, or words to that effect.

As the day for the start of the South Downs Annual Walk got ever closer, so I aimed to increase my training for it.  But long walks take up a lot of time, which I didn't have much of, as events around me were eating into what little spare time I had, not even enough spare to write my blog in!
So let's draw breath now, and reflect upon those events that have left me busy but not as walking-fit as I would have liked.
In my last blog I showed you the artwork that was destined for The Tate Modern, and here it is, actually at The Tate!  Look on the right hand side of the boat, about halfway up, and you will see my small cubes of drawings and prose.

Here they are again, now on the upper side.  Sadly I was not there to see them in situ, as I was having to work to make up for three weeks without earning partnered with a rather large garage bill.  When you don't earn much money, all is well until it isn't well, and then the wolves come very quickly to the door! 

Many things in life are free though, such as walking in the countryside.
Mr Cooper planned a lovely walk for us both, which was so lovely that I would gladly do it again.  It ended up being a little longer than planned, however.  He also arranged for a lovely hot day, perhaps a little too hot for walking if I am to be critical (something that I almost never am, as those of you who know me well would not believe!) After eight hot miles, I was a little apprehensive about the 106 I had yet to come, with the shortest walk being 9 miles one day, and the longest being 14!  Oh well, let's just take one day at a time, or try to.
Part of the walk took us into a shady wood where we had deciduous trees to our right.......

.........but slightly menacing pine trees to our left.  Look at all the undergrowth that you have with the deciduous trees, as compared to the pines.  It reminded me very much of a Rupert Bear story from many years ago, where Gaffer Jarge was extremely worried about the way the pine trees were creeping ever closer to Nutwood.  Luckily the tree sprites all had a jolly good fight about it, with the native tree sprites being victorious, of course.  Mrs Bear gave Rupert a jolly good tea at the end of it all, whilst Mr Bear relaxed in his armchair smoking a pipe.  As my Mum would say (and she says it quite a lot) 'They were happier, simpler times then.'

Another thing that is free is spending time with your friends.  I travelled to Southsea on the train ( a small charge incurred here) then onto Eastney, to Janeeses' beach hut for a picnic.  It was lovely to catch up with everyone whilst drinking Prosecco and eating first-class picnic food.  And in true seaside picnic tradition, we were nestled in deckchairs and covered with blankets.  The beach at Eastney is magical, and rivals Dungeness for 'beach garden beauty'.

Everything comes to an end, even English picnics.  I know I will see my friends before too long, but when I gave in my notice at Mind in Andover and Trinity in Winchester, I knew I would be saying a big goodbye to people I had worked with for two years, many of whom had become my friends.
Here is the last ever project drying on the line, I think blue is a rather good reflection of how I was feeling about leaving.

Back to 'happier, busier times......'  It was lovely to pay Mum a visit at the weekend before my long walk.  Last year I did three practise walks on the weekend before.  This year I seemed to be stocking up on carbs instead.
On Saturday Mum and I drove to Wisbech to visit Peckover House.  I had not been there since before my children were born, and there was much more to see.  The house is not very large, being a merchant's town house, but it an absolute poppet.  The crowning glory has to be the gardens though, which are just exquisite.  You will have to take my word for it as I took very few photos, being too busy drinking it all in.  Here is one of a tulip tree, and its blossom.  Tulip trees are not very common, and this one was not only large, rare and beautiful, but extremely fragrant too.

I took a picture of these blue flowers as I am starting to gather ideas for my next garden.  It is to be divided into several parts, with herbs being closest to the house, followed by flowery borders and raised beds for vegetables.  Then tucked away at the bottom of the garden will be my new studio/shed surrounded by more mysterious and medicinal plants.  There will be a little fence keeping this area separate, as some of the plants will be poisonous.  These ones below will not be found around my shed, but nearer the house where the plants will be pretty or edible or both.

When we got back from Wisbech we were joined by Mark and George, with Ella.  And although Mum and I had taken the edge off our appetites by sharing a cream tea at Peckover House, we were looking forward to a night of dining at Matonni's.  What better way to end the evening than with an Espresso Martini.  I do wish that Mum and Ella would stop texting each other and just have a proper conversation, though!

The walk starts on Friday the 8th June, and Sam has his 27th birthday on the 10th June.  He had one birthday request and that was for a Battenberg cake but without the marzipan.  I have had stranger requests in my time.  'Lurid green' was Sam's requested colour choice for the icing.
With this in mind I turned up the colour volume in the cakes.

Here is the finished product.  When I gave it to Sam he was thrilled, and said it looked a lot better than he thought it would.  And I agreed with him entirely.

It must be time for another picture of Dilly.  Here she is, with the first part getting towards completion.  Clover and scabious flowers and leaves need to be completed, and then it will be time to start all over again to the right of the door.  I am really enjoying this project.  It may be time-consuming but the results are worth it.  And it must be good for your back, having to sit up straight for 7 hours, with your legs straight out and under the caravan!

Whilst I was in Peterborough, Mr Cooper was in Suffolk, spending time with Susie and Werner.  Sadly we were so busy that we couldn't each manage to do both.  In fact it was so long since we had seen them  that we were using that weekend to also exchange Christmas gifts.  When John returned with the gifts I was overjoyed, as they would ensure that my walking week would be a lot better. 
Mr Cooper was not to be my support crew this time, as he would be away with Kevin in the Lake District.  And when Mr Cooper goes away, so does the sound system.  But no longer!  Now we are the proud possessors of a 'Wonderboom', we both can have music wherever we go.  As well as a jolly good gin and tonic at the end of a hard days walk, hurrah!

So this is where I must leave you now, to pack my rucksack with Compeed plasters, waterproofs, gaiters and sun hats.  Plus sustaining snacks and a large bottle of water.
I hope you will need sun hats in the week ahead, whilst you enjoy delicious sustainable snacks.
Don't forget to drink plenty of water too, even if you are sitting down all day, either on a chair or in a dog bed.  Make sure you look out for the next blog, it is really not very far behind.  I have just got to write it, that's all.