Counting your blessings

On Wednesday I went to speak to the Worsley Ladies' Luncheon Club - all 140 of them! Talked at length to their vice-chairman who has Multiple Sclerosis and then has had breast cancer. Makes all us people who are reasonably fit stop and think how lucky we are, and reminds us (I hope) how important it is to support charities which work so hard on the prevention (hopefully) and care of those affected. No doubt this will be gnawing away in my brain as I'm tramping the hills, in between those long spells when you can't get a particularly annoying tune out of your head...

Stop Press! - Web Site Goes Live

The web site has gone on line today - all the information is on http://www.honeywell.co.uk/ with links to the draft itinerary, the Justgiving site, and other items like sponsorship forms, Gift Aid forms etc. Over the next few days I need to send emails and other messages out to everyone on my contact list. If you are reading this and want to help raise money for a good cause, why not send details to everyone on your contact list?

Rosemere Cancer Foundation

You may wish to know more about the Rosemere Cancer Foundation. If so, their web site is at http://www.rosemere.org.uk/default.php - it's worth a visit.

Keeping company with the Lancashire Witches

Trying to keep up the training but there are always too many other things to do. Still, the weather is much milder this week so on Tuesday I managed 30 miles on the bike without my feet turning to blocks of ice. Wednesday morning I climbed the 'big end' of Pendle from the Barley side, and did it again today (Friday). The 'steps' from Pendle House climb 200m in about 650m and take just over 13 minutes, which seems a reasonable time, so if I can get my old legs to do that on a regular basis I might be OK. I need to recce a walk on Cheshire's Sandstone Trail this weekend which looks like being a lot easier, so I'll take up training again next week...

Wintry Weather

Well, I went and did Ingleborough yesterday afternoon: parked at the Hill Inn at 2.30 and all went well until I reached the really steep section up The Arks after Humphrey Bottoms, and found it to be much more wintry than I'd expected. I had to cut steps in the snow - a few people had been up but not that many - and then the final steep section to the summit plateau was really icy. Despite this I reached the top in an hour and a quarter, but then coming back down to the top of The Arks I had to do a lot of it backwards! So I decided to avoid the steep section and do a detour along the flank of Simon Fell to Park Fell and came down a much easier slope there, which just meant a half-mile trek back along the road to reach the car. Full marks to the guy I met wearing crampons, even though he did look a bit too smug. Seven miles, 1500', 2h 50m, so no great worries there. To save petrol I'll do my next training on Pendle, although to get the same height and ascent means going up and down three times, which might get a bit boring.

Making Plans

There's a lot to organise and not enough time. I've opened a page on justgiving.co.uk (www.justgiving.co.uk/billhoneywell) but it needs padding out with some detail, and I'm working on the text of emails and other begging letters. I need to sort out links from the company web site and basically get the publicity machine in gear.

I've worked out a draft schedule for the walk, starting with an easy round on Day 1 - March 9th - and finishing at Elterwater where I hope a few friends might join up for a few beers in the Britannia. There are plenty of days off for recuperation at home, and I'm making a lot of use of accommodation provided by friends in Bowness and Cockermouth. For the Scafell / Great Gable / Wastwater area I might treat myself to a few nights at the Wasdale Head.

Before I go I've got to finish tiling the bathroom and decorating the bedroom, but I also need to keep in shape, so this afternoon I might drive over to Ingleton and nip up Ingleborough just to make sure all my bits are working the way they should be!