40, not out!

WARNING: This may contain nuts, two of them....

It's 10pm, and I'm typing this whilst lying in bed, absolutely knackered! I've just helped SS celebrate her fortieth birthday!
Party??
Shopped til we dropped??
Coffee and cakes??
Dinner somewhere posh??

You've got to be kidding, SS wanted to WALK 40 miles for her 40th.....I'm just glad she wasn't 50..or 60!!

So...up at 6am, met at Monks Lane at just before 7am, and as this was a 'special' day...we were going to give Greenham Common a miss!
We set off down Valley Road and Kingsbridge Road to join the Canal, and headed towards Hungerford, 12 miles away, this was to be the breakfast stop. It was icy and cold, but the sun was shining and the sky was blue, and just after 9.30am we were tucking into fried egg and bacon sandwiches and a huge pot of coffee with Jim at the Tutti Pole on Hungerford High Street.

The next stretch of walk took us from Hungerford along the canal to Great Bedwyn, via Little Bedwyn, a route which we haven't walked before. This was a lovely walk, if not a very muddy, slippy, slidey, walk. Also a thirsty walk, as the sun continued to shine out of a cloudless blue sky, hard to imagine it was only the beginning of March.
Once in Great Bedwyn, it was noted there were 2 pubs for future reference (not open til 12md) so we grabbed a drink from the village stores, and found a convenient bench opposite to sit and have said drinks. I don't  know whether the locals don't get out much, or whether they aren't used to seeing lycra clad ladies in bobble hats swigging out of milk cartons, but we got a few funny looks???

And then it was time to retrace steps back to just outside of Hungerford (25 mile mark) to meet Jim at the organic Cobbs Farm for a 'spot of lunch'!!

Full to bursting point on paninis, we then headed  10 miles into Newbury town centre to meet up with Cassia and Jamie for support and praise on our expedition thus far....except they wanted sandwiches and disappeared!! So we made do with Jim and a Neros hot chocolate and pastry to get us through the last 5 miles of SS's 'birthday 40'.
This is where we got stuck.....we had done 35 miles....we needed to do another 5 miles, it was 5.23pm, where should we go?? You got it....the Common!

We walked along the canal parallel to Hambridge Lane, past Thatcham Nature Reserve, as far as Crookham, through the Farmyard, and up onto the common near Thornford Park. We then went right once through the gates, heading for the control tower car park, where Jim was waiting to pick us up, as it was by now 6.55pm and pitch black.......and .....we had officially walked .....

41 MILES!!!!!!!

JOB DONE - HAPPY BIRTHDAY SUZANNE!!