Walking

<body topmargin=0 leftmargin=0 marginheight=0 marginwidth=0> <table cellpadding=0 cellspacing=0 border=0><tr> <td valign="top" colspan=3 height=100 BGCOLOR="#CCCCFF" TEXT="#080000" bgproperties="fixed" background="04300640egdysm.jpg"> <div> <FONT SIZE="6" COLOR="#CC0000" FACE="Elephant" ><B>Welcome To My Den</B></FONT><FONT SIZE="5" COLOR="#000099" FACE="Arial" ><B> </B></FONT><B>    |  </B><B>  </B><FONT SIZE="2" COLOR="#000099" FACE="Arial" ><B> </B><A HREF="index.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Welcome To My Den"><U><B>home</B></U></A></FONT></div> <div> <A HREF="id17.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="About Me"><U><B>About Me</B></U></A><B>   |   </B><A HREF="id183.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Search Site"><U><B>Search Site</B></U></A><B>   |   </B><A HREF="id19.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="My Interests"><U><B>My Interests</B></U></A><B>   |   </B><A HREF="id130.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="My Software"><U><B>My Software</B></U></A><B>   |   </B><A HREF="id30.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Jokes"><U><B>Jokes</B></U></A><B>   |   </B><A HREF="id347.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Links"><U><B>Links</B></U></A><B>   |   </B><A HREF="id177.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE=" Guest Book"><U><B> Guest Book</B></U></A><B>   |   </B><A HREF="id149.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="My Column"><U><B>My Column</B></U></A><B>   |   </B><A HREF="id116.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Diary"><U><B>Diary</B></U></A><B>   |   </B><A HREF="id33.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Contact Me"><U><B>Contact Me</B></U></A></div> <div> </div> </td> </tr><tr> <td valign="top" rowspan="2" width=140 BGCOLOR="#CCCCFF" TEXT="#080000"> <div> <A HREF="id84.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Tropical Fish"><U><B>Tropical Fish</B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="id87.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Gardening"><U><B>Gardening</B></U></A></div> <div> <B>Walking</B></div> <div> <A HREF="id27.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Mice 1"><U><B>Mice 1</B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="id115.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Mice 2"><U><B>Mice 2</B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="id75.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Cats"><U><B>Cats</B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="id293.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Stamps"><U><B>Stamps</B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="id291.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Model Railways"><U><B>Model Railways</B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="id362.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Music"><U><B>Music</B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="id364.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Reading"><U><B>Reading</B></U></A></div> </td> <td valign="top" height=355 colspan=2 BGCOLOR="#FFFFFF" TEXT="#080000" background="1c654483.gif"> <div> <I>Walking</I></div> <div> <I><B>                                                  </B></I></div> <div> <I><B>I am a countryside and mountain walker, not for me the bustle of the city and it's seemingly never ending pavements. I prefer to see the arts and architecture of the city on the pages of a book or the screen rather than have a personal involvement. </B></I></div> <div> <I><B>I came to walking as an interest rather late in life when we moved house to a rural area in Staffordshire on the edge of Cannock Chase.</B></I></div> <div> <I><B>The physical action of walking is a health bonus that shouldn't be ignored and almost anyone can take part. You don't have to buy expensive kit, a stout pair of walking shoes or boots and good socks with something to wear in case the weather becomes inclement and away you go. </B></I></div> <div> <I><B>If you are new to walking then  enjoy your local countryside first and whatever else you do, please don't go over the top on your first outing. You don't need blisters and discomfort at this stage of the game. Stroll along, look around you, take note of the things that have always been there but you have been either  in too much of a hurry to notice or too busy.</B></I></div> <div> <I><B>You may be lucky and live in a part of the country that is popular with walkers and in that case you will hardly fail to notice the amount of hard work that has gone in to maintaining paths and other amenities for our benefit. </B></I></div> <div> <I><B>It is the same in Spain. I can seemingly be miles from any kind of civilization, on a mountain path somewhere, trying to decide if I am lost and then there, right in front of me, in a spot I can't fail to miss, will be a blob of coloured paint that shows me which way to go. Someone has been there before me and taken the trouble to do this.</B></I></div> <div> <I><B>Of course you do have a responsibility, both to yourself and to others, as a walker. It is foolish to knowingly put yourself into a position of danger, either due to ignorance of local weather conditions or terrain that is beyond your ability to deal with. It is then that others, usually volunteers, may have to place their lives in danger because of your foolishness. </B></I></div> <div> <I><B>The above remarks may make this sound a very serious business but it isn't, not for the thousands and thousands of people who have a little bit of common sense and don't leave it at home when they set off.</B></I></div> <div> <I><B>Who knows what your walking expeditions may lead to. Maybe a new lifelong interest in the animals, birds, butterflies, streams, fish, geology or plants of the countryside. You may join a society that deals with your new interest and who knows what that may lead to. The possibilities are endless and exciting to contemplate for such a simple pastime. Perhaps you may even write a definitive list of the pubs of England that line the walkers routes. That would include the quality of their beers and refreshments offered. Just think of the research you would have to do. Hmm. I wonder.</B></I></div> <div> <I><B>Apart from rural England, Scotland and Wales we have walked the mountains of both Switzerland and the Costa Blanca, Spain. I stress walking, as I am no climber. I don't mind a hard scramble over treacherous scree on a mountain slope or a bit of a cling to a steep rock for a few feet but really and truly I have no head for heights. My pleasure comes from a constant perusal of my surroundings and anticipation of what is over the next rise or round the next corner.</B></I></div> <div> <I><B>The unexpected meeting is always a pleasure too, whether it be with animal or human. I have learned to freeze in my tracks when I discern even the slightest of movements and it has paid off so many times in the past. This applies particularly in woodlands where it is also wise to keep conversation short and very quiet. I can remember stopping once and without moving my body at all,  just letting the eyes slowly traverse the bushes and trees, giving the mind time to accurately interpret what the eyes are actually seeing and not what you expect  them to see. Sure enough, I was stood not more than four feet from a beautiful doe and we were looking directly into each others eyes. We held our positions for a few seconds but when the doe realised that I had focussed on her she was gone.</B></I></div> <div> <I><B>On the human side we were walking out of a valley from a secluded Spanish beach we had just visited, the path narrow, winding backwards and forwards to gain height. Suddenly this naked male apparition stood by the side of the path as he made room for us to pass. I heard my daughter in law, who was spending a few days with us at the time, whisper to my wife, 'Don't look up, pretend you haven't seen him.' Not so easy when you are only a foot or so away from a person who is smiling at you and bidding you good day. Obviously he was on his way down to the beach we had just left, where we had noticed a family of nude bathers.</B></I></div> <div> <I><B>So the anecdotes could go on and on, from seeing the whales in Oregon to the wild orchids in Spain, from the biting cold winds on the top of an exposed Scottish hill to the hauntingly beautiful sunset over the Grand Canyon and the vertical shadows of Death Valley where the heat from the sun can knock you to your knees. </B></I></div> <div> <I><B>I know that just a pair of legs can't get you to all these places but when the car has been parked or the boat left behind then it is your own motive power that leads you to the most delightful spots and experiences.</B></I></div> <div> <I><B>I appreciate how lucky I  am to have been  able to do the walks in the places I have mentioned and many other places too. On second thoughts luck had nothing to do with it but that is yet another story.</B></I></div> <div> <I><B>I also realise that it just isn't possible for a lot of people to visit new places far away and is in fact totally unnecessary for them to do so. Whichever country you live in has so much to offer but is so easy to ignore. In my own case I know that Great Britain has far more beautiful walks than I could ever manage in my lifetime. </B></I></div> <div> <I><B>Wherever you live there has to be a spot not too far away, a park even, where, if the time is chosen carefully, the rewards for walking round will far outweigh any effort  or inconvenience.</B></I></div> <div> <I><B>To be continued.</B></I></div> <bR> <div> <I>   <p align="center"><A HREF="http://rd1.hitbox.com/rd?acct=WQ510413H0NE81EN0&p=s"> <IMG SRC="http://hg1.hitbox.com/HG?hc=wf171&l=y&hb=WQ510413H0NE81EN0&cd=1&n=Welcome To My Den" height=62 width=88 ALT="Click Here!" border=0></A></p>    </I></div> </td> </tr><tr> <td valign="top" colspan=2 height=25 BGCOLOR="#CCCCFF" TEXT="#080000"> <div> <A HREF="id101_m.htm" TARGET="TRLX_Middle" TITLE="Walking"><U><B>Back to Top</B></U></A></div> <div> <B>                                                                                </B></div> </td> </tr></table></body>