Day 9 - SW Tiverton to W Taunton (22.2 miles)

Lesley sent me on my way from an extremely restful hotel where it turns out I was the only guest last night. Peace, quiet and tranquility in big gob fulls. The perfect resting spot.

... and now it was time to move on. I had decided on the canal route out of Tiverton because canals = flat ground. What a delight that Tow path out of there was. 11 miles of meandering clear waters and I only saw about 10 people. The wind was gusting in the right direction too. It was almost like someone 'up there' was giving me a helping hand.

I had to leave the canal finally at Fenacre Bridge near a small place called Great Fossend. Immediately I felt problems occurring. The tendons that hadn't been really tested over the last 11 miles suddenly started complaining. This was not good as the hills I encountered were not that steep. I was struggling. I stopped, removed boots and socks and just stared at my broken feet. What to do? I just didn't know so I covered them again in socks, wrapped the walking boots back around them, and tried to ignore the pain. I kept going until the next hill (not far) and decided a 30 minute break was essential.

During the break I swapped to running shoes as putting the boots back on was just too painful. This was the second of the good ideas of the day. Pain turned to plain discomfort. This was manageable.

I continued on an reached the A 30. A fast road that runs parallel with the motorway. I was back playing matador with the traffic. Not great. Only a few miles on however and a lay-by appeared with a cafe trailer. It was just closing but they guys running it kindly cooked up a delicious cheese burger, served up with a refreshing Fanta, and after hearing what I was up to a free mug of tea appeared. The generosity of people astounds me. If someone is doing something for a good cause there is a switch that flicks in humans. It's not that people are bad normally. It's hard to explain. It's like people suddenly jump on board, they put a friendly arm around you and they say (metaphorically) "I'm with you". Their energy travels with you. It's fantastic, it's primeval. It's a pack thing. I love it.

Tea warming me through I left the International Burger guys and set off for Wellington. I decided to go into the town and search out a chemist. Pain was getting the better of me. I spent a good 15 minutes in Boots and left with a plethora of lotions, potions, ointments, and pills. I always under estimate the power of modern medicine. 2 tablets of Ibuprofen and within an hour the pain that had plagued me all day subsided. I was now at mile 18 and at this stage I'm usually flagging but with my pain gone I felt my stride lengthen, my head rise, and my speed increase. I strode into Taunton on a high (even though I'd passed a pub called The End of the World - what a weird name to call a boozer!). I stopped in a local garage to grab snacks with high calorific and protein content (Mars Refuel is a great drink to have, as is "For Goodness Shake", after a day of calorie burning). The guy behind the counter asked if I'd been far and when I said "155 miles" he stared blankly. I of course explained and he was suitably impressed. I left feeling like I was doing something good, something useful. Is this what I've been looking for? Who knows, only time does.

Now it's time for snoozing. Day 10 beckons.