Quest #1 Walk to Rivendell: Difficulties and Ferries

Alright, I admit it.  I screwed up this past week. I didn't make my goal of 90 miles.  I'm at 83.

I need to figure out how to keep going despite the craziness of the job. 

I've been thinking a lot about it in fact. (Yeah I know you smelled the smoke, right?)

So I botched this week and will have to make it up next week.  It's not going to be fun, but not everything on every journey is fun.  You know those movie montages?  Those things that make it look like people are transformed in one way or another in a minute or less to super fun music?  If they showed it to you in real time, you'd probably be bored out of your bloody mind!  Here's to hoping I can put a little adventure of my own in it.  

On the bright side, I DID manage to meet a mile marker this week, and in honor of crossing on Buckleberry Ferry, I managed to do my own ferry crossing on the Jamestown Ferry to and from Williamsburg!  

Woo hoo!  I love ferries.  I've ridden on them countless times since I was a kid.  While I've never felt the  terror of fleeing a Nazgul on a ferry, I do have a crazy ferry story:

I spent a summer in college interning at a Maritime Museum in Beaufort, NC.  On one of my days off, I thought it would be fun to go to the Grave Yard of the Atlantic Museum on Hatteras Island.  In order to get there from Beaufort, you have to drive to Cedar Island, take the 2 1/2 hour ferry ride to Ocracoke, and then take another 45 minute ferry to Hatteras.  The trip over was awesome!  I caught the first ferry and drove across Ocracoke, caught the second, and then drove to the Museum.  It took about 5 hours, all told, and I got to spend a whopping 15 minutes in there before it closed.

I made it to the Hatteras Ferry and as soon as it docked, drove like mad down to the other end of Ocracoke... just in time to see the Ferry pull away.  The problem was that there was only ONE ferry in the evening.  If you wanted off the Island you had to wait for the ferry to Get to the farther shore and then pick up another load and return.  That was 5 hours.  So there was nothing to do but wait until the ferry returned at 10:00 PM and took me back to Cedar Island so that I could drive back to Beaufort.

It was actually kind of cool.  I checked out the beach, looked for buried treasure in "Teach's Hole" (Ocracoke was of course a favorite haunt of Blackbeard).  Sorry, no treasure - unless you count the blue plastic sandcastle shovel and a piece of a flip-flop.  But I was in for a pleasant surprise as I finally boarded the 10:00 ferry for home.  I was in the middle of the water on a cloudless night with the most amazingly brilliant set of constellations I have ever seen.  I opened the skylight in my Chevy Blazer, and actually got to watch the stars and smell the ocean at the same time!  It was incredible!  I never would have seen it if I hadn't missed the 5:00 ferry.  My mother always told me "If you want to make God laugh, tell Him your plans."  She's right.  You may not see it at first, but let me tell you that if you think you know better than Him, you've got another think coming.  I would have missed it if I had been able to make that ferry.

I digressed.  Isn't the first and it won't be the last time.

But hopefully, I will find some more insight along the road to Rivendell and even more to Mordor.

Until then, I'll keep walking.  

Quest #1 Walk to Rivendell - Into the Woods . . . and Back Out Again

This is the completion of Week #2 for me!  I have officially walked 60.14 miles!  If I were in Middle Earth, I would have gone through the forest and have arrived at the edge of Farmer Maggot's fields by now.  There were several times this week that I didn't think I would make it, but I did!  And I took some photos of my journey through my own Middle Earth along the way!

Entering the woods like the hobbits on the way to Farmer Maggot's. (Reality: part of the Canal Trail)

In the awesome woods along the trail. (Again, part of the Canal Trail).  I hope that there aren't any Black Rider's about!

Hopefully next week won't see me falling down and quitting the quest.  I have a long way to go to get rid of that ring, even getting to Rivendell is a long quest, but I'm ready for the challenge.  So into the woods I go and at the end of the week out of them, ready to start a new adventure!

Quest #1 Walk to Rivendell - Every Step Matters

I had a work function that required me to be out of the office today.  Normally that's really good.  But being given the job of sitting in a chair and watching a hole on a golf course as a witness in case someone got a hole-in-one is not the active, running around job that I would have liked.  No, the job wasn't hard, and yes, I brought a book with me while I sat for some of it, but I took the opportunity to get up and walk as much as I could.  I didn't have the time this morning to walk as far as I wanted to, but I did walk.  I took every opportunity to get out of the chair and move around.

I thought about my workouts and thought about the walking that Frodo, Sam, and the fellowship did.  They took each opportunity to get as far as they could.  They tried to walk as far as they could, but there were a couple of days when they simply needed to rest.  For me, that was tonight.  I needed a break from going so long and hard the last few days.  No, I didn't walk like I should have, but I know that I can get in the necessary 8.19 miles that I need to finish out my goal for the week in the next two days.

I know me.  I don't want to quit, but I do need to pace myself.  I have reasonable goals, and a timeline, but I don't need to kill myself trying to complete them.  I will get there, and I will get there on time, but I want to make sure I get there in a good mental state.

Quest #1 Walk to Rivendell - Opportunity to Fail

So I have to say that I almost failed epically today.  Infact, if I hadn't known that I would have to report to you all that I failed my first out of town experience, then I absolutely would have!

I had a tire blow out yesterday and after getting back late to the hotel I was staying at, I was exhausted and crashed.  When my alarm went off this morning, I was still zonked.  I really didn't want to get up and get out of bed.  It wouldn't hurt to not walk today, right?

Then I thought of my goal.  I really want to reach it.  Not to mention that I really didn't want to worry about reporting failure.  So I got up.  I went outside, and I walked 1.65 miles.  Then I went to my meeting location and walked 0.91 miles.  When I got home, I walked an additional 2.44 miles with Percy.  The grand total?  A whopping 5 miles!  This puts me at 48.81 miles for the wee so far!  See what a fellowship can do for you?

I have to admit that it was tough on the road, and I need to make better food choices.  BUT one step at a time, and at least this first step was conquered: getting in miles despite the number of chances to fail!  Kinda felt like a Jedi in Middle Earth today!

Quest #1 Walking to Rivendell - Mixing Things Up

I don't know about you, but I get board easily while walking.  I have my headphones in (having a soundtrack always helps!) and I try as often as I can to walk one or both of my dogs.  But while North Carolina is a beautiful state, it's not Middle Earth.  So I've tried to find places along my walk that remind me of Middle Earth and take a picture.  Yesterday's was pretty freakin' awesome!

A little piece of The Shire at a little park on my route

You know what's also awesome?  I'm now at 40 miles in a little over two weeks!  I can't believe it, but I can believe the fact that I feel better in general and I'm going to keep on keeping on!

I also had a storm suddenly come up on me.  It was a crazy experience.  I had decided to walk during my lunch break at work and as I was on my return trip, I saw a sheet of rain coming towards me down the road.  It went from being no rain, to soaking downpour in seconds!  Not cool!  Fortunately, a friend driving by had pity on me and picked me up and took me back to the office.  God bless members of my fellowship - whether they know they are or not!

Believe it or not, the sky in the background is a dark grey/black and there's rain coming!

The more I thought about it later, I realized it might be fun to walk in the rain (when I don't have an afternoon meeting, or when I have to be at work at all.

Quest #1 Walk to Rivendell - The First Nazgul Sighting!!!

I knew they were out there. . .

I didn't want to believe it, but I knew!

                         And then it happened: we saw the first Nazgul, the Black Rider!  I wanted to run instantly, but I heard it scream for the One Ring!  I yanked off the ring, tossed it into the ditch and took off like mad.  Someone else can carry that bloody thing!

Just kidding . . .  Maybe . . .

While I still have the One Ring for now, I did take a second to snap this awesome picture of it.  I knew you all wouldn't believe me unless I had proof, and here it is!

While the iPhone may be new to Middle Earth, challenges aren't.  And they're not new here either. 

This week has just started and I'm feeling challenged already. When I got up and walked Monday I felt like my legs were going to fall off. I had the slowest time I've walked yet and I thought to myself that this was going to be a long tough journey.  It is. That's the point. But I also have this awesome support group! I went to see my awesome people last night and received such encouragement from them that when I woke up this morning, it was still slower, but my determination couldn't have been stronger.

That's why there's a fellowship. No one can go the whole way alone. We need each other to encourage, help, push and even drag each other towards the goals in front of us.  Some of you who thrive on checklists and personal goal-setting probably don't get it.  That little check box on the side of your first and last items are all the motivation you need to finish. Good for you. Now, go help some of us who think checkboxes are just adult  coloring pages. 

We all think differently and are motivated differently. I need the help and encouragement from others and even the occasional message that says "So, getting in your walk to Rivendell?" 

So while I'm tired after my first mile marker of 32 miles, I'm hopeful. Bilbo said it best:

"It's a dangerous business, Frodo, going out of your door.  You step onto the road, and if you don't keep your feet, there's no knowing where you might be swept off to."

(Special thanks to the incomparable Alissa for being such an epic Nazgul!)

Quest #1 Walk to Rivendell - Walking in the Chaos

I

I had my first day that I have not "officially" walked in the morning or evening with Percy and Psych because my job had me on the road by 6:30 AM and I didn't get back to my house until 9:00 with everything going on.  I did, however, leave my pedometer on and managed to get in 3 miles today walking around the building (it was a large high school).  I was okay with that because I knew that I could get in the remaining 5 miles that I needed the next day and still reach my goal of 30 miles for the week.  Also, I have that first marker coming up and I can't wait to do something fun for it!

I'm learning to be flexible, but I also have to make sure that I stick to my guns and not let flexible resolve turn into slacking.  I've received a lot of encouragement, and I need it.  I can't do this alone.  But I am the only one who can make the decision.

When I actually got to the end of the day today, I only needed 2.5 miles to reach my goal.  I was DETERMINED to get them in!  I called a friend and asked her if she wanted to walk since I only needed that small amount and together we not only reached the 2.5 mile mark, we also set a new record for the fastest time I've walked a mile in 12:29 in addition to reaching my goal of 30 miles for the week (Tuesday-Sunday)!!!!  YAY!  Thank God for friends and I hope that next week is as good :) #walktomordor

Quest #1 Walk to Rivendell - Perspective along the Stock Road

The first week and I think I've already got aching muscles. . . wow. . .

Not giving up, but I kinda feel like a wimp already.  Most of the trek was done in 18-28 mile stretches per day. That's a lot.

But then again, if I could be in shape within the time-frame of a 30-second movie montage, then I'd do it.  Unfortunately, making a montage won't help.  But the stuff that takes for freakin' ever that actually makes the montage possible in reality?  That's what I'm doing now.

I've walked 22.7 miles so far this week (Monday-Friday) and I have 9 more to go to make my goal of 31 miles a week.  So far I've been knocked down trying to keep Brego (Percy) from running after mini goblins (squirrels), I've had to hide from an onslaught of wargs (fast-moving 5:00 traffic), and pick my way through a new route when the way I knew was closed.  Maybe not as bad as being chased by a black rider, but I'm sure I'll figure that out too.  Sometimes it feels like this, though:

I'm excited that several people have volunteered to be a part of my fellowship, whether in actuality or in spirit!  You don't have to physically walk every mile side-by-side, but knowing that someone else is out there walking to Mordor as well is pretty awesome!

So keep walking, faithful fellowshipers and I'll see you soon - on my quest to Rivendell and beyond.

Quest #1 Walk to Rivendell - Starting the Journey

For this first "quest" I'm just walking to Rivendell.

My goal is to walk 458 miles in 15 weeks.

I'm going to be doing this wherever I am and however I can get it.  I have a job that requires some crazy hours, but I'm on-the-go a lot, so I'm going to try to do this regardless of whether I'm at a hotel or at home where I can breathe easy.  I am determined to complete this quest.

Until I start traveling, I'm going to be walking in my neighborhood, on trails, or wherever I can get my mapping app to work!  I forgot to mention that I'm using the free "Map My Walk" app to calculate and record everything.

What about coming home from Mount Doom? . . .

When I dump that stupid ring in Mount Doom, then I'm expecting flying Eagles to scrape me off the sidewalk and get me back to Minas Tirith.  In other words, one step at a time and I've got to finish the first before I worry about any of the others.

So how are you going to make this fun?
I've mapped out approximate markers and how long it will take to get to each one.  Here they are:

• First Sighting of a Black Rider - this is about 32 miles out from Hobbiton
• Buckleberry Ferry - it's 70 miles to the Brandywine River at the Buckleberry Ferry crossing
• Meet Tom Bombadil - at 95 miles, the Hobbits and meet Tom Bombadil who saves their lives
• Bree (The Prancing Pony Inn) - at 135 miles out, the group finally gets to Bree, 
• Weathertop - where Frodo is stabbed by a Nazgul 240 miles in and it's Glorfindel to the rescue!
• Stone Trolls - Thanks to Bilbo's genius, three stupid trolls are turned to stone when the sun comes up, Frodo sees these troll statues 392 miles into the journey.
• Crossing the Ford - It's Glorfindel (not Arwen) who takes Frodo across the Ford to safety and they do so at 450 miles along the journey (or 8 miles from Rivendell. 
• Rivendell - Quest accomplished!  Travelled 458 miles to get to Elrond's home.  Hopefully the reception is decent!

I would like to do something special at each of these markers and I have some ideas, but we will see how it goes!

I actually started this at the beginning of this week, so I am 15.1 miles into the trip and have reached the Stock Road.  To accomplish this in the time that I've set for myself, I will have to average 30 miles a week.

I hope to pick up some friends along the way so that we can have our own "Fellowship" but for now, Brego, Bill the Pony (see picture at the top of the page on the right), and I will trudge along on our own quest.

If you're interested in your own quest, tell me about it and we can be an online Fellowship!

Last but not least, you have to see the "Google Maps" mock up of the walk to Mordor.  If you're not inspired, hopefully you're laughing.  See you on the quest tomorrow!

from: http://geekologie.com/2015/01/walking-into-mordor-middle-earth-as-a-go.php

Quest #1 Walk to Rivendell

If you're like me, you dread certain kinds of exercise.  You don't want to go to the gym and work out on the treadmill, or do the elliptical.  Heaven forbid you have to encounter the dreaded villain Stair Master.  Think about it.  It sounds like a villain's name!

I've never been in great shape, although I have been in better shape than I am now.  I've given myself lots of excuses - some of them legit, others not - but that time is over.  It's time to get busy and get into shape and live life to the fullest.

You might be thinking, yeah, easy for you to say, you're a glass half-full kind of person.  Actually, I'm not always - or probably even usually.  I tend to be very sarcastic.  You and this blog just caught me on a day that is a glass-half-full kind of thing. That's why I'm trying to get this done now, so I can keep myself inspired so that I don't quit!

The first quest I wanted to take up was to walk to Mordor.  I'm a huge Lord of the Rings Fan.  I'm working on wearing out my second copy of the books (and when I say wearing out, I mean I read it till the pages fall out and the cover comes off).  I follow another blog called Nerd Fitness and when he came out with an article about walking to Mordor, I thought this was the coolest thing ever!  In fact you should check it out:  http://www.nerdfitness.com/blog/2012/07/23/walking/

Mordor is 1779 miles from Hobbiton they way the Fellowship went.  That's a long way.  So my and first quest is to walk the first leg of the journey, 458 miles to Rivendell in 15 weeks.  Now for those of you who are in great shape and run 10-15 miles a day and get to do this in a month or so, go for it.  But shut up about how easy it might be.  In fact, my challenge to you is to go to Mordor and then back the way they came.  For those of us who haven't done anything like this before, this is an adventure that we start one step at a time.  And first, we're heading to Rivendell!

Courtesy of Nerd Fitness, here's the layout of the journey:

458 miles: Go from Hobbiton to Rivendell
462 miles: Start with the Fellowship from Rivendell, through Moria, to Lothlorien
389 miles: From Lothlorien, down the Anduin, to Rauros Falls
470 miles: Follow Frodo and Sam on the quest from Rauros to Mt. Doom

The quest back:
535 miles: From Minas Tirith to Isengard
693 miles: From Isengard to Rivendell
397 miles from Rivendell to Bag End

Bonus quest:
467 miles: Follow Frodo to the Grey Havens and return home with Sam

If you want the complete breakdown of each of the journeys, here's the site:
http://home.insightbb.com/~eowynchallenge/Walk/walk.html

So you ready?  I am.  Maybe.  I'm hoping to pick up some fellowship members along the way!  So let's walk to Mordor!

(Soundtrack Music of your choice plays now)