Kilometer 1000 !!!

The past few mornings have been very chilly. So the mist has be beautiful. We can hardly walk for taking photos!

Dressed for walking at 6 am in Lake Superior Provincial Park.

Today we walked out of the park. It is 86 kilometers from one end to the other, so it took us four days to get through it. We have really enjoyed walking through the park. The views are spectacular and I am constantly wondering why anyone would want to go the Hawaii or Florida to see amazing views. Canada has it all.

We not only walked out of the Park but also covered kilometer 1000!!! We have completed one third of the walk!!!! Paul was asking me how I felt about getting this far. Really, it is very surreal and almost out-of-body for me. The mental acknowledgement is there of course but the feelings are flatline. But that is very typical for me. The higher the excitement the lower the emotional level. I am built funny that way. So, yeah we have covered 1003 kms so far and we are in Wawa, ON. It took us 38 days to get to 1000 which means we cut the time down by 2 days. Thats great.

We were warned about the hills in the north but so far it is going down the hills that I really find the most challenging. Paul was experiencing pain in his back as he walked until he started using my walking poles. They cause you to stand upright, walk with a gated pace, and also takes pressure off the rest of your body by adding a pushing motion (you are virtually using your hands to help you walk).

When I was doing research on long distance walking I was disappointed to not find the details that would help me prepare for the daily routine. So I decided that I would include a daily schedule here.

5 am Alarm goes off. Take apart bed and stow bedding under the seat. Get dressed in walking clothes: walking socks, shoes, tight leggings or shorts, warm up pants (if its cold), technical shirt, zipped sweater (if cold), hat (AGC cap if I want to put my hood up, or the Tilley if its sunny), safety glasses (clear if overcast, dark if sunny), safety vest, and my favourite piece is my belt. On my belt hangs my cell phone, walkie talkie, pouch (which carries wet ones, keys, ipod, camera, and info on the walk. I like my belt cuz I feel like bat woman with her utility belt :)

5:30 Drive out to start point. STRETCH (I have had trouble being disciplined to do this with consistancy). Get on the road and walk for two hours. The morning is the worst time for having to use the washroom so these two hours are regularly broken up (frustrating).

Well, I have to go because we are being kicked out of the hotel lobby that we are working in. But I wanted to thank everyone for their comments and also wanted to comment on "scraping." Before we left Melfort the church showed a video series called, "The Star, The Cross and The Crescent" by Andy Stanley. A woman giving her testimony said, "Our God is so big you don't need to scrape for anything." Diane and I were both struck with this statement and it has been our motto for the trip - "We don't need to scrape for anything." It is so true. God has provided as we rest in His promises, protection, and provision. (Hey, you can use that as your sermon outline Ashley - find your own poem :)

Well, I will finish the daily routine later - promise. God bless you.