Well...I did it! It was one of the most difficult challenge I undertook in my life. I didn't push the limits of my body in this way since my training in the Navy (more than 25 years ago!).
The Brecon Beacon are just exceptional! I just love this area of the U.K.
An early start (wake up at 05.00 am and start the trek at 06.20am) under a beautiful sunrise. You start your day by climbing at the top of one of the highest point in Wales. The sheep's are cheering for us. You are burning your calories and the further up you go, the more steep it becomes. Once at the top, don't be a fool, it is not the end, it is just the beginning. You trek for miles along the hills with exceptional views. The landscape is magical but slowly, the pain is gradually becoming part of your journey. Going downhill is not always easier!
On Saturday, the rain was our reward for reaching the top and didn't stop until I reached the midway point.
10.45 am, I send a text to my wife with a photo of my lunch: a few pasta at the second check point. Changing socks is a vital practice when you do that kind of distance. Grapping a few sweeties to up the sugar level, filling up my bottle and off I go again. You find a second life, the energy is flowing in again. So far, I am overtaking the other trekkers - I must be in a very good day.
Here comes the sign: 10 Miles to go. from here, it can only become easier psychologically, right? Hum. No. You start following a canal... for miles. 8 Miles to go, my watch let me know that I have dropped my pace by almost half despite being on a completely flat path now. Now, I am the one overtaken. The small, flat path and the canal, the pain in every muscle... It does play with your head, every little pain become a misery.
Check point 3: 6.5 miles to go. I grab a coffee and wonder how I will walk until the end in my current state. Come on Chris: it is just in your mind.
A few hundred yards later, Trudy, a fellow trekker is catching up with me at the entrance of a tunnel along the canal. She is also feeling the pain and the moral is low. We decided to carry-on together: a welcomed support. Chatting is helping forgetting the blisters and other joys. Come on, we can do it!!
The town of Brecon, the sign 3 miles to go: we are smiling again! The finish line must be close now. well,... no.
We walk across the town, some cars are beeping and the drivers are waving at us. That is nice and keep us going.
The houses are disappearing, leaving us in front a small path going uphill, just as the sign "2 Miles to go" is greeting us. We knew what we signed for... a last effort and we will be there.
The climb is ruthless, the pain is taking over.
1 Mile to go!!!! We are almost there. First, we need to finish this path, surely it can't be too long anymore?
After an excruciating few hundreds of yards, we are out of the woods, reaching the small roads close to the starting point but it is not in view. We are wondering if they used an elastic to measure the last Mile (my watch confirm that they are correct, it is just us being very slow now). As we get out of the trees, the rain decide to welcome us again, by buckets! Every step is a fight against your body telling you to stop.
It is only at the last minute that you hear the clapping, you see the last pink arrow indicating to go over a fence. This is the final one, the finishing line is just there. One step at a time, forgetting the rain and the pain... People are cheering, my wife is there waiting for me: she is absolutely drenched.
The feeling at the arrival is impossible to describe. The photo below will probably tell you enough.
I thanks heartedly Trudy for being such a support and sharing this last leg with me. I have a glass of bubbly to enjoy now... But it is raining and we are not moving. After a couple of minutes, my lips are becoming blue: hypothermia due to the rain and the tiredness. My wife is the sensible one: she forces me to change my shoes and we drive to the Hotel. A hot shower and a warm tea are regulating my temperature for me.
12 hours since I started in the morning: I am now in a warm place, in clean clothes, enjoyed a proper Welsh Ale. What I am thinking about ? How can I raised even more next year? Ofcourse I will do it again!
This Trek was dedicated to the admin, moderators and all the other members of this forum. 41.25 Km , 792m elevation, 7H20 ...
