Source to Sea Reflections

Following Walk 1, there was a lot to change - mainly rescheduling the walks so they weren’t so long, which somehow took six hours of admin. I also realised I needed to put a bit more thought into the walk itself: research the route beforehand and add some structure to the coaching elements.

We had five people booked on, including a few repeat walkers from Walk 1 so it can’t have been that bad if they came back!

In the week leading up to the event, I put a lot of pressure on myself to sort the logistics. I was making sure all the future walks were up to date, changing how we met at the start, and fretting that it might all go wrong again - even though, if I’m honest, the bits that went “wrong” on the first walk actually added to the experience and the adventure.

So I was already a bit heightened and anxious by the time we started Walk 2. The weather on the drive down wasn’t great - lashing rain and my sat nav kept changing my ETA. At one point, it said I’d be an hour late!

But in a lesson to my over-anxious brain, everything was fine. I arrived on time. Our new way of handling the point-to-point logistics worked brilliantly. Jonathan, the lovely Ann (who’s booked onto all the walks), and I met at the end point, and one of us drove back to the start so we’d have a car ready at the finish. No delays this time, we started on time!

The rain picked up again just as we were setting off, and after debating which way to turn out of the car park, it took about ten minutes to realise... we were going the wrong way. When the heavens opened and the rain started bouncing off the ground, we stood there squinting at online maps, and I did briefly wonder why on earth I’d agreed to do this!

Thankfully, the wonderful Ann came to the rescue with her navigation skills (thank goodness for Ann!). We found the river, the rain stopped, and we settled into a companionable stroll.

After about 25 minutes, Jonathan and I offered free coaching to the first two volunteers, which we continued for the next hour until a short lunch stop. After that, it was only about a mile to Castle Eaton and the end of this section.

It was a much shorter walk, and aside from our misguided start and my brief rain-fuelled inner crisis, it went really smoothly.

The river was elusive at first. Our path wound through fields and across bridges but there was trust involved in knowing it was there, quietly guiding us, reminding us of the direction.

The metaphor of us all heading off in the wrong direction, only to regroup as the rain stopped and the sun came through, wasn’t lost on us. Sometimes, that’s the point - you start off unsure, but things shift, and you find your way again.

I left the walk feeling much like the river: evolving, gathering momentum as we go.

I wonder what lessons Walk 3 will bring?