20miles, 32 kilometres, it doesn’t sound like an awful lot but that was my target for Wednesday. Back in 2012 I did my longest ever walk at 30.5km on The Bluestack Challenge along part of the Bluestack Way from Glenties to Lough Eske. That was an organised walk and over some hilly terrain. Since then I’ve done some longish walks in the 15-20km area and last year walked a half marathon for the first time since 2012. A few weeks ago I repeated that same walk and pushed it out to 25km.
Since then it’s been rattling around in my head to push on and beat my personal best. I’ve been walking a bit extra this month as part of the fundraiser for the Irish Community Air Ambulance and I wanted to finish March with a big one. I’ve also been listening to a few audiobooks recently on the Pacific Crest Trail and Appalachian Trail and was inspired to put in one of their days. One of the big milestones for those thru-hikers is their first 20mile day so 32km became my new target, albeit without the 15kg backpack!
I walked a very similar route to the other two days linked above but with variations to increase the distance. It was all on roads, some of which were very familiar but I also managed to find roads I’ve never been on before and yet so close to home. I was surprised by the variety of landscapes that I saw and just how quickly they changed. I had great weather, cold and breezy at times but dry all day. I had a great time and despite the throbbing knees and ankles had a massive sense of achievement at the end.
beautiful birch at lunch stop
(For some reason this video has uploaded in a low resolution version and I can’t work out why, yet another thing to learn.)
So what is the next challenge? I guess the next logical step is to walk the full marathon distance which is 42km. I already have a route pencilled out for that and I’m investigating a 50km route also. That one will require a long dry day in summer and it’s probably the absolute maximum limit for me for a single day walk. I’m going to enjoy the current achievement for a while but also enjoy making plans…
the idle cyclist 
I find it easier to run long distances. The act of walking seems to banjo my legs. 🙄 Fair play 👍
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How many miles/km do you count on you can do in an hour?
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My normal pace is between 10/12 min per km so 5-6km/hr. That’s for road walking though, off road will be much more terrain dependent. I usually walk in boots too which I find more comfortable but is a little bit slower..
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Thanks.
We’re thinking about walking to church some sunday once the weather gets warmer and its about 5miles away. All sidewalk, so just wanted a guestimate from someone who regularly walks.
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I’d allow 1hr 30min, maybe a little longer to avoid being a sweaty mess when you get to Church!
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good call. I’m sure everyone around us would appreciate that too 😀
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I feel I have walked that far today, and never left Salzburg, good lad, keep it up.
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I couldn’t tell you why, but if I’m going to spend time moving, rather do it on a bike. Walking just seems so pedestrian…
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🙈
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Second that! My biking is slow enough. I suppose I could try to walk faster but I seem to have one speed. Running is out.
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Wow! 20 miles! Well done. I do 1.2 a day. The benefits come from 25 minutes, so more than that is good to a point if you have the time. I’d be careful with injury though.
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