8. My Kilimanjaro Training - 5 Months In... - Steppin' it up, Chilworth Gunpowder and The Silence of The Pools..

Howdy folks!

Grrrr!!! My best Hannibal Lecter impression. With now just 8 weeks to go until I'll be in Tanzania at the foot of Mt. Kilimanjaro over the last couple of weeks, I've stepped up a bit of resistance in the sports mask - now sweatin' away with intake of half the amount of air. I now believe training with the mask maybe more beneficial for more my cardio fitness than preparing me for actual altitude but I find it better to train with the mask than without - psychologically anyway!

At this point, with 2 months to go I have done 54 gym sessions (which I'm really pleased I've strictly stuck to), 12 training walks and a 2.5 days steep mountain walking in the Lake District over summer (it rained the rest of the time!).

If this isn't a reasonable amount of training for Kili, I'm not sure what is!   


Hopefully its going to pay off!

7. My Kilimanjaro Training : Lake District - Lake Derwent and Climbing Stickle Ghyll

Hi Folks!

Welcome to my last training blog from the Lake District for my Kilimanjaro training. Like I said in my last blog, the weather here gave me 3.5 days of good weather (or dry weather that is) so I managed to get out of Kendal a couple more times and into the National Park for some last hiking.

So lots of photos and videos... 

Halfway up to Stickle Tarn in the Langsdale Pikes  

Lake District - Lake Windermere and In the Footsteps of Beatrix Potter...

Howdy folks,

Thanks for dropping by again for my next blog from the Lake District. If you'd read my last blog where I slogged my way up and down 7 mountains over 24km in one day, this is a little less intense post this time round. The weather in the Lake District over a week has been very changeable this summer, one day its fine and sunshine and the next you're soaked by shifting thunderstorms!

6. My Kilimanjaro Training - The Lake District - Kendal and The Lakeland Fells

Howdy folks!

Thanks for tuning in to my latest training blog for my Kilimanjaro Training from the Lake District!

Stunning....overlooking Lake Windermere 

Ever been? No, neither have I so as I'm training for Kilimanjaro, it would be a good opportunity to go up to the famous Lakes which had inspired many writers and artists for some more 'challenging' trekking...so I did.

5. My Kilimanjaro Training - 4 Months in... : Hittin' Sussex 26km Balcombe - Horsham

Hi! 

Thanks a bunch for taking an interest in my Kilimanjaro Training and my latest post about how its all going - this time around after my 'gap filling boot time' bi-weekend training trips to my nearest 'hill' around Box Hill, I decided to venture out of county Surrey into Duke Harry and Duchess Meghan's royal turf of Sussex with the Saturday Walkers Club again (but it was on a Sunday forget the namesake). This time, it was going to be a 26km walk from Balcombe to Horsham and the adventure would be a change from my regular trudging ground of Box Hill, however nice and steep it is - still it would be a good opportunity for long-distance endurance walking and break in those new boots of mine that I'm giving the treat of coming to Tanzania with me.

In just three months time!!!     

Yep, thats me there in the red hat, wandering behind through the forest of Sussex...

4. My Kilimanjaro Training : 3 Months In - Guildfords Alice in Wonderland, St Martha's Hill and I'm Peter Finch....

Hi!

Thank for checking in on my latest training for my challenge of climbing to the summit of Kilimanjaro, the highest mountain in Africa this October. With three months into training and summer well and truly here in the UK, I am taking full advantage of the longer days and was given a great tip-off for a good challenging walk up to the top of St Martha's Hill in the central region of the Surrey Hills in Guildford. I'm paying full attention for my own good to listen out for the magic words of 'steep hills' or 'difficult' in any part of Surrey - so having already done Box Hill and Leith Hill, I armed myself up with my new walking poles (ones that are going to withstand the perils of 8 days of Kilimanjaro terrain) I headed out into the Surrey Hills for a day out of exploration up to St Martha's Hill.

3. My Kilimanjaro Training - 3 Months in - Box Hill 8 Mile Hike

Hello and thanks for dropping by to check in on my latest Kilimanjaro 2019 training journey.

My nearest what I call 'hilliest hike' to me is Box Hill in the Surrey Hills 'Area of Outstanding Beauty' so I've been jumping on the train for the cheap journey out here a few times to get more boot miles in as I search around for new hikes to add a bit of scenic variety to training for the big mountain in four months. The hike I come and do here is the Box Hill Hike which is a demanding circular trek covering 8 miles over the 230 acres of Box Hill. I'm pushing myself to take on long walks with anything with the words 'strenuous' 'tough' or 'hard'....

The National Trust map....'It is strenuous, climbing steep hills and dropping down into deep valleys. The ground is rough in places and includes steep slopes, slippery paths and many steps'............

........ perfect.