This is my last preparation diary. Next first-post-of-the-month day I’ll be on the plane home after the walk.
Booking
This month I booked my accommodation in Reykjavik at each end of the hike. I did previously have an apartment for the last night booked but it’s too far out of the city centre and I had free cancellation until a week before I stay, so I used it. Two guesthouses with shared bathrooms but lap of luxury compared to camping in the mountains.
I’ve also booked my airport parking at Gatwick and my airport shuttle buses to/from Reykjavik.
Equipment
I did the big thing this month. I bought a real sleeping bag, extreme limit -29C. It’s very tight-fitting and I suspect I’m going to hate it but it’ll be warm. It’s the most expensive sleeping bag I’ve ever owned but still half the price I thought I was going to have to pay, so I’m pretty pleased. I think it’s this one, the Mountain Equipment Lamina Z Flame, regular length. I’m 100% confident up to the Z, anyway, and it looks a lot like this. The colour is a little more green in real life but the inside is definitely banana yellow. My one quibble is that I have a right-hand zip whereas I prefer a left-hand zip but I’ll take what I can get.
I’ve also got a couple more First Aid bits and a breathable hiking t-shirt.
Walking
I walked Dartmoor this month, six or so miles over the two highest peaks the southern half of England has to offer. It was fine. You can read about it here if you want to know about my exploits walking with a strange man I encountered on the moor and whether my old boots hurt. I also camped – too cold the first night, far too hot the second (in my old sleeping bag) so that was helpful. I mean, not that helpful. I’ve been camping a long time and this didn’t add much to my camping knowledge or experience besides that I don’t actually like it much.
I also broke in my new boots with a walk from Swanage to Durlston and back. I was a bit concerned about whether they were going to be too narrow but they’re just fine. They do start to feel hard and solid after a few hours so I’ve added gel insoles. They don’t feel very different at the moment. The trouble is it’s been so hot here for the last few weeks that I don’t ever want to leave the house in anything more substantial than sandals. But the boots are broken in. I can walk in them. I intend to wear my sandals as much as possible, anyway.
Journaling
I bought my travel journal this month and started to set it up because I’ve absolutely got my priorities the right way round. It’s a nice chunky hardback kraft paper journal, and by hardback I mean rock solid card rather than notebook hardback. I’m not going as far as “scrapbooking on the road” but I’ve marked six pages for each day with big glittery titles, traced the maps from my guidebook (so I don’t have to carry it; it’s heavy and besides, a professional will do the actual navigating) and noted the daily distance, ascent and descent. It’s all ready for lots of scribbling. Six of July’s blog posts will basically be transcripts of that journal.
