My planning is nowhere near as organised as that picture makes out, in fact it’s just stock photography I chose in desperation. The website may finally be live and being shared with you – the great unwashed – but this in no way reflects how prepared I am. Gosh, judging by the amount of effort put into this blog so far I bet you just cannot wait for it to really get started! Ey!?
In the meantime it may be best to clear up a few things. I have been asked the following questions regularly whilst trying to brag about this adventure. Just incase you have the same questions as the others here are the answers:
Q: When do you start?
A: I fly over to Hendaye on the 25th August and I start walking on the 26th.
Q: Is the Pyrenees in South America?
A: No. I am not being that adventurous, the Pyrenees is the mountain range dividing France and Spain. To begin with I will mostly be on the GR10 route which is on the French side.
Q: Do you know what you’re doing Jeff?
A: If you mean ‘am I an experienced hiker’ then the answer is a solid – meh, kind of probably not really. So if you’re an experienced hiker and have any tips relating to the Pyrenees please email me on info@jeffreyshield.co.uk. But I’m sure I’ll ok be anyway RIGHT? If you mean have I planned in detail what route I am doing, how far I will walk each day, where I will sleep etc… then the answer is a solid – NO, not yet.
Q: How far is this walk?
A: As mentioned above the finer details are still being worked out and maps are still being bought BUT the GR10 route is roughly 850km or 520miles long. Yeah I know, why am I doing this again?
Hi Jeff – sounds like a great adventure really looking forward to reading your blog – bonne chance as the french say :-)
Even though I (and I am sure the rest of the snake pack) feel betrayed that it is your solo trip, I wish you all the best in your amazing adventure. Will be following your hike from here, from Riga, so keep on writing. Good luck Jeff
Weird Al