Going For A Walk – One Week Out

Just over a week from today, I’ll head off on the first leg of my walk from Cape May to Atlantic City, and ultimately, the entire Jersey Shore. I’ll be heading out to Lewes, Delaware, on Friday night and spending Saturday in Delaware with Morgan. I’ll catch an afternoon ferry from Lewes to Cape May, and we’ll be off.

My preparation for this has not gone as well as I’d hoped. I’d been walking at a steady clip, longer distances and with heavier packed backpacks. Then, I got sick. Something (likely an IBS flareup) basically made me unable to eat or drink much and left me with constant stomach pain. It put me down for almost two full weeks. I lost almost ten pounds and what felt like a lot of my fitness. Laying on the couch all day, eating 1000 calories a day will do that to you, I guess. I did get to rewatch “Community,” which was nice.

This has not done wonders for my confidence, as you might suspect. I’ve never walked this much consecutively, and I’ll be doing it alone. Still, I keep reminding myself that I won’t be in the wilderness. I’ll be in the most densely populated state in the country. Surprisingly enough, New Jersey has pharmacies and doctors and hospitals, and I’ll never be more than a 10-mile Uber ride from my next stopping point if things go wrong.

In spite of and because of all that, I’m doing this thing. And NOT just because I was too sick to realize I’d waited too long to reschedule and get my money back. I’ve finished my packing list, tested out the weight, and picked up my final pieces of gear. But there’s still a lot to do. Restaurant scouting (traveling while gluten-free isn’t easy), planning how and when to film my walks, checking and rechecking the weather. That’s not a complaint. I’ve missed even this part of traveling, and it feels good to be planning a real, concrete trip with a start and endpoint. It can get a bit frustrating planning a nebulous trip of uncertain length, route, and departure date. In any case, watch this space.

-Nick