The CB's lot is not .........
It's not easy being the CB. Those anxious hours waiting for copy ...agonising over deadlines...... trying not to be a stereotypical 'hard-drinking hack'. And if and when the Leader's report does arrive, taking the hard decisions on whether to offend sensibilities by correcting grammar, punctuation and spelling, deciding how best to pad it out, and the constant justification that you are only doing it for yourself, as no-one else reads it (except Myriam and Maurice!).
This was Stan and Elaine's comeback walk, having managed to find a Wednesday slot in their overstuffed diary, and perhaps stimulated by Janet's plea for Walk Leaders in January, Elaine stepped into the breach and offered to lead.
After the event, 'something came up' in the post-walk administration period, requiring urgent attention, and Elaine has graciously ceded to the CB the opportunity of crafting this week's blog with perhaps only a fleeting reference to the walk itself, which was undistinguished by incident, argument, scandal or physical strain.
To Pad - or not to Pad?...... That is the Question!
I think you can guess the answer!!
We have had Bamboo Diagrams - it is time for Haiku.
Haiku is a Japanese verse form of 17 syllables, arranged in three lines of 5, 7, and 5 syllables, and the intention is to engender a wistful, yearning and powerful insight through brevity.
Having a little time on my hands with the cold weather and the anticipation of an incoming report I composed this:
CB is waiting.
The computer does not ding!
Where is the report?
Is that wistful and yearning enough?
Enough!! I hear the cry - the walk itself:- It was advertised as "about 15km- 5 hours and is based on Maurice's walks Nos. 14 and 15"
There was a huge turnout of 22 for this first walk of the year, no doubt stimulated by the need to purge the seasonal excesses.
Apart from Myriam, the photographer, there are unexplained absences from the start photo by Vitor and Maria. Nothing sinister is to be read into that nor Dina's absence after a slight accident the previous evening!
Frank was making his debut with the AWW having been introduced by Rod.
We started at the Café Machado in Torre, where we received with dismay the announcement by the owner that the Café would be closed on our return as there was a funeral in the village that she would attend. However most took advantage of the fact that Elaine had organised a café that was open AT THE START of a walk, which satisfied both the need for caffeine and micturition, that Antje previously proposed was 'a basic minimum requirement' !
Chief Whip: Elaine
Flagellants: Stan, Rod, Paul, Myriam, Mike, Janet, Ian S., Ian W., David, Terry, Antje, Tina, Lindsey, Yves, Ingrid, Alex, Maria, Vitor, Hilke, Colin, Frank.
In bondage: Tiggy, Maddy, Nandi, Rusty.
Mole kisses Ratty! The track (click to enlarge)
Stats: Total Dist.: 14.8 km; Moving Time: 3 hr 22 min.; Total Time: 4 hrs 3 min.; Moving Average: 4.4 km/hr; Overall Average: 3.7 km/hr; Total Ascent:388m. Max Elevation: 248 m.
It has been a cold and damp period for the Algarve most days since well before Christmas, and we started at about 9ºC, although the more reputable weather forecasts were unanimous that there would be no precipitation. The cold did bring out Ronald Macdonald in Traditional Tartan and Trews!
Maddy trying to escape the embarrassment!
Elaine sensibly took a wider track out of Torre village down to the valley than the traditional mix and match path down the cistus-strewn hillside. The zero precipitation didn't start until we were up the hill on the other side near the rather impressive menir.
A light drizzle.
40 minutes later, when we had reached Amorosa, it was time to remove the raingear, though it was still not officially 'warm'.
"Time for change" (B. Obama)
The walk progressed rapidly without too much undulation, although there was some heated discussion, which I witnessed, on the problems in Gaza, and at barely 1230 pm, shortly after Zimbreira, Elaine found a convenient wall where we settled for lunch. A ceasefire was declared and no rockets were sent over the wall.
A wall-equipped lunch spot!
A comfortable Colin!
After lunch there was a little more rain on the easy meander back to Torre. On the way into Messines, we encountered the funeral traffic near the cemetery, with cars abandoned all over the place and buses trying to force their way through impossibly small gaps.
We arrived back at Torre a little before 2:30 pm, and it was with great relief that we realised that a young man had been seconded to open the Café Machado - a sensible option in these hard financial times. As everyone else was at the funeral we had the place virtually to ourselves, and all managed to seat inside, out of the inclement weather.
David made a short but fact-filled speech about his plans for the imminent walking of the Algarve Way, which will be done in two or three day bursts in March and April. The decision was to hold a sub-committee meeting over lunch at the Recanto dos Mouros on 23rd January. If you haven't advised David of your intentions yet please do so.
Antje on 'the hard stuff'!
The Three Amigos!
Alas, I am rather devoid of amusing anecdotes about this walk, but if you do have any, do not hesitate to comment - it's not that difficult!
Remember if people talk behind your back, it only means you're two steps ahead! Flagg, Fannie
We realize our dilemma goes deeper than shortage of time; it is basically a problem of priorities. We confess, We have left undone those things that ought to have done; and we have done those things which we ought not to have done. Hummel, Charles E.
1 comment:
Paul, A well-done 1st. walk of 2009 season, the memory of which was as clear to me the day I decided to upgrade 2x Saturday walks to 1 Wed. Walk. 1 of the advantages was that walkers could make access by rail/bus if they were carless, from Messines rail or bus stations. Several legs could be added or left out, as demanded. The walk also gave a choice of refreshment stops. Happy walking during 09. E "& M
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