Exploration on Foot

Walking is an easy activity. You put your shoes on, and you go for a walk. Sometimes you walk from home. Other times you walk from a car park. Sometimes you walk along rivers that are full, and others you walk along streams that are almost dry.

A few years ago I did the same Via Ferrata by a waterfall two or three times within a few weeks because I liked it so much. The beauty of waterfalls is that sometimes they’re erupting with power. They’re roaring and sending a mist of water outwards. Other times they’re running dry and you can really get a good look at the underlying rock beneath.

Yeesterday I walked in a different region than usual so we explored. We walked a little bit, and then to decide to go a little further, and then a little further again. In the end it was an 8km loop.

For the most part the walk was about walking along the indications from L’I’sle to Le Puits and then on to Montrichet, and then back. For the outward journey we followed the paths, but for the return I wanted to explore if there was a secondary path.

The secondary path led along a path, until you hit some woods. You could head down, back towards a road, or you could head upwards and then across a field. At this field there was a lot of water flowing so it required finding clumps of grass not to submerge shoes and soak socks. This time my feet stayed dry.

The reason for exploring a secondary route is simple. I like my walks to be loops, rather than a bounce. I like to walk in a circle so that my outward and homeward legs are different. Yesterday’s walk could have been a loop but it would have required walking along either of two main roads, and main roads are not designed for people to walk alongside them, which I think is a shame.

When you walk three to five kilometres it is easy to find loops that do not expose you to cars, but once you walk across several villages you have to walk along roads, and deal with traffic. It’s because I like long walks that I encounter so much traffic. With short walks I would encounter dog walkers and normal people, with normal lives.

I have cycled around where I walked yesterday. On foot you more. You can look through windows. You can stop to read signs. You can go to look at the collection of books that are available in lending libraries. You also get a feel for the ondulations of the landscape.

## And Finally

I tracked this walk with my old Apple Watch and a casio. The casio tracked the entire walk, via the phone, without issues. The Apple Watch ran out of power without saving the walk, so I lost the track with that device. I am frustrated by this. If I wear a watch, I don’t want it to lose my track.