Walking

I totally love walking. I always have, but my actual walking has waxed and waned over the years.

I walked a lot with my dog Rosie. She was a good dog for a walk – just kept my pace and sniffed stuff along the way. Until her old age, she was happy to go anywhere any time. While getting in shape for a backpacking trip in Alaska, we did a minimum of two miles every night, in addition to having my bike up on a trainer. Some very long walks when we lived in Evanston stick out in my mind as some of the best times I had while living there.

But then she got old. She was old when I moved out to Maryland, and she grew quite decrepit. Her last summer, she could only totter short distances. I made the mistake of trying to go farther with her one day, and ended up carrying her back.

I switched to bike riding. It seemed wrong to go for a walk without the dog, but she couldn't go far, so the bike became my outdoor joy. Then Rosie died, and six months later I got a new dog.

At first, walking with Abbey was a pleasure. But then one day, she barked and went aggressively towards a jogger coming up behind us. We went to obedience school, but it wasn't enough. She grew worse about bicycles and joggers and other dogs, so now walking with her is not relaxing. After a lot of time with a personal trainer, I now can walk safely with her, but it requires constant vigilance to my surroundings so no one can sneak up on us.

When I signed up for the Avon two-day breast cancer walk, it was more for the exercise and the adventure and the shared experience than any big commitment to the cause. I knew I would need to train for it, and I devoted my weekends and some evenings to walks for four months. I found a place out near my boat where I could do an eight-mile circuit through woods and along the Chesapeake Bay shore. I got a book of walks in the DC area, and followed several trails and paths around the very scenic DC historical and natural landscape. During most of these walks, the dog stayed at home and I donned the ipod and listened to a series of books. To this day, I can associate certain passages in certain books with where I was at the time. Sometimes late at night or in the middle of pouring rainstorms I would bring the eager dog along. She is terrific in matching my pace and staying with me, as long as we are the only moving mammals in the area.

With all the training I did for the Avon walk, I did not feel like I got into very good physical condition as a result. I was able to complete very long brisk walks, but training by walking pretty much seemed to train me only for walking. And it took SO much time--! I would have to devote two, three, four, even six hours to a long walk. I also always treated myself to a good meal after a very long walk. It was good entertainment in and of itself, but it didn't leave much time or energy for other activities. So when I finished the Avon event, I stopped doing too much walking. It did leave me with a permanent change in my approach to transportation, however. Dropping my car at a garage a mile from the house, shopping at the farmer's market a mile and a half away, those things became easily handled on foot. My office is eight miles from home, and while it is not a scenic walk, shank's mare is definitely my emergency evacuation plan.

Now, I'm enjoying walking again. Here on the cruise, making the circuit is fun. And there have been good walks along the shore. I can feel the thighs firming up. However, I'm not likely to continue to walk so much once I'm home – too much time is required.