Prepairing for rain…
One of the challenges of keeping a public diary or journal is the sense of obligation and responsibility it creates. You invite readers to read your diary, and readers reasonably expect regular updates. I set that expectation myself with my Cape Cod daily diary and fell short—disappointing myself and surely some of my readers—mea culpa. My only consolation is that I sent notifications to a select group rather than all subscribers.
After writing and posting entries for Day 1 and Day 2, I started to write an entry for the penultimate day, and this is that start, written before, events, complications, and time pulled my attention elsewhere (I haven’t written a single word for Day 4, yet) —
The focus of Day 3 was my right ankle. I took Conner out early for a walk on the beach to see if the ankle could handle a walk. It was still sore, but managed to bear my full weight. Every so often, the ankle reminded me—sharply—that it was not quite right. After breakfast, we went out for a short hike near Gray’s Beach and finished with a walk to the end of the boardwalk. Just across a channle and down the beach, about a half-mile out, we spotted a group of Common Terns fishing. They are fast and nimble—darting, hovering, then diving headfirst into the water—a spectacular show.
Bird-watching Gray’s Beach is almost always rewarding. When we arrived on Monday, the first thing we did was walk out to the end of the boardwalk. Just before reaching the end, I noticed a bird in the marsh grass and pointed it out to Therese. Using her binoculars, she identified it as a Black-bellied Plover, a species we had never seen before. We don’t keep a formal list, but seeing a new species is always a treat.
We walked back to the car, and though my ankle held up, we didn’t want to push it. Instead, we planned a bike ride for the afternoon: 16 miles roundtrip on the Cape Cod Rail Trail. The trail winds past cranberry bogs and ponds (or lakes, depending on where you’re from). It’s a great ride, though there are more road crossings than I’d like, each requiring caution to cross—some required getting off the bicycle to cross. We haven’t been on the bikes much this spring, but I felt good about my fitness overall. We rode comfortably—until the last few miles when my legs started complaining. But my ankle felt fine.
After dinner, we took Conner for a walk along the beach. Just as we turned around, we were treated to another Common Tern feeding frenzy, right in front of us—dozens of them twisting, diving, and swooping. Fantastic.
My ankle held up for most of the day, and I went to bed hoping the injury was not too serious and would not impact our upcoming walk across England.
I never did write an entry for Day 4, and while there’s no real excuse, I had plenty of chances over the last few days. Still, I’ve comforted myself with the idea that I’ve been busy getting ready for our next adventure: a Coast to Coast walk across England. We’ll start in the village of St. Bees on the Irish Sea and walk east to Robin Hood’s Bay on the North Sea—about 180 miles over 18 days. In preparation, we’ve been focused on:
Training: Hiking 5–10 miles whenever we can.
Making lists of the gear to pack (rain gear, mostly) and sourcing what we need.
Injuries: Therese is nursing a sore hip; my ankle is still recovering from Cape Cod.
Home projects: Managing contractors for several projects (fun!).
Removing a very sick, probably dying, Japanese Maple in our front yard and replacing it with a pink Dogwood.
Having new a gas line installed so we can use the gas stove we had put in next winter.
Overseeing the kitchen remodel bidding process and making decisions on cabinets, counters, backsplash, etc.
House-sitting logistics: Finalizing everything for the woman who will stay at our place and care for Conner while we’re away.
As we get closer to departure, we’re checking things off the list. Whatever’s not done by Monday, June 2nd, will just have to wait—or be dealt with later. I’m still wrestling with writing these entries in the Squarespace mobile app, which lacks key features on iOS. It reminds me of the early versions of Lightroom and Photoshop for iOS—functional, but limiting. I do not want the extra weight of my laptop on the trip, so I’ll just have to adapt.
Quick note about Day 4: we woke to gale-force winds and rain, just as forecast. We decided to cancel our planned hike, packed up, and were on the road by 6 a.m., arriving home by 8:30. That afternoon, during a break in the rain, we got in a five-mile hike at a nearby park
I believe this entry closes out my Cape Cod diary and sets the stage for the Coast to Coast journal. That was my goal, so I’ll leave it here. Thanks for checking in—back to more important things for you now.