Running around the world

When I completed the London marathon in April last year and decided to temporarily hang up my marathon shoes, I had no idea that I was soon to have another equally strong incentive to keep fit. When I got my place to take part in The Everest Test expedition in May last year, it was clear that the running would continue, I was glad for the focus and reason to keep me training.

When I completed the Kenya half marathon in 2005, it was a surreal and memorable experience to be running along side elephant, zebra, white rhinos and giraffes, and I thought that it was unlikely I would see other such scenery when running... thanks to being part of the Everest expedition however and it providing that incentive to keep fit, my trainers have recently taken me to some incredible places and have enabled me to maintain my fitness amongst some of the most stunning scenery I have ever seen.

After leaving London in the summer and returning to my cooking, the mountains of Switzerland were the first breathtaking location for my training, then to the sweltering hills of Portugal and running in 35 degrees... good training for what was to come during my two months in Australia. A month of cooking in Scotland in September provided a welcome rest from the heat of the previous month abroad, and really highlighted what a beautiful country we live in - endless miles of running in blissful solitude around pristine and crystal clear lochs with the Scotish highlands reaching down to the waters edge, with eagles circling above in cloudless blue skies. Some long and memorable runs took me from the riverside lodges where I was cooking in Inverness, to the shores of Loch Ness, and I spent hours training on the West coast near the Isle of Skye, as well as the beautiful and remote estate where the Monarch of the Glen was filmed further south.

October brought with it a change from my running shoes, as Paola and I braved the blisters of our hiking boots and made it to the summit of Mt Kilimanjaro in Tanzania after a week of treking, honestly the most incredible experience of my life so far.

November brought about another continent for me to explore, and I have spent the past two months running around Australia. Firstly along the miles of white sand from Fremantle to Nedlands in Perth, then I journeyed south to the winelands region of the Margaret River WA, where I was graced by some more wildlife to rival the experience of Kenya. Leaving at 6am to beat the heat of the 35 degree days, my efforts were rewarded as I spotted Kangaroos grazing in the early morning dusk.

My travels then took me to Sydney, where I have been running along the northern beaches of Manly and Narrabean, with painful hill training thrown in as well- unavoidable due to the location of the freinds house where I was staying! Christmas Day began with a very hot run and swim on Palm Beach, certainly a memorable first period of festive celebrations away from the UK, and very different to the usual grey and frosty start of English Christmases!

Our 3 day walking trip to the Blue Mountains between Christmas and New Year continued the stamina testing as we took off around the rolling mountains of the incredible local scenery - the walking also helping with the fitness as we climbed over 1000 ft amongst the blue/green haze of the eucalyptus trees. Here I saw some of the most breathtaking scenery I have ever seen. We descended almost vertical rocky steps to the floor of the thick rain forrest below, the noise of birds and ciccadas almost deafening. The dense bright green canopy of the ferns and vegetation above was pierced by streams of dusty golden sunlight filtering through the leaves, the sound of rushing water close by from huge waterfalls emerging from high in the rocky canopy, tumbling over the rocks and throwing a spray of rainbow droplets above us.

Then it was to Tasmania where Hobart provided a great vista for sea side jogging, taking in the views of Mount Wellington which towers over the city (I was certainly NOT going to run up that), and the Sydney to Hobart racing yachts moored peacefully in the harbour.

New Zealand is now providing a host of training activities, firstly running the beaches and hills of tropical Waiheke Island (40 mins off Auckland) to run off one too many glasses of delicious red wine from the local wineries.
Last Friday provided the opportunity for some altitude training (very helpful justification for the expense) as I launched myself out of a plane at 15000 feet above Lake Taupo, 'all in the name of Everest training' I told myself! The skydive has been added to my list of 'most incredible life experiences', as I hurtled towards the ground at 170mph in a cold and clear blue sky- the lake, snow capped mountains and what felt like the whole of New Zealand stretched out before me.. it was quite literally breathtaking.
It really hit home (again) just what The Everest Test is hoping to achieve when I realised, as I sat perched on the edge of the plane ready to jump, that we still werent as high as the 175000 ft of base camp!

It was back to the hiking on Saturday, and another experience to add to the afore mentioned 'incredible list' as I set off with some friends to walk the Tongariro Crossing, circumnavigating Mt Ngauruhoe (Mt Doom in Lord of the Rings) and Mt Tongariro. Reputedly the best NZ one day walk, the 8 hour Tongariro Alpine Crossing traversed spectacular volcanic geography, from active craters and steaming vents to beautiful bright turquoise and malachite lakes set against a backdrop of black and red lava of the surrounding scenery. Like the Blue Moutains walk in Australia, this was an utterly breathtaking experience and again, some of the most awesome scenery I have ever been lucky enough to see. http://www.tongarirocrossing.org.nz/

I am now in the South Island, and with only 10 days left of this trip before I return to the UK, I was keen to continue with some more outdoor pursuits to satisfy my love of the great outdoors - I thought it was about time for some more mountains after Kilimanjaro and to prepare me for April. I leave on Thursday for a 3 day trek in the Aoraki Mount Cook National Park, which offers New Zealand's most spectacular alpine scenery with all but one of its 29 peaks over 3000m. Mt Cook, the highest mountain of Australasia and one of the 'seven summits', will dominate the skyline as I trek The Ball Pass route. It is a challenging 3 day alpine crossing of the Mount Cook Range from the Tasman to the Hooker Valley. The hiking route follows the Ball Ridge, opposite the Caroline Face of Mount Cook, and overlooks the Tasman Glacier. Looking at the photos on the website I hope that I am in for an awesome 3 days which I hope will be another to add to the incredible list.. treking with ice axes and crampons will certainly be a novel experience for me!
For more information see http://www.alpinerecreation.com/ballpass.html

Photos of all of the above will soon be added to facebook, but in the meantime it is thanks to The Everest Test for providing such an incentive to keep fit and thus enabling me to have seen so much of the world recently. I look forward to returning to the UK next weekend and resuming with my morning running around the hedgerows of Hampshire and the riverbanks of London- a rather tame option in comparison to some of the above, but a lovely one anyway.
It is amazing where we can go and what we can see of this world with just our feet...