It was raining quite hard as I had my full English this morning.
Generally I don’t mind rain when it starts as I am actually walking. I have a good rain jacket and rain pants (although I actually haven’t needed the rain pants yet). Rain, and particularly low rainclouds, can make navigation difficult up on the moors because it obscures what landmarks there are, but it doesn’t cause those problems in the cultivated landscape I am passing through at the moment. In fact, most days on this walk so far I haven’t bothered to check the weather forecast before the day’s walk: the weather doesn’t change my walking plans, or what gear I’m carrying, so there’s not much point.
But setting off in the rain seems different, somehow. It’s one thing to be caught by weather along the trail: you gear up and keep going. It’s harder to commit to stepping out into the rain. It’s probably just a vestige of my urban background telling me that rain is something to avoid, rather than put up with.
Fortunately the rain tapered off shortly after I started walking, giving great views along the line of the Downs and into the lowlands below.
And, along the trail, more signs of spring – bluebells in bloom.
Day 30 Route: Kemsing to Kit’s Coty via North Downs Way. Terrain: tracks and field paths. Weather: wet initially, clearing later. Daily distance: 35.3 km/21.9 miles. Cumulative distance: 744.1 km/461.3 miles. Accommodation: The Lower Bell, Kit’s Coty.
Come Wind, Come Weather 