Isle of Wight Run #2

Day 2 (7th July 2013): Shanklin – East Cowes (21 miles)

Tough day! Thanks to top tip from Alan the anxious taxi driver, we started along the sea wall instead of running up and down the cliffs, along to Sandown which seemed a sleepy town at this time of morning. After that we climbed up Culver Down, and then up to the Earl of Yarborough Monument. After reaching the top, it looked like the next few miles might be quite nice and easy as everything looked downhill. But then we got lost in a field of cows coming down the hill and finished up in a wood of where the path disappeared into millions and trillions of huge stinging nettles. At least as tall as me. Very brave. Fought through them with bare hands and a stick. Low Point :-(

Found path again and ate some sandwiches to celebrate. The next place we reached was Bembridge where there is a harbour full of house boats. At Seaview we ran along the beach by mistake. Luckily the tide was out so we didn’t get stranded on a rock. Climbed over rocks and some trees and found a nice picnic spot on the beach. This is totally the way to run, lots of sitting and eating and looking at the sea.

Next we arrived at Ryde which was pretty busy with tourists and a bit of a shock after  not seeing many people for a while. Speeded up for a bit. Big climb out of Ryde where it got nicer with big houses and a golf course. Then we passed Quarr Abbey which is an amazing really unusual building. Then we reached Wotton Bridge where we totally missed a turning and ran the next few miles on the main road until we reached 20 miles, which was today’s target. Then we walked and walked and kept walking trying to find a good place to stop, but the village we were planning on stopping in didn’t seem to have a centre. In the end we found a spot in an industrial estate outside a petrol station opposite Osbourne House. The glamour.

Most of this run involves hills and getting lost so far. The sign posts are a bit rubbish sometimes and the directions seem to be quite old. Obviously if I was properly organised I would have brought a proper map along, but it all adds an extra dimension of excitement, and is something else to moan about when tired.

So today was quite difficult and feeling a bit low at the end. But feeling more optimistic about tomorrow when we start at Cowes and in my mind that’s the top of the island, and now we’re pretty much half way.

Spicy sausage pasta for tea!