A Very Slow Beginning

“For a short while, they followed the lane westwards. Then leaving it they turned left and took quietly to the fields again. They went in single file along the hedgerows and the borders of coppices, and night fell dark about them.”

It is, indeed, a good thing that Middle-Earth is not dependent upon me to save them from Sauron. I have had an extremely slow start to my Mordor journey. (I’ll blame it on the Gaffer’s brew..lol) In fact, I’ve made hobbits look like elves with the pace I’m setting. I do intend to rectify this. To date, I am 13.5 miles from Hobbiton. I need to step it up..haha..pun intended.

In 12 miles I’ll hit the North-South road and then it’s just over a 100 miles to the Sarn Ford over the Brandywine River. If I do at least 3 miles a day, I should hit the bridge by the beginning of August. Well, that’s all for now..just a quick update. The journey is still on….

First Steps to Mordor

“Well, now we’re off at last!” said Frodo. They shouldered their packs and took up their sticks, and walked around the corner to the west side of Bag End. “Good-bye!” said Frodo, looking at the dark blank windows. He waved his hand, and then turned and (following Bilbo, if he had known it) hurried after Peregrin down the garden path. They jumped over the low place in the hedge at the bottom and took to the fields, passing into darkness like a rustle in the grasses. (p. 79, The Lord of the Rings, collector’s edition)

So there it is…finally, after all the talk, I am ready to literally walk the walk. This morning, I put on my hobbit shoes (i.e. Vibram Five-finger shoes), slipped the one ring around my neck and mounted the treadmill. I have officially left the Shire. Only 1,220 miles to go…

For anyone not sure what’s going on here, I am literally walking to a figurative Mordor. I wanted to combine my desire to exercise with my need for living creatively and my infatuation with all things literary. Here are the details.

This is a just a short post (obviously) to let y’all know the journey has begun. If you see any of the Nazgul, please be so kind as to tell them I went the other way.