Clarington to Port Hope   |   Campsite: 43.95618° N, 78.26245° W

I sleep well from 7:40 pm to 4:19 am. I wake refreshed, slowly putting the morning together. By 6:00 am I am walking to a McDonald’s just down the road. When I arrive, I work until 7:00 am backing up image and voice memo files, as well as scouting the route for today’s walk into a town called Port Hope. Today I will be walking the entire day via Highway 2. In fact, this route will take me all the way to Kingston. The walk over the day is very nice. Wide shoulders secure my stance upon the road, with wide panoramic views of farm fields under massive skies. There is little traffic and little noise. The birds hold the airwaves today, both in flight and in song. I buy some fruit in a quaint little town called New Castle Village. Here, a woman in the check-out line asks me what I am doing, and we have a nice conversation about the walk. I admit I feel a little sheepish as today is only the third that I have been out walking. She assures me that I’ve already come a long way. At 12:00 pm I stop for a lunch of rice. Later on, at a crossroads into Port Hope called Welcome, an inquisitive man, who I come to know as Jeremy, asks where I am walking. We have a short conversation about my walk. He tells me someday he will walk to Ottawa — that will be his walk. He warns me not to drink the water I had asked a staff member for at the filling station as he believes it made him sick one day. I thank him for his concern, leave to continue walking, and as I am crossing the road I hear a whistle ring out behind me. I turn back, see Jeremy walking toward me, and ask if I forgot something back at the fuel station. He says no, and with a large smile, hands me a 1.5-litre bottle of cold, sealed water that he purchased for me. I thank him, and we shake hands, he wishes me luck on my walk, and I wish him luck on his. I begin my walk into town. There may be rain tonight. The performance of the rain fly on top of the tent increases the heat retention within the tent, as well as cutting down on wind finding its way into the interior. The temperature for tomorrow is looking to be mild at a high of 15 degrees, which should be comfortable for walking. The town of Colborne is 39 km down Highway 2, which should make for a distance comfortable to aim for tomorrow. Port Hope proves to be a pretty town with a wonderful downtown street of small shops, cafés, restaurants, and pubs. As I quickly pass through, a barista at a Starbucks refills the containers with water as he asks how much distance I have been covering daily. I move through town, taking a few pictures on the way. While sitting on a bench mapping the upcoming couple of kilometres, a woman’s dog comes up to say hello. Her owner tells me that her dog “had her eye on me for half a block—she must have smelled your granola bars” she says with a smile. On the way out of town, I pass the Farley Mowat Boat House, taking the opportunity to capture a couple of images. Returning to the highway, I quickly find farm fields surrounding the road on both sides. I walk for 5 km or so, at which point I come across The Grocery Outlet, a family-owned grocery store not listed on either Apple Maps or Google. I ask if I could tent behind the store, and the manager graciously allows me to, provided I do not make a mess. As I will be out walking by 6:00 am tomorrow morning which is well before the opening time of 9:00 am, I believe the manager was convinced that I would not be a nuisance. A good, long day is had, with 42.4 km walked. On the day, I believe a few lessons have been learned: 1). I should not be afraid to ask for help. I have lived for so long believing people cannot be trusted, and that simply pushing through doing for myself (even if done the hard way) will produce the most favorable outcomes. 2). There are good people out there. 3). Just because something is not listed on Apple Maps or Google doesn’t mean it isn’t out there. This business—a very good grocery store—is most likely a family-run operation serving a local audience. They don’t need to broadcast their location to an international audience. Many businesses, like this one, simply don’t have an online presence.

Today’s distance walked: 42.4 km    |    Total distance walked: 118.9 km

“I am now 48 years of age. If not now, when?”

– 48 reasons for finally doing something I’ve always dreamed of doing