Blog 10 – The Day We Crossed Into Wales!

Hey everyone, hope you’ve all had a great week and a very Happy Easter! Today, I'm sharing the story of Day 10 — a day that was both emotional and exciting. It was the day we crossed the bridge into Wales, and it really felt like we were on the home stretch. Not only that, but with a lot of my family being Welsh or having grown up in Wales, it felt like such a meaningful and joyful moment. We were finally heading back to our roots! Reminiscing about this day is extra special, because 3 years ago today, we were all two days into the walk - it started on 20th April, 2022! It is absolutely crazy to think that this walk was so long ago and yet I remember it like it was yesterday. It is even crazier to think that mum has been gone for so long - more than 3 years without her. It is very bitter sweet looking back because of that. I still can't really believe she has been gone for so long, but the fact we can still talk about the walk (and plan new events for the future...) shows how much of an impact mum's loss continues to have on everyone.

Of course, getting to Wales didn’t come easy. We still had 22.87 miles to walk, and after the long distance of day 9 and the injuries that were starting to take their toll, we knew it wasn’t going to be a breeze.

 This day was extra special because we were joined by two of Dad’s work colleagues, Angela and Tim, as well as two of our best friends, Klara and Mathilde. Laetitia, Catherine, Gaynor, and Pernille stayed with us, which was such a comfort since they were all so close to mum. The cherry on top? Kevs was back! He had recovered and was rejoining our core walking team, bringing along Welsh-themed merch for Emilia, Dad, and me to wear. It made crossing into Wales feel even more special.

We kicked off the day on an incredible high. Tom had our group anthem—"I’m Gonna Be (500 Miles)" by The Proclaimers—blasting from his car speakers, and we all linked arms and belted it out together. The emotion and joy in that moment was overwhelming, and it really set the tone for the rest of the day. By now, we had become so close, especially the core seven of us. We had seen each other at our worst and most vulnerable, so singing together that morning felt almost magical.

Having a pre walk sing song!

Caught mid boogie!

The first 10 miles of this walk were so much fun. I spent loads of time with Klara and Mathilde, who are basically like sisters, so being with them really eased any pain I felt! The scenery during those first few hours was absolutely beautiful – which we should have appreciated more as the last 10 miles were not! Our group was larger that day, so there was plenty of laughter and funny conversations to keep spirits high. It was smooth sailing for the first few miles, until we tried to find the way onto the bridge! We seemed to be walking round in circles and quickly realised that the quickest way to get to the top would be to climb a very steep hill! It wasn’t easy, and we all took it at our own pace, with headphones in and a few complaints along the way. But we all made it to the top.

Bridge in the background!

It seemed very necessary to have a break before tackling the 2-mile bridge, so we took a seat on the side of the road and decided that sweets would be essential! We all took out bags of treats from our bags and they were very quickly devoured. The fact that the sweets and headphones came out so early showed we all needed any pick me up we could find. This road was also where Fran went back into his favourite position and took a while till he was ready to get back on his feet again!

Back to his fave position!

Once we were ready, Dad, Kevs, Emilia, and I donned our Welsh gear. Walking onto that bridge felt surreal! It was a lot longer to walk across than we’d anticipated, and it was torturous seeing the cars speeding by. But Dad was thrilled when we spotted the "Welcome to Wales" sign at the end of the bridge.

Happy dad!

When we eventually got to the other side, we were so happy to be in Wales! We sat in front of a sign and I have never been happier to read a road sign! Big shout out to Klara who ran up a hill to take the ‘Welcome to Wales’ sign that we all wanted. She was the only one willing to walk a few extra yards by that point!

 A mile into Wales, we stopped to meet Tom for a break. As always, he had an array of snacks—sweets, fruit, pastries, drinks—and plenty of joy to share. Despite being exhausted, we couldn’t resist dancing along to the music he was playing from his car. Meanwhile, Emilia and I went on a mission to find somewhere private for a much-needed wild wee—no easy task in a busy area! Once we’d managed that, we were ready to take on the final 12 miles of the day.

The rest of the walk was just along a straight, quite busy road (I drive on it all the time now and always think back to this day). We realised it would take us about 4 hours to get to the hotel. This was the biggest challenge of the entire walk for many reasons. The main being the absolute boredom! There was no change of scenery, and we all had to walk in single file, so no one could really speak to each other. Instead, we all put headphones in and just plodded along. It was also incredibly painful! Even Dad, who had been walking without headphones up until now, put his in and powered through—listening to four hours of Led Zeppelin in true Dad fashion!

 At about halfway through, we met Tom again for a barbecue lunch at a local park. Most of us were desperate to sit down and eat, but Fran made the decision to take his hotdog to go and continue ahead as he knew if he stopped, his legs would seize up. This was when we discovered Fran’s “fangirls”, who we described (and still do) as his “chickens" —Donna, Laetitia and Gaynor, who decided they couldn’t let him walk alone and immediately set off after him. It was so funny, and Fran definitely enjoyed having his “chickens” to keep him company!

The rest of us took our time, enjoying a much-needed 30-minute break with hotdogs, fizzy drinks, and good company. The thought of two more hours on that road was daunting, but eventually, we summoned the energy to get moving again. By this point, we all walked at our own pace, with Dad and Kevs leading the charge. I spent the next couple of hours distracting myself with podcasts and phone calls to friends.

With about 30 minutes to go, me, Emilia, Catherine, Pernille, Klara and Mathilde took a break. We were sat down enjoying a catch up and some sweets when a random chicken came to join us (a real one, not one of Fran’s!) We are not sure where it came from, but it added a bit of unexpected humour to our day. We sat there enjoying the company of our new feathered friend, then waved goodbye as it left us to continue our journey.

Smiles earlier that day!

With the end in sight, I got a call from Donna to say Fran and his chickens had made it to the hotel, and the jealousy and determination kicked in. Huge thanks to Pernille, who stayed by my side during the last 15 minutes when I was really struggling with both my groin and my feet.

When we eventually made it to the hotel lobby, Pernille held my hand as we crossed the finish line for that day and in classic Rhiannon fashion, I broke down! I cried into Emilia’s shoulders for ages and all I remember repeating is “that was so hard”! I clearly am very good at controlling my emotions!

What made it all worth it was the bottles of Prosecco Laetitia had brought to celebrate. We sat together in the hotel lobby, exhausted but elated, sipping the bubbly and not caring that we all smelled like we’d just walked 22.87 miles! We were so happy to be in Wales and knowing that only two days remained gave us a new surge of energy.

Before dinner, we decided to be considerate and shower (mostly for the sake of the other guests!), then gathered for food, more wine, and a much-needed burger.

We wrapped up the night with an early bedtime. I remember Emilia and I passing out with the lights still on in our room!

This day was tough, physically and mentally—especially with the long stretch on a straight, monotonous road. But we made it. We were all incredibly proud of ourselves for pushing through and reaching Newport after some very challenging days of walking. Stay tuned for day 11 and the surprise we got at the end!  

With love,

Rhiannon