Hello Dear Readers and welcome back to the blog!
My name is Laura and I am one of the leaders of the expedition. Below I have written about my experiences during the first two weeks of the Walk the Width -challenge.
Part One – Laura’s High Hopes and Great Expectations, not Crushed, But Certainly Squished a Little Bit
Before this challenge I was sure I was going to end up some sort of Olympic athlete, having completed at least a half marathon. Now anyone that knows me, has done a half marathon before, or has a bit more brain power might have thought this questionable. My normal runs so far have all been under three kilometres, and even if I have competed longer ones, it has been with great difficulty. From this you might have guessed that I have, in fact, not completed a half marathon yet and you might just be correct in that assumption. I have, however, put quite a bit of effort into running consistently and faster than usual, so I cannot be disappointed. I have been doing little runs (between three and five kilometres) on the treadmill which is exciting in itself, because before the challenge I had only used a treadmill once; it having been quite scary in my opinion.
Figures 1 & 2: Treadmill, before and after.
Part Two – Laura’s Bizarre Adventures in Kelvingrove Park
I’ve been scouring the park in search of signs of spring, white pigeons, more exotic birds and friendly squirrels that might want to hold my hand, look into my soul with their understanding eyes and tell me it’s all going to be okay. I believe I did find all of these. Spring seems well underway with some flowers in bloom and the tiniest green leaves appearing. I’ve seen at least five partially white pigeons, which I believe is a respectable amount. I’ve also spotted two herons, which also might have been the same heron twice. However, I believe in my heart one of these herons was actually Scotland’s first pelican, so the classification of the species gets slightly more complicated here. I also heard an elusive woodpecker, so I know it’s out there, for some reason malicious against this blog post! But now, let’s get to the squirrels, which are truly the most important thing! I was introduced to the friendly George by an amused policeman, who told me George lives in “a big tree”, which doesn’t tell me much, but might help some of you if you know Glasgow better than I do. I keep forgetting to bring snacks for him, but that will be my goal for the rest of the month! George is not pictured here, but I have included some photos of his assumed relatives, whose names I didn’t get due to them being in quite a hurry. They do look very similar to George, as they all have greyish brown hair and a fluffy tail, so maybe the pictures can help you recognize George as well. Overall, my nature adventures haven’t granted me many steps, as I have spent most of my time beckoning to different small animals, but they have brought great joy into my monotonous life of preparing for exams.
Figures 3 & 4: George’s slightly less friendly friends.
Figure 5: Approaching a partially white pigeon.
Figure 6: Birds!
Figure 7: Heron. (This one was definitely not a pelican.)
In order for us to actually get to Thailand this year, we need to raise a bit more money. Please donate whatever you can to our GoFundMe here and sponsor our team to complete this challenge so our research can go ahead.
Part Three – Laura’s Future Plans for Walking the Width
Continuing this challenge, I look forward to seeing George and his colleagues again, maybe even the mysterious woodpecker. I plan to continue my running practise and maybe even take it outside, if the weather allows, but we can all imagine how that’s going to turn out… My very Finnish mother is arriving in Glasgow later today, and she has planned some sort of a Highlands trip for us, so I am quite excited to see what that might entail.
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