Walking in Wales
This place—the land, the sea, the sky, the mood—has felt familiar, somehow…
It hasn’t faded away, I say to myself—the feeling of Wales, of being there. I miss something of it, though, of really being there and walking along its coast. Over a month has passed, and I still want that feeling to last. I brought some of it back with me—in memories, music, imagination, and photos—so it lives with me here. Something happened, a pilgrimage to an ancestral land that was nourishing, alive, and familiar. Something is still happening.
This place—the land, the sea, the sky, the mood—has felt familiar, somehow.
Or I want it to, and so it does.
Is Wales welcoming me back to the home of my mother’s father’s people?
Their heritage and belonging, so mine, too?
~ Journal excerpt, May 20th
The idea of a multi-day walking trip first came to me when I read Katherine May’s book, The Electricity of Every Living Thing, in which she embarks on walking the South West Coast Path in England. I read it in 2020, and the idea never left me. I wanted to do something like that someday, too. Although it was Wales that kept coming up over the years as a place where I wanted to walk along a coastal path. The idea faded until one evening last autumn, when John and I were sitting up in bed and he said to me, “I want to go someplace where you want to go, some adventure you want.” Without hesitation, I said, “I want to go on a walking adventure along the coast of Wales.” We laughed, and so it began.
Walking in the landscape of water/sea, stone/cliffs, air/sky,
along a well-trodden coastal footpath,
around majestic headlands and inland coves,
steep ascents and plunging descents,
spirits soaring.
~ Journal excerpt, May 22nd
For six months, we trained, all through the winter and into late spring. Weekends were spent walking and hiking in increasingly longer distances, discovering new trails and parks outside the DC area. It didn’t matter if it was cold or snowy or rainy. We had the gear, we had a goal, and we were training to push through even in bad weather. It made the past winter bearable—even enjoyable and enlivening.
Walked three days in a row—long distances, rugged terrain, breathtaking views.
Sunny days and warming temperatures, no rain at all.
Unusual for Wales for the spring season, everyone is saying we are so lucky.
We feel that, and are grateful for the extraordinary journey so far.
~ Journal excerpt, May 20th
We left on May 10th and spent the first five days in London. John was at a conference, while I was a tourist, walking everywhere and seeing the sights—famous museums, notable neighborhoods, historic landmarks, beautiful gardens, and incredible architecture.
My days are full with sightseeing, and I love being here, being free to roam, sense, and explore. It’s the kind of mood that is so enjoyable. I like London. It’s aesthetically pleasing everywhere I go. It makes sense and feels familiar. Have I ever felt that way in another country? Always the foreigner.
~ Journal excerpt, May 15th
And then we were there, in Cardigan, Wales, at the start of our walking tour along a section of the Pembrokeshire Coast Path. It was three days of walking, a rest day, then three more days of walking, ending at St. Justinian’s, 62 miles later, from May 17th to the 23rd. Celtic Trails customized the tour for us, taking care of all the details (bed & breakfast bookings, luggage transfers, guidebook, and recommendations) so we could just walk and experience the surroundings and ourselves.
Traversing through pastures and meadows and sometimes rocky terrain.
Seeing cows and sheep, ponies, blackbirds, and butterflies,
Watching seagulls soar above cliffs, and seals swimming near the coast,
Delighting in the wildflowers—foxglove, bluebells, gorse, orchids, and thrift.
~ Journal excerpt, May 22nd
As each day of walking unfolded, we each became more in sync with ourselves. I was in the lead, navigating for five of the six days, striding and letting go. John was at a different pace, following behind, in his own rhythm and letting go. And after a while, without trying, we just fell into a flow.
Focused, without trying.
Just present, walking, paying attention
to the path, the terrain, the sky, the sea,
the cliffs, the edge of everything
letting go.
~Journal excerpt, May 22nd
Walking, walking,
all thoughts leave,
the ones that ruminate
and hurt, and seem
to have no way out
are gone now,
away here.
Here, away
a land, a country,
a place, a people,
the sea, the sky
the cliffs, the coast
the pastures, the past
meadows and wildflowers
sun and shade
breeze, wind, wild, remote.
This is your soul coming alive again, love.
~Journal excerpt, May 22nd
It hasn’t faded away, the feeling of Wales, the feeling of being there and walking along its coast. It lives in me as a feeling of wholeness, a sense of ancestral belonging. The images return like butterflies fluttering along the path, and memories float like breezes off the sea.
Something is still, delightfully, happening.
LouLou
