A while back I was told I was a real runner as I’d managed to acquire my first blister.  I was then called something else entirely when I put a plaster on the blister, ran again and got a blister from the plaster, which even by my standards is impressive…

Anyway, now I am apparently a real, real runner as this weekend I managed to get lost.  Now my geographical skills have never been great – I did once drive from Somerset to Cornwall (bottom left of the UK) when I was actually aiming for Kent (bottom right), but it’s quite a lot more scary when you are in a woods, have no idea which way is the right way and there is nobody else around.

It wasn’t that surprising really though…

First, I got slightly discombobulated when I found an open fireplace in the woods.  It seemed to be missing a little something.  Like the house it went in:

And frankly, when you are following a map that’s on your parent’s kitchen table, these don’t help at all:

I mean, which one is a girl supposed to pick (for the record, it turns out changing your mind and following a variety isn’t a great plan).

Especially when you get all the way up these:

Only to realise that that is definitely the wrong way and have to come back down.  Only to end up at the top of them via a very steep hill about 2 km away.

But to give you an idea of how lost I got, my route should have taken me to somewhere near the church spire the red arrow is pointing at, via the line of trees to its left.  When I took this picture, I was already three fields in from the woods that I didn’t think I’d ever find my way out of…

What’s really annoying though, is how close I was to being right.  The red squiggly line is me.  The white road is where I should have come out….and would have if I hadn’t doubled back on myself at what looks like it must have been spitting distance from the road,  Grrrr.

Oh well, now I am a really real runner. And I know where to get an open fireplace, should Pog Towers 2 need it.  Assuming I can ever find it again… :o)