I turned 65 at the end of July and, to mark the milestone, I decided to match the years with miles and run 65 miles in a week shortly before my birthday. Most years I run the Tiree Ultramarathon, which is 35 miles, and I’ve walked a (very) long way, but I had never run this far day on day, so it felt achievable, but also a real challenge. Now I’ve funished, read my reflections on the challenge.
Donate
Cancer has affected several members of my family, work colleagues and dear friends over recent years, so I ran in aid of Cancer Research UK1.
I set an original target of £650, then increased it to £1065, and was so pleased to end up raising more then double the original target. Thank you so much everyone who donated. The Just Giving page is still open, so do feel free to continue donating.
The Route
I will ran the Taff Trail, a marked 55 mile route that runs from Brecon (Aberhonddu) over the Brecon Beacons (Bannau Brycheiniog) then down the Taff Valley from Merthyr Tydfil to Cardiff (Caerdydd). To make up the other ten miles I’ll also do a loop of the Cardiff Bay Trail, and then a short run between Aberaeron and Llanerchaeron when I get home.
I’ll also be doing quite a bit of walking to and from train stations or where I’m staying to start/end locations … so total mileage may end up being closer to 80 miles.
Day-by-day
More …
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- Day 1 – Brecon to Merthyr Tydfil 26 miles
- Day 2 – Merthyr to Pontypridd 15 miles
- Day 3 – Pontypridd to Llandaff 13 miles
- Day 4 – Llandaff to Cardiff Pierhead and Bay Trail 10 miles
- Day 5 – Aberaeron to Llanerchaeron (rtn ) 6.5 miles
- Reflections at the end of the journey
Lots of pictures and updates to X/Twitter @alanwalkswales
The distances below are as recorded by the MapMyRun app.
| day | from | to | distance | total dist | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sunday 6th July | Brecon | Merthyr Tydfil | 25.92 miles | 25.92 miles | Yep, a marathon over the Beacons, but no obvious part way point :-/ |
| Monday 7th July | Merthyr Tydfil | Pontypridd | 15.00 miles | 40.92 miles | |
| Tuesday 8th July | Pontypridd | Llandaff | 13.00 miles | 53.92 miles | via Castell Coch, but tearoom closed 🙁 |
| Wednesday 9th July | LLandaff | Cardiff Bay | 4.20 miles | breakfast at the Senedd cafe 🙂 | |
| Cardiff Bay | Penarth | 6.00 miles | 64.12 miles | Cardiff Bay Trail | |
| Thursday 10th July | Aberaeron | Llanerchaeron (rtn) | 6.45 miles | 70.57 miles | YAY! |
| Friday 11th July | REST |
More about …
- Cancer Research UK is the world’s leading independent cancer charity dedicated to saving lives through research, influence and information. It funds research by scientists, doctors and nurses to help beat cancer sooner. It also provides cancer information to the public and develops evidence-based policy to inform Government decisions related to cancer and research.[back]