So Close!

Thanks for the pics and update Leanne, the boys have certainly been having a bit too much excitement! I better get on with the final countdown and hope that this week is less eventful. Love Gill xx
Hi bloggers, here we are on the home stretch. Land's End is so close now the boys can almost taste it!!
Day 71 - Saturday 14th June:
After the eventful time in Bodmin, the boys were glad of a day resting in Indian Queens. They decided that, seeing as they didn't intend to walk today, they would treat themselves to a few little luxuries. First, a slow start with bacon sarnies for breakfast. Then, in the afternoon, a slow saunter to the local pub for a pint; a lift back to Gnome World by some nice people they met in the pub and finally, they bought a disposable barbeque and behaved like normal British people in summer time - sausage and beefburgers all round! Back to the grind tomorrow.
Day 72: Sunday 15th June:
After a cup-a-soup for breakfast (you can see that things are going back to normal) the Johns walked on to East of Redruth. Their route lay on road but the terrain was quite hilly by Cornish standards. Day mainly uneventful - purchased a Cornish pasty for tea and slept in a field. It beats being pursued by 'boy racers'.
Day 73 - Monday 16th June:
Through Camborne today and to the coast. Ended up in Hayle (Cornish seaside resort) on a nice camp site with good facilities and a view of St Ives Bay. The weather is still baking hot - I'm not sure how the boys are going to cope with what passes for summer in Newcastle. They really are very close to the end of the walk now. Hayle is only about a day's walk from Penzance, and Penzance is less than a day's walk from Land's End! As their thoughts turn to returning to normality, the boys are noticing, perhaps more than ever, that their behaviour is less conventional than it used to be. Three months living 'wild' has changed them in some ways. For instance, feeling rather hot and thirsty this morning, having been underway for a few hours, the boys thought nothing of stopping and taking a can of McKewans Export from their packs. It was only as they sat by the road side sipping that they realised that it was only 9.06 a.m.! A can of beer would not normally seem appropriate so early in the day, yet today it seemed like the obvious choice. They are also aware that they have started sitting on the pavement outside of supermarkets to eat their shopping! Something that might raise a few eyebrows back at home. And what about entertainment? Well, today they enjoyed a happy half an hour sitting on a road side watching people being caught by a speed camera - a little less sophisticated than a visit to the theatre or cinema perhaps, yet it made them happy! Normal life is going to take a little adjusting to.
They do, however, continue to meet interesting people. Today they got chatting to a man who had been involved in a lot of marathon running and cycling events. He had enjoyed fundraising for many good causes but sadly, on his last venture, had been knocked off his bike by a car, leaving him almost unable to walk. The boys were very impressed by his great courage and determination to recover and get back to his running and cycling again; even though currently he can hardly put one foot infront of the other using two sticks! Some people are amazing.
Because the Johns don't want to cross the finish line at Land's End until Pam and I get there at the weekend, they intend to stay in Hayle tomorrow. They'll have a look around the town and a rest before moving on to Penzance on Wednesday.
The mountain of instant mash has nearly run out now. The boys plan to eat the penultimate pack tonight with Bacon Grill and mushrooms. To say they are sick of the sight of it is an understatement. I've even heard them saying, 'Come back Uncle Ben's Rice, all is forgiven!' John S is threatening to keep the final pack of mash for me to eat at the weekend. Who could have known a month ago that something I thought they would like 'for a change' would have lasted them so long. Moral of that story - never tell me that you quite like something!!