The surplus stuff was DHL-ed Home. Sleeping bag, sleeping pad and some small bits. The train journey from Canterbury to Calais was a non event. We were 7 foot passengers. One oriental girl, 3 Chinese who spoke good French, me, two mature French women. Each probably paying 30 pounds. A car is 60 pounds. Clear rip off. I walked about 2km from the ferry to my accommodation a minute flat near the plage. Slept well.

I overdid it during my walk to Shepherdswell. Following the fast pace of the French who do long walks twice a month was too fast for me and with no rest I was punished. The last kilometer was agony.  I got a pain in my left thigh. It was better but not good on Sunday morning, so I listened to my body and decided not to walk but took the train to Dover and the ferry to Calais. It also meant I had time to send my sleeping bag and sleeping pad and some small bits back to London, which cut the weight. The result of a day of inactivity and my short  2km walk from the ferry to to my accomodation is that I feel refreshed and without pain ready for tomorrows walk of 25km. It is along the beach from Calais to Sangatte and then inland along a stretch of an old Roman road that goes straight like a bullet to Guines, tomorrows stop. I discoverd this path a couple of years ago. On detailed French maps. Today it is  just a combination of foot paths, farm tracks and local roads. I am excited to finally walk it. I can feel the history under my feet.

Walked 17km non stop with 50 walkers of a walking group from Arras. I don’t know who’s idea it was not to have a break. I like 1 hour walk 5 min rest. Blessed by Canon Claire outside the Cathedral 7:50, then walked off into the drizzly rain. It cleared up later in the morning. Coffee and cake at the church in Shepherdswell after about 4 hours walking, then rescued by a pint or two in the Bells Inn pub with John Clark. Train back to Canterbury. Tomorrow it is back to Shepherdswell for a 14km walk to Dover and ferry to Calais. I will sleep well tonight.

As a result of a couple of earlier walks my packing list has been refined and honed. I know what I NEED and have to pack. By now I have learnt that what I “may” need will not be used. I have studied the climate in Northern France. Normally the temperature this time of the year is between 5°Celsius and 15°Celsius, (Anders Celsius, Swedish astronomer and physicist 1701-1744. The Centigrade was abolished 1948 but ignorant people still use it) but the weather is unpredictable lately, so no shorts and long johns packed. But really, there is no such thing as bad weather only bad clothing. You feel the cold, not when walking, but when you stop.
My technical bit is all in my iPhone 8 plus with a biggish screen. It is my camera, video, map case, path finder (GPS), telephone. To keep it alive I have a lithium USB battery pack 16.000mAh that can recharge the iPhone three times and a bit. This walk is really to test if my theories work.
To make it easier to text emails and write this blog, I bought a small keyboard for the iPhone that is also powered by the USB battery and links to the iPhone via Bluetooth.

My link to the French site which may (?) show my position in France if everything is OK, when I switch on my “follow” button in my app.,  is http://www.iphigénie.com.   NOTE THE é , then click on the tag <balise GPS> and write the

identifiant:   jonaswalk and

mot de passe  Bardi123

Tres simple, but Je really suis stressé witless.