Total km: 828.0km

So my feet feel…ok. Actually better then ok, they actually feel great. I can’t remember the last time I walked without my toe giving me a little grief, it feels strange. Obviously the rest day did them some good, just way more good than I was expecting. It was a really welcome surprise.

Oh, and the shoe repairs seem to be holding.

I was not looking forward to the highway diversion I’d have to take today so I did my best to enjoy the amazing tingle trees that cropped up just a few KMs out of Walpole. They really are something else when you see them in person, crazy that they can survive being hollowed out by fires.

The first 2km of the highway were not bad really, and it had the advantage of taken me into the tiny town (or hamlet?) of Nornalup. Tiny as it was, Nornalup still had a restaurant and even though I had just left town that very monring I could not resist stopping for lunch at the Nornabar. And it got me out of the light, but consistent rain. Win win. It’s a little pricier than we hikers are used to, but it was nice to get out of the cold and wet for an hour. Or maybe an hour and a half…I nursed my coffee and practiced some good old fashioned “it looks miserable out there” procrastination.

After putting it off for as long as I could I started on the rest of the highway walk. I got maybe a kilometre before I hit roadwork. I was told they couldn’t legally let me walk through so…they gave me a lift through all the roadwork section. It very conveniently ended at the turn off to get back on the trail. I could not believe my luck! “The trail provides” as they say, because that would have been one long, boring, sucky section of highway to walk.

I contemplated going through the ‘Valley Of the Giants’ tree top walk when I reached it, but the weather was dour, misty and wet and I was tired. I’d already seen some pretty awesome Tingle trees on the way there anyways. I pushed the last 1.5km to the shelter, though it felt a lot tougher than it should have (the last few k’s always seem to).

Once again I had the shelter to myself, but no complaints from me, as I took up nearly all the available space with wet clothes. After geting sorted for the night I signed the logbook, as per usual. Looks like James & Harry are a day or so ahead of me so I doubt I’ll be seeing them again, which is a shame.

My dinner was the pizza from last night, and my god was it good. Packed out pizza is best pizza.