Record-breaker

May 2016:  Record-breaker

Record-breaking month

Not that I’m keeping records any more, but it was a record-breaking month. 

How crazy is that?  Just a few short weeks ago I had arthroscopic surgery on my knee – and then I have a month like this one.

During May I hiked or biked on twenty-five separate occasions.  Total distance travelled was 297 km (160 km hiked plus 137 km biked), which in previous years would have accounted for about one third of the entire year’s total tally.  Not too bad for a retiree!

The Settlers Trek

From a hiking perspective, the great event last month was of course the Settlers Trek, where in six days we walked from Brockville to Perth, a little less than a hundred kilometres.  

On my bike, I have been working my way down the O&Q trail from Glen Tay towards Havelock.  By the end of May I had reached the kilometre 80 marker, approximately half way to my destination.  The distance travelled is double that, since each trip involved returning to my starting point.

On the O&Q

Looking back over the period 2009 to 2015, my previous best month was June of last year, when I was exploring the K&P Trail, racking up 283 km that month. In September 2010 I travelled 207 km, but in the other years (2009-2014) my best months ranged only between 157 and 171 km.  This puts May 2016 into perspective.  And of course I’m not getting younger.

It’s not likely I will keep up this pace in the coming months, but it has been a stellar month, packed with enjoyment – and with a knee that seemed to be back to normal – or now perhaps even bionic?