Things are not going too well. I took the route that was flattest again, because of the pain in my back and hip. And pretty quickly decided I was too tired and needed a day of rest. I was so slow, every time I checked the map to make sure not to lose my route, I had progressed far less than I usually do in the time it had taken.
There was a lot of road, again, and a shortcut to avoid some of that road turned into some high grass and a lot of mosquitoes.
At the same time, I was hungry, as I didn't have much time last night for grocery shopping and there was nothing other than 500 grams of oats or 500 grams of crunchy muesli in the store, and no bread. So I had yoghurt for breakfast, but no slow carbs, and I need those. I had hoped to run into a small store somewhere, but no.
So when I found a restaurant with a nice looking terrace, I decided to take a break there and eat a pizza. That helped against the hunger. And while I sat there, suddenly a bunch of goats came by, with a goatherd and dog behind them.
Hunger alone didn't cause the fatigue though, and I was still just as tired and had just as much pain when I continued. This time through a park following the river, which was a definite improvement over the roads.
Straight out of the park I reached the huge commercial center that had the sports/outdoor store where I hoped to find a map. But they didn't have one. I checked the bookstores, and just in case the hypermarket too, but there wasn't a map. Which is a bug as I would really like to be able to plan what I'm doing with something other than online maps on a smartphone screen.
My hip and back had started hurting more and more, and even without my backpack it was impossible to keep walking symmetrically. Walking asymmetrically only leads to more injuries (and is probably why my hip started hurting in the first place), but the pain just made it impossible to avoid. So while I had hoped to walk for another hour or two to the next campsite, I went to the train station, took a train to Orta, and went to the campsite there. I had to take painkillers before I could manage to shower and put up my tent.
Tomorrow I will rest, and the morning after I will evaluate my injuries and decide what to do next.

Geschreven door Jewaontheroad