Day Minus 10: Practice Walk - Palo Alto Baylands

We covered 12 of the 15 miles of trails criss-crossing Baylands Nature Reserve in Palo Alto today.
The terrain is pretty flat, but distance-wise, today's walk well approximates the average daily route on the Camino.
Last two weekends, we did two practice hikes in Big Basin State Park, 10-11 miles each. This being the last full weekend before we leave home, we are doing two consecutive days of 12 miles. (Tomorrow, it will be Sawyer Camp Trail at Crystal Springs Reservoir.) A total of 24 miles over two days is the most I have ever walked in my life. Multiply that by seven, and those 14 days are the entire Camino de Santiago LITE right there.

Baylands has been wonderfully restored. Months after the landfill was closed amidst controversy, the smell is nearly gone finally. White pelicans have come to the marshland in droves and joined egrets, herons, and numerous other waterbirds.

Pelicans at Palo Alto Baylands

This was a dress rehearsal, sans my photo vest, as we are in a heat wave in the Bay area. We even brought an umbrella, which no doubt will protect us from the rain in Spain. Today it was for the ray in the Bay.

The practice walks help anticipate and eliminate minor challenges. The cotton rounds I put on top of my toes in an attempt to reduce bruises ended up irritating the skin and creating blisters. Mid-walk, I switched to corn cushions, which was the right solution.

The lunch break was dim sum at Ming's, the kind of luxury we obviously won't have on the Camino. Looks like we'd be lucky to have a sit-down lunch before 1PM on the route. We'll find out soon enough!

I am practicing posting real-time via Surface, which I will take on the Camino. A TEP portable wifi has been ordered. I hope it arrives in time and will work as advertised in Spain.