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On Saturday, June 24, I went on my longest walk ever and have probably found the limits of my endurance.
Or at least, the limits of my endurance when the weather is crappy. :)
For this walk, I started just outside the northern leg of I-435 and began walking south, bisecting the city,
until I crossed the southern leg of I-435. The total time period was 12 hours and 55 minutes, which included
a 1 hour lunch break and about 2 hours in rain delays. The total distance covered was 28.9 miles. I took 55,283 steps,
burned 3,689 calories, went through 3 pairs of socks, had to dive under shelter from heavy rain 5 times,
and got 6 blisters on my feet. :)
I took several pictures along the way, scroll down to have a look. You can also click the route map to the left to see a larger version.
First off, an overview of the route:
My friend Brandon dropped me off at I-435 & North Woodland at 7:45am. That's him driving away.
Crossing I-435 the first time...
Heading south on North Woodland...
The first signs of civilization...
A nice little fishing pond in one of the subdivisions I walked across. I took a zig-zag route initially to avoid the lack of shoulders on Woodland and a construction zone on North Oak.
A few blocks later a guy who was obviously lost pulled over and asked me for directions to a specific address nearby.
"Actually, I'm not from around here either," I said, "but you definitely asked the right person, as I happen to have a detailed map of this neighborhood in my pocket."
I then whipped out the page from Google Maps that I had printed out to mark my route through this neighborhood and showed him exactly how to get where he needed to go.
I reached North Oak at 96th Street, begining the first really long straight segment. I was surprised to see other people out walking.
Crossing MO-152...
Construction on North Oak, and my first glimpse of the Downtown skyline...
Crossing I-29, which would have been scary if the traffic were heavier since the almost non-existent shoulder turns into the on-ramp...
Continuing south past a lovely neighborhood of check cashing places...
The first really good skyline view...
I was a little worried about getting mowed down going around this bend...
The next five pictures are of the New Urbanism development at the north end of North Kansas City, along Swift...
The former Osco and future CVS at Armour & Swift...
The next two pictures are from a courtyard in downtown NKC where I took a short rest as a jazz band played...
Looks like someone ran their car into the front of this building, and it appears to be in extreme danger of collapse.
A well-worn footpath heading up to the Heart of America Bridge. If MODOT doesn't think there's
demand for a safe pedestrian/bicycle path across the Missouri River, they need to see this photo.
Crossing over the railyards...
Crossing the Missouri River...
When I reached the River Market I took a lunch break, and just as I finished lunch a strong storm erupted.
By the time the lightning stopped and the rain let up enough to continue, I lost just over 2 hours of valuable time. From 3rd Street until 67th Street it rained on me non-stop.
I pressed on in light rain and made my way south through Downtown...
As I entered the Crossroads it looked like the worst of the weather was over.
Soaked, I stopped in Union Station to use the restroom, dripping my way right through a wedding party. :)
The first set of many steps up to Liberty Memorial as I cut across Penn Valley Park.
My God that's a lot of steps!
On Broadway, as I crossed Linwood, I got stuck in an extremely heavy sudden downpour.
I took shelter under an awning with a couple of locals and was stuck there for nearly half an hour
until the rain subsided enough to continue.
The rain let up to just a light rainfall, so I continued on South...
I only made it a few blocks before another downpour forced me to take shelter again...
By the time I got to Westport it looked like I had been in a wet t-shirt contest. This picture came out this way due to rain on the lens.
Another heavy downpour forced me to take shelter near Murray's. Since I knew I'd have to take the trademark shot at some point, here's the obligatory photo of my rainsoaked leg. I spent several minutes here wringing out my shirt while waiting for the rain to let up.
The rain lightened up again so I continued, and I made it only a few more blocks before another downpour forced me to shelter in a Plaza parking garage...
After about 10 minutes the rain got a little lighter again so I resumed my journey south on Wornall. I was certainly jealous of all the people with umbrellas.
Brookside in the rain...
Finally, by the time I got to Waldo, the rain had stopped and the sun came out.
Wornall & Ward Parkway...
The sun is setting, gotta hurry!
Barely visible in the distance, my first glimpse of my goal...
Indian Creek on the verge of flooding...
About to cross I-435 for the second time...
Looking back at I-435, having completed my goal!
Though I was in pain and knew that I had blisters, as long as my goals were ahead of me I kept going forward like nothing was wrong. So it came as a total shock to me what happened as soon as I crossed my self-imposed finish line and got into the vehicle waiting for me on the other side. A wave of pain came over me, and I found myself struggling to take even the smallest of steps. Even a full day later walking is a struggle.
Dear Lord am I tired! :)
Having completed this walk something has occurred to me. There is no longer anything in the KC metro area that I can claim is not within walking distance. :)
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Comments
wow.
great work, man. i am in awe. hope your feet get back to normal soon!
Posted by: chris | June 26, 2006 10:19 AM
I found your site a few weeks ago and can't believe the walking you do! I'm training for the Breast Cancer 3-Day and so far I haven't walked over 13 miles; I can't imagine how 30 miles must feel! You are my new walking hero!
Posted by: Sarah | June 26, 2006 11:43 AM
SUper cool! That's one of the best posts I've read in a while. Great idea.
Posted by: joe | June 27, 2006 07:44 AM
Fantastic post. The photo of the trail leading up to the Heart of America bridge is priceless.
Posted by: heidi | June 27, 2006 09:54 AM
Update: I just realized that all my muscle pain ended sometime last night. So if I can just get the blisters to heal I'll be able to stop hobbling. :)
Posted by: ScooterJ | June 27, 2006 01:42 PM
Not only are the walking trips very cool, but to take pictures along the way is brilliant. Can't wait to see what is next.
Posted by: Josh | June 27, 2006 02:22 PM
Enjoyed your story and the pictures. You may have inspired me to try similar walks.
Posted by: Kclongshot | June 27, 2006 08:24 PM
Truely amazing!
Posted by: Dave C. | July 4, 2006 12:58 AM
My hat is off to you! Thanks for sharing your adventure!
Posted by: mamagotcha | July 4, 2006 04:01 PM
Amazing! You should be on tv! If you'd be willing to talk on camera about your adventure, please email me with your phone number and when we could reach you. rebecca.sapakie@foxtv.com
Posted by: Rebecca | July 6, 2006 11:01 AM
very interesting
Posted by: ronzo | November 20, 2006 10:58 AM
You have inspired me to follow my life long dreams of becoming an astronaut. I know I am a 74 year old quadriplegic woman but if you can walk across the Missouri River as shown in your pictures anything is possible. Thank you for your inspiration. I am calling NASA now. WW
Posted by: Wilma Wonka | April 4, 2008 03:46 PM