I have cleaned out my camelbak with bicarbonate of soda as it smelt rather peculiar, found my attractive woolly hat and waxed my boots.  I used a traditional beeswax rather than Nikwax, so I hope it is effective.  Looking at tomorrow’s forecast, it will need to be!   I don’t like wearing plastic trousers over my ordinary ones, so I indulged myself in the Rohan sale with a pair alleged to be fully water and windproof.  I don’t think the Thames Estuary will be my biggest climatic challenge, but you never know.

I tried measuring the map more accurately using the measuring tool, but frankly, I think it was a waste of money.  I may not be very patient or dextrous (in fact I am certainly neither patient nor dextrous) but it was very fiddly to use, and I don’t think it is a lot more accurate than looking at the grid lines and calculating by eye.  Always keen for a gadget, I had a demonstration of a rather fancy GPS thingy, but can’t convince myself that it is worth it.  Certainly not at present.  You still need to carry a map (and compass if you are in more remote territory than North Kent), and, if you want to download a 1:25,000 map, you have to pay for the maps which, as they are around £130 for the equivalent of four or five real ones, would be incredibly expensive.  It will tell you how many calories you have burnt though!  Not sure if that is a good thing or not – I have some delicious Green & Black Fair Trade Chocolate to counteract promptly any excess calorie burning.

Early bed tonight, planning an 8am start from London Bridge in order to finish by mid-afternoon – I need to break myself in gently!