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grammaboodawg
Immortal
Nov 16 2017, 11:49pm
Post #1 of 27
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Walk to Rivendell... and Beyond! November 16
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Greetings Fellow Walkers... and well met :)
I hope you're having a great week and are enjoying your journey. For me, even if I know where I'm going, that road can suddenly turn or run up a steep hill. That septic tank I was pursuing has buried itself deep and is definitely moving around under the ground. During the chase, I blew out the tendon behind my left knee, so the digging stopped. *sigh*
I had some tank-cleaning professionals in a round-back truck with a long bumpy hose looking for it, too. No luck. Their ghost-busting meter didn't find it ("First time that's happened!"). That little beeper-meter they flushed down the loo got stuck somewhere between here and there, too. Then they used a special rod to poke holes down into the gound to see if they could hit the concrete top of the tank. Over here, over there, up close and ... uh... no, it's nowhere near there! *sigh* So they decided to go. Holes and beepers left behind and taking the meter that might just need a new battery. They're going to try again next week after they get another beeper. Such Drama! :D My yard looks like the surface of the moon!
Needless to say, I didn't do a whole lot of walking around, exercise or maintenance using 2 canes to shuffle around for about 5 days. Now I'm on the mend and will be walking around "the dig" with a set of copper divining rods I've just made. What the heck! It's a matter of principle now!
So... what have you been up to ?? I hope your path has been straight and true... and doesn't involve a shovel... or a shuffle ;)
My Progress: 5 miles
Cumulated 375 miles of the 578 miles into the Ride with Merry. The Rohirrim, Merry, Dernhelm and I have passed by another beacon... the Firien Wood... on our way to Gondor. We just hope we can get there in time!
TORn Walk to Rivendell – and Beyond! Resources
For Newbies and the Curious - an explanatory note
FYI - How I track my mileage
gramma's charts
This the the link to TORn's Walk to Rivendell and Beyond charts for Bilbo's return journey from the Lonely Mountain. Please let me know if there are any corrections or suggestions you have for them :)
https://sites.google.com/site/tornswalktorivendell/
We have been there and back again.
TIME Google Calendar
6th draft of TH:AUJ Geeky Observations List - November 28, 2013
4th draft of TH:DOS Geeky Observations List - May 15, 2014
5th draft of TH:BotFA Geeky Observations List - January 30, 2015
TORn's Geeky Observations Lists for LotR and The Hobbit
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tinkermarm
Bree
Nov 17 2017, 1:35am
Post #2 of 27
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371 miles, so still 8 days from Weathertop. Been walking in the mornings before work, but I need to start waking up earlier so I can make my walks longer!
Week has been good so far. I have been giving "My Side of the Mountain" a revisit for the first time in probably close to fifteen years--still a great read all these years later.
The app project continues. I'm finally to the point where I have to use the last page of Fonstad's map, so I can at least see Mordor on the same page as my reference. It's still slow going mapping it out "accurately" enough that I'm satisfied with it, but I anticipate the extra time will be worth it in the end. (Side note: Emil from LotR Project seems to really have done a good job in some places of getting the distances pretty spot on on his map. The terrain isn't always quite in sync with Fonstad's version, but I've been impressed with how well the distances have been lining up.)
The days are getting colder, but I'm determined to keep walking in the chill anyway (didn't get those Yak-Trax for nothing!) and am appreciating that the hot tea afterwards is just that much more rewarding.
Keep healing up and walking, gramma. Hu-bah! ;)
The road goes ever on and on...
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BlackFox
Half-elven
Nov 18 2017, 10:25am
Post #4 of 27
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You may remember I was struggling to think what to do next after completing all the quests. Well, after pondering on it for quite a while, I've decided to take a break. Not from tracking my mileage, but from the Walk to Rivendell and Beyond challenge. I'm trying out something else at the moment, but I'd love to return to Middle-earth one day, perhaps when a certain app becomes available. Till then, I'll continue to cheer on all those still on the road. Happy walking!
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tinkermarm
Bree
Nov 18 2017, 8:52pm
Post #6 of 27
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Cool, let us know if you find any other fun waling things!
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Hey, BlackFox, good to hear from you!
I'd be curious to know what else you find, since I think it's fun to see how other people decide to track their mileage. Keep in touch, and happy walking, wherever you go. :)
By the way, I think that at some point I am going to start emailing people updates and am working on collecting a mailing list. If you have an email address you'd like to be updated at, feel free to PM it to me. I won't use it for anything else, and don't feel obligated. Just a thought if you would like updates later. 
The road goes ever on and on...
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BlackFox
Half-elven
Nov 18 2017, 10:39pm
Post #7 of 27
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I swapped Middle-earth for Earth
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I'm journeying across a virtual Europe. I've been on the road for 73 days now (since I finished the last leg of Bilbo's return journey) and I'm already approaching Warsaw, Poland (having started from my home in Estonia). I've set Portugal as my initial destination, I'll decide my next move when I reach the Atlantic. So far, it's been fun, as well as informative -- it turns out I didn't know Europe half as well as I thought!
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grammaboodawg
Immortal
Nov 23 2017, 1:02pm
Post #9 of 27
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Walk to Rivendell... and Beyond! November 23
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Greetings Fellow Travellers! HAPPY THANKSGIVING to those who partake ;)
How has your journey been going? Are you finding that a set routine is your best way of gathering those miles, or is mixing it up in different ways of accumulating miles (exercise, housework, running with the bulls, etc.) makes your adventure more rewarding? I like mixing it up. First, so I don't become too routine... and second, because I never know from week-to-week what my RL demands will be. Bend like a willow tree, flow like a river, fly like an eagle, eat like a hobbit! ;)
My leg is on the mend and I've been able to up my septic search! It can't hide forever! I'll FLUSH IT OUT!
So do tell on how you're doing :D And I hope you have a wonderful holiday weekend. If you don't celebrate Thanksgiving... HAVE A GREAT WEEKEND ANYWAY!
My Progress: 26 miles
Cumulated 401 miles of the 578 miles into the Ride with Merry, The Rohirrim, Dernhelm, Merry and I have passed the beacon tower of Calenhad on a foothill of Calenhad peak. We're trying to move as fast as possible to Minas Tirith but still have the strength in Army and Horse to confront the enemy!
TORn Walk to Rivendell – and Beyond! Resources
For Newbies and the Curious - an explanatory note
FYI - How I track my mileage
gramma's charts
This the the link to TORn's Walk to Rivendell and Beyond charts for Bilbo's return journey from the Lonely Mountain. Please let me know if there are any corrections or suggestions you have for them :)
https://sites.google.com/site/tornswalktorivendell/
We have been there and back again.
TIME Google Calendar
6th draft of TH:AUJ Geeky Observations List - November 28, 2013
4th draft of TH:DOS Geeky Observations List - May 15, 2014
5th draft of TH:BotFA Geeky Observations List - January 30, 2015
TORn's Geeky Observations Lists for LotR and The Hobbit
(This post was edited by grammaboodawg on Nov 23 2017, 1:04pm)
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tinkermarm
Bree
Nov 28 2017, 2:08am
Post #10 of 27
(12117 views)
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Whoops, I thought I already responded to this... o.O
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What are you using to track your virtual walk of Europe? That sounds really neat!
The road goes ever on and on...
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tinkermarm
Bree
Nov 28 2017, 2:15am
Post #11 of 27
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Happy belated Thanksgiving, gramma!
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Real-world mileage hasn't improved much to speak of, but I'm almost through mapping out to Rauros.
I've also been reading The Fellowship again for the first time in ages (like, so long I'm kind of embarrassed to admit it...I guess we could say "NARF-long")  and remembering all over again why I love the books so much more than the movies. (I knew I did like them better, but forgot *how* much better.) The thing is that usually when I wanted a Tolkien fix over the past several years I'd just read the first chapter or two of the book, get my fix of all the lovely Hobbits, and then get back to studying or whatever else called my attention away. It has been too long, and I'm having a lovely time of it.
Bend like a willow tree, flow like a river, fly like an eagle, eat like a hobbit! I love that! :D
Did you ever find your septic tank, gramma? That is a funny quest to be having trouble with, I think... 
The road goes ever on and on...
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grammaboodawg
Immortal
Nov 28 2017, 12:51pm
Post #14 of 27
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Going back to the story after a break is like going home again :) It's really hard to explain, isn't it? ;) Well done on the progress! And Happy Post-Thanksgiving to you, too!!
YES!!!! I just found the tank last night (Monday Nov 27)!! OMG! You'd thought it was a chest full of treasure with the WHOOP that I bellowed! I was even using divining rods and a Y-branch to see if I could chase it down! I literally could picture the thing (a HUGE concrete block) crawling underground like a mole or a Horta to evade me! 2 weeks of digging 2-3 feet deep holes! My yard looks like a golf course!
I started contacting local companies that might have installed it to see if they had any records. The house was built in 1969, so the chance was slim and unfruitful. I contacted the County offices and they sent me what they had. The page that described the septic installation was nothing but a blurred, muddled mess. Picture a carbon copy of a form that looks like anything written on it was erased and written over again. BLURRRR. I went cross-eyed trying to decipher anything from it. I made out 15 feet. So I measured 15 feet in the most unlikely direction from the house and BOOM! There it was! Under the driveway!
Whew...
Now I have some holes to mend ;)
We have been there and back again.
TIME Google Calendar
6th draft of TH:AUJ Geeky Observations List - November 28, 2013
4th draft of TH:DOS Geeky Observations List - May 15, 2014
5th draft of TH:BotFA Geeky Observations List - January 30, 2015
TORn's Geeky Observations Lists for LotR and The Hobbit
(This post was edited by grammaboodawg on Nov 28 2017, 12:54pm)
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dernwyn
Forum Admin
/ Moderator
Nov 28 2017, 5:02pm
Post #15 of 27
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Now, who else here would immediately recognize what a Horta is!
Under the driveway? Uh-oh, I do hope you've got a dirt/gravel driveway! 
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"I desired dragons with a profound desire"
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grammaboodawg
Immortal
Nov 30 2017, 10:03pm
Post #19 of 27
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Walk to Rivendell... and Beyond! November 30
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Greetings Fellow Walkers!
GUESS WHAT!?! This is the last day of November... and tomorrow is December! Where does the TIME fly?
So how are you doing on your journey? It's fun to see the options we have on how we get from here to there :D No matter which path you have chosen, let us know how you're doing! I mean seriously... I'm even sharing my exercise via a septic adventure! To me, it's been a challenge and a victory that ran my life for the past several days! The exciting conclusion begins today as I fill in all those holes in the yard. *kaff* Surely, your own challenges have got to be loftier than that! ;)
Dig like a dwarf
Look for tank. Some of the holes and digging around tree trunks.
Rock on! From dismantled rock garden.
That hill used to be a stacked-rock wall with a set of winding rock stairs leading up-up-up to hobbity there in the garage. Now that I had to rip it all out, I'm going to rebuild as a hobbit-hole in the Spring :) I'll spend the Winter thinking of what I want to carve those 2 small black walnut tree stumps into. I had to cut them up because the roots were growing into the.... SEPTIC TANK!! :D
So how are you coming along? :D
My Progress: 33 miles
Cumulated 434 miles of the 578 miles into the Ride with Merry. The Rohirrim, Dernhelm, Merry and I are north of the delta of the Entwash as we continue toward Pelennor.
If you'd like some help keeping track of your progress in the Walk to Rivendell Charts, just PM me and I'll be happy to figure out where you are and help you keep track as you move along :) Or take a look at the resources at the end of this post. I give you a step-by-step of how I like to keep track of my progress. The hardest part of using the Charts is to decide which one to start with!
TORn Walk to Rivendell – and Beyond! Resources
For Newbies and the Curious - an explanatory note
FYI - How I track my mileage
gramma's charts
This the the link to TORn's Walk to Rivendell and Beyond charts for Bilbo's return journey from the Lonely Mountain. Please let me know if there are any corrections or suggestions you have for them :)
https://sites.google.com/site/tornswalktorivendell/
We have been there and back again.
TIME Google Calendar
6th draft of TH:AUJ Geeky Observations List - November 28, 2013
4th draft of TH:DOS Geeky Observations List - May 15, 2014
5th draft of TH:BotFA Geeky Observations List - January 30, 2015
TORn's Geeky Observations Lists for LotR and The Hobbit
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dernwyn
Forum Admin
/ Moderator
Dec 1 2017, 1:54am
Post #20 of 27
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You've been doing a heckuva lotta hol-digging (hol-dygla?) and rock-wielding! No wonder you've been accumulating miles!
And now, they've got to all be filled back in again...whoa. How's the ankle doing?
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"I desired dragons with a profound desire"
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tinkermarm
Bree
Dec 5 2017, 1:06am
Post #23 of 27
(11670 views)
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Glad to hear you've gotten through that adventure and can now heal up properly, gramma!
The weather here was beautifully "warm" for a December this evening, so I took a nice long walk (4+ miles) and enjoyed everyone's Christmas decorations around the neighborhood. Pretty sure I'm still somewhere in the wilderness outside of Weathertop on my actual real-walking mileage.
Working on the app now and am up to the meeting with Gollum, not too far from the Dead Marshes. Once the path-building phase is complete I will have to start working on the more important functionality pieces (e.g. GPS-based coordinates versus step counting, or a mixture of both, stats, etc.).
Anyway, it's progress on both fronts, so I'm happy. :D
The road goes ever on and on...
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