Blog 779, Days 27 and 28. MISSION ACCOMPLISHED at 15.00hrs Local Time, Saturday 28th May, on board Cunard’s Queen Elizabeth. 1,000,000 steps! Steps last night, 1,002,624.

When I went to bed on Friday, after our day at Manzanillo, I had just 8,506 steps to walk to complete my self imposed 1 Million Steps on and Between Two Continents Challenge in support of Christian Aid Week. Around the U.K. individuals and groups took up the challenge set by Christian Aid two years ago, to walk 300,000 steps during the month of May, just slightly under 10,000 steps per day, or, a little under 4 miles. I took part last year, and was delighted with the support and encouragement received, as well as many contributions to Christian Aid.

There would be two outcomes, a not unimpressive amount raised for the benefit of those in need, and also, I myself would be physically fitter as a result!

While Christian Aid, for a third year, promoted their 300,000 Steps in May Challenge, I decided to go one better, and walk 1,000,000, steps in the 132 days I would be out of the Country on my travels. That equated to 7,575 steps per day, and felt very feasible. Again I received general encouragement and so far, some actual sponsorship. Yesterday, 48 days ahead of schedule, I completed the Million Steps Challenge at 3.00pm ship’s time. I shall continue walking and updating my blog.

All too soon, we are in the final week of this particular leg of my journey. Tomorrow we call at Los Angeles, and our final call before arrival at Vancouver at the end of the week, is San Francisco on Wednesday. I will then continue on M.V. Queen Elizabeth as she makes her first foray into Alaska’s Inside Passage probably since I came back on what might have been her last Alaska cruise in 2019. Yesterday, there was little sign of the tropical climes we had been in for so long. There was a cold bite in the air, although the sun was strong in the clear-ish skies. And it’s colder today. I have little inclination to walk right now. But, I shall give it a try, in the interests of keeping myself in some kind of decent shape.

Many thanks for reading, David.