Dear friends and family,

JJJAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!! 241.4km accomplished. Tomorrow morning is the last stage and we finish the race at the square of San Pedro. The long march was long. 17h altogether. Reached the camp after 1 oclock in the night. I found a great group of people along the stage and we pushed together about 50km. thanks girls;).

It has been a tough day today, just being at the campsite trying to recover from the week. I had very big issues with my blisters yesterday evening. Especially downhill the toes hit the front of the shoe. I was so tired so I just ate and went to bed and checked the feet this morning. Blisters all over the place but nothing infected. Luckily. I have been taking care of them today but the last stage will not work without pain killer. Actually im a little bit disappointed that I couldn

Hi,

Sorry for not being active with writing. To be honest, I have not had enough energy. I have come in very late every day and before bedtime, it has been footcare and recovering time.

Now 170km behind

Hi,

Just a short update as the tent will soon be closed. I was so hoping to be able to write just positive news. The first 20km were great. The feet are ok, not that bad actually. But the last 20km were the worst I have ever experienced. It was so hot and difficult terrain. I feel really ok but the heat and the altitude is a bad combination for me. Lets see how I recover before tomorrow. Thhese days are jut filled with emotions. It goes up and down. I try to enjoy the good moments and see how far I can go.

Now some foot care.

Although you, my dear family are far away, you give me much energy. I love you

Hi out there,

The first stage is now completed. Last night was really cold, -2. I was in my sleeping bag as a not yet born baby.

I know that some preparations were not the best one. For example I had bought knorr pasta with cooking time of 5min. I can say that after pouring warm water on it, it will stay al dente. It was like chewing dry bread.

I also broke my front pack before the race so today I looked from behind like a man carrying the the Pisa tower. This I also feel in my shoulders now.

The first stage was tough. It was ok until noon but the afternoon was really hot. As well the loose stones made it challenging to move fast.

So I have now finished the first stage. Head is fine, stomach is fine, legs are fine, shoulders are ok but my feet are in very bad condition. I got 6 big blisters and I have now removed the fluid in them and done some foot care. They are pretty ok and I hope that they will heal before tomorrow morning. The bad thing is that we have water crossings tomorrow and when the feet get wet and dry several times during the day. This is the only concern at the moment so plese keep thumbs up.

The feeling is otherwise great and it is fantastic to be here. Very nice people, great atmosphere, and wonderful scenery.

If everything is fine tomorrow in the evening, Im very happy. Now it is time to relax, it is some 12h time to collect new energy.

Micke

Greetings from Atacama desert.

We have now been here since Thursday. The 35h flight over Miami and Santiago, not forgetting the bumpy bus ride from Calama to San Pedro has given lots of great moments already. Laughter seems to be the best cure for nervousness.

The altitude created some headache in the beginning but it went over during the first night. Quite strange feeling as the pulse is all the time some 20 units higher than normal. Yesterday we did a morning run which opened the lungs quite well. Last night also the

Hi,

due to very hectic work, I so much look forward to take a break and head towards the Atacama desert. It will be such a great experience, I