I made it folks and what an adventure it was out there in the desert!!!  A once in a life time experience for sure and I'm so pleased that there's only 11kms between me and the finish line tomorrow.  It was an awesome and drama packed day and while it was incredibly tough, I was in the best head space for it yesterday and chose to enjoy every moment of it.  The main news is that I did 55 kms yesterday and it took just shy of 15 hours (from 8am until 10.55pm) to complete that when they suspended the race due to inclement weather - the main concern being lightening. Dermott, my new mate from Northern Ireland, and I had 18kms to go when they stopped the race as we were coming into checkpoint 5, the second to last checkpoint of the day. We were incredulous at the time, disbelieving what was being said but we, and about 32 other people left on the course, got transported out as an electrical storm was close and they had reports that it was getting worse so they made a call to keep everyone safe and move them back to camp. They even said when we got to camp that if the weather got worse we may have to go back to San Pedro.  None of that happened as I think the worst of the weather had been through by the time we got off the course but they had to make a decision about people's safety and best to err on the conservative side. So we got back about midnight, had a cup of soup and chatted to others in camp, went to bed and fortunately had an opportunity to complete the remaining kilometres this morning. We didn't know last night that we would have that option but I'm really grateful that we got the chance to round out that stage.  We got up about 7.30am, after about six hours sleep, had more soup and went back out on course.  We started about 10am and it took about four hours to walk; taking photos along the way of the spectacular Moon Valley.  My feet felt like they were going to explode but we made it and I feel great now.  My feet are actually pretty good when they're not in my trail shoes.  The landscape this morning was, once again, breathtaking, so I'm glad we got to see it in the daylight. I'm sure it wouldn't have had the same appeal last night.

In terms of the details of the day, we started at 8am yesterday and my right calf was sore for the first 20 kms and I was on flat ground so I was a little concerned about how I was going to go once I had to traverse salt flats and sand dunes but it came good, thankfully.  My main issue yesterday was a bad pain in my left achilles area.  It made me slightly limp at times but a paracetemol tablet at most checkpoints dullled the pain enough.  I also had some vivid visualisations going on yesterday to help ease the discomfort. I was so buoyed up yesterday, even when the pain in my calf and foot was bad, and I could feel everyone's love and support from home so thank you very much - you certainly helped me get across that desert.  We had three sections yesterday that were just over 13kms between checkpoints which is a long way when the terrain is rugged and seems never ending.  We went across 13.8kms of salt flats which ended with a steep climb up a sandune then a walk across a lunar looking landscape and then a steep descent in super windy conditions.  At about 7pm last night, we came into checkpoint 4, rested a while and then set off across another 13.4km stretch of fairly flat terrain and encountered a couple of sand storms - they were awesome. We could see the sand being whipped up ahead of us and it eventually engulfed us and we got pinged in the shins by pebbles for a few minutes but it cleared quickly. A little uncomfortable but fantastic to see.  We also had a double rainbow out there yesterday so lots of fantastic experiences.  As the light faded we donned our headlamps and turned on our red flashing lights on the back of our packs and trundled across the land in search of camp 5.  We had lots of fun - chatting, walking in silence, laughing, discussing favourite foods, great places in the world to visit and there were some times of pure delirium as the checkpoint seemed to get further away rather than closer.  For a couple of hours we enjoyed mother nature's light show and it was spectacular.  Derm was a "wee" bit paranoid about having a metal cup on the back of his pack but we were assured by one of the Docs in a support vehicle that passed us that the lightening was a long way away from where we were on the course. The lightening seemed to stop and then the rain started about an hour before we got to the checkpoint. Fortunately it wasn't too heavy so we weren't drenched but it was starting to get cold and our feet were super heavy as we trudged through some mud. And, from that point on it was a new level of drama as the race got suspended and we got transported in 4WDs to two coaches that took us back to camp.  Many people had been held back at both checkpointss 4 and 5 yesterday because of the weather so my friends, Colin from Melbourne and Sandy from California, were on the bus when I climbed on board and it was so surprising to see them as I thought they would've been back at camp.  A dramatic day and possibly a once off for this desert because they haven't seen these weather conditions before.  We have a competitor briefing at 5pm which is just under half an hour away so I must go.  I will enjoy that final section tomorrow and the celebratory shower, dinner and food later in the day.  Can't wait to wash my hair - it feels disgusting!  A cold beer will also go down very nicely.  It's so good to get through in really good condition, other than a few sore points that made it harder but not impossible. Your love and support has been tremendous. Thank you!  I will blog again when I'm back in San Pedro. xxoo

I arrived in San Pedro at about 6pm yesterday with all my belongings, thankfully, and no real dramas with customs.  About six of us had a short delay receiving our luggage but we all worked out ok and we had excellent service from a gentleman at the airport who saw the contingent of Aussies safely through to the next flight.  I met up with the team from Sydney who are raising money for the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation and they are fantastic people who are setting out run all 4 Desert this year!!!  We all had dinner together in San Pedro last night which was a great start to the time here.  It took an hour by bus from Calama to get here so it gave me a good chance to see the desert landscape - it is breathtakingly beautiful and exceptionally rugged.  The colours of the desert rock formations is spectacular and the backdrop of the magnificent Andes Mountains, snow capped at this time of year, adds a surreal quality.  The Hotel Altiplanico, where about 60 competitors are staying, is quant, rustic and charming.  I'm going to relax today (Wed), get my pack sorted, and book a day tour for tomorrow to see of the desert surrounds - including ancient villages and lagoons where you can see pink flamingoes.  On the altitude front, I can feel a slight difference in how my head feels today but nothing major.  The town is at 2400m and the event starts at 3200m.  It´s great having a few days to adjust.  Until next time. x