News Of Rosie

Rosie's around the world run adventure, Welcome to the website of Rosie Swale-Pope.

Rosie has successfully completed her five year long, around the world run. For various charities and to highlight the importance of cancer awareness and early diagnosis. For more please click this About Rosie link.

7/10/05 Hi just received this update form Geoff Hall.  Also there is an Article about Rosie in the Daily Express newspaper today.

Hallo all. A clear voiced if slightly frustrated Rosie has called from Anchorage. She is in the back garden of the house of some new friends met whilst researching the route to and from CPoW. Having brainwaved into contacting the Iditarod shop/support team/knowledgeable people, she has received good sound advice on this neat part of the route.

The trails, if they exist, are not really passable at this time of year, and certainly not by Hecules, and so the plan is now to take a light plane to the Cape, and run East from there, linking up with Hercules wherever that becomes possible. The information is pretty reliable, since it is really only dog sled teams that can and do traverse this territory. (My map shows only trails for around 300 - 400 km west from CPoW).

Hercules took a few days to arrive as a major international border crossing was involved, but he is now in place again ,and is receiving major care and attention from Rosie's hosts, one of whom is an engineer and is carrying out a full scale refurbishment. The GPS is loaded with Alaska maps and is ready to go, and all parcels have arrived safely. DHL are proving to be infallible as usual! Apparently the campsite inhabitants gave Rosie a resounding birthday, starting with a 3 a.m breakfast, and a series of other treats running through out the day. She's now raring to go, but it may be a few more days to fix the flight, and some insurance.

02/10/05 Happy 59th Birthday Mum. And second anniversary of your setting off for Wales on the 2nd of October 2003. Had a message from her today, she is just about to set off up to Wales in Alaska, it is going to be quite a tough trip from there. This stage is going to be 1200miles though some tricky terrain. Rosie has been very busy still sorting things out and is glad that her running buggy has finally been cleared to be sent from Siberia, and is getting all her supplies sorted out for this very cold stage of her run. She is in great spirits and sends her love to everyone.    Regards James

Rosie with friend taken near Magadan.

25/9/ 5 Hi everyone, spoke to Rosie last night, sorry there has not been much news lately, but Rosie has been very busy sorting things out, like insurance and getting Hercules sent over from Magadan. DHL have been very good to her by offering to send out her supply parcel free of charge as they have been doing during her Siberian leg of her Journey. She wanted to thank Geoff Hall who as been instrumental in arranging this and for sending her a new arctic stove. She would like to thank all the sponsors, all the equipment and supplies are absolutely vital and she I very grateful for them. She is staying in a camp site at the moment in Anchorage. The next stage of her journey is going to be quite tricky. She is planning to travel to Wales (Ca) up beyond the Baring Straits to start her Run again from here. She is planning to follow the route of a famous husky race called the Iditarod. The problem is that it is not quite cold enough this time of year and many of the lakes and Rivers are not fully frozen and there are many rivers that she will need to cross. Also there is a real issue with the bears which she is taking advise on, hope to know more soon.   Rosie wanted to say hello to everyone in Wales back in the UK and particularly her good friends Ann and and Alison    Regards James.

15/9/05 Hi everyone, had a chat with Rosie today, she has finally reached Magadan, she sounding in great spirits, she is enjoying a good rest and people have been very kind to her. The DHL people took her buggy in to there depot in Magadan to lighten the load as she ran the last part. When escaping from the nutcase last week, her notebook journal for the last three months and a camera sent to her by Geoff and her wallet fell out of her bag. Rosie thought she had lost these. But a lorry driver call Bagdan, later told her that he had found these items and had taken them to his house in Magadan, she has now got them all back.

When running though the mountains, she says, she saw the most amazing scenery of mountains and forests. But the journey itself was very hard. Hercules was very heavy as she had to take a huge amount of food. even then she ran out, largely due the delays she experienced with all the flooding, having to wait for rivers to go down so they could be crossed.

She said her feet were very sore, her shoes took a lot of abuse on the rocky road and developed many holes, as she was running well beyond their normal life expectancy and she was not able to pick up the extra pairs she wanted, she had to improvise by stuffing them with bits of foam and rubber she found on the road.

She won't be staying long in Magadan and is going to be flying out tomorrow to Anchorage. The plane only goes once a week. From there she will travel up to the Baring Straits to carry on her run from the west most tip of Alaska. There is some weird thing in which she will actually be travelling back in time and the time zones cross over here.

She say Siberia has been a wonderful and magical experience and would like the thank everyone for the overwhelming kindness she has received, there has been two minor incidents of trouble, but said her memory will be of the vast amount of warmth and friendship given to her. She asked me also to say how much she is looking forward to coming to Alaska and is exited about being able to speak English to people again.

Regards James

14/9/05Mum has been battling hard lately, this last stage has been so difficult. I think she deserves a good rest when she gets to Magadan, not to mention a good feed. Not long to go now I expect to hear that she has arrived any day now.  I shall keep you all informed. regards James

N59DEG 54.63. E150DEG 48.39. PART OF ME WILL ALWAYS STAY IN SIBERIA. NO MATTER THE DIFFICULTIES. FROM YAKUTSK 2 MAGADAN IS WILD AND SACRED

WILD WITH EXCITEMENT RE MAGADAN- AND GETTING TO THE SEA! 45K! PROGRESS A BIT SLOW, AS HAVE RATHER SORE FEET-BUT WORTH IT



Rosie's position on the 12/9/05

7/9/05 Rosie gave me a call today on the Sat phone, and told me she has been confronted by a stark naked, gun wielding lunatic, but luckily managed to get away. but is quite shaken up by it. She had to pack up her stuff in a hurry and get away. She left behind a camera that Geoff had given her and her note book. But luckily someone found them and has taken them on to Magadan. She said that overwhelmingly people had been very kind and hospitable to her though her whole trip through Russia, and that her view has not been changed by the odd nutter.

It has been tough going as she has run out of money and has been surviving on potatoes as she has been out very much in the wilds in this very sparsely populated area. A slight irony as she used to train for this world run by caring around sacks of potatoes in her rucksack while running around Wales. I truly think that this last stage between Yakutks and Magadan has been the hardest of any stage

The good news is that she is only 140km from Magadan, so it should not be long now till she arrives. She wanted me to dedicate this stage of her run to all those supporting her run and following here progress on the website. And wished the thank Runners World for their great ongoing support and interest.

Regards James

FIRST,WANT U 2 KNOW I AM ABSOLUTELY FINE. I THINK IT IS SO WONDERFUL, CREDIT 2 ALL RUSSIAN PEOPLE THT HAVE ONLY BEEN FRIGHTENED TWICE..

- MOST PEOPLE FABULOUS, BUT BOTH HUMAN GOOD AND ILL SEEMS EXTREME - HAD 2 ESCAPE FEWDAYS AGO NAKED MANIAC W GUN OF ALL THINGS, GOT AWAY.X

AMAZING 2 THINK HOW VVV RARE BAD HUMAN EXPERIENCES HAVE BEEN ON THIS WORLD RUN - MOST, ESP RUSSIAN DO EVERYTHING 2 HELP AND BE SO KIND.

5/9/05, Hi Rosie making great progress, can't wait to have a chat with her when she reaches Magadan, not long to go now. She is still very much in the wilds and is having to conserve the phone battery.

N60DEG 59.67. E149DEG 42.72. MAGADAN ONLY 246K - OR ROUGHLY 130 MILES! CAN HARDLY BELIEVE IT. ETA 12 SEPT! MUMXXXX

            Rosie's position on the 2/9/05

26/8/5, Hi received this great write-up from Geoff, who recently spoke to Rosie. Also here are her latest map positions, I am having a minor inner ear problem, just to explain the ear reference. As you can see 422km to Magadan.

WHOW! - CAN'T WAIT 2 RAISE A GLASS W U. ABOUT YOUR INNER EAR, THINK U R V BRAVE. ALL WELL HERE MAG 422K N61DEG 52.46. E147DEG 28.49. MUM.



It would appear there is no limit to the skills of Hercules the Trolley! He
now appears to float across rivers and lakes as if born to the exercise. A
little unruly when the river is deep and rough, but, hell he's only a tin
box!! The water crossings continue to confront our superstar, who has just
called on a wonderfully clear line from Magadan Oblast. Location around 420
Km from downtown Magadan, with an ETA of September 12th.

The road has been extremely poor, both in condition and surfacing, but now
she is back on the main route and it is much smoother. Not a hint of
metalling of course, but nevertheless a big improvement. Having passed some
lonely days recently, there are now a modest number of fellow travellers,
and any more river crossings should take a little less time ( with hopefully
little time spent waiting for the next passing vehicle). The weather is
comfortable ( well I suppose it must be lovely after the recent winter
months), but a key issue is food. She has, or can get, enough, but it is
very monotonous and she needs to transport large quantities. But she is very
fit and healthy!

Encounters with bears continue. Three since the last stories. It seems her
reputation precedes her, as they tend to just run off when they see her. But
that's best.

In Magadan, she'll move out on the next available plane. I will send most of
the next parcel of stuff to Anchorage, since we already have to ask
wonderful DHL to transport Hercules for us! I'm hopeful of coming to similar
arrangements with DHL USA. All I have to do is repeat Carrie Disney's
original triumph with DHL Russia. I wish!

Usual hugs from R to everyone.

Geoffrey Hall

18/8/5 Hi, got this from Rosie, all sounds well. In regards the the bear situation, I think local knowledge is the key and look forward to speaking to mom when she get Magadan. regards James

DANGEROUS RIVER SAFELY BEHIND ME. HAVE BROKEN THRO OK. BUGGY RUNNER'S WORLD'S A GREAT HERO. HELP AVAILABLE AT ONLY 3 OUT OF ENDLESS RIVERS

ENDLESS RIVERS, WATERHOLES FLOODS - ON CALMISH WATER HERCULES FLOATS! ALL WELL! N62DEG 45.59. E147DEG 26.65. LOTS OF HUGS, MUMX

IT'S NOT JUST THE 'ROAD OF BONES', IT'S 'THE ROAD OF COURAGE', THE SPIRIT OF THOSE WHO DIED 2 BUILD IT IS EVERYWHERE. I'LL NEVER FORGET IT.

HAVE JUST SENT U EMAIL RE 'ROAD OF COURAGE' - NOT IF I SENT IT OK? LET ME KNOW -FABULOUS SUPPORT RE WEB - ALL THANKS 2 YOU. LOVE U.



Rosie's position on the 17th of August 05

14/8/5 Hi, receive these messages from Rosie yesterday, everything seems to be okay. There is a big question mark in my mind about how dangerous the bears might be, I don't know enough about it really, I shall try to find out what the risks are and what is the best advise in order to keep safe.. Regards James

THINKING OF YOU. HOPE YOUR EAR ISN'T HURTING A LOT. MET AMAZING RUSSIAN ROAD SAHARI TEAM - AFTER DAYS O SEEING NO HUMANS AT ALL! LOVE YOU

YOU ARE WONDERFUL - IT'S REALLY FABULOUS WHAT YOU ARE DOING RE WEB. N62DEG 54.11. E146DEG 31. 04. LOTS OF BEARS, BUT THEY HAVE'NT ATTACKED

THE BEARS HAVEN'T HURT ME. ONLY HUMANS IN 4 DAYS WAS AMAZING VERY NICE RUSSIAN ROAD SAFARI TEAM YEST. THEY SAID THEY'LL SEND U PIC. LOVE, MUMXX



10/8/5 Latest message from Rosie

N62DEG 56.11. E146DEG 06.58. FLOODS NEED PATIENCE AM OK. SAW FIRST SEAGULL - A BEAUTIFUL MESSENGER FROM MAGADAN. THINKING OF YOU. MUMX



10/8/5  TRAPPED BY FLOODS NEGOTIATED ALL RIVERS SUCCESSFULLY TILL THIS ONE 2DAY TOO SWOLLEN - PRAY 4 RAIN 2 STOP! NEED RIVER LEVEL 2 FALL. AM OK. ROSIE.

Hi, just got this message on Rosie this morning and I'm keeping my fingers crossed that she is okay. I'm confident that she does know what she is doing. I have send her a message and will let everyone knows the moment I get a reply from her, to confirm that she is okay. As has been mentioned, crossing rivers is the biggest challenge she has had to face. She basically just wades across using a pole to keep her balance and check for depth as he makes several trips to carry all her belongings across, including Hercules, which is basically like a giant heavy wheel barrow when carried. Being washed away or losing any equipment would be a very serious matter not to mention the cold. Just look at how many blue lines there are on the maps below.   As said, I will keep everyone updated the moment I hear from her.

Regards James.

This positional fix is from Saturday, my apologies for the delay in posting, I have been having computer trouble, which has been prevented me from getting into Windows, this is now fixed.

N63DEG 12.07. E145DEG 24.02. CROSSED INT0 MAGADAN PROVINCE 2DAY.EATNG MOSTLY BUCKWHEAT! 4 HANDFULS MAKE A MEAL +BRIAN WELSBY'S VITAMINS



3/8/5 Hi everyone, I have receive this message from Geoff who was kind enough to send me this, after speaking to Rosie. I too was fortunate enough to have a chat with mum, the going is definitely very tough, but she sounds as determined as ever, she did he wanted me to pass on how much she misses everyone in Temby. She finding this the most sparsely populated place she has traveled though. And she stays it is getting to her a little bit, We had a really nice chat. James.

From Geoff: Apparently the mosquitoes along the Kolyma Road are not only large numerous
and aggressive, but will happily attack any exposed areas, such as the back
of the throat!! Our running lady is belting along (presumably trying to
outrun said mozzies) and is now 820 km from Magadan. Some big rivers to
cross - large truck or small boat required -but also she has been advised of
an extra scenic short-cut, which sounds like a win win. Fully fit in mind
and body, only the running shoes are wearing out. All credit to Saucony, it
is only the horrendous state of the road, jagged stone and rock, nothing
smooth or soft at all!! Old ones do for fording rivers, which entails
several crossings to transport all contents of buggy! Apparently the
neoprene bootees are good for this too! Thanks to Mark B for the original
suggestion! Also grateful acknowledgement of the supplements from Be Well.
All joints holding up perfectly!

At 20km per day, she will be in Mag around the 10th or 12th. I shall
dispatch a DHL parcel around the end of August although it seems the new
supplies of Mosquitex courtesy of Keyline Brands

Best wishes from R and, as usual, huge thanks to all her "team"

Geoff Hall



2/8/05 126km since list positional fix. North 63.10.09   East 144.10

23/7/05Conversation with our Rosie yesterday morning, London time.

Apparently the mosquitoes are if anything even more savage as she traverses the rain forest ( her description - but it must be ice forest surely?) Of Yakutia towards Magadan. She is now wearing a hat with a net brim more or less constantly, and very fetching it is too, she says. Not quite Ascot but the spirit is willing. Apparently the road surface is by degrees flattish rough dirt - this is heavenly -at other times a mixture of sand and boulders, which is as you can imagine hard going even for the newly rebalanced Hercules. Rivers of varying sizes appear out of nowhere, but mostly are fordable with Hercules in tow. We think there's a big one coming up, and she is just hoping for a passing coracle with not too much delay. Buckwheat for all its nutritional delights is starting to pall, the first time I've heard her say this, so a gastronomic challenge from here to Magadan. Here is about 100 km short of Tompir (?)

Apparently Rose Hips are providing a nice nutritional drink, as is the Birch tree. My sources inform me that the birch tree can keep one alive more or less unaided. Good thing I suppose. On one occasion she has caught some fish which she has cooked! She confirms that she will not waste time by hanging around trying for trans - Chukotka approval, with only a 2% (as predicted by DG Chukotka) chance of success, and she takes the plane from Magadan to Alaska. I estimate this will be around mid-September. Many things to plan for the North American leg - will DHL America be as wonderfully supportive as DHL Moscow have been, can we get some larger scale maps, real paper maps, is frozen Alaska like frozen Russia, so may questions.....

She is very interested in what is happening back home. She obviously did not know about our latest bombs, and I did not enlighten her. Spirits as ever sky high. And as usual sends love and huge thanks to everybody

Regards Geoff Hall

Latest position from Rosie on the 22/7/05   TODAY N63DEG 24.88 E140DEG
42.40.



19/7/5Hi, here are text messages I received from Rosie yesterday. Her progress has slowed down, this is due to the very mountainous nature of the area she is running in. It is also highly forested which may be making things harder. I had an inquiry about what happened to Rosie's dog that she adopted some weeks ago. I'm pleased to report that the dog has been found a good home along the way.

U R ALWAYS IN MY THOUGHYS THAT HELPS SO MUCH - SPEC HELLO
TO ALL FAM, FRIENDS, AND MY RUSSIAN GODDAUGHTERS AT
KITEZH! MANAGING ONLY 20KAV BT IT AL COUNTS

N63DEG 06.49. E139DEG 02.04.EVERY TIME I MAKE
ANOTHER DEG EAST FEEL WHOW! MIND GAMES 2 KEEP
GOING..ALSO THAT IT IS 'MAGADAN FOR MARIANNE'XX

RAINFOREST GREAT FRIEND DESPITE BUGS - MAKING TEA
FROM BIRCH TREES + RESIN FROM PINES 2 HEAL CUTS -
BOILING WILD ROSEHIPS 4 VIT C! MUCH LOVE MUM



Rosie's positions as of the 18th of July 2005

13/7 5 Hi, have received a couple of messages from Rosie, with her latest positions.

FORM SWELTERING SWAMP HAVE REACHED RAINFOREST
STUNNING - VERY REMOTE VERY WET.100S RIVERS, BLESSING TERRA
NOVA TENT OK IN STORMS RAIN. MUMX

N 63DEG 03.56. E 137DEG 50.71. MCH LOVE 2 U, FAM
AND ALL MY FANTASTIC SUPPORTERS U R VVV MUCH
APPRECIATED. MUMXX



Rosie's position on the 13th of July

6/7/5 Hi, here are a couple of recent text messages from Rosie, they are a few days old. I have been having a spot of bother with my computer, the position is from Saturday. I don't like the sound of those mosquitoes.   She has run 117km as the bird flies, since last week. Regards James.

SAFELY A X RIVER ALDAN BUGGY, ALL KIT, DOG, SELF
+ BOAT'S 2 OWNERS A 1 MORE PASSENGER SURVIVED SWEEPING
CURRENTS ON BOAT SIZE SARDINE TIN! MUM

N 62DEG 40.48. E135DEG 25.41. MOSSIES R GIANT R
HELL! MUMX



This is Rosie's position on Saturday 2 7 6.

Big thanks to Thomas Dun and the team at Namehog.net for their interest in Rosie's world run and for hosting our website for free. www.namehog.net      cheers James.

Hi, here are some more photos and Rosie's latest position on the map. I shall be mapping her progress every week now, so we can watch her progress. As you can see from the texts, Rosie has adopted a dog, I think this is great and hope they stay together to help fending-off wild animals. Conditions are still very hard with the heat, but should ease when she gets to the mountains in a few weeks. This is of course bit of a mixed blessing as she will then have to be running up huge hills over the mountains.

Regards James.

WEEKLY LOCATION FIX IS GRT IDEA, SHALL DO! HOPNG 2 CROSS ALDAN
RIVER TOMORROW. DOG CALLED DOLLAR SIB 'LIKA' WHITE
SHAGGY LARGE HAS JOIND ME. SAVED HM FROM

GETTING SHOT - HOPE TO FIND GOOD HOME 4 HIM SOMEWHERE
ENROUTE. THNKS 4 YR LOVELY MESSG RE PHOTOS - V
CHEERNG AS HOT HARD STRUGG RT NOW! MCH LOVE



Here is Rosie's latest map positions, wide view to closeup.



26/6/5Hi, things are getting quite tough for Rosie at the moment, the conditions sound horrendous, I received this text message from her yesterday. Hope to find out more when she reaches a phone box.

40 DEGREES. CAULDRON. TEMP IN WINTER -70c THS
MOST EXTRME PLCE ON EARTH - ALSO LIKE SECRET OR HIDDEN
LAND WITH OWN LANGUAGE VERY BEAUT BUT V TUFF.

I'm happy to finally be posting these great photographs taken my Geoff Hall in Yakutsk. My apologies for the delay in posting, as I had misplaced them.



More Photos to to follow soon.

James

17/6/5Hi everyone, I've just had a chat with Rosie. She is in good spirits. I had some text messages from her a few days ago that were very beautiful and touching. I thought perhaps the altitude might have got to her or something, as she sound like she was away with the fairies. She talked about people that she loved both past and present, it sounded like a wonderful insight about life the universe and everything.

When I spoke to her a a few hours ago it was on more practical matters. The environment has become rather like to the Sahara Desert, with lots of sand and high temperatures in the daytime, she said today it felt as hot as when she ran the Sahara marathon. The weather is rather strange in the area in which he is running, for the next two months is actually very hot indeed. At night time though the temperatures are plummeting right down. In winter, the temperature is -65.

The sand is being rather of a problem, as it is causing the wheels to sink in and make Hercules hard to pull, but she says she is managing. The sky is black with mosquitoes, all the locals are cursing them, however Rosie has been sent this wonderful stuff called Musquit-ex made by P20 which she is absolutely raving about, she stays it works amazingly well. She also said how fabulous the equipment sent to her by Peter Hutchinson of PHD Designs, particularly the sleeping bag that weighs only 460g. She asked me to pass on her best wishes and thanks, to everyone who is helping her and following her progress.

Regards James

14/6/5, Hi, Dena from the Kitezh Centre has emailed me with this great link to a BBC article by Sarah Rainsford. It is really good. Please click on the link below to read it.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/4088166.stm

9/6/5,Hi everyone, below is a superbly detailed write-up by Geoff Hall, following his trip to see Rosie out in Yakutsk. I have spoken to Rosie by phone and she is in wonderful spirits after seeing Geoff, they discussed many important issues about her route and safety matters. As well as stocking up on armfuls of equipment and the repairing of equipment; It has been a huge moral boost for Rosie which she will need for the difficult journey ahead, over very poor roads. She is delighted by the interest her run is generating and would like to thank all those supporting and following her progress.          Regards James

From Geoff Hall

62 N 131 E
The above is the latitude and longitude of Yakutsk, capital of the Sakha Republic. It is north of all Britain and east of Shanghai. To say Rosie has run this in 1year and 8m is too simple, difficult to take in. But she strolled into the Tyggyn Darhad (sounds partly Welsh, doesn't it) on Saturday morning on time, looking as fresh as a daisy, sparkling and bursting with energy. It seems to be a perfect weight control system, tell WeightWatchers, only 30 miles a day, never fails!

We met in this rather pleasant town, laid out in an expansive grid, laid back in the summer sunshine, showing signs of prosperity and well being - Oil at $50 I suppose - with the usual Lenin and local poets statuary. I delivered some stuff, although the additional parcels with tyres etc are still being shunted around by DHL - her own fault for not returning to Chita as planned. We did some totally amateur filming with my camcorder. I don't expect Hollywood will be beating a path to my door, but it shows Rosie live, well, energetic and in character, for all to see. I have passed this tape to ITV Wales, because they asked me to. They may use a few moments (after they have stop laughing at the quality) . I have also loads of stills. She is now fed and watered to a high standard and has had several nights in a bed!! She's well known out there in Sakha, all over the front page of the local, and autograph hunters in the street, and has had wonderful treatment from people on the road.

The weather is really nice now, and the only negative is the Siberian Mosquito, who, if packaged correctly, would be a far more potent weapon of mass destruction than anything known so far!. There were four purposes to the visit - to deliver the stuff you all sent me, to take photos and film, to discuss the venture post-Magadan, and to carry out a mid term service on Hercules the big buggy ). The first, as I say was done, and the second took up most of Saturday. The third target, - Hercules, Runner's World Spirit of Freedom, Scholastica, Columbine 2, choose the name you prefer. He was called all manner of such names during one short weekend. BUT, in spite of the miles the weather the road surface and a major knock down in Irkutsk, Hercules looks and feels much as he did when Steven Seaton and I delivered it, courtesy of Runner's World, to Omsk in August last year! The tyres are now almost completely bald, and regrettably are not exactly self sealing, but the Siberian native has been wonderfully helpful, and supplied puncture patches when necessary. Hammerite rust inhibitor paint was applied to all the steel components, and a fetching shade of (Welsh Dragon) Red was used on the back surface to deter any wayward busses. He is one smart buggy!

The fourth purpose was also achieved , in fact the subject of whether to run to the Bering Straits was never far off the agenda all weeMagadan. Now, in my estimation, Rosie, now in Yakutsk, has very approximately 1000 miles to go to Magadan, and then she will either leave Russia for Alaska, or follow her lighter-than-air heart and spirit and strike north through Chukotka towards the Bering Straits hen we last met in Irkutsk, she was persuaded of the difficulty of getting even to Magadan, and the plan was to fly Magadan - Nome (AL), but she bumped into some Canadians who claimed to have traversed Chukotka SW from the Bering Straits, and this has rekindled the mad ambition.

I probably spent about 6 of the 48 hours I was there discussing this decision, and passing on the views of those close her. she'll do what she wants in the end. A decision may be anticipated in the near future! We now know there is a DHL depot in Magadan, so another drop is possible The route from here (or rather, there, i.e., Yakutsk,) is to continue to the East, This road wiggles a bit geographically at first, heading north of east, then east, then a bi more north, then curves away south east and south to Magadan. The road passes from Yakutia (a.k.a. Sakha, - been wanting to write that for ages!) into Chukotka about half way along.

Chukotka almost certainly means huge delays and expense, probably means serious danger from wild country in hugely inhospitable times (a view reinforced by Ranulph Fiennes), and could mean injury or death resulting in a very expensive recovery. So the planned route had consolidated on the choice of running to Magadan, then plane to Alaska, backtrack to the BS , US side, and start from there. The road (only one) from Yakutsk to Magadan, the Kolyma road, built by gulag guests is very very rough, some would say only partly there, with many rivers to cross. So it does represent a big challenge in itself to a pedestrian. We established on local maps that if she is going to the BS then she should not go all the way to Magadan, but turn North about 400 miles this side. She is genuinely pondering and a decision may be made any day, or week.

Best wishes to all Geoff Hall.

(ed James Swale)

2/6/6 New text from Rosie today.

LONGNG 4 STAR TREK MARATHON! BLESS U I DON'T NEED
NE THING - JST U, A U R RIGHT HERE W ME + E, P, M
AND FAM. YAK 47K -W B GRT C GFF.MUMX

1/6/5 Hi everyone, I have just received a text on Rosie, who is now only 74 km from Yakutsk. The translation of the first part text message is that she has crossed the river Lenda, and is on the ring road to Yakutsk heading for the left bank of the river. I have recently learned that to avoid confusion the left and right back of a river is determined by looking in the direction that the river flows towards the sea. This is to avoid those embarrassing being on the wrong side of the river situations; please see map. I expect Rosie will arrive in Yakutsk around Friday. Which will be great timing as Geoff is flying out this Friday to meet her for a few days with all her new equipment and supplies.

> HVE XED RIVER LENA. RNG RD 2 YAK LEFT BANK 2
> PUNCTURES BT FIXD OK - TYRES GALLANT LAST LEGS!
> YAK 74K MUMX
>

A close up map of Yakutsk.

29/5/05Hi, many readers of this web site will know of Geoff Hall, a good friend of Rosie, who has arranged the delivery Rosie's numerous equipment drop offs, throughout her long journey, countless pairs of shoes, stove parts and food supplements. Geoff Hall is planning to travel from England to Siberia and meet Rosie in Yakutsk, which is an epic trip in itself and at his own expense. This trip is particularly vital as Yakutsk is so remote, it is the beyond the range of UPS Courier service. Geoff is loaded up to the eyeballs with equipment, for Rosie. This is quite a big deal, and I know it will be a great boost for Rosie.

I had a text from Rosie yesterday everything is well and he's making good progress. It was quite funny actually, Rosie likes to hear bits of news from the UK, anyway I was telling her about Star Wars 3 and said to her that when she got back she will be able to watch all six films in one go, at Eve (my sister) and Petes house, but that it might be one marathon even she might not handle. Anyway I got an urgent text back saying, what marathon where is the marathon, and that the message was not clear. The word marathon seemed to act like a dog whistle. I wrote back saying that I was just referring to the films, I don't know if she was relieved or disappointed.

24/5/5 Hi, received this text message from Rosie, she's making great progress really eating up the miles, I'm really looking forward to when she gets to Yakutsk and I will get to speak to her on the phone. As you can see from the text, she has improvised some extra shock absorption in her shoes by inserting bath sponges, which apparently are working really well on the rocky ground. I'm sure that one will be included in all survival manuals from now on. Regards James.

YAK 229KM! CURRENT PR O SAUCONY SHOES R REAL
HEROES - HVE DONE OVER 1000 MILES - USNG BATH
SPONGES AS GRT XTRA INSOLES! GT JOHN'P EMAIL

16/5/5
Hi, I am pleased to report that Rosie is making good progress I have received a texts messages from her, she is 627 km fromYakutsk, she mentioned that this is the time of year when the Bears wake up from hibernation, it is one of those bits of information which had me thinking what exactly does this mean? It is slightly worrying me, but I have not heard of any danger associated with bears on the main routes in the area Rosie is running, so presume things are okay; but if I hear anything different I shall pass it straight on to her.
Regards James.

1/5/5 Hi, I had a phone call from Rosie yesterday, from Tinda, she sounded very optimistic and full of energy. The big news he is that she is not going to go back to Chita after all. But instead she is going strait onwards towards Yakutsk. She said that she has got a lot of momentum going and that Yakutsk 980km away, Chita is 1,400km away and is a four-day journey by train more than a quick nip back to pick up tires and stuff. it sounds pretty horrendous. Rosie said she was confident that if the tires got punctured that she would be able to get them fixed locally as people had been so kind to her. The tooth seems to be bearable for the moment. Her article for Runners World has been written and sent off and she is very pleased with it; I shall let you know when it comes out.

Regards James

26/4/5 Hi Everyone, I have been sent this amusing article form Dena who kindly translated it from Russan.

DRIVER NAMES HIS CAR 'ROSIE'

That is what Vladimir Petrov from Ulan Ude decided to do after a meeting on the road with the well-known British traveller Rosie Swale Pope.

The driver of the car met the 58 year old Grandmother Rosie, between the towns of Skovorodino and Yerofey Pavlovitch. He was bringing the car from Vladivostock. The foreigner left Ulan Ude in December, then took to the roads of the Chita Oblast and headed towards the Far East.
The British Rosie Swale Pope set off on her round the world journey nearly a year and a half ago. Since October 2003, she has crossed through Holland, Poland, and Latvia. In Russia, her road travels mainly along the 55th Northern parallel.

Rosie usually sleeps in the forest in an arctic tent. Her day starts at 4am.   "I had actually already seen her, during the winter, with her loaded buggy" recalls Vladimir. "I asked about her in a roadside café. The owners showed me a signed photo of her, and told me that she was a very open and friendly, interesting person." On the 7th April, when the driver saw her again, he stopped and offered her a coffee. At first, Rosie didn't understand. She gestured with her hands and said: "Coffee? I don't have any coffee." But then, she watched the stranger make up the drink and boil it on a gas stove. She called him 'Santa Claus.' Vladimir gave her chocolate and biscuits. They communicated in a funny mix of Russian and English. Vladimir played a Beatles CD. The Englishwoman was delighted and even danced to it.

When Rosie realized that her new acquaintance was from Buryatia, she fetched her notebook, photos and some 'Infpol' newspaper articles written about her. "It was clear to see that no-one had upset her on the road, she wasn't afraid of anything. She was very relaxed and lively. She drank her coffee sitting on the road, having refused my offer to sit in the car. Rosie and Vladimir parted company like two old friends. After their meeting, Vladimir drove to the nearest petrol station and asked if they had seen a woman with a big coat and a buggy run past. They had indeed seen her, and Vladimir worked out that she had run a distance of 180kms in 2 weeks.
He's now preparing a 'Rosie' sticker to stick onto his car. "I'm calling it Rosie" he explains. But the driver from Ulan Ude regrets that he didn't ask her to sign his Beatles CD. "As soon as I sell this car, I will be going to get another one. I really hope to meet Rosie again on the way!"

NB Interesting fact: Skovorodino is a remote town in Siberia, famous for making frying pans. The word even translates as 'frying pan.' My Russian flatmate explained to me that although the town is very small, it used to figure on the Soviet maps along with the big cities. It was as if they were trying to make Siberia look more populated than it actually was…

The link for that article is: www.infpol.ru

18/4/05 Hi, I received a call from Rosie this weekend, she sounds well, though her tooth is giving her a a lot of pain, and it is extremely cold. She is heading towards Tinda on a road that has yet to be opened, but is a short cut. It was shown to her by the road workers who have been so kind towards her. When she gets to Tinda she will take the train back to Chita as has already been mentioned, to get her tooth fixed and to pick up her spare tyres. Rosie is very exited about her article for Runners world and is a lot less stressed out about it. She read me large portions of it and it sounded really fascinating, and full of insight about her day to day experience.



Here are some photos from the last few months, the one on the right is Rosie's tent in the morning.

6/4/05 Hi, I'm delighted to report that I received a phone call from Rosie last night. I could tell there was a slight anxiety in her voice, it flashed through my mind that that something might have happened like a wheel falling off Hercules was something, or that perhaps that the cold conditions were getting too much to bear. But what it actually turned out to be, was that she was struggling with a terrible bout of writers block for a new article she's doing for Runners World magazine. I always find it slightly funny when Rosie gets her post writing anxiety and she thinks that she can't write and that everyone will think she is no good, when she is consistently the most amazing writer. Anyway we had a good chat and she told me about how things were going.

She has been beset by a few problems on the road. She has a broken a tooth filling and crown which is giving her trouble. As I mentioned in the previous news she is heading towards the nearest rail line and station to catch a train back to Chita to pick up the vital spare tyres for Hercules, she hopes to get her tooth fixed while she is there. She is in the vicinity of Scov at the moment. People have been very kind to her and she says she has been adopted by the local road workers in the area, who are helping her fixed her stove which is not working correctly at the moment. On a lighter note, she remarked, that the weather must be improving slightly as she is only putting on four thermal vests under her other kit.

He are some photos kindly supplied by Geoff he went out to meet Rosie a couple of months ago. There are quite a number of them and I hope to put more up over the next few weeks.



Regards James

4/4/5 Hi everyone, sorry it has been little quiet on news front, I have not had much news from Rosie herself, But I will report what she is up to. Her main priority right now is to pick up some replacement tyres as the current ones are taking quite a battering on the road which is very rocky and uneven in many places. She plans to head towards the railway and take the train back to Chita to pick up her new tyres for Hercules which are being sent by DHL. Chita be furtherest point east in Russia that they have offices and a pickup point. And then she is travelling back to the point that she took the train from. Naturally Rosie is very strict about stopping in starting her running exactly where she left off on the few occasions she has had to return for something. I met with Geoff Hall and his friend Inna yesterday, they came down from London to visit me in Brighton we had a very enjoyable meeting, and I had a chance to meet Geoff in person after speaking to him so long through e-mail. Geoff has been hugely helpful and supportive to Rosie, organising her vital equipment drops over her long journey and has travelled out in person to meet Rosie in Russia on several occasions. Geoff's friend Inna who is a lovely Russian lady has recently been to Moscow to buy some important equipment and navigational aids for Rosie. We spent a lot of time discussing Rosie's adventure and studying Rosie's future route with a map of the area, which I found very helpful. Please excuse my previous location maps which were quite inaccurate, I have updated them to give a more accurate estimation of where she is. I hope to have more precision in the near future. I shall let you all know the moment I hear from Rosie, warmest regards James

22/3/05 Hi everyone, Rosie rang me last night on the satellite phone, she sounded a little horse, she is not one to complain I can tell thing is a very tough not just physically but mentally as well, she said she was finding it lonely out there in this harsh desolate place, as she is slowly eating through these miles by herself. The history of the place is adding as well I think to her melancholy mood. I urged her to keep her morale up and remember that there are a great many people here and around the world who are following her progress and wishing her the best. I hope she gets a boost in spirits from this and things get less tough for her.

Naturally her attitude is as good as ever, it is a tough challenge and she is determined, personally I'm quite daunted by how hard this challenge is particularly this stage, and the after from Yakutsk to Magadan. She has 1,200 km to go until Yakutsk, still quite a long way in these unfavorable conditions. Once again the equipment and food supplements she says are wonderful and had a long list of people to thank. Sorry it is a bit of a cop out me not listing everyone, it is a very long list, of sponsors equipment suppliers, food supplements suppliers, and friends and supporters in Russia and England. The equipment itself really is doing the business in these average temperatures of -30 degrees centigrade. The food supplements supplied by Dr Brien Welsby have been keeping her going, she says she likes the fact that she doesn't have cook them. She would particularly to thank John Ponsonby and Geoff Hall who have been working hard on getting her a GPS for the crucial stage between the Yakutsk and Magadan.

Please take a look at this map which lays out her journey for the next few months and is an idea of her position. During the next few days I shall be updating the route map link with some new maps, regards James.

Updated 4/4/5!

Here are new text messages I received from Rosie today

ABOUT 500KM FURTHER NOW - EVERY STEP A BATTLE-
BADLANDS SWAMPS BOULDERS DEAD TREES EITHER SIDE V
STONEY RD- BRINGS 2 MIND DESPERATE SUFF

BRINGS 2 MIND SUFFERNG PRISONERS STALIN
CONCENTRATION CAMPS - HARD ENOUGH WHN ONE IS V WLL
EQUIPPED AND FREE BT AM FINE SO LUCKY 2 HVE

SO LUCKY 2 HVE U, E, P, MIKIE AND WFUL JOHN P
HELPNG ME SO MCH. VV HONOURD GRATEFUL JOHN'S
GENEROUS OFFER - THINK U, RW, GEOFF JOHN LIASN

16/3/5 Received this great update for Geoff and the photos as promised, kindly supplied by Sergey Drachev.

Well once again the call comes at an interesting moment. Following calls received in Whitechapel Underground with my arms full of dry cleaning, and in Borough High Street under very noisy repair by the men from Tarmac, yesterday's came through in the bread queue in the bakers in Wapping Lane It is exciting and thrilling to hear her voice, clear from the Siberian night, perhaps minus 50, her words painting an imaginary sparkling night sky in E1. Rosie's immense sheer energy and her pure delight in the venture are undimmed - growing if anything. The Russian Tourist Board should capture and bottle it! Progress is probably around 20 - 25 km per day, shoes are taking a beating, but holding up well. Rosie was in her Terra Nova as we spoke, but was planning to do a further 5 - 10 km by moonlight when we finished the call, at 3 a.m. People, villages are becoming fewer, but the road is at least obvious, if rough. Current issues are some very worn tyres on Hercules, and the need for a GPS to get her through to Magadan. No punctures yet, but the roads are very poor, and new ones are quite urgent. This will be done, although it will slow her down since the most convenient delivery point is behind her, at Chita, and a quick backtrack will be required. (DHL will do this for us, and a general alert to all, I'll happily act as collection point for this dispatch. I suggest anything to be sent should be with me (Leadenhall Street) by next Wednesday (23rd). The GPS issue is likely to be solved by a Russian person acquiring said device from a Russian supplier, who will load it with Russian maps of the Russian Far East. Runner's World are, magnificently, sponsoring this acquisition as well as all their support for the Sat Phone and expenses. She will have this by the time she gets to Yakutsk, which will be in about 2 months time. Then ............The Road to Magadan! More stories that people are travelling this road successfully, using 4WD and ferries, interspersed with the occasional story that the road does not exist! Regrettably it does, having been built by long term guests of Stalin last century, but it is certainly not well travelled, and in the summer may be muddy, and indistinct. Hence, the GPS. Will speak to Steven and James concerning GPS separately shortly. (Steven - Inna has not made contact with Natasha in Chita yet, trying for tomorrow morning, and then the Moscow dealership) James, could you forward this to your new contacts? Copy me in, and I'll add them to my list. Speak to you later.

Geoff Hall



Rosie, Sergey Drachev and friends taken around Chita

15/3/05 Hi everyone, I recently received this e-mail from Rosie, the main issue at the moment is getting new tyres to her, Hercules being so vital to her, I hope to have clearer news about this shortly. I believe this part of her journey is going to be definitely one of the hardest.

Dear Jimmy Iam in Cheryshersk about 400k on frm Chita. v cold but all is well. Road has been called the road to hell, because it has rocks on it sharper than wolves\s teeth. However have been shown much kindness here and am using pASTOR\S LAPTOP WHICH IS IN gERMAN / SO CAN\t use it v well as you can see. Thank John Ponsonby vvvv much / willlet him know as soon as I know what is happebning re GPS RW are getting on \i think, but shall check. l;ts o love MUMXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

I have some new photos of Rosie and friends which will be added shortly, regards James.

8/3/5 Hi everyone, received this text from Rosie yesterday, as you can tell it sounds like it is quite tough going at moment, the weather is terrible, but only -20 she says, only. As far as I know she is proceeding on to Cheryshevsk where she will attempt to sort Hercules' tyres out. Regards James.

YOUR MESSG BROUGHT TEARS O JOY - ANDHUGE XTRA
STRENGHT. ONLY -20 NOW BT TERRIBLE GALES..AND V
SHARP STONEY RD 120ISH 2 CHERYSHEVSK.MUMXXX

POOR BRAVE HERCULES GONE BALD! WFUL RW R GNG SEND
NEW TYRES. MANY WOLVESHOWLNG MIGHTS. DON'T CME
INTO TENT LUCKILY! ALL WL

3/3/5Hi everyone, just got these messages from Rosie, she has to be particularly careful about how much she uses the phone as there are very few villages and people for this stage of her run. I'm keeping a lookout for messages from her for safety reasons just in case something happens and she needs help. It is just a precaution, the route that she is running has been planned out carefully by her with local knowledge. As you can tell everything is going well, but still getting some very cold temperatures, Rosie says that she is used to it by now and equipment that she has is excellent, I don't know how she is doing it myself, I am completely amazed by her strength.

Regards James

DEAR JIM, -40 AT NIGHT ON 1ST MARCH! DAYS ONLY
-20 THO! GTTNG EVEN MRE REMOTE. WLL CONCENTRATE
SENDNG FULL IF BRIEF REPORT ONLY 2 U

WLL SEND WEEKLY, TARGET SEND TUESDAYS - TILL NXT
TOWN MOGOTA 550K.NEED 2 CONSERVE PHNE. TELL WEB
MUM. CN A LOVE RECEIVE THO! ESP YRS!!MX

24/2/5 Hi Everyone, Rosie has set out on the next stage of her journey heading for Yatuka after a lovely time in Chita where she was able to rest and enjoy some very warm hospitality, she would like to thank everyone for there kindness. Also received this nice photo from Natasha.   Also Please read the great update17/2/05 supplied by Geoff, my apologies for the late posting.   James

Dear James!

I am Natasha. I live in Chita. I was communicating with Rosie when she had been staying here. We had a trip with Rosie to Chita region North. It was wonderful to contact with her. She is great! She asked me to give photos to
you.

Best regards,
Natasha Kochneva

17/02/2005 The telephone was answered very promptly and in slightly slurred Russian. I asked for Rosie in my very best Russian, received the usual muffled guffaws, and then equally muffled but not slurred, there was our Rosie. She managed to exit the birthday party, which I had interrupted and we talked about various running things. As usual, in wonderful spirits - not sure how closely related to the party this was - and full of energy as ever. She has picked up plenty of supplies at Chita by the wonderful kindness of DHL., and Hercules in now bursting at the seams even more. having been fully repaired by a small army of young engineers. Her hosts are members of a Siberian environmental survey team who are carrying out various exploratory expeditions, and she is joining them on one such this weekend. Fretting a little about loss of running time, she is nevertheless rightly convinced that this is part of the whole running Siberia experience, and will add much to the overall venture, enriching the memories and enlarging indirectly all our knowledge. So she will be in Chita until next Tuesday probably, and then set off on the near - 2000km to Yakutsk. All local people are taking great interest in her welfare, even to the extent that she does not always have to wash her hair in the frozen river every time. W are all learning about these wonderful people. All things working well, tent will be fine with a little patching, stove well behaved, PHD kit top class, and the P20 that Ann sent is a real face saver and protector. I think she said that apparently the mosquitoes are still around ( !! at - 50) with a "PhD in nastiness" She's been advised to try and have a GPS device for the Yakutsk - Magadan stretch, as sometimes the road is "a little indistinct". HMMMM. She's asking a contact to look locally, but may come back to us on this one. Apparently the Railway Institute is a super establishment where they are being very helpful. In particular letting her use their Internet terminal. She is writing her next articles and will email them to you Stephen when they are polished. Some of you may know some of this already, but I thought I'd send it out anyway. Next DHL parcel from here will go to Yakutsk, but that is about two months away.
Regards Geoff Hall (ed)

14/2/5 Hi, here is an email from Rosie. Hi Jimmy, I got to Chita yesterday.. I am being very very spoilt and looked after by Sveta and her family, who are friends of Natasha and Fedor's. Wonderful things always happen when things are difficult. The right hand shaft of my buggy broke a few days ago. I was struggling badly pulling it along with a rope which hurt my back - then out of the blue a vehicle arrived and out got 7 young men who all looked just like James Bond. It turned out they were 'metalists' - they collect scrap metal from the wide plains of Siberia and sell it to China - anyway they welded the shaft and - yes, just like Sveta - looked after me and helped e a great deal Even in lonely Siberia, human magic is around...Please thank Evie so much for the fantastic photos and presents from Disneyland! Mikie looks so big nwo! V handsome and grown up.. Also thank you for the great books and the bra! And many thanks to dear Dr Brian Welsby, Saucony, Terra Nova and all my fabulous friends back home. Most of all to you Jim for keeping the web alive and going so vvv well - which makes me feel not alone. Loneliness is still a hard problem. Somehow the fact that I am meeting wonderful people here, and makes me miss you and the rest of the family and those I love back home even more. And you are all with me in my mind and heart all the time. lots and lots a lots of love, Mum Mumxxxx

13/2/05 Hi everyone, had a chat with Rosie yesterday, she has reached Chita and is enjoying a few days to rest and recover. She is receiving some wonderful hospitality from the scientific Institute in the area, she's staying with someone who works for the institution. Apparently there is a big local conservation issue regarding a giant oil pipe running through the area. Next week Rosie is going on a four-day scientific trek with them as they are trying to raise awareness of this issue. There were a few dramas on the way to Chita. Hercules Rosie's trolley device broke its axel she repaired it with string but this gave her an awkward running position for her back. Luckily very soon after it happened a group of men driving along stopped they happen to be expert welders and took Rosie and Hercules to their workshop and fixed the problem and then took her back to the point they had found Rosie, for her to continue. Food wise she has been surviving on buck wheat and a lumps of fat. The vitamin pills and athletic supplements supplied by Brian Welsby, she says have been fantastic. The next stage of the journey is going to be probably the hardest part as she swings up towards Magadan at the North-East far point of Russia. She is taking this time for careful planning of her route and acquiring of extra equipment, she will be getting a GPS satellite navigation device. She says that her biggest strength is that she is used to the conditions and fortunately the weather is starting to get a little warmer, but civilisation is a little bit more sparse as she heads on. Her next port of call will be Yatuka when she leaves Chita. Also Rosie has written a new article for Runners World magazine that will be out in the march edition which will be well worth getting hold of.

Regards James Swale.

At last recent pictures of Rosie.

2/2/5 Hi everyone, I have some great new photos from Luke Tchalenko the photographer for the recent Sunday Telegraph article, Luke has kindly said I could use these photographs for the web site as Rosie's run is raising money for several charities. However they were given on the understanding that they were copyrighted and for the use of this site only, I will be very grateful if anyone wishing to acquire the photos would contact Luke through this link here. Things are quite tough at the moment for Rosie as the weather is very cold the moment, here is a recent text I got from her.

200K FROM CHITA, GOING SLOWLY, CAUTIOUSLY GTTNG THERE OK.
WINNING BATTLE THNKS 2 U ALL, GREAT SUPPORT - LOVE AND
HUGS, MUM

Great to see mum looking so radiant in these photos



Photos by Luke Tchalenko copyrighted

26/1/5 Hi everyone, received a text message from Rosie today,
Regards James

GRT RE TELEGRAPH. HAD 2 BREAK OUT O FROZEN
SLEEPNG BAG LIKE HOUDINI 2DAY, TEMPS PLUMMETED BT OK.
CHITA 250K. LOVE U V MCH. MUM

26/1/5 Hi here are some more photos from some older film rolls as you can judge by the whether, from Russia a few months ago.

25/1/20 Read the article on line by following this link to the Sunday Telegragh's website here

An article about Rosie in this Sunday's Sunday Telegraph Newspaper. ( Sun 23rd of Jan 2005, do get a copy!)

21/1/05Hi everyone, I received a call today from a journalist from the Telegraph newspaper, he had just interviewed Rosie for in article that will be in this Sunday's, Sunday Telegraph newspaper. I am looking forward to reading it with great interest as most of the communication from Rosie comes from text messages from her satellite phone, which I never that easy when her fingers are frozen. Rosie herself is in good spirits, a little battered by the extreme weather conditions, but the equipment is holding up well. A few inconveniences like having to take food, water and the stove to bed with her to stop it freezing, and sometimes even that not working.                                             Warm regards James

Here are some great additional photos passed to me by Geoff who was given them by Rosie when he met her in Siberia a little while back                      These show some of the people she met on the road and the kind hospitality she has received.

20/1/05 A call from Rosie yesterday,

360km from Chita; all well, days stretching out a little, covering 20 - 25 km per day, but locals v. hospitable ( I bet they never known anything like it! ) which of course slows her down! Still on wheels, no further kit problems, small discoveries like covering the pan with a fragment of survival blanket speeds up boiling. Any comments from any scientists?

Sunday Telegraph Moscow have decided to go for an interview, set off last night, flew to Ulan Ude, corralled a taxi, and successfully tracked her down. An email suggests it went well! I have tried to inveigle the___ into professional jealousy, and have them scoot off east as well, but it seems they are more interested in mere tittle tattle such as "outposts of tyranny" Major thanks as usual from R to all working for
her.

Geoffrey Hall

14/1/05 Hello gang,

A call from Rosie yesterday pm. 400km from Chita, still short days in terms of light and running opportunities. Very hospitable local people, but at - 50, everything takes on a different degree of difficulty. Good connections to the Sat phone.

A parcel has just gone off to Chita, with more shoes and food supplements, and spare tent poles. Another is being prepared now, with more poles (!), elastic, tapes, and survival blankets, and rucksack covers (Goodness knows what she's doing with them!). Anything with me by next Tuesday can go with this next delivery.

Best wishes

Geoffrey Hall

13 /1/05 Hi, I got a text messages and Rosie yesterday, which I was delighted to receive as we have not been in contact for while, she also left me a message on my answer phone while I was out and she sounded in good spirits. She is having a real problem with things freezing though, she has had to start using salt as toothpaste as her toothpaste tubes are frozen solid even if she takes it to bed with her, saying as well the bread is hard enough to build roads with, she wanted to give a special thanks to Brown-Wellby powdered food supplements which are great she says because they do not freeze, and also P20 sun screen, which is vital because the sun's bright despite the low temperatures that get down to -50. It is also quite testament to equipment she has been supplied that he is able to handle these conditions. I'm very much looking forward to speak to Rosie over the phone and get more information and discuss safety arrangements with her, as this is probably the toughest part of her journey. Should have some new pictures soon also.
Regards James

Hey

I am an Australian traveler who was on the trans-Siberian route from Beijing into Europe about 2 weeks ago. I met your wonderfull mother on the train as she was going back to fix some of her Russian visa complications. I thought you would like to know that she was in wonderful spirit and constantly on a natural high. she has been an inspiration to me and my fellow travelers. Once again it was an absolute pleasure to meet your mother as she has inspired all that have met her. Look after yourself and each other.

Kind regards.

Arvin jamshidi

7/1/05Happy new year one and all - I hope you had a good one and are recovering well !! I had a short call from Mum. She sounded fine but very cold - unsurprisingly. She said she had been captured by some friendly souls and so had spent the New Year in company. She also said it was about 35 degrees below. Mum said she was about 200km east of Ulan Ude traveling approximately 10km at day. Everything is taking so much longer because of the cold and packing and unpacking, cooking, even getting dressed take much more time. Love to all

Evie xxx

28 12 04 Hi everyone, I receive this wonderful message for Natasha and Fador I would like a share it.

James, hallo! Rosie is well, she's on the way to Chita. Here are notes of our Christmas party+ The Christmas Celebration We couldn't help thinking of Rosie since she left us in Utulik. We sent encouraging shot messages on her phone, we got some new information from the homepage, once she even called me on Sunday morning! It was good news to learn she's all right, she got the visa and was planning to leave Ulan-Ude. After that call the idea to congratulate her with the most wonderful holiday appeared! We were discussing and preparing everything thoroughly - to make a real holiday is not a trifle! The decorations, tiny Christmas tree, presents, tasty things and great number of tools to mend and modernize Rosie's stroller were taken. There are only two persons who have an access to the stroller - its inventor-producer and Fedor! He was ready to improve the Fedor-Hercules-The-Spirit-of-Freedom (the new name of the kalyaska" which we learnt later)! Now there was another problem - what way to choose to find our Rosie. According to the map there are several roads to Chita, the inner voice insisted to follow the main road M55! 10 km are behind, another 10 km+ It was time to ask any of the lorry-drivers if they had seen the marathoner. But suddenly outside the road on the snow we saw the trace of the wheel, here was the second one - now we were sure that our chase was about to finish! Another turn on the road - Oh, it's not a mirage! The stroller is at the café! We were so exited that we stayed for some time outside and then drove forward to look for the place good for camping. It was a beautiful place saved from the winds with fur-trees. Now it was time to greet our traveler! We came into the café - it was rather empty, in the corner wearing a fur childish hat wrapped in sleeping bags was Rosie. We stayed at the bar, when Rosie saw the familiar faces her eyes were getting bigger and bigger! What a noise was there! She began to tell everything had happened lately. Fedor and I hurried her up a bit - it was getting dark and we had to cover 4 km more to stop for the night. I drive the magic van and they together - Rosie and Fedor - went pulling the stroller. They talked all the way, what amused me - understood each other completely (in spite of the fact Fedor learnt the phrase Marry Christmas!" on the way to Ulan-Ude during 5 hours!)!! At last the pleasant fuss began - Fedor was making up a fire for preparation Christmas supper, I was decorating the inner of the van, laying the table while Rosie was putting up her tent, changing the clothes. It was dark when we gathered in the saloon of the van - we drank hot red wine which was so good after that cold! Endless talks, laughing, tasty food, presents+ Fedor and Natasha were magicians that fabulous night as Rosie said!!! In the morning Rosie was the first who made hot coffee for all of us - I saw the steam through the doorway of her tent. Everyone was busy that dull morning: Fedor was mending the stroller; Rosie was packing and unpacking her clothes. We made many pictures of us, of Rosie with her practical presents. We settled to see each other again in Magadan with new ideas of modernizing kalyaska"+ Last embraces and on the main road we went to the west and Rosie - to the east! All the way back we were keeping silent thinking of that feast, of that strong and fragile woman at the same time full of energy and love to the surrounding world and life itself! Hope it's not our last meeting. Rosie wished Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to her family she loves so much, to her sponsors and all the supporters!

With New Year's congratulations, Natasha.

Christmas message 25/12/04 Hi everyone, I have just had a call from Rosie via her satellite phone. She said the weather is absolutely freezing, she recently bought a thermometer which is reading -45 degrees centigrade brrr. I asked her if she was okay safety wise and she assured me she was okay, despite having thousands of ice crystals inside her tent. She says she has so many layers of clothing on the can hardly move. Rosie would like to give heartfelt thanks to Natasha and Fador who traveled 500 km to spend Christmas with her. Words cannot describe what wonderful people they both are. I thank you too for taking care of mum. Rosie also mentioned that her determination level is as high as ever despite the cold and that she would like thank all friends and supporters and wish everyone a very happy Christmas.

Dear Rosie supporters,

Rhiannon and I had an amazing phone call with Rosie this morning and she said she will be happy to chat with anyone who wants to call her in Ulan Ude, which is 9 hours ahead of UK time. She plans to leave there on Monday, en route to Chita. The number is 007-3012-212064. We found a very cheap calls from UK to Russia number you might want to use: 08444 620 620 then follow instructions. 2p per minute. I have attached a summary of our conversation with Rosie this morning as a sneak preview as we intend to use it in our Ecologia Trust Newsletter due out in January. Rosie is still wearing her Kitezh T shirt and is spurred on by the steady trickle of donations to Kitezh that come to us on her behalf. Pleased do encourage your friends to support Rosie in this way. At the moment Rosie has sufficient personal funds, but if she starts to run low on funds we will let you know.

A very happy Christmas to you all, and enjoy the luxury of a warm home with family and friends close by – what Rosie misses most of all.

Liza

18/12/04 Hi everyone, I had a great chat with Rosie yesterday, after a long period without contact, I was delighted to hear that she sounded in good health and good spirits despite a rather arduous week of having to travel out of Russia to Mongolia in order to renew her Visa with all sorts of uncertainties about whether she will be able to get one, as apparently diplomatic relations are not as warm as they could be. But all went well she got the visa and took the 24-hour train journey back to Ulan Ude in Russia where she left from. I do think she is quite tough to the able to handle the train journey let alone camping in -20 degrees.

I asked her how she is coping with life and about her daily routine. She said one of the big problems is the amount of snow she has to melt for drinking water. What she does is fill up a carrier bag finding the cleanest snow she can, her petrol stove is her most vital bit of equipment, thankfully fuel is plentiful and comes in all sorts of containers mostly old lemonade or beer bottles. Also Rosie comments that there are loads of very cheeky mice about which hang about around the tent door which he leaves food for. She has been eating a lot of local foods things like bread, buckwheat and lumps of pork fat also very good jam made from local berries which he praised very highly. Rosie does not planned to stay long in Ulan Ude, for one thing she says that the central heating is so hot she is getting toasted . Also she mentioned that she is writing another article for runners world which will be out soon. She is sad not be in England around this time and is missing her grandson very much. She wishes everyone the best and thanks you all for your support.

Regards James

9/12/04 I received a lovely call from Mum (Rosie) on Tuesday this week. She had just arrived at Ulan Ude and was waiting a few days before taking a brief "holiday" in Ulaan Bataar in Mongolia where she will pick up her new visa. Rosie sounded on good form and completely recovered from pneumonia. She said it is very cold but surprisingly better than last winter because the snow is so much drier, I can only assume this is because it is so so much colder!) . Her next major stop after getting a new visa will be Chita and assume that will be a place for some hard decisions.

To all her fans, helpers and supports she again sends her most heart felt thanks. As the journey gets harder physically I know that she gets so much of her mental strength from thoughts and support of all those watching and encouraging her from wherever they are in the world. Mum asked me to say that she really does appreciate all the e-mails that have come in although she can only pick them up from time to time and very often is unable to reply due to shortness of time or poor connection.

As her daughter I also thank you for keeping watching this site. She is such a precious person and I feel that you are all helping with the great task of getting her around the world and back to her family.

3/12/04 Hi, I've just been send these wonderful pictures by Natasha which shows the countryside at different times of the year that Rosie has been running through. Also I was forwarded a brief message Rosie that all as well, she jokes about tying some of the wolves that are in the area to help pull her trolley. There is a slight concern in my mind though as although I don't want to go with the stereotype, but generally wolves are not a good thing is what I'm thinking, though am afraid I don't know much about nature and shall hope they are nice and timid. Regards James



22/11/04 Hi everyone, I got wonderful e-mail from Natasha and her friend Fador, who who met Rosie and gave her some very kind hospitality and supplied these pictures. Many thanks James.



Hello, James!

I'm writing from Siberia, Baikal. My name is Natasha. We met Rosie. Now she's on the way to Ulan-Ude. She's all right. We send some our notes, impressions about our meeting. Your mother is a GREAT person!

Predictable meeting with the green-haired woman

11.11.2004

Once my friend Fedor told me about a woman with a stroller he had met recently. It was a bright day. He expected to see her again in a definite place on our way to Irkutsk. How surprised I was to see someone busy with packing a stroller near the café (75 km from the lake Baikal) at the very place my Friend had told me. Rosa and Fedor met as if they were friends for years! The lady had partly green hair as punks usually have. Later she explained it was after the accident on the road. So we had some coffee and learnt a bit about Rosie, her plans and mission. We settled to fetch some petrol and favorite Rosie’s grechka (this way “buckwheat” sounds in Russian!) on our way back.

12.11.2004

It was getting dark, the sun had set down the nearest hill and the evening frost was essential. We were both glad to meet again. The petrol and home-made strawberry-jam with grechka fitted well to the coming supper. She didn’t let us stay with her for a long time – it was frosty and she had to set up a camp. We inspired her that in 55 km a hot Russian banya, warm bed, tasty food and we as well would be waiting for her! It was a good reason to hurry up as we learnt later!!!

Hurrah! Rosie is at our place at last!

15-16.11.2004

At last on Monday evening we saw a familiar moving outline on the road. We felt so exited!

As we learnt later it was a real break-through for her after the illness – 24 km she had covered. Some hot tea was good after such a long distance, while the traditional Siberian dish “omul-on-sticks” was preparing on the fire! Endless talks, laughing, the banya with the fur tree and already unhabitual bed with a pillow and a sheet crowned another day of the journey. This night her sleeping bags, Hercules, primus – all her crew had a rest, so necessary break as it seemed to us. The next day was so sunny and warm as if the surrounding world was happy and joyful with us. Baikal was in all its beauty: calm blue surface of the pure water, mountains so clearly seen on the opposite shore, white picks of Hamar-Daban. Picturesque landscapes, been already covered by the marathoner, passed by out of the mini-van’s windows so quickly like a film. Minerals of the private museum in the small town of Sludyanka shared some secrets of wisdom, long living and beauty with Rosie. Phone calls of her friends and fellow countrymen in the evening reminded us of the coming parting…

“One day you’re used to seeing people off. But people you love are always in your heart, so they are with you.” Rosie

17.11.2004

The day of the leaving began. All the things were packed again into the stroller, which felt cheerful after Fedor’s “golden hands” (as Rosa told herself).

Atypically warm and sunny weather for that period of November was a good sign for all of us and she set off, leaving us thinking what incredibly strong and rich, both physically and spiritually, people are among us!

We are the part of each other’s life. And if our thoughts, our faith in her, our admiration of this lady mean anything, it will help her to overcome all the difficulties!!!

18/11/04 Hi everyone, had some new messages through from Rosie, she is trying a high garlic diet suggested by kind local people to help her chest, she says it is working quite well. The problem is to do with the cold temperatures as low as of -30 which can be uncomfortable, she was slightly disconcerted to hear a local say it was not really cold yet! The people of Siberia have been so friendly and kind, and all is well.

I thought I would add this, which is one of the texts I received from Rosie which I found quite amusing
THERE APPARENTLY R WOLVES IN THESE MTS - BT THEY
HAVEN'T COME 2 DINNER - BT LOTS OF PRETTY MICE
INSPECT TENT - ALWAYS LEAVE SOME BREAD 4 LUV MUM

&&&&&&&

12/11/04 Hi everyone, I have just had a text from Rosie and am pleased to report she's making a very good recovery. She feels she is being quite lazy as he is only doing 10 to 15 km per day!! And that she is more determined than ever and sends her regards the everyone, James

9/11/04 A brief conversation with Rosie this morning, well two actually, the secondto confirm the inward delivery of several emails/SMS's all at once. She says that the bus is ok, although the scars may take a little time to heal. She has a bus of her own now, a beautiful drawing by the bus driver's son, now attached to Hercules as a good luck charm. As usual any potential negatives from the experience are completely ruled out, and replaced by several positives!

Obviously the pneumonia diagnosis and treatment is a big plus, and I have to say that when we met west of Baikal on 12/10, nobody would have guessed that she was suffering from anything at all - except perhaps the constant rain.
The resilience of Hercules is still a source of great confidence, and the wisdom of a steel "chassis" has just been amply demonstrated!!

The temperature is falling constantly, and in this regard the new Terra Nova tent is wonderful - huge thanks to TN - and the slightly larger Saucony shoes are also a super idea - mega thanks to Saucony. Welsby supplements are without doubt boosting her health - thanks to Dr M. She wants to discuss breathing at minus 60 - Steven, stand by for a call.

She is about 50 km east of Baikal, slowly building up the daily distance again. In my very rough judgment, UU is now about 450km ahead, and given recovery and weather restrictions , this means at least 20 days, so ETA might be November 30th. Rhiannon/Sayana, does this present any problems regarding the invitation/visa plans?

Many thanks to Jimmy, for disseminating all the important information via the website - apparently it is well visited in
Siberia!!

Regards to all Geoffrey Hall

4/11/04 Good morning all.
Just to let you know that Rosie had a minor accident a couple of days ago when she and a bus had a minor collision and Rosie was knocked over. She received a cut to her head and a bruised leg. The bus driver was absolutely devastated and took Rosie to the local hospital where they diagnosed pneumonia, which she probably had had for three weeks. She was then transferred to the regional hospital in Irkutsk where she has received excellent care and had a complete check over. Apparently her heart is like a 20 year old.

Tomorrow, Friday, the stitches will come out and the busdriver will pick her up and take her back to where the accident happened. She will stay there for a couple of days and then be back on the road again, very slowly.
She is so sorry that she hasn't been able to stay in touch with you all but the signal on her sat phone is awful at the moment. She's been phoning me so I could sort out the insurance people , who has been marvelous, and Mike of course.
As soon as she will have a good signal again she will phone you all but she wants me to tell you that she is fine, nothing to worry about and can't wait to get back on the road.
Regards
Ann

26/10/4 Hello everyone, I spoke to mum this weekend and had a nice long chat with her she was very glad to have arrived in Irkutsk, to have a bath, sleep in a bed and relax for a day or two. As has been mentioned she has been rather feverish as a result of a tic bite, although she was inoculated against the major danger of these little creatures she was forced to take the antibiotics that she brought with her.

I asked about the attempted robbery, what happened was some sort of woods person had seen her use her satellite phone, he had been appearing a few times and then finally came up to Rosie and threatened her with a knife and demanded her phone. To this, Rosie pushed the knife away and the would-be robber ran off in a state high anxiety. I asked her what had been going through her head and she said because she had experienced so much hospitality and goodwill from everyone else she had met she was not frightened at the time but afterwards was very shaken up and worried that this person might be waiting for her somewhere but this man was clearly thinking that the police might be after him and had disappeared. Just thought I would fill you in on the details, it is sort of old news really.

Rosie sounded in such great spirits on the phone, and we discussed the Visa situation for her to enter Russia again which as mentioned already is causing a minor headache with all the bureaucracy. And we talked about her goal of Magadan 4600 miles away, which she estimates she will be arriving in April, at which point she will have run from Temby in Wales to the complete length of Russia. She asked me also thank everyone again for their kind support. Warmest regards James.

21/10/04Good day to all.

Firstly I apologise for this news letter being slightly late, but as it turns out that is an opportunity not a problem. I
have had little time to sit and send since returning from Baikal, and this information is about a week after the event. However, Michael has spoken to her since then and Rhiannon and others have been in touch on the visa issue.

Inna and I set off from Irkutsk in a car in pouring rain to drive westwards. We believed that Rosie was about 200 km from Irk, and we simply looked out for her. The terrain there is nicely undulating, and the flora is just beautiful Siberian woodland in lovely autumn colours! Even on what was just like an English autumn grey drizzle day. Just like today, in fact.

Miraculously, we met as she had paused briefly by the roadside, but right outside a petrol station with a Kafe. The usual amazing Rosie smile as we drew up, and a Dr Livingstone meeting ensued. We towed Hercules into the petrol station, and sat down in the kafe. The ladies were in the process of washing the floor, but I think every customer - may be 3 or 4 - made it dirty again. We ordered solyanka and trimmings, which was just what was wanted. Inna said that the Solyanka was a rather oily Siberian version, and perfect for the conditions!

After food we set about exchanging equipment. I gave her the wonderful Quasar high altitude low temperature mountain tent that Terra Nova have so generously provided, the brand new stove that Rosker have kindly sent (it
was amazing that a newly very very sensitive and security aware Aeroflot let it through the security checks - it must look very suspicious on the X ray screen), and some more shoes from Saucony, carefully selected for the conditions and foot swelling and sock volume by the wonderful Wendy. Additionally, a sleeping mat, a compass, some thick socks, and some new Sorbathane insoles helped boost her equipment level for the next few months!

In return she gave me the wettest dampest smelliest old Saturn bivi tent there has ever been. I was so grateful. ( Mark T-N, it's coming your way!!) We set out the Quasar on the floor in the middle of the kafe, under the puzzled smiles of the staff. ( Huh - they run a kafe in the middle of Siberia that does not serve tea or coffee!). This - our feet, not the Quasar - made the floor thoroughly dirty and wet again, but a simple ebullient " ya lyublyu Rossya, i Sibirya krasivaya" from our lady had them eating out of her hand. Quite appropriate for a cafe, I suppose. At this meeting I would say she was in very good shape, Obviously no extra body weight beyond the pure muscle required, and spirits are constantly high.

Michael has since spoken to her, and apparently she has been unwell for a day or so, bitten by something rather than a virus or anything like that, and is now recovered. A kindly soul took her in for a short while, and she is on the road again to Irkutsk. The other complication that has occurred is that the Sat phone blocked itself, but AST - the service providers - have helped out wonderfully with the unblock code and she will have this when she arrives in Irkutsk which should be tomorrow 21st. SHE HAS JUST THIS MINUTE CALLED, HAVING GOT THE UNBLOCK CODE FROM SAYANA, - TO WHOM MEGA THANKS - AND THE PASSING STRANGERS WHO CONVEYED THE MESSAGE TO SAYANA, THEY ARE UNKNOWN!!!!. She is still fine, a slight croakiness but says all the new equipment is wonderful. The days are cold and wet, not yet any real snow, the nights are heavy frost, and mornings dark. She is 20 km from Irkutsk, and expects to arrive evening of the 21st. She will call almost everyone from there, and of course sends her love to every one on this mailing list She will have some days to sort out the new visa, and sends huge thanks to Rhiannon for all she has done in this regard.

We had a long conversation about planning for the stretch beyond Irkutsk. She said to me that the 4600 km from Irkutsk to Magadan is the next challenge, and the possibilities beyond that remain open. If enough information can be found about Chukotka and the far north east, she may try for the Bering Straits on foot. If no reliable information is available, then she accepts that the Magadan to Nome, Alaska segment may have to be done by transport. She accepts that this would be better than failure on the ground, or worse. She will let everyone know of her intentions in this regard as soon as possible. Michael, she will call you, obviously, but says she is now perfectly well. She sounds so! Jimmy, she sends "all love and big hugs. You're doing great work!" Sarah B, I have some books/diaries for you. Sarah R, your last opportunities for an item are Yakutsk, in about two/three months, or Magadan in four/five months!!! There's a thrilling prospect! Steven, I will call you separately if I may. Mark, she is wondering about whether she might have a ground sheet protector for the Quasar, as she is worried about rough and rocky ground damaging it!! I'll call you.

Geoffrey Hall

18/10/04 Hello everyone, everything is okay but last week someone tried to steal Rosie's equipment a highway man as she described, but was unsuccessful and Rosie is fine. I was very concerned about this and pressed for more details by text message and she assured me she was totally fine and seem to have brushed the incident off and did not seem keen to further details so I did not press at least it at least until I get chance to chat with her over the phone. Also Rosie has had some problems with the satellite phone which she accidentally unsubscribed from, which is the reason she has been out of contact for a little while, I understand this will be rectified very shortly. She is very soon to be reaching Irkutsk by lake Baykal, her estimated date of arrival is the 21st of October. I am looking forward to speaking to her then.

My sister Eve has just scanned me a map of the area Rosie is traveling through in Siberia. Many thanks and regards to all those following Rosie's progress. James

Happy birthday mum, well done, one quarter of the globe run so far. Love Jim

MCH, MCH LOVE 2 U, EVIE,PETE, MIKIE- ALL FAM IRELAND
A EVRYWHRE. GALES HRE, BT SIB SO BEAUT - STLL
CAN'T BELIEUE I'VE GT SO FAR IN YR.MUMX

Here are some photos kindly sent in by Denis and friend who met Rosie en route, many thanks



To Rosie’s allies worldwide,

Saturday 2nd October is Rosie’s 58th birthday and the first anniversary of her Run Around the World. To date, as far as we can calculate, she has run over 5,000 miles!

On Tuesday 28th September Rosie was 535 kilometres from Irkutsk and the first snow had fallen – adieu mosquitoes! Her expected time of arrival in Irkutsk, on the shores of Lake Baikal is 16th October. There ends the easy part of Rosie’s journey through Russia. THEN she will plan for her next big leg towards Mogadan in the North East of Russia. Once she has a visa for her second year in Russia, she will need to plan the next stage of her run very carefully. The winter is bitter and temperatures will range between 30-60 degrees below zero. Beyond Mogadan there are no roads at all. Currently, Rosie’s rationale for continuing north through the winter is that it is much easier to cross the rivers when they are iced over, and that she will be able to follow the tracks of transport trucks travelling north. Her marvellous new buggy, will have it's wheels replaced by skis and she has her arctic tent and clothing to keep her warm. However, if it all proves to be too difficult to manage, she will find a quiet place along the way to make her winter hibernation and start up again in the spring.

To those of us who have been with Rosie since the start of this great adventure it is simply extraordinary that she has achieved such an enormous distance in just one year. Her article recently published in Runner’s World magazine describes her first few months, and her first encounter with Eastern European winter. It is well worth a read – do look for it on British bookstands. She has run a long way since then, and has encountered nothing but hospitality, generosity and friendliness, doubtless because that is what she radiates to everyone she meets.

Along her way Rosie has flown the Kitezh banner to show her support for the orphan children who live there. Having a worthy cause that benefits children spurs Rosie on, and gives her an extra boost when the going gets tough. We are very grateful to all who have sponsored Rosie’s run for Kitezh Children’s Community and hope you will continue to do so. And thanks too to those of you who have sent donations to support Rosie personally as this took a weight off her mind. Every time she calls in she asks us to thank everyone for all your support, in every way.

As her Satellite phone is expensive, paid for by Runner’s World, it is more economical for those of you who wish to greet Rosie on her birthday to send your greetings to me and I will pass them on to her. I will be in Moscow and in phone contact with Rosie until early November.

Let’s each of us, wherever we are, raise a glass on 2nd October to celebrate the birthday of a great woman! She will join you on the ethers!

Very best wishes from all of us,

Liza in Moscow,
Rhiannon and Christianne at Ecologia Trust Scotland,
Dena at Kitezh Centre Moscow
All at Kitezh Children’s Community

21/9/04 A quick call from Rosie this morning - evening in Siberia - (asking me to distribute - she is very sensitive about using up Runner's World expensive airtime -) As usual, bright and cheerful - her estimate is about 730 km west of Irkutsk on the M53! She's still doing around 30 km per day, but the days are shortening, and it may be October 14/ 15 by the time she arrives at Irkutsk. The next parcel is here and growing, food supplements, courtesy of BeWell, A new stove, courtesy of Rosker, and plenty of shoes, courtesy of Saucony! A rucksack cover, and more insoles from Sorbathane will be added.

The temperature is dropping and cold feet in the morning is becoming the norm. The new PHD kit is fabulous, she thinks she may be "sleeping too much"! The buggy, formerly known as Hercules, is now re-christened "Runner's World Spirit of Freedom" The reason I suppose being fairly obvious. the calls and the buggy are all courtesy of RW! ( Jimmy, special request to you make a announcement of this specially on the website!)

The Saucony Grid Aura's have lasted well, especially with the Sorbathane insoles, but it's going to be touch and go for them to last until Irkutsk. She thinks that something like furry apres ski boots, tough enough for running, would be a good thing from here on. Well, that will be a sight to behold!!

She loves to get the short emails people send, could Sarah Bryce in particular re-send, as she needs your email address?

Huge hugs to everybody!!

Geoffrey Hall

Fri, 10 Sep 2004 11:36:09 +0100

A brief SatCall just now from Our Unstoppable Friend! Wonderful reception -thanks Runners World, and Iridium - she is halfway through the days distance. The plan is to cover around 30k per day, but she is stopped frequently for autographs, etc, and the local TV - I guess the Kraznoyarsk Broadcasting Corporation - has made her famous in central Siberia anyway!!

She has requested new sunglasses! Either the weather is truly fantastic, or else she is so famous she needs a disguise!
She is in fine shape, after a little R & R in Kraz. Her shoes - thanks to Saucony, and Sorbothane - will last until Irkutsk, which is the next serious port of call. ( We should all be so envious that she will be on the shores of Baikal in the Autumn. It's like New England there at that time, or rather - better! ).

We are looking ahead also to make sure that the Rosker Omni Fuel stove stays functioning in the Far East. The existing one has been used daily for nigh on a year and has performed marvellously under the circumstances. She has never been without hot food / drink all year!! And yes it is approaching one year from departure. (Hmm.........), we'll probably get an entire replacement to have in reserve.

(Dena, can we be in touch about a rain cover that she said you had got hold of for her??) Situation normal, then: she is doing everything we supporters hoped for, and more, and continues to inspire us!

Geoffrey Hall

9th September 2004

Mike Rowland, Rosie’s dear friend from home in Wales, called today to tell us about his adventure to Siberia where he joined Rosie for an exciting few days in Krasnoyarsk. Bubbling with enthusiasm, he says that Rosie is in excellent shape and her spirits are high. He was astonished that in spite of the remoteness of the place and difficulty in communicating with her, when he stepped off the plane at Krasnoyarsk, there she was waiting for him! They had a marvellous time and Rosie proudly showed off her new buggy Hercules that will accompany her on the next big leg of her journey.

Immediately after Mike’s call, Rosie called in as well! Today she is heading off from Krasnoyarsk towards Irkutsk near Lake Baikal 980 kilometres away where she plans to arrive on approximately 12th October. She is averaging 30km per day and she still carries the banner to raise money and awareness for Kitezh Community.

Her tales and adventures are nothing but good ones. Everyone along the way has been wonderful, hospitable and welcoming. Especially the lorry drivers, who love her buggy, Hercules, and who stop and cook sausages for her on their camp fires! Many people have heard about her as she has been frequently featured on Russian television all the way along the route. They lean out of windows to wave to her, ask for her autograph, offer her meals and generally celebrate her adventurousness.

She said that she has seen a few bears already, but only in the distance – they were very timid and so was she! The hills around Krasnoyarsk were ‘gigantic’ and Rosie describes herself as a donkey, harnessed in to the shafts of Hercules, pulling him along behind her. The buggy weighs 35 kilos unladen, but is nevertheless worth it for its sturdiness. The wheels will come off when it begins to be snowy underfoot, to be replaced by skis. In the meantime, she was able to carry a typewriter with her and Terra Nova made a flysheet that covers the buggy and her bivouac tent so that she does not need to unpack it all. In the winter this will protect her from the frost so the tent will not freeze as it did last winter. Already she has her down clothing, ready for when the Siberian winter sets in. But in the meantime, she is enjoying the autumn sunshine, and believe it or not, she MISSES the mosquitoes! They had become her friends and companions as she trotted along the roads as she was well protected from their hungry bites by PHD’s marvellous products!

Rosie as usual sends HUGE thanks to everyone for all their help. Runner’s World magazine is just out with Rosie’s article on the first stage of her journey – look for it on the bookstands!

Best wishes to you all,

Liza at Ecologia Trust

9/9/04 Sorry for lack of news, hopefully they should be an update shortly. I can tell you that a few days ago she passed through KRASNOYARSK    Please follow this link http://www.rosavokrugsveta.boom.ru for some pics of Rosie and Hercules.

It has just been brought to my attention that the information about Rosie's article for runners world magazine, is slightly incorrect. It is in fact in the October ed which comes out the first of September rather than the September ed itself which came out last month. Apologies if you have bought the wrong one.

regards James

4/9/04 Hi everyone, this is an important clarification I have been sent about the commissioning of Hercules, Rosie's new trolley/sledge. James

Dear James Just a quick line with reference to the website comments on the new trolley. Although I have known Ranulph Fiennes for many years and did design and build some of his sleds for Arctic trips it is a misnomer to call Rosie's new trolley the 'Ranulph Fiennes' model. He did provide the harness as a favor but the design work and build were carried out by myself and Giles Dyson of Technique Composites. The trolley was funded by 'Runner's World' with other contributions in kind coming the importer of Leki Poles and an anti-puncture system for the tyres. Indeed my design contribution was free and Giles added much more to the unit than was covered by the budget. Ran has never seen this unit. He won't mind a correction for the sake of accuracy and I will mention it to him on Friday when I see him in London. Keep up the good work Best Regards Steve Holland

22/8/04This is a message from Rosie a few weeks ago, regarding some very kind personal donations she has received towards her equipment and day-to-day expenses of her world run. Rosie particularly wish to express her utmost thanks and asked me to let everyone know that she is extremely touched and grateful for all donations and will continue to be so, because it will make her journey so much safer. She is however not in desperate need of any more money because of your generous donations but will let you all know if her situation changes."

For future reference anyone wishing to contribute to Rosie's world run can do so transferring money to her bank account. It is very secure because money cannot be transferred from here to any other account other than by her to make withdrawals as an when she finds civilisation en route.

Rosie's bank details are Barclays Bank, Tenby,
sort code 20-37-82 account
number 00759708
Many thanks James Swale

20/8/04 Hi everyone, below is a message from Rosie's satellite phone which is capable of sending and receiving short messages, it should be great for news as well as a safety aid as she heads off further north more into the wilds and the weather gets more extreme.

BRILLIANT 2 B IN TOUCH. GOIMG WELL W NEW FRIEND,
TROLLEY SLEDGE CALLED HERCULES. HVE DONE APPROX
7000KM FRM UK..ONLY 4000K 2 MAGADAN MUM.

Rosie also asked me express her particular gratitude to Runners World magazine for the satellite phone and the sledge. She mentioned that she is writing an article for Runners World, and that it is going to be in the 1st of September issue(.October ed) I have seen some snippets of the article from Rosie and it is fascinating stuff, I can't wait to read the full article.

Warmest regards James

20/8/04 Hi James, I sent you an update on Rosie’s progress from Moscow. I have arrived home and can now send you a couple of pictures which I took when I met Rosie on the road.

Best regards   Steve Attwood


14/8/04 The fast lady in blue. is on her way back east to Novosibirsk and then
on beyond!! The Siberian International Marathon is over for another year - what a wonderful weekend that is, fun even for non-runners! Rosie returned as planned from Novo to run the race as promised, and to receive and assemble the new "buggy". Columbine, the top of the range Mothercare Special that was so wonderfully provided by Lynn in Moscow, has proven her worth, and the whole theory of buggy running is now part of the exercise. Steven Seaton of Runners World has magnificently provided a purpose built Columbine II , (for want of a more permanent christening), which the equally magnificent DHL transported to Omsk for us. Just as well, since it actually resembles a small armored car.

On the Friday before the race we hauled this into the street and assembled it. It will easily hold all the stuff Rosie wants
with her, and has puncture proof tyres, and will double as a sledge in winter conditions. the manufacturers are BY Appointment to R. Fiennes, so they know what they're doing, and deserve huge thanks. Rosie has taken to it, like a pony to a trap, so to speak, since this is how it is designed. We think she needs mirrors and indicators, but being a traditionalist, she insists that hand signals are appropriate!! At the pre - race concert ( why don't they all have such events?) she was introduced and roundly applauded by the vast audience!

Elena's race kicked off on the dot of 9, Saturday morning, and she was clearly and rightly the star of the event!!. She
ran with Columbine I as a sort of farewell salute to a good and faithful servant, and did a really lousy time, because she was stopping to sign autographs and kiss babies constantly ( I think she was also elected mayor).   She finished with a string of Omsk infants in tow, including one riding Columbine I!!

Rosie is in the most marvelous shape and spirits, which will come as no surprise at all!! It is my view, just a personal one, that she feels the coming months in the Far East will see not many opportunities for visitors, and she is a little wistful that visitors may not find it at all easy to drop in. We shall see. The next and possibly the last big town for a while is Krasnoyarsk. She estimates arrival here on or around the 7th of September, so anything to go in a DHL parcel should be with me by the 1st to be safe

Quantities of memorabilia and notes and films are returning. It seems to me a good idea if I get these developed and digitized, then whoever wants to see them or use them can do so!! She of course sends big thank you's to everyone who is helping and supporting in every way, and keeps on acknowledging that without the support of everyone in the background, the whole thing would be impossible!!

Hope you are all well!!

Kind regards       Geoffrey Hall



24/7/04v I am sorry that this has been a little long in preparation, but I have been flattened by work since returning from Russia.

As expected she sends her love and grateful thanks to all her friends, relations and supporters, and repeats endlessly
that what you are all doing is irreplaceable. I told her that she is, as well!

Rosie and I met up in Omsk, where she was kind enough to await my arrival for a couple of days. She is in magnificent form physically and mentally. It seems that Russia has taken her to heart. Many people are aware of the project and the response is universally warm. the Omsk marathon will be a great event. The super buggy she has been using since Moscow has been terrific, and will shortly be replaced by the Ranulph Fiennes model that Runner's World have been kind enough to supply her with.

I am returning overused garments to the manufacturers, who will find the olfactory impact interesting, as much as Carrie
will have noticed their departure. I am also building u a moderate sized archive of bits and pieces, which i will try to sort out into some sort of segmentation. i have a few photos of which I attach a selection. There are other films, and if I can
transfer them to CD, I can then share them with whoever wishes. Give me a little time on this. We tested out the satphone, charging, talking and `messaging, and now have everything functioning except the most important thing which is her messaging back. Nearly there!.

We spent a little time walking and chatting and drinking beer in the warm Siberian summer sun, and discussed the Russian Far East and what is to be done. Time will tell.

Plus, that in order to replenish her own coffers we might give some thought to alerting the US lecture circuit that Rosie is
in transit (or will be later next year) and available.

She departed Omsk Sunday 0500 rested and invigorated, and has since been observed doing some 33 km per day! I will see her again in Omsk in 2 weeks time, when I'm sure she will return to a herione's welcome.

Geoffrey Hall

23/7/04 Hi James,
I am an Englishman riding west across Russia on a motorcycle with 3 Americans. I set of on the 17th May and rode east alone, I was joined in Sakhalin by my friends for the ride back. I should be home by the 14th Aug.

I met Rosie on the road between Novosibirsk and Omsk, I think it was the 16th july. She was in excellent spirits and enjoying her self. I had some spare insect repelent which I gave her as she was running low. We also gave her an orange and a energy drink. She looked in excellent health and I was so happy to meet her, what a geat lady.

I promised her that I would let you know we had met when I arrived in Moscow.

Best regards

Steve Attwood

Friday 9th July

Rosie is resting up in Omsk, Siberia for a few days before chugging on towards Novosibirsk. She has kept up a steady 40km per day and we estimate that she has now run 4,800km altogether.

She has made very fast progress since leaving Moscow and despite a small detour via Kazakhstan for her visa requirements, has arrived in Omsk a month sooner than originally planned! From Novosibirsk she will return to Omsk by train to take part in the Marathon there in August, after which she will resume her run eastwards from the exact spot she left off. Rosie planned all along to run the Omsk Marathon again, as last year she made so many friends there and she hopes to raise some money for the Western Siberia Railway Hospital’s cancer unit which is painfully short of money for drugs, chemotherapy etc. The doctors there earn the equivalent of £40 per month but continue to be as dedicated to their patients as ever.

Rosie is cheerful and full of gratitude to all her supporters as usual and said that she has met nothing but kindness all her way across Russia. Someone even leaned out of a window as she passed by and gave her a medal although she has no idea what it was for!

She loves running through the Russian forest with all the birch trees and finds it perfect for camping which she reckons is far safer than anywhere else. No encounters with bears or wolves! And she has come to terms with the mosquitoes in their millions thanks to the excellent repellent provided by P20. Her classic 3-wheeler baby carriage Columbine, named after an old 16.2 hands high horse she knew in her childhood, has done her proud. She has pushed it over 1,000 kilometres from Moscow with only the occasional puncture. The relief of not having to carry 20kg on her back has made all the difference.

Rosie did express concern that her personal money is running low and she does not want that to stop her from continuing her run. After all she is less than halfway across Russia and still has the most difficult part of the journey ahead of her. Ecologia Trust will be glad to pass on any donations earmarked for Rosie personally through our representative in Moscow. Similarly, we will be glad to transfer any donations made to Ecologia Trust earmarked for the Western Siberia Railway Hospital in Omsk. To date Kitezh Children’s Community has received £2,500 from Rosie’s sponsors around the world for which they are very grateful.

Dena Fisher takes up the story from our Moscow office..........

Rosie says that she is very brown, very thin, very tired...but very happy!

She is thrilled to be staying with her 'first friend in Siberia' Elena, who lives with her family in Omsk. Elena is a teacher and helps to organise the Omsk international marathon whereas her husband is a doctor in the local hospital. They met when Rosie took part in the marathon last year. Rosie's well-timed pitstop has meant that she could take part in the marathon press conference and do some interviews... and it's a great opportunity to charge her batteries! She will return for the marathon in August...

Rosie is still absolutely loving what she is doing. She thanks all her friends and allies for their support. She considers herself so lucky to be on this fantastic trip for she is seeing parts of Russia that most foreigners and even a lot of Russians will never see. She loves being in the forests and seeing the wide open spaces. The beautiful birch trees and the wildlife give her strength and courage, and she never ever dreamed of doing this trip any other way...

She says she doesn't mind having the label of 'mad adventuress' but most important to remember is that if, by what she is doing, she can actually help a child or buy a patient's medicine - then that is the real adventure... She is trying to prove that no matter what you do, you've got to just keep going for it. She is running round the world - which seems like a crazy idea to some - but actually it's a pedantic and painstaking process which involves huge amounts of forethought and help along the way. But according to her, it's the most sensible thing she's ever done. "What would I have achieved if I'd have spent this time sitting at home? Nothing! Now that's crazy!!!"

Rosie has been flying the Kitezh banner for months now. She has spread the word on TV and in newspapers in Russia and Kazakhstan, and her help has been and continues to be incredibly valuable. Now she is asking for support for the hospital in Omsk as well. Its cancer patients (amongst others) have a specialist doctor, but often don't have medicines. Most treatment is either unavailable or unaffordable and so people who could be healed are dying. In this kind of environment every dollar counts.

Rosie is hoping to raise some money to be able to help the patients in Omsk... She hopes that someone will be kind enough to support them.

She sends much love to her family and all her friends. She says that she feels you with her every step of the way...

Dena Fisher
Kitezh Centre, Moscow

7/7/04 Got this this morning - so many people are forever asking me about Rosie that I thought that I would send this on ---- From: Laura A. Oglezneva

Hello Carrie Disney, Dear Lurcher- Carrie and Richard the Navigator and all the clan - woof...purr...purrrrrrrrrrr! Got to Omsk this morning - I can hardly believe it! Last year even the airflights to get to Omsk to do the marathon seemed vvv long.. I'm proud to have run here -but I didn't do it alone - all of you have been with me. I am using Elena's email - so you can contact me here for a couple of days - it would be lovely to hear from you - and I hope vvv much you are looking after yourselves. Geoff is wonderful and coming out here on 10th as I'm sure you know. the LIBRARY HAS BEEN SUCH A JOY - SO HAVE ALL THE OTHER GOODIES - NOT ONLY ESSENTIALS BUT SO MANY TREATS ALL DONE UP WITH BUNDLES AND BUNDLES OF THOUGHTFULNESS AND KINDNESS ON YOUR PART. i'D LOVE SOME MORE FILM TOO IS Phil COULD SPARE ME SOME. ANYWAY WILL EMAIL dENA NOW SHE'S BEEN REALLY HELPFUL AND A LIFE LINE RE TXTING... i AM OFF ON 8TH - AS Elena IS ARRANGING FOR Geoff TO CATCH UP ON THE ROAD WITH ME. Elena WORKS FOR THE Siberian international marathon - DOES MOST OF THE WORK! she's MY FIRST EVER FRIEND IN Siberia, AS i STAYED WITH HER LAST YEAR. she IS ALSO A TEACHER. life IN oMSK IS VVV HARD. YOU NEED TO HAVE AT LEAST 3 JOBS TO Survive AT ALL.

As you know I am running the Omsk marathon for the Western Siberian Railway Hospital, I am in effect being lent by Kitezh - so the children are helping the hospital here!!! Which I think is lovely - even a little sponsorship will go a long way. The hospital has a brilliant cancer specialist, but no money for medicines. patients had to buy their own, and cannot - so very many people die needlessly. . Omsk is a beautiful city, but although there is not much visible pollution, river water and all the drinking water is very dangerous due to chemicals being leaked from factories, lots of extra people get cancer etc... Please put on the web. It has been a hectic day... I ran into the city and had a great press conference.... I say the local telly - Lynne's marvelous KITZEH banner looked great... although I am doing this bit for the hospital I am vvvv much promoting Kitezh as well - and indeed to date have been doing Kitezh on telly in nearly every town. i have a donation from very lovely people in Kazakhstan which I shall give to Geoff.....

lots and lots of love, Rosie

Sorry this message is a little unclear will check with Rosie when we next talk James

Hello All!

30/6/04 I'm getting texts every two or three days saying good things about progress. Rosie is well into Kazhakstan now, and should be arriving in Omsk around July 5/6. I will see her very early on the 10th in Omsk. And there is a big parcel awaiting her there.

Geoffrey Hall

27/6/04 Hi everyone just had a text from Rosie who is in the forests of Kazakgstan, 345 km from Omsk. And has reported having her supplies raided by small for creatures. It was only a brief message but she asked me to say hello everyone. James

17/6/04 A very brief call from Rosie just now. She is a short distance (40km?) west of Kurgan, where new shoes and stuff await her. She sounds on marvelous form, as usual, and says that everything is working well. Stove pump is taking a hammering though. Running in the Siberian spring summer sunshine is exhilarating, and she wants to do as much as
possible . She may take the odd day off in K, but is well on course to reach Omsk by early July, a good month ahead of the Sib Int. Marathon!!

Geoffrey Hall

9/6/04 Hi everyone, had a very nice chat with Rosie yesterday, it has been quite a few weeks since I last spoke to her and it was great to catch up. She was in good spirits and asked me to thank once again all those who are helping her and the people who are supplying her equipment. Rosie's been getting quite a lot of media attention and is finding people often recognize her and wave or say hello or even give her gifts of food and such like. She said this is a great boost to her spirits.

On a practical note Rosie has managed to find a good puncture repair kit as Columine her equipment buggy has been getting quite a a few punctures lately. She said the Ural mountains have been absolutely magnificent, she is now on the edge of Siberia 2000 miles east of Moscow. She has been averaging 40 km a day. She was calling from Chelyabinsk which he will be leaving today and heading for the next town of Kurgan which is 226 km away.
Warmest regards James Swale

1/6/04Hello everyone

Seems AGES since I have a done a round robin about Rosie!

She is now in Ufa – well, probably this morning showing Ufa a clean pair of (new) heels, as she once again trots off eastwards – pushing the miraculous buggy afore her.

Richard and I couldn’t get to Ufa to meet her, as we had hoped – as silly Rosie will keep going too fast and getting to places a good week before we have arranged to meet her. She is doing more than 40 kms a day!!

Lynne – she keeps saying that this is ALL down to you and your wonderful kindness with the buggy. She says thank Lynne every time I speak to her.

So, knowing that we wouldn’t be able to get to Ufa when she was there, we sent a box via the kind offices of DHL – who are so wonderfully giving her goodies free passage. When Rosie arrived at the DHL office in Ufa, she had a WONDERFUL welcome – they had cakes and coffee ready for her and were so much looking forward to her arrival. Lots of photos were taken for the DHL magazine too. So thank you DHL!

Rosie continues to have the media interest that was established in Moscow – TVts is following her progress across Russia – and they have interviewed her every time she is near a substantial city. This has the huge benefit to Rosie that people always know who she is – and what she is doing – so she gets huge amounts of recognition and help in her journey. Toots on the horn – food – interest – chats – donations for Kitezh –everything!

Her only physical problem since leaving Moscow almost 2000 km ago is a broken tooth – and thanks to the kind detective work of Aisling at the SOS clinic, Rosie was able to have a couple of dentist’s appointments to sort that out in Ufa.

And Dena has been doing sterling work in texting arrangements and instructions to her – as although my phone will receive her texts – the wee beastie will NOT send them out. Another of life’s mysteries…

She says that she now has 1179 km to Omsk – and thinks she will be there the 4th or the 5th of July. She hopes to rendezvous there with Stephen Seaton – and the new buggy and the Sat phone. She is so much looking forward to seeing him and having both of those goodies!

She will turn around wherever she is and go back for the Omsk marathon in August – she is so much looking forward to seeing many friends there – including Geoff.

She asked me to tell Pete Smith the Consul that his wonderful letter (which Richard Turner so kindly laminated for her) is invaluable – she has had to show it many times now – and it works like a magic wand she says! She gets smiles and bows and offers of assistance left right and centre. So thank you the Embassy.

And she says that she had a wonderful parcel from Ann too when she was in Ufa – with a tripod and other goodies. I managed to get a copy of the local Tenby newspaper into her box from Moscow – the newspaper had sent it to us here – along with a mascot teddy – which WILL be travelling with her.

Over and out – and she sends her love and thanks to everyone – Rosie style.

Carrie

25/5/04 hI JIMMY,

aRRIVING AT yOA HAS BEEN LIKE cHRISTMAS, BIRTHDAY ALL IN ONE.. yOA IS A BEAUTIFUL CITY - ALMOST AN ISLAND WITH RIVERS EITHER SIDE AND THE TOWN ITSELF ON A ROCK - i'VE BEEN ABLE TOGO TO THE DENTIST - - BEST OF ALL i HAVE RECEIVED 3 WONDERFUL PARCELS AT DHL yOA - AND HAVE BEEN THOROUGHLY SPOILT WITH KINDNESS AND CAKE AS YOU WILL SEE FROM THE PICTURES!

i CAN HARDLY DESCRIBE HOW GRATEFUL i FEEL - the BEAUTIFUL SAUCONY SHOES...THE TENBY TEDDY AND NEWSPAPER...TRIPOD...P20 HAT...KITEZH TEESHIRTS ...FILTER BOTTLES...PHD RAINCOAT...CHOCS...MARK AND MANDY KENDAL MINT CAKE... LETTERS... THANK YOU SO VVVVV MUCH EVE AND JIM, ANN, GEOFF, AND CARRIE LURCHER, RICHARD, DENA, LIZA - EVERYONE..... AND A SPECIAL THANKS TO WONDRERUFL RUNNER'S WORLD WHO HAVE SUPPORTED ME RIGHT FROM THE BEGINNING. sTEVEN IS GETTING A SPECIAL BUGGY MADE FOR ME. MY PROGRESS SINCE I HAD THE ONE THAQT DAER lYNNE BOUGHT FROM mOTHERCARE mOSCOW HAS BEEN SO V MUCH BETTER THAN WHEN i HAD A LOAD ON MY BACK. i AVERAGED 40 A DAY FROM kAZAN TO yOA - THIS IS PARTLY DUE TO THE LITTLE BUGGY cOLUMBINE, AND TO THE LONG DAYS, AND THE FACT i CAN WEAR ROAD INSTEAD OF TRAIL SHOES NOW i DON'T CARRY 20 KILOS. LOVE YOU ALL VVVVVV MUCH rOSIE

21/5/04 A big hello to everyone from Rosie!!

She is currently 169 kms from Ufa.

She hasn't had phone reception for the past few days, but wrote a text this morning to say that she is doing well and thinking of everyone.

And a big 'thanks' for the dentist details in Ufa...

Yours,
Dena Fisher
Kitezh Centre, Moscow

15/5/04 Just had a quick text from Rosie giving her regards to everyone, and saying she has just passed a sign post which shows she is 1000 km east of Moscow.

10/5/04 Message from Eve:

I had a lovely chat with Mum the day before yesterday. She was staying in a hotel in Kazan generally drying out and recharging her batteries.

She sounded in fine form (as always) and was really grateful to the weather for clearing up a bit. Mum may be traveling to to some of the coldest parts of the world but that definitely does not mean she likes it when its cold! She said all the equipment is holding up well, even the slippers that she was kindly given when her shoes wore out completely. The buggy "Columbine" is making a tremendous difference. I don't think she will want to put the pack back on now.

Yet again Rosie was raving about her equipment. She loves her bivvy. Her stove allowed her to make little meals in her
hotel room. The Thirstpoint water bottle is a life saver as it means she can fill up from puddles and still have good water to drink. She was also full of praises for Peter Hutchinson and his team and his wonderful down cold weather gear. She will be relying on all of Peter's knowledge of what she needs for the coldest of the cold weather as he makes her gear for the minus 60 degrees stages of her journey through Russia.

Rosie is hoping to be in Omsk by July and will then travel on a bit before returning to run the Omsk marathon.
In the meantime she asked me to send love and thanks to all her supporters. This is a hard trip that will get harder and
knowing there are so many people behind her, watching her progress and sending their love and best wishes is the best motivation to keep going she could have.

All the best to you all

Eve

4/5/04 Hello all, Rosie called this morning and said to pass on her regards. She is 140kms outside of Kazan and sounds as upbeat and cheerful as ever. She said that the massages and treatment she had in Moscow are really paying off : She is making great progress and is much more comfortable than before. The buggy is wonderful too, and means that she really is having a much easier time of things... so a big 'thank you' to everyone who was involved with all of that.

However... the locals have once again saved the day! Basically, Rosie's shoes have worn down so much that they have become impossible to wear. So an old woman took a pair of slippers out of her bag, and gave them to Rosie who managed to run 60kms in them!! Then yesterday, a man in a car pulled up, saw what she was running in, drove away and returned with a pair of tennis shoes for her!! She was once again, totally humbled by people's kindness and care...

The shoes aren't quite the right fit "but close enough" - which we all know could mean anything! But if they can get her to Kazan (which Rosie assures me they will), then we will have her new trainers waiting for her there, either in a parcel, or with someone. So for a week she'll have to run in what she's got. But at least they're better than slippers!!

Despite all of this, she seemed happy and confident and described it as "all part of the adventure!". I reckon that '60kms in slippers' will make a regular appearance in her future talks, that's for sure!!

Anyway, I'll keep you posted on how she's doing...

Best wishes,
Dena Fisher
Kitezh Centre, Moscow

29/4/04 Hello Eve, Hi James, Rosie asked me to write to you because she can't call or text the UK from her phone at the moment. She can communicate within Russia, so has asked me to pass on all her love...

She told me that she is making great progress, although brave Columbine recently had a punctured hoof, so had to be taken to the vets to be mended!! But that's sorted now, and both her and Columbine are in good spirits. Her text to me this morning once again showed her trademark ' look on the bright side' attitude: "Sitting in a soggy field drinking tea. The birds are singing beautifully. I'm so lucky!" She's amazing!!

Her kit is faring well, despite the battering it has taken this winter. However she will be needing more work done on a tooth when she reaches Kazan.

She also said that it's great not to be running through snow any more, but now that the weather is warmer, the bugs are waking up and seem to be particularly interested in her tent! So the insect repellent will be much appreciated!!

So again, lots of love and hugs from Rosie. She said you are constantly in her thoughts. Please also send a big hello to all her friends and supporters.

All the best,
Dena Fisher,
Kitezh Centre, Moscow

28/4/04 Dear all,

Rosie called last night, she is well and 270 km
from Kazan'.
She sends her love to everyone.

Best wishes,

Nina.

25/04/04 Roise has a new phone that she can text me with for news and progress reports strait from hers which is great news. Latest is she is 375km from Kazan. and is camping in a lovely Silver birch forest and is mostly eating buckwheat cooked on her stove.

20/04/04 Here are some photos kindly supplied by Mary-Lee and Jim Newman, who met Rosie en route to deliver some supplies, first pictures of Columbine Rosie's jogger.



13/04/04 Dear Carrie and all:   Yesterday's adventure taking the jogging stroller and cell phone to Rosie was one of the most gratifying experiences to date! The drive out seemed endless because I could see exactly what she is running in ... traffic ... large trucks blustering by leaving Rosie with little to no shoulder for her to hang on to ... and lots of wind and dust. We found her a village or two outside Nogensk. She was so thrilled to see us and looked forward to opening the stroller box as if she were a child on Christmas morning.

The stroller was just the thing she needed ... her body was really straining under the weight of the pack. She placed the main pack in the seat, strapped it in, found a home for her tent underneath and a place for her water near the handle bar. She loved the pneumatic knobby tires and sleek lines. She promptly gave it the name of 'Columbine,' after a beloved horse she used to have (Carrie clarified for me that Columbine was in fact a cow that she treated like a horse!).

She thinks now with the help of Columbine carrying her pack she can make much better time. She was afraid she is disappointing every one with her slower pace ... partly blaming it on her being so overly spoiled in Moscow. She is so grateful to everyone for their support. She is sporting a lovely hand made shirt Tanya made her.
She has passed to me her warmer clothing items and thinks that should it get a tad colder she can layer on all of her clothes.

We ate a hearty meal in a nearby cafe where she managed to charm and bewilder all the wait staff and patrons.

In her call to me last night she described how she tied the stroller to her tent for safety. My thinking is that she would sleep with Columbine by her side if she would fit!

Cheers! Lynne

13/4/04 Sorry for the lack of news I have been away this Easter. I hope everyone had a pleasant Easter. I received a lovely email from Mom as well. Special thanks to Lynnne and all involved in taking a latest design pushchair jogging stroller to her. Roses rucksack was getting so heavy with all the cold weather equipment she has switched to this new device which she can push. It is making a terrific difference and she is very pleased with it as you can tell. Regards James.

5/4/04   Some photos of Rosie in Red Square sent to me by Susie Moffatt, many thanks.



5/4/04 Link to great new BBC article By Sarah Rainsford. BBC correspondent in Russia
Round-the-world runner looks ahead.

2/04/04 Just to let you know that Rosie will be leaving Moscow, trotting out of Red Square at 9:30 on Friday morning – ready for the rest of the world. There will be quite a few of her new friends there, ready to wave her off and wish her bon voyage.   Very best wishes, Carrie.

2/04/04 Hello More pics for the website - as you can see yesterday was a beautiful day for the fun run through Moscow, followed by a reception at the Ambassador's Residence.



Rosie ran with Dora, my dog, six of the Kitezh children - and lots of other people through the streets of Moscow. They
started at the British Embassy, and finished at the Residence, taking in Novy Arbat,Red Square, St. Basil's, the walls of the Kremlin and the banks of the Moskva river en route. Best wishes,    Carrie

                       Great pictures Carrie, many thanks James.

24/3/04 Read Rosie's interview with the BBC, click link below.
Russians warm to round-the-world runner
By Sarah Rainsford BBC correspondent in Novopetrovsk, western Russia

24/3/04 I apologise for the web site being down in these last few days. Since Rosie's interview by the BBC, the web site has been viewed more times than the bandwidth can handle. It caught me by surprise and I am now making every effort to get the capacity increased. Thanks for your patience, James Swale.

Update.... have just had a word with Brian at www.namehog.net (this site host) who has fixed the problem and offered to give this site all the bandwidth it needs. Cheers, James.

23/03/04 Dear Everyone,

Thank you for ALL the wonderful support. You have vvvv much been in my thoughts. Russia is fantastic. I would like to put it on record that so far this is the easiest country to run through apart from Great Britain! People are incredibly friendly and nice. I’ve been able to buy berries and smoked fish and honey at the side of the road all the way through the beautiful huge forests. I have camped a lot of the time and had no trouble at all. I even met my first very large Russian deer. The police and authorities too have all been very pleasant and helpful. Driver have taken trouble to avoid splashing me .. The weather has been getting slightly warmer but the snow is about 7 foot deep in the forest so camping has been hard. The run continues to be tough because of the weight I have to carry, currently about 17 kilos, though this will get lighter as the weather becomes warmer and I do not have to carry so much kit. I am very sorry I could not at this stage take the sat phone brilliantly lent to me by Runner’s World, who have been outstandingly supportive all the way through, because I could not bear the weight. I had not realized quite how near the brink I was However it will be invaluable in Siberian, when I shall have les trouble with weight as I shall be pulling a sledge.

I would like to thank the British Embassy here in Moscow and the British Consulate for their kind help. I am determined no0t to need rescued, I am being very careful, but it is good to have such great support on my side.

Also thanks to marvelous Carrie Disney and Richard Tichner, for the really terrific hospitality and help in every way. And also to liza Hollingshead, who told me about Kitzeh in the fist placve. And also to you Evie, James, Ann Michael and ALL MY FRIENDS AND FAMILY. You mean so much to me.

Anyway am learning a lot and feel will cope in Siberian. I owe a lot to my fabulous kit. Notably my Saucony shoes, the PHD Peter Hutchinson Design down sleeping bags and clothing, and my Terra ;Nova Saturn – and P20! And everyone such as my insurers Simon Troy back in Pembs, and the wonderful people aty the Evergreen Pub who collected some money for my food and expenses. This is very valuable as this journey is on an extremely low budget!. Mostly the budget is thanks to Steven Seaton and all at Runner’s World and my publishers Sutton Publishing- without their help I would not b e here.

I have just got in - my toes are bleeding, but otherwise I am fine. This is a wonderful experience. Imagine – to be running free thro0ugh the fantastic forests of Russia – to sleep looking at at the moon and the stars…

I shall sort out more emails etc when poss. The main thing is a BIG BIG BIG THANK YOU TO YOU ALL. I COULD NOT DO IT WITHOUT YOU. I MISS MY FAMILY AND ALL THOSE I LOVE VERY VERY MUCH.

rOSIE

Rosie on the BBC: Our story on Rosie is cut and ready to go and will air on Sunday. No concrete info on exact broadcast times - but will definitely run on breakfast news on bbc1 and on news 24 throughout the day

Will also put a story on BBC Online - radio versions to follow

Hope you like it!
Sarah

19/3/04 Hello Just to let you know that all is well with Our Unstoppable Friend. She has called several times today – and is just the other side of Istra still. All the interviewers and camera crews and photographers who keep popping up and talking to her have delayed her a little. She will be the most photographed and interviewed woman in Moscow by the time she runs away from us again at the end of the month!

Sasha will go and scoop her up tomorrow, and bring her into Moscow, and then we shall pop her back onto the road on Sunday morning to continue her run into Red Square – Rosie is determined to do it properly. Depending on how many camera crews waylay her on Sunday and Monday, she should, fingers crossed, be in Red Square on Monday evening – Tuesday morning at the latest.

The fun run is starting to shape up now – and will be in the very capable hands of Dena now. The date for this is Tuesday the 30th of March, and the time is 4:30 for a 5pm start, from the Embassy, through the centre of Moscow, via a very pedestrian friendly route, to the Embassy Residence.

With best wishes,

Carrie

17/03/04 Just a quick update – I’ve had three calls from our unstoppable friend today!

She has finally decided that the M9 is getting too busy and dangerous – so has turned off onto a side road to Istra. Sarah is going out to her tomorrow, clutching various goodies. Rebecca will be going out on Friday. Rosie will be signing off on Friday, for a couple of days – will come into Moscow for our fund raising do on Saturday evening – and will then pop back onto the road on Sunday and Monday – and maybe Tuesday too – making sure that she achieves Red Square – which she feels is her Moscow goal!!

So Sarah knows how to find her tomorrow, and Sasha and Rebecca will have the info to find her on Friday.

KITEZH people!!! PLEASE could you think about making a Kitezh banner – Rosie has asked for something long that she can attach to the backpack – so that it streams out behind her as she runs. And the Embassy have asked if it would be possible to have a BIG version of this to have at the reception? That would be lovely!!

Richard and David at the Embassy had their first Rosie experience today – as she called when I was having a talk with them.

She sends her love to everyone – and her thanks to all – at 6 pm today she was approx 45 kms from Istra.

Best wishes,
Carrie

12/3/ 04   Hello all
I had another call from Rosie this morning – I couldn’t hear her very well – bad line – but she is fine. She has decided to take the day off today, to rest her feet, and is staying in a motel in a small town for the night. She is now 200 kms from Moscow. She sends her love to all...

I thought that she didn’t sound as buoyant as usual – of course she assured me that everything is fine – but I am very glad that Dena will be going out to find her tomorrow. (Fingers crossed.)

Within 10 days, I reckon that she will be here in Moscow, where she can draw breath, rest up and recharge. Then on to the next bit. And I think she will end up as portly as me at the end of a week or so here – as there seem to be so many lunches and parties and meetings and do s lining up for her and her face of Kitezh role!

Best wishes to all,



3/304 Hello everyone, Rosie is fine and well.

Sasha and Dora and I set off at 5 am yesterday. It was minus half a degree as we left Moscow – we’ve been having a major thaw here for the last few days. (Due to go down to minus 17 again over the weekend, I am told.) By 7 am it was light, and we just kept seeing the temp gauge go down. We found Rosie on the road just before ten – and it was showing minus thirteen and a half.

It was a beautiful morning – cold and clear with milky light – and the road was long and straight – quite a few heavy lorries – but not much other traffic. I had spotted a few road signs in the distance – and been convinced that they were Rosie – and then we saw a moving road sign in the distance – and it WAS Rosie. You really couldn’t tell whether she was a man or a woman – as there was not more than half an inch of skin exposed to the elements – she had hat and face mask and gloves and scarves and three layers of trouser – and still she managed a cheery wave as we slewed to stop in front of her.

She hadn’t long been on the move at that stage – so Sarah – important that you know that she wants people to be aware that she is going to be findable twixt 10 and 4 – when the weather is really cold. When things warm up, she will be travelling for longer.

We got the pack into the boot, and Rosie into the front of the car. Dora decided to be Rosie’s lap dog while we drove back to Velike luke, in search of a café for breakfast. Rosie was so starved of English speaking company that I don’t think she drew breath for about half an hour – she had so much to tell us. I then suspected that she was starved in another sense as she polished off seven large buns and four cups of coffee!

Gradually treasures came out of the pack – her book that she gets people to write in as she meets them. Her stove, which needed some tweaking, along with the little petrol pump, her lighters and torch and sleeping bags. These we were horrified to learn, were soaking wet. She sleeps in waterproofs inside the bags, as it has been impossible to get then dried. So Sasha whisked them back out to the car – where he turned the engine on, and placed the bags between the engine and the bonnet. What a star! By the time we left Rosie – the bags were dry.

He also wrote out the phrase that she needs to buy the half litre of petrol for her stove.

We picked up some things from Rosie that she doesn’t need for the moment – and brought them back to Moscow – including, I am sorry to say, the mobile phone that we had brought with us. We had had some 300 kms of no signal – and there was absolutely no point in insisting that she carried something that wouldn’t do what it was designed for.

Then we started on the treasure brought, collected from various sources. She was over the moon with the new shoes, and the new bits for the stove. Ditto the Kendal mint cake, and the emails, and the new socks. I had brought enough sandwiches for the three of us for lunch, but decided on the evidence of breakfast that I would donate the lot to Rosie, and that Sasha and I would arrange ourselves later.

Rosie disappeared off to have a wash – and even washed her hair – and then we got back into the car – stopping only to find batteries for her wonderful little torch – before getting back to the exact point at which we had picked her up. Then Sasha drove several kilometers up the road for some well deserved shuteye – leaving Rosie and Dora and I to come along at our own pace and find the car.

We talked and talked – so much about all her doings and adventures and experiences – and motivation and how to keep alive and interested-

and then talked a great deal more about Kitezh, and the wonderful work that is done there, and the fact that she is going to be able to raise the knowledge of it at just the moment that it is seeking funding for the second village. It seemed no time at all before we found the car again, and a sleeping Sasha.

Walking briskly (my pace on ice, thank you!!) beside the road was cold but perfectly doable – but the spray from lorries – gritty spray – will only get worse as the thaw sets in.

We spent almost 4 hours with Rosie – and had found her on the 461 km marker. Rosie was obviously upset that we were going to be parting – but I did feel that we had to try to get back to Moscow before it was completely dark, for the sake of Sasha, who had done all the driving – as I haven’t yet got my licence sorted out to be able to drive here. Daft of me! In the event, the terrible roads took their toll, and we had a chipped windshield, a blown tyre and a damaged disc to show for the journey,

So we talked about the fact that Sarah would be coming (we hope) on Thursday and Friday, and that I am sure that Liza will make the journey out to see her before too long. And she is well on track to be in Moscow within 3 weeks, we think – as we met her on the 461 km marker – and if she manages to keep up her current rate – that will see her here in 3 weeks.

That’s it for the moment – sorry this has been done in a hurry – but thought it better to get it down in a rush – rather than wait.

She was delighted to talk to Eve, when we found reception for a while in the centre of Velike Luke. Geoff – she wants you please to start to think about sledges!! Plus her sat phone – she needs it to be one that she can charge up electrically as well as purely by sunlight – that will make all the difference to its practicality, she feels.

Rosie really didn’t want to engage with the thought of clothes sent from England – saying that she would borrow something of Evie’s. That’s not going to be the right thing – as Evie is not definitely coming – and almost certainly won’t be here all the time that Rosie is. And although I would be delighted to lend her my clothes, that wouldn’t work, as we are very much different shapes. (GGGgggrrrr – ok – so I need several months of 20 kmsperdayand not a lot of food!!!)

SO PLEASE would someone just take control of that – and send out a selection of things that she can wear casually but smartly in Moscow – tv talking – meeting and greeting style etc. It is necessary!

Rosie took several photos – and so did I – hers will be better – mine are just quick snaps – but I am about to down load them and will send on later.

Sarah – take VAST quantities of food with you!!! And I forgot to take a tiny dictionary – she needs one of those Collins gem things. That will make life a tad easier. Liza, I think she will really appreciate a visit next week – prob towards the end of the week – when she has had another week of being toute seule.

Best wishes to all,
+
C



24/2/04

Hi everyone – just had a very crackly call from Rosie – who crossed the border into Russia yesterday!! YEAH!!

She is travelling down the m9 (what else?) and reckons that she is 31 kms from the border now. Says she has met with nothing but kindness and help everywhere that she has been. She said the police, far from stopping her from running, stopped her from falling over as she skidded on a wet floor going into a café! Everyone is very curious about what and why she is doing – and she is desperately trying to pick up the language.

She reckons that now she will be doing around 20kms per day – anything else is a bonus, as it is warmer, the snow is quite deep and wet at the moment. And says that she will be running between approx 9 am and 4pm – otherwise, tucked up for the evening /night in her tent.

She reiterated her huge gratitude to everyone who is helping her, and says that she is SO happy to be in Russia, and to have crossed the border. Sends special greetings to Geoff and to Liza, and asked when Sarah would be coming to find her – so I told her, Sarah, that that is likely to be next Monday.

That’s all for now, please please pass this on to anyone else who is on the need to know list,

Very best wishes,

Talk soon,
Carrie

20/02/04
Hello all

Just had a call from “Rosie around the world” – very chirpy – and says that she has been averaging around 30kms per day recently – just amazing!

She has just got to a town called Lutsa, and will be staying there for a couple of nights. She has found a very nice doctor, who has treated her feet – with laser treatment – and who has advised her to rest for a couple of days – so she is staying in a pleasant little hotel – which is costing all of around $8 per night.

She has found lots of kind help on the way, including one (or was it two?) nights spent three in a bed with a very nice farmer and his wife. She said that she was very pleased to be sleeping next to the wife, as the farmer kept on hitting out in his sleep! The cold at night has been a real issue for her, in a small tent, and she wants to tell everyone that she is plodding on – gently – in full awareness of her responsibility to everyone who is helping her – and to the task of completing the journey. “Slow but steady” was a phrase she wanted everyone to hear from her. She says that she is looking forward to crossing the Russian border. The weather there today not good for running – cold and wet, as opposed to cold and dry.

Rosie told me that she has sewn a Kitezh logo onto her hat, to keep it in people’s minds – and is thoroughly looking forward to getting our nice, smart Kitezh T shirts to wear over her other clothes, when she is on camera!!

She said several times how much she is looking forward to seeing people – and when she heard that Geoff would be here in Moscow this weekend, asked particularly to send her best wishes to him, and to all the people in the Embassy who are helping her so much.

Best wishes,
Carrie

www.kitezh.nm.ru

11/2/04 E-mail from Rosie!!!!

Dear Everybody, I am very grateful to Mr Gatis, a teacher and writer who lives in Krape for kindly allowing me to use his computer as well as heating water so I could wash the soot from my stove off my hands and face! Here is progress from Riga Day 1 plenty of time to look at the view pack weighed over 20 kilos. It was not only the Sat phone for which I am vvv grateful to Runners World, but other bits like weatherproof camera, more clothes to take on for Siberia and so on it all adds up faster than weight does on the hips if you eat too many cakes! So the gallant and wonder Col Glen Grant *who ran for Gt Britain( and is Defense Attaché at Brit Embassy in Riga collected the Sat phone form Ogre .. not a monster a nice place! I could not carry it at present, but it will be sent on to Moscow and will be invaluable in Siberia when weather gets warmer and I have to carry less Also will be great in winter Siberia when I shall pull a sledge so weight is less of a prob. Toes were bleeding so that was that a warning Now things are better. there were blizzards all day yesterday and last night was beautiful under the trees in the moonlight but it was minus 22 degrees again vvv cold needed all my clothes and kit and still just warm enough. I didn't realize when I was en route for Riga how close to the limit re weight the pack was. anyway on to Koknese today..slow but steady progress Shall buy cheap mobile at next big place so as to be in touch but you all must remember that in a sense this is an old fashioned type of journey I am doing it fine, but can't always be in touch. because it needs all the effort just to go go go I am very very determined and am thinking of you please forwa4rd this tobrochuredirect@btinternet.com and to Steven Seaton and to all my contact and to geoff.hall@allianzcornhill.co.uk *can't get it right but you know it. also to my Evie and everybody else I am doing this journey as well and as responsibly as I can and it is fantastic thank you all so much I look forward very much to meeting you Carrie and all the wonderful people at Kitezh and at the British Embassy in Moscow love Rosie

10/2/4


Good morning Evie

Thanks for this message. This weight increase must be quite disturbing. she as down to nearer 16 as she arrived in Riga, and although I took additional stuff, I also brought back other stuff. She and I did discuss what was not needed until after Moscow, and I already have a small parcel, that I will be taking there in two weeks. For en route transfers my thought is Sarah Rainsford of BBC Moscow, who plans to go out to meet her perhaps near the Latvia Russia border. This should be in about 10 days, especially if she is using main roads. These will be more direct. Sarah has already said that she would take stuff. I asked her because Aqua Pura contacted me to send some water filters, and Sarah said she would take them. as yet nothing has arrived here from Aqua Pura, though. I will alert Sarah to this, and she and Rosie can
confer when they meet. But this won't be until she crosses into Russia.

Regarding routes, Rosie is obviously making her own way, which she was always going to do anyway... (edit)
I'll get back to you about possible stuff transfer.

Geoffrey Hall

I spoke with Mum just now.

Steven, she wanted me to say to you that she is absolutely delighted with the Sat phone but she
just cant manage to carry it at the moment. It was heart-breaking for me to hear how sore her feet
were this morning. I think she has contacted you and has given it to a Mr/General Grant to take to
Moscow. I asked her how she would manage to carry it across Siberia if it was too heavy now and
she said that by then she would be pulling a sledge!

Yet again she wanted me to send her appreciation and love to everyone who is working so hard to
help her. I think she is happy to be running again.

All the best to you all

Evie xx

Dear All

I have spoken with Rosie this morning on the Satellite phone. She is very well and anxious to be
on her way but is traveling terribly over-weight - she is currently carrying 22kg and feeling
every gram by the sounds of it.

She wondered if anybody might have any ideas about how she could send on any of the weight to
Moscow as she is carrying quite a few things she wont need until then Does anyone know who if anybody
is going out that way that might be able to meet with her or else anywhere in Moscow she could
post stuff too (Liza - I thought you might be the best person to help with an address). Please let me know what you think.

Mum sends you all her best and I think she is very happy that she is able to use the Sat phone,
though of course she is fretting about the cost. (Thank you, thank you Steven). She is currently on the road to Ogre then will be going down the P80 to Kokniz . She will then take the main road to Moscow.

All the best to you all - her team!

Evie

Good afternoon all. Rosie phoned me this afternoon to say that she only managed 15 km today
because of the extra weight in her pack and she could feel it in her knees. She therefore had to take the difficult descision
to leave the satellite phone behind with the British Defense Team. It will catch up with her later, probably in Moskow. Meanwhile she will use public phones as before. Rosie is anxious not to get injured and delay her arrival in Moskow which is another reason for leaving the phone behind. Apart from that she is fine.

Kind regards

Ann Rowell

5/2/04
Hi everyone, sorry there has not been much news lately, I have not heard much from Rosie herself, but have talked to a friend of hers Catherine Addison who met her in St Petersburg where she has gone to visit a dentist as she has been suffering from tooth ache. Also I was told she has minor frost bite which is quite alarming but not at all serious, at least I hope so. . Also she is writing articles for Runners World, sorting out Visas and paperwork so I presume she is quite stressed out, but I am sure I will get some news directly from her soon and will posted it up here as I receive it. On a lighter note since the problems with her cooking stove Rosie has invented a new drink called "Cappuccino water" which involves coffee granules mixed with water and drunk cold, which sounds totally awful. In the next few days Rosie will be traveling back to Riga to continue her run from there.

Regards James Swale

22/1/04 Dear Sir/Madam

We were driving south, approximately 64km from Riga, back to the British Embassy in Vilnius Lithuania. It was a fresh morning and the sun was vainly attempting to break through the grey Baltic sky. The temperature was -9, a light crystalline snow was falling and an easterly breeze brought with it a wind chill of approximately -15. The radio weather news had just reported -22 over by the Belarus border. Fortunately the heater in the Landrover Discovery was working overtime and impervious to the adverse conditions outside the car we were regaling ourselves with tales of an excellent run ashore the previous night. Almost unnoticed we flashed past a diminutive figure, wrapped against the biting weather and burdened by a large red rucksack, running north towards Riga. My colleague Paul Hutton, said 'Do you suppose that is that Welsh lady running round the world for charity? She's supposed to be in the Lithuania/Latvia area at the moment' We mused that it could be; you don't see many locals running around in this weather! We started looking for a support team but there was no evidence of one. We drove on for a few miles speculating and when our curiosity got the better of us Rokas our driver did an about turn at a convenient roundabout and we hunted her down. I wound down the window and asked, feeling rather foolish 'Are you Welsh?' The mystery runner pulled back her hood, took off her sunglasses and mittens, gave us a huge smile and confirmed that she was indeed Rosie Swale-Pope.

The next 20 minutes was an enthusiastic and animated account of the adventure so far and her future plans. My colleagues and I were astounded by the undertaking and full of admiration for what had been achieved and what was yet to come. We tried to get her to warm up in the car but she was keen to get on and eat up her 30kms for the day. She made a couple of calls on one of our mobiles to loved ones in the UK and set off destined to get to Riga on Monday evening.

Rest assured Rosie is in high spirits and in good physical shape. She is focused and bubbling with enthusiasm. You are probably aware that she has a couple of equipment problems but that these will be resolved by your support team. My only concern for her is that it is bitterly cold at night in the Baltic's and as she crosses Russia the temperatures will drop to ridiculous levels. She obviously knows what she is doing but she will need good kit to see her through. I rang one of my colleagues in the British Embassy in Riga, so they know that Rosie is closing on the city.
We hope that she succeeds in her quest.

Regards from Vilnius

Mike Clements, Brian Court, Paul Hutton, Rokas Boreiko

British Embassy Vilnius Lithuania

10/1/04 We met Rosie on the road to Riga this morning. She is doing well and she sends you all her love and good wishes. She has around 65Km to go before she reaches the capital. She was easy to spot – not many folks are out running along the main road in the snow!

Although it has been very cold here, she seems to be coping well and is in very high spirits – in fact, she was more worried about the cold affecting us! She is looking forward to receiving the new tent and cooker as night temperatures are at least -12 here at the moment (it was -22 on the Belarussian border this weekend!). We have informed the British Embassy team in Latvia and they are looking forward to meeting her. We have given Rosie a donation in Latvian currency, so she has some contingency funds if she needs them. We also gave her the opportunity to make a couple of calls home.

A worthwhile cause and a truly amazing lady. The UK Defence team in Vilnius wish her the very best of luck. Rosie’s determination, enthusiasm and good humour is an inspiration to us all.

Regards,
Brian Court
UK Defence Adviser to the Lithuanian Ministry of Defence

Lieutenant Colonel Mike Clements
UK Defence Attache, Vilnius

Chief Petty Officer Paul Hutton
Assistant Defence Attache, Vilnius

Rokas Boreiko
Defence Section Driver

New message from Rosie! 3 January: New Year message: Happy New year to you all! I am 249km from Riga. I had a wonderful New Year in deep, deep snow. I met some wonderful people and was kissed on the cheek by all kinds of charming people who were walking along the road like me. I am missing my friends and looking forward to being in Riga and Moscow and of course in Kitezh.

Tuesday 6 January: I’m now in Panevezys, two thirds of the way across Lithuania and 140km from Riga. It is 20 below freezing at night but I’m still managing to sleep outside even though the zip on my bivouac broke (my own fault). But it is so beautiful running in the pink light of the morning, its worth the cold and I am very excited about how its all going so well. It is so cold at night that I take my shoes to bed with me to unfreeze them so I can put them on in the morning. The water freezes instantly, and even paper and pens freeze, so I put them in my socks! I can only manage about 25km each day as everything is frozen solid. When I get up in the morning I have to unfreeze my feet and the tent before I pack it away. I send particular thanks to the tent manufacturers who are sending me a new tent, and to Terranova and PHD and to P20 – I really need that as the conditions are so hard on the face. Please tell everyone that I love you all! Byeee.

Forwarded By Liza

29/12/03 from OUF! She is way ahead of schedule, clearly going like a steam train. She crossed into Lithuania this morning, at Sangruda This is 2 days early, so clearly my schedule was far too generous. She has had a very pleasant Christmas, local people in and around "Dubiniky" (correct spelling to be checked) very hospitable, and gave her lunch! She attended church, has sung carols and attended a christening. The
whole area is decorated very festively, and trees and lights are everywhere. She has continued to sleep out, and is clearly loving it. She says the kit is fantastic, thinks that she was a little unwell earlier in Poland, because she is as bright as a button now.
Route from here is Marijampole, Azuola Buda, Kazlu Ruda, Visaku
Ruda,Zapiskis, Vilkyja, lebedzia, Josvainiai, and Points North to Latvia...from Geoff Hall
Happy New year to all.

23/12/03 Rosie called me this morning . She wanted me to wish Everyone a Happy Christmas and thanks for all the help and support she has received and to all those following her progress on the web site. As she usual sounded on fine form, and is more or less exactly on schedule, amazingly. that is , she is between Korsze and Wegorzewo, exactly where she should be! Unless, after 80 days, you think she should have finished! All is well, obviously so from the mileage. The stove is playing up, so I have a replacement arriving for the ever-growing Riga delivery run. Apparently herrings are a staple of the diet currently. I'm not sure if this is all you can get close to the Baltic shore, or they're convenient because they don't need cooking, or because Rosie likes them. I suspect, all three! For those of you who don't know, Runners' World, bless them, have ordered a satellite phone for her, which will arrive early in the New Year. I hope that this, together with the route planning, will enable the UK Embassy in Moscow to embrace her as one of their own. She has, to date, covered by my estimate, 1305 miles, at an average of 16.5 miles per day... From Geoff Hall.

9/12/03
Good morning to all
Rosie has just telephoned me, sounding superbly Rosie-cheerful!! She is at/near the town of Slupsk, about 80 km west of Gdansk. She is now fully into the Polish winter. She awoke this morning to find herself under a thick layer of snow, although she hastened to say that she was very snug inside her super sleeping bag and tent! In recent days she has encountered blizzards, of course coming from the East, so no help there, then. Snow ploughs are out doing a relatively efficient job, and the roads are reasonably clear and not too busy. Gdansk is the next target, where she will pick up new shoes, extra sleeping bag components, and some Kendal mint cake!. Also her rucksack cover is in a poor state, but she thinks improvising with a bin liner will do the trick!

Regarding the route, it looks as though Kaliningrad will be a problem in terms of timing: the one month visa for this segment runs out on December 25th, and she doesn't think she will be through by then. So she will probably detour via Lithuania, and then head
straight for Tallinn. I have the road atlas at the ready! Liza, she particularly reinforced the point you mentioned last week, that timing arrival in Moscow is very difficult, but
mid February looks optimistic right now. She is still very happy to
go to Tallinn because it is such a lovely place, but my map reading suggests that this will add perhaps 100 km. Is it vital that she goes there for visa purposes? And, although I
know she must pop into St Pete to register the visa, is there any other reason why she needs to run there? Because there are other routes towards Moscow that will also save some km. If anyone has a view on this could they please let me know.

Daily available running time is reducing steadily as we move towards the shortest day. She says it is getting dark by 2.30!! The foot is healing, but is still not perfect. Her intention is still to aim for maybe 30 km per day

Rosie's usual effusive gratitude to all
supporters!

Geoffrey Hall

3/12/03 Rosie called briefly today. She is in Poland, 30km from Kosolin and 250 km from Gdansk. She is running not more than 30km per day as it gets dark so early. All is going well, but she says just keeping going takes all her energy so she apologizes for not being in touch and sends her love and appreciation to you all for your interest and support. Her mobile phone does not work where she is at present, so she uses a phone card whenever possible. She was awoken this morning by a friendly wolf’s howl not far away.

She plans to take it easy through the Baltic States and will arrive in Russia later than planned, as we have requested. She has no idea yet when she will arrive in Moscow.

Best wishes to all,
Liza. from Ecologia Trust

29/11/03Running out of Germany, sad to be leaving the beautiful forests, will soon be entering Poland.

24/11/03 Text message from Rosie: 9.06am Ghostly and foggy, en route to Dargun love mumxx

21/11/03 Have done about 1,500km and am leaving Hamburg.. lots of adventures.. A notable one in Hamburg - as I had got a bit of glass in my foot and it had made a corn grow big - a VERY KEEN German removed it and wrapped me in enough bandages for an elephant and had put stitches in.. He said don't run for 14 day; BUT AM GOING Ok slowly today... It was nothing compared to the fact that everything has been going really well I have been sleeping in the forests with the deer... making friends everywhere. Last NIGHT STAYED IN WHAT I am sure was a bordello, in Hamburg but v cozy - mice in my ro+om, but warm and dry... The street outside was v interesting alternative doorways leading to Islamic strict supermarket where they do not even sell beer -and to sex shops with highly imaginative windows!!!!

31/10/2003Hi Jim, It has been fantastic to run through remote north Holland. It has been hard to believe that Holland is really a crowded country Out here, there's been nothing but farms, dykes, lakes and skies so huge that it is like running through an artist's canvas.. Local people call the clouds'dutch mountains'- and they change colour, shape - and height in a way that would drive a geographer wild. I have been so vvvvv grateful for all the brilliant support from you and Evie and the family - and from all the friends who have been following my run on the web. It has made me feel much stronger! The tough part has been not the running -legs have got used to this and have stopped complaining!- but looking after oneself/cooking, sleeping etc. Mostly I have been camping.. As it gets dark early and one is often far from anywhere. I'm becoming an expert at cooking spaghetti by torch light.. Delicious with the drop of cider vinegar and olive oil kept in my small plastic bottle from Boots the chemist circa Colchester! circa bottle!

Hi Jim, Sent first part of message as it broke off and I was afraid of losing it. Anyway. I sleep well in my PhD sleeping bag lovingly made for me by mountaineer Peter Hutchinson and three ladies called Margaret in Stalybridge (see my web for details - they are great! when I open my eye, the bivi is often frozen solid - I've learnt that rubber gloves on top of woolly gloves are the best way of taking it down without frozen fingers... I'm learning all the time.. By the time I get to Siberia - I'll be ready for it!!! There's much more, but have to get on. I've done about 960km now.. I'm in Groningen and since it is pm need to get moving to find somewhere en route to Germany to camp before night...There's a long way to go..... lots of love,\\\Rosie

22/10/2003 Rosie is in Holland now in Castrium and will be heading for Bergern.

18/10/2003 /Rosie is was just on the outskirts of Colchester, in Essex when I spoke to her today.   So far she has traveled 10 degrees of Latitude.

15/10/2003 Rosie has been running through the city of London today, now 200 miles into her trek. Meeting many astonished and supportive people, and had an enjoyable chat with a group of refuse collectors..

8/10/2003 I have just spoken to Rosie by phone, she has completed 135 miles, recently crossing the seven bridge. Reported slight difficulties with the weight of her rucksack which at 17 kilos, is higher than she anticipated, and is suffering from excessive foot heat. Have passed on many messages of support to her e-mail which she has been unable to read herself so far being out in the wilds.

3/10 2003 Rosie has set off on her 20,000 mile run around the world. She had a great send off yesterday early on Thursday the 2nd of October 2003, giving several interviews for radio TV and press, and with a large collection of her friends well-wishers and family.

Rosie's first step carved on her gate stone by her brother Nicholas Griffin, who was there to see her off.

Pictures courtesy of Phil Rees.