What nearly stopped you finishing a LDW?

[Yorkshiremarv]

Started the pw beginning of april this year, the weather was as expected crap. didnt see any of kinder and my feet got so wet coming across the slabs towards the snake pass, i had wet boots for the 1st 4 days and when walking with wet feet it kinda smarts and i thought it would be my feet that gave up but it was actually my right knee that was agony. that 1st steep decent coming down from kinder area killed my knees, arthuritis ive got and am only 39. struggled real bad all the way to crowden that 1st day. going uphill and flat was ok but any decent was absolute agony. the 2nd day was the worst and it took me about 10hrs to get to the carriage at standedge( the ecstasy when i heard they had a bath). I struggled on cursing and screaming out in pain until i met my angel(the wife) in gargrave who brought me a knee support, after that i could get up a good pace but just had to take it easy on the decents, pen y ghent in particular was agony both up and down. grit determination and guts got me through the walk, something i had dreamt of since i was young, now got the bug and am planning my next ldw, edging towards the southern upland.

[mow1701]

Easter 2016 a knee injury going into middleton on teesdale on the pennine way

July 2016- **** rubbish weather on the cape wrath trail. You have to expect some bad weather but rain most of the time, it became a slog/ route march to get out of the rain. Got to Craig hostel and decided it'll be there another time. Speaking to people at the hostel who were munro bagging they said condition were as bad as in December.

[fernman]

As an aside, I use a Uriwell which leaked when I camped at Hadrians Wall. I ordered a new one from China via Ebay and when it arrived it was postmarked as coming from Paraguay? All that travel for something that cost me less that £4. How does international finance work?

Never heard of one of them before, so I looked it up, though I sort of guessed from its name.

You must have been busting by the time it arrived from overseas 
What's wrong with nipping outside, even if it is the middle of the night and hissing down with rain? Always do that myself (but the stairs creaking wakes the wife up!).

[Walkerflyer]

A kidney stone on Hadrians Wall path Sept 2004 at the half way stage. Back to the start at Newcastle for 2 days in hospital!

[youradvocate]

My recent walk on the GR6 in France. Great walk until Sarlat then I was overwhelmed by the number of tourist around me and the camping site fees had skyrocketed, I was not prepared to splash out over 25 Euro's for a bit of grass of 6' x 3'! So I quickly moved on.

[old geezer]

In '96 the weather was fine when i reached Hartleburn Common,then a think blanket fog came down.I couldn't see more than i couple of yards ahead and wandered into a quagmire.To my right i could just make out the outline of a building.It turned out to be a farmhouse.I wo'nt go into details but the place put the wind up me.Texas chainsaws came to mind.I got my bearings and found my way to Kellah and from there to Greenhead.So technicly i havn't done the whole Pennine Way route.

[craven50]

Never heard of one of them before, so I looked it up, though I sort of guessed from its name.

You must have been busting by the time it arrived from overseas 
What's wrong with nipping outside, even if it is the middle of the night and hissing down with rain? Always do that myself (but the stairs creaking wakes the wife up!).

Uriwell? I prefer them to getting out of my tent in snow, hale gale and rain in temperatures of 0c too P

[agentmancuso]

Three days in to 5 week trek across France the sole came off of one of my Polish army boots. But I tied it back on with a bit of nylon rope and it lasted for 535 miles, till someone put a gun to my head.

[Doddy]

Bright laces are an idea, or like I do with my ski bag tie an old bright bandana to them.

[gunwharfman]

One of my other moments of nearly giving up was in 2015 when hiking the GR10 across the Pyrenees. Got to Larrau and booked into a hotel to dry out after two days of rain. I spread all my clothing,etc, across the floor and furniture to dry out and then decided to have a shower. Ahead of me was a full length mirror. I looked, blinked and looked again. I had a Hernia!

I nearly gave up, but luckily (in hindsight) I still had to walk three days to the next real village. I booked in to a campsite at Lascau and the young woman receptionist spoke English. I explained my problem and she kindly phoned around and identified a medical warehouse in Oleron, about 50km away.

The next day I hitchhiked there, bought myself a truss, put it on and by the time I got back to my tent I decided to carry on with my walk to the Mediterranean.

Repaired two months later.

[toadoftoadhall]

Soles of both my boots came away on the last day of my walk to St Davids on the coastal path , so had to detour onto the road for the last 5 miles or so. Were good boots too.

[sussamb]

Clearly not that good 

[Murphy]

Slipping in the shower at Middleton on PW.  Legs went under the gap scraping my shins, but my thumb was bent back and tore tendons holding it in place.  Was extremely painful.  I was able to carry on to the end however as my colleagues helped to put up my tent each night, and lift my rucksack onto my back etc.   Returned home to have operation and arm/hand in plaster for the next 8 weeks...

[tonyk]

 Hawkins boots (as worn by the Queen),Merrill Lite single skin tent and Raven Dehydrated meals.The only conclusion I can come to is that the Queen dosen't walk anywhere in her Hawkins boots as she would be completely disabled by now.That John Merrill never used this crap tent on his coastal walk as he would have suffered some kind of lung disease from inhaling water vapour every night and that the owner of Raven's food was completely honest when he said he had a degree in bio-chemistry rather than cuisine and admitted he knew next to nothing about cooking.

[Slogger]

Uriwell? I prefer them to getting out of my tent in snow, hale gale and rain in temperatures of 0c too P

Uriwell? IIn the tent I use either an empty water bottle or titanium pot if I'm carrying cooking gear. Emptied and rinsed out in the morning, good to go again. Your own urine isn't going to hurt you, and rinsing out, you won't know whats been there.