Diary of a Madman - Part One

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By Jonathan Hoare
July 16 2002

The committed fan who endeavoured 400 miles of hell for the club that he truely loves that is of course CHESTERFIELD FOOTBALL CLUB!

Thanks go to Jonathan and I speak for many fans when I say we are truly proud to have you as a Chesterfield fan!

In Jonathan's own words: My Diary of the 400 mile sponsored walk I did last August!I will take this opportunity to thank Lee Maskell, his family and close friends, without whose help support, and just as importantly the phone calls when I was in the middle of no where and feeling like crap, kept me going! Without people like these and others like them, Chesterfield Football Club would have been dead and buried months ago! Again heartfelt thanks to them all! Also to my Family, who I hope were as proud as I was, when I walked out onto the Pitch at Saltergate last August to complete the 400 miles!


Day 1
9.25 am And my sister has still not got herself ready to give me a lift to Guildford station! Why a woman needs 45 minutes to get dressed when a man can do it in less than 5 is a mystery! Because of this I miss the train I need to catch, and later on in the day this will mean a 2-hour wait at Swansea for a connection!!
Catch a later train than planned from Guildford, and have just got comfortable, when a call from the Mobile phone shop informs me that the reason my spare mobile does not work, is cos they have given me the wrong one!! On top of this, I lose my Youth Hostel Membership card!! Can the first day get any worse??
After waiting what seems like an eternity at Swansea for a connecting train, I eventually arrive at Amroth for the start of the 400 miles, with the help of a local cabbie, who knows exactly where the start it is!! Have my photo taken at the start point, and set off on my first of thousands of tentative steps!
Walk through a beautiful place called Saundersfoot after a few miles, and low and behold, the first guy I talk to is from Mansfield!!!
Head towards Tenby, when I get there it is dark, and I get lost for the first time!! Eventually find my way, and trudge across the Golf course, and over the beach onto a hilltop over looking Tenby! A really great site when it’s lit up at night!!
Get the tent out off its bag for the first night, and unbelievably manage to put it up in the dark!! The time is now 11.15pm!!
Distance today 9 Miles.

Day 2
Woke up by the damn seagulls, and am on my way again by 6.40 am! It is going to be one of those days!
Manage to get a couple of hours sleep this afternoon, on a lovely beach, which luckily has a nice shaded area at the end I am heading for!
Wake up after a couple of hours and set of up a steep climb, before finding myself on another beach, climb up hill again, only to find that the path in front goes through MOD land, and today of all days they are wanting to play soldiers, so I can wait till tomorrow, or go on a 4 mile detour!! Did this idiot wait? Ha did he hell!
I am walking down the road minding my own business when a car pulls up, and 2 Irish men ask me if I need any help, I tell them I am heading for Freshwater West, but not sure if I am going the right way! I have my map out, and one guy says get in and we will show you! No longer than a second after I climb into the car, and we are off, with the door still open!! My god I thought, I am being kidnapped by 2 Irishmen! I thought he was going to show me on the map how to get there, whereas he was taking me there in the car thinking he was doing me a favour! They drop me off, and my heart sinks, it must be 4 miles back to where they picked me up, but I wasn’t going to cheat, even though no-one would have known, so I set off back!! 1 hour 30 mins later and I was back at where they picked me up, feeling tired and angry, I had been on the go hours, it was now 6.35pm! Set off again, and got to a pub, boy did I need a drink!
Got to Freshwater West beach about 8.40pm took my shoes and socks off and walked in the sea as the tide came in. This felt so good; my poor feet felt as though they were dropping off.! Got the tent up about 9.15pm, had something to eat and looked forward to another night of bliss under canvas! However, this was not to be, as a while after I pitched up for the night so did a bunch of loud drunk youths, where’s the boys when you need them huh??
Distance today 28 miles

Day3
Woke up at 9,oclock to find the noisy youths had gone, and when I climbed out of my tent, there was a can of cider propped up against the tent! Maybe as a form of apology perhaps?
Left Freshwater at 9.15, and a couple of hours later arrive at Angle, and straight away find the café. The owner is a star and when she finds out how far I am walking, she feeds me for free!! One of many great people I am going to meet on this walk!
I leave the beauty of Angle behind, and after a 2 and a half hour walk, approach the east side of Milford Haven Harbour, this has got to be the most depressing holes on planet earth, the 4 oil refineries that take over 100s of acres of land, turn something that once was probably very beautiful into a depressing hovel!! The worst thing is, it is going to take me nearly 2 days to walk in and out of the place!! Soul destroying!
After getting a bit lost again! In the maze of unmarked paths around the oil companies, I finally get to a place called Monkton, near Pembroke, and pitch up for the night. I have here my most embarrassing moment, when I have to go and er, dump in the woods!! Every time afterwards I walked near a public loo, I went whether I needed to or not!! LOL. The time is now 9.30pm.
Distance today 23 miles

Day 4
Left Monkton at around 8 am, and head for the toll bridge, finally find it and head towards the centre of Milford Haven. I must have been really struggling walking up the steep hill towards the bridge, as a guy stopped and asked if I needed a lift! I reclined obviously, but it brought a smile to my face! As I get to the other side of the bridge it starts to chuck it down, and I put my waterproofs on for the first time.
As I reach the centre of Milford Haven, I go to a Garage and buy some Chocolate, and a map!! I somehow lost mine in Tenby, and am getting fed up of getting lost! Next stop is the Tourist information Centre to find out where the next camp site is.? The lady in the information centre was great, and informs me that the next campsite is about 8 miles away at Sandy Haven.
As I head off for Sandy Haven it is still pouring it down, but after a little while it stops and the sun comes out! YIPPEE!!
Got to the camp site at 5pm just gone, book in and pay, one of only 2 times I will have to pay at a camp site during this walk!
The family in the tent at the side of mine are really chatty, and interested in what I am doing! They also give me a bottle of cold lager! Heaven! I drink it quickly, and then go and have my first shower, since Wednesday Morning! and its now Saturday Tea time!
After spending an eternity in the shower, I cook something to eat on my little stove, have 40 winks, then head off to the local pub! The staff are great, and happily charge my Mobile phone up for me. Have a few pints of lager, and phone my mum up on the way home!! Altogether now, AHHHHH.
Get back to the campsite at about 10.30, chat to the people at the side of me, and then fall into my sleeping bag a bit happier than I have been up to now!
So far I have walked 74 miles in 4 days, and it all seems a bit too easy!!
Ho Ho How things are soon going to change!!!!
Distance today 14 Miles