PERSPECTIVETwo-and-a-half years ago, I started
walking the length of the world, from
southernArgentinatothenortherntipof
Alaska.Amanhasdoneit,butI want to
bethefirstwomantoachieveit.
I got theidea whenI wasworking
in communications in Darwin. But then
I wasina horrificcaraccidentwhenIwas
doingacharitycycleride.Acarpulled
outinfrontofme,I wentintoit andlanded
onmyhead.I damagedmyspineandmy
brain,andwasinalotofpain.I initially
couldn’twalkandIhadaphasia,whichis
whereyouknowwhatyouwanttosay,
butit justdoesn’tcomeoutofyourmouth.
I stillwantedtodothewalk,andwent
tomyGPtomakesurehefeltI’dbefit
enough.Heactuallysaidit wasagood
idea:the only waytogiveyour brain
a goodchanceofrecoveringis tobeinan
environmentwhereyou’relearningand
doing a lot of decision-making. Now,
whenI’mtired,I cangeta bitstuttery,and
I can’t remember more than three
instructions at a time, whereas beforeAFTER A SERIOUS
INJURY,B RISBANE-BORN
LUCY BARNARDSETOUT
ONA LIFE-CHANGING
JOURNEYI getintoatown,Irestock.Thatcanbe
dangerous— I’vebeenharassedbymen
onthewayintotowns.I getlessofit since
I gotWombat—blueheelershavealot
ofdingointhem,whichmeanspeople
herethinkhe’sa wolf,sotheysteerclear.
I’vehadtimeswhereI’verunoutof
food,andI’vegottensick,too.PlusI’m
coeliac,anda lotofthesetownsonly
havebreadandcheeseforsale,soI’ve
hada lotofbathroomemergencies!
The hardesttimes havebeenin the
AtacamaDesert;it wassohot,andallmy
gearbroke. Whenmymumand sister
visited,weallgotmugged,whichwas
awful.I missmyfamily,andI missknowing
whereI’mgoingtosleepatnight—and
I miss having a fridge close by with
foodinit!
I want to quit on a monthly basis,
mostlyduetosheerexhaustion,buteach
time I’ve had these major setbacks,
peoplehavehelpedme— theyoftengive
me andWombat food,andwash my
clothes,orletmestayovernightintheir
houses. It’s been a journey of one
communityafterthenext.I’mwalkingon
myown, but Ireally am notbecause
people are constantly giving me
encouragement and helping me get
to the next section. I also hear from
peoplethroughsocialmediawho say
my stories help them through difficult
times, or inspire their kids. Those
messageskeepmegoing.
The biggestlesson I’velearntwhile
walkingis that I need to taketime to
enjoyit,andbekindertomyself.I think
as women, we generally focus on
whatwe’renot—butreally,weshould
set up goals around the person we
already are. That’s when you start to
achieve a lot more than you would
if you’re just worrying you’re not
pretty enough, or skinny or fit or rich
enough.Embracebeingwhoyouare.
FollowLucyvia@tanglesandtail and at
tanglesandtail.comEI wasafastlearner.ButI’m pretty much
backontrack.
I lovebeingintheoutdoorsandI’d
done somefive-day walksbefore.I’m
also big into rock climbing and
canyoning,andin myheaditwasjust
goingtobelike canyoningthatnever
ends.Butofcourseit’snothinglikethat—
it’swayrougher.It’sreallyhardandit’s
reallygreat.If I’mstruggling,Iputonan
audiobookandI don’t even notice my
legsarehurting.
I thoughtthewholewalkwouldtake
threeyears,butnowI thinkit willbeabout
five.UsuallyI walkwitha cartattachedto
me, which carries my tent, food and
water for me and my blue heeler,
Wombat.If I’mwalkingleisurely, I do
about 30 kilometresaday,andwhen
I was inthe desert,Iwas walking 50
kilometresatnight.NowI’mintheAndes
mountains in Peru, I’ll slow down to
give my body a chance to adjust
totheclimate.I wasalreadyfeelingthe
altitude’s effects after two days! WhenCULTURE
“I’M GOING
TO BE THE FIRST
WOMAN TO
WALK THE
LENGTH OF
THE WORLD...
IT WILL TAKE
FIVE YEARS”
As told to Hannah James. Photography: @tanglesandtail“
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