Dartmouth woman battles the sun, terrain and blisters in 132-mile walk

Oct 5, 2017

After 132 miles, with 128 walkers, and a countless amount of blisters, Dartmouth resident Marcia Hathaway finished the EverWalk from Boston to Cape Elizabeth, Maine.

Hathaway along with many other walkers walked from September 10 until September 16, walking nearly 20 miles everyday.

"It was hard, harder than the Camino," Hathaway said, who walked over 500 miles in the Camino in Spain last year. "The EverWalk was 20 miles everyday on the road, that surface day after day is killer."

Hathaway said that the heat played a big factor as well, with the sun constantly beating down on the walkers. Hathaway ended up wearing long pants to block the sun.

"I have been home a week and a half, my blisters are pretty much gone, as is my middle toenail on my right foot," Hathaway said.

But even with the foot pain Hathaway said her legs felt great and she was ready to teach her classes at HealthTrax again the first Monday after she returned.

Hathaway said she met a lot of inspiring people walking for great causes.

"Adrienne with only one leg, 82 yr old Betsy with 4th stage lung cancer," Hathaway said

Hathaway said she also met a man who has walked the Camino, the inaugural Epic walk in 2016 from LA to San Diego and this 2017 Epic New England Walk who had 4 types of active cancer.

"The stories I hold in my heart from this walk would fill another book," Hathaway said.

The EverWalk is all about raising awareness and inspiring others. The goal of the EverWalk is to inspire people to become a nation of walkers and to take the EverWalk pledge of walking three times a week. EverWalk Nation is organized by Diane Nyad – the first person to swim from Cuba to Florida – and Bonnie Stoll.

Hathaway takes EverWalk’s goal of building awareness of the health benefits of walking personally. Her 76-year-old husband Warren, who struggles with diabetes, lost both his legs this past March.

Hathaway completed this EverWalk for her husband Warren.

"While I was away struggling in my own pain to walk," Hathaway said. "Warren was here, being Epic, pushing past his limits, finally being able to stand for the first time."