I broke my last walking record, woohoo!
Actually I still couldn’t believe that I managed to do so because it was my first attempt doing a long-distance walk of more than 20km. By the end of the walk, I actually lost a toe nail (ouch) and had plenty of blisters on the rest of my toes due to ill-fitting trainers that wasn’t deep enough in the front to accommodate my expanded feet. I could have continued but my feet just couldn’t make it anymore. I was slightly limping because of blister pain and knee/heel pain (due to over-pronation of the feet).
Lol, why did a leisure walk become such a horrifying experience? I think I have a pretty high pain threshold as I feel any pain outside of the abdominal pain (caused by kidney stones, which is supposedly similar to childbirth) I had a few years ago is quite tolerable. So yes, that was why I insisted that I wanted to complete the walk even though the husband was asking me to stop. But the feeling of euphoria after persevering through and achieving my goal far exceeded all that exhaustion, aching muscles, blister pain and loss of toe nail. It was a very satisfying walk and I definitely want to do it again.
Before you embark on a walking adventure (especially for first-timers), please make sure you have a pair of good trainers that provide ample support for the arches and that you have space inside the shoes (both length-wise and width-wise) for expansion of your feet. Wear comfortable clothing. Bring sufficient bottled water and stay hydrated. Put on sunscreen to protect your skin from the harmful rays. Carry along a mineral water spray to refresh yourself whenever necessary. Now you’re good to go.
I’ve plotted our entire walking route on the map above which is a total distance of 20km according to Google map. But my Samsung Gear Fit 2 registered a total distance of approx. 23km which I thought would be more accurate because certain paths on the way weren’t very straight-forward. There might be some stair-climbing and detours had to be taken as well due to construction work going on around some parts of Punggol.
So this was why I mentioned in the beginning that I had crashed my last walking record, haha. My previous record was probably 16-17km as I was exploring (almost) my entire town where I live.
We started off from Yio Chu Kang MRT Station. Turned right onto Ang Mo Kio Avenue 6 and turned right again onto Yio Chu Kang Road which we walked all the way down till we were at Sengkang West Road/Avenue.
Passed by The Seletar Mall and finally stopped at Sengkang Sports Centre by the riverside for lunch.
A good place to eat here is Citrus Bistro, that serves up reasonably priced Western and Asian cuisine.
After lunch, we continued our walk along the riverside towards the Punggol Waterway Park.
View from Jewel Bridge
The other side of Jewel Bridge
From Jewel Bridge, we just walked along the waterfront.
The row of buildings in the background are the workers’ dormitories at Seletar North Link.
So colourful and pretty!
After passing the Marina Country Club, you can see the sea. Malaysia is on the opposite side with plenty of ships in-between.
Taking a short break near Punggol Point Jetty and just enjoying the sea and sand.
We moved on from the jetty and came to The Punggol Settlement which houses various F&B outlets. Perfect place to dine by the sea. ??
Walked along the Punggol Promenade and we finally spotted Coney Island. The clear blue sky on that day was just amazing. Thank goodness the weather was good too.
Wooden plank terrain on the Promenade
Coney Island West Entrance
This scene really reminded me of the Yosemite National Park in California, USA. I remembered walking through the woods during springtime – it was just like this. Atmosphere was serene. Really peaceful.
There is even this area (West Promenade) where you can sit on the steps and enjoy the sea view and breeze. So windy and nice.
Perfect way to rest our feet!
Wanted to stay longer but it was getting a bit late and we weren’t sure how long more it would take to leave the island.
Rustic beach but surprisingly well-maintained too. Not bad location for a picnic and a little dip.
There are opening hours for Coney Island so remember to leave by 7pm. Otherwise, the gates will be closed.
We exited from the East Entrance.
Saw a number of people fishing by the breakwater side.
Almost sunset by the time we were here.
This was supposedly the end point for our walk but it was like in the middle of nowhere. Found IKEA Tampines nearby when I checked on Google map so we decided to go there for dinner.
We started the walk at about 1pm and ended up at IKEA Tampines at around 7.30pm. Based on the route plotted on the map earlier, it should take about 4 to 4.5 hours to finish the walk but because we had lunch and a couple of breaks plus photo-taking moments, we stretched that to 6.5 hours instead. Felt long but it was a good day out. Thoroughly worked out our whole body and leg muscles, lol. Felt really happy completing this long walk too.
If you want to challenge yourself and go on a walkathon without the hustle and bustle of urban life, this route is definitely worth exploring. Alternatively, if you cycle, this will be a good way to go too. The sights and sounds along the way are just awesome plus you’ll be enjoying the benefits of a good exercise workout. ? Keep walking!
Nice sharing…nice play..blogger from Malaysia..nice meet u
Thanks for stopping by. ☺