 Rosie Swale Pope has been on the road for four-and-a-half years |
A grandmother close to finishing a run around the world has had her journey delayed after breaking several ribs during a fall in Iceland. Rosie Swale Pope was just 60 miles from the east coast of the north Atlantic island when she was injured. The 61-year-old will have to rest for at least two weeks but is determined to resume as soon as possible. She will announce details of the final leg of her run - from Scotland to her home in Tenby, Pembrokeshire, shortly. When setting out in October 2003 Rosie predicted the run would only take her about 24 months but she has now been on the road for four-and-a-half years. Most nights have been spent sleeping in a tent she pulls behind her on a cart she has called Icebird.  |  It will be about four to six weeks until everything is healed properly |
In the latest entry on her website Rosie said as she fell one of the cart's shafts drove into her side and she heard "a cracking sound." A friend drove her to a medical centre where a doctor found she had broken ribs. "I have broken two ribs at least near my spinal column, though not dangerous - not near a lung, and also have a bit of damage to the ribs at the front," she said. "The only catch is that he [the doctor] said setting immediately would make the injury less likely to heal quick and could cause more damage. "I did not want to be hobbling on arrival in Britain. I want Icebird and I to arrive proudly in fine style. "High Kicks" "So, It will be about four to six weeks until everything is healed properly, but if I use pain as a guide I ought to be able to set off with Icebird again in around two weeks." Until then she is camping out beside Lake Myvatn. It is not the first injury Rosie has sustained along the way. During her journey she has been hit by a bus, suffered pneumonia, frost bite and a breast cancer scare. She embarked on the challenge to increase awareness of prostate cancer following the death of her husband, Clive Pope, and to raise money for a Russian children's home in Kitezh. Local newspapers and broadcasters have been covering her progress as she passes through their area for most of the journey. "Very definitely I'll be bouncing 100 per cent and dancing and doing high kicks for joy as I reach the finish in Tenby," she added in her latest entry. "I am getting more excited than ever about all this. The ribs will make hardly any difference to the plans coming together, which I shall outline in my next report."
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