A talk about a walk

REPORTER FILE PHOTO Two intrepid Islanders on one leg of their circumnavigation of Shelter Island.

This time last summer, two active and curious locals circumnavigated the Shelter Island shoreline and thanks to Fit Bit technology, we now know it’s an 83.41-mile trip!

Those adventurers, Glenn Waddington and Callie Atkins, will speak at the library’s Friday Night Dialogue on July 21 at 7 p.m. about the interesting details of their hike and philosophize on the benefits of walking for the senses and for exercise.

Visitors often ask “How big is Shelter Island?”

Glenn decided to find out for sure. To satisfy his curiosity he figured the measurement of the entire shoreline would be the most accurate answer — no swimming or wading across mouths of creeks or inlets, just mother earth however mushy or phragmites-dense she might be.

So upon retirement, and wanting to shed a few pounds, he convinced Callie to join him. Together they got organized, leaving cars at the beginning and end of the 13 walkable legs that took them a total of 41 hours.

Glenn and Callie animate their journey through the prism of their senses; viewing Shelter Island’s natural beauty, smelling the rain in early morning, hearing the cacophony of bird calls, tasting the berries and sassafras along the trail, feeling the variables at the bottoms of their feet.

Please join us and listen to their story, be inspired to walk about … simply for the often-needed isolation and contemplation, not to mention the healthy exercise of movement. Hey, it’s addictive!

Join us on Friday night, July 21, 7 p.m. at the library, admission is free with donations gratefully accepted.

Up next:  On Friday, July 28 at 7 p.m., library trustee Judy Hole will interview CBS Correspondent Rita Braver about her long career as a journalist, the state of journalism today and her time on CBS Sunday Morning.