Ian Bos is almost finished his long walk across Canada.
Bearded and thinner than when he started, Bos has spent the last five months walking from coast to coast, raising money and awareness about hospice and palliative care.
He embarked from New Glasgow, N.S., on May 21 and walked about 45 kilometers a day, while carrying a 50 pound pack.
He met with the Supportive Steps walking club for part of his trek through Langley, and stopped at the Hospice offices Friday afternoon.
“It’s kind of a bittersweet thing,” he said of the imminent end of his walk, scheduled to wrap up in Victoria.
It’s been an amazing chance to raise awareness, he said.
Bos said his mind wants him to keep going, but his body is ready for it to be over.
During his walk, he has stopped at more than 100 hospices across the country. He said there is still a need for more services, and that two thirds of Canadians don’t have access to proper palliative care at the end of their lives.
Also walking with Bos for a stretch was Langley’s own long-distance Hospice walker, Roy Clements.
The Langley Advance profiled Roy earlier this year just before he headed off to England to walk coast-to-coast there.
After coming home to Canada to get his feet looked at by a doctor, Clements then headed back to the U.K. to do another long coastal walk with his grandsons.
Those are just warmups for the 70-plus man’s hike of the Santiago de Compostella next year.
That walk is a historic pilgrimage route through France and Spain.
Both men embarked on their walks to honour people who have passed away.
Bos is walking for his late father, and Clements does his walking in memory of his wife Doreen.