While that "foundation post" focused primarily on the issues associated with the walking route itself, this "companion" to it focuses on time or day, season, and weather (and again, before any other issues/factors get factored into the overall (or microscopic) picture.
Now that I've written the "basic-foundation" post about the route to nearest grocery store, I thought I'd write a follow-up/companion post about some other the other things that factor into just the walk, alone. (Eventually, I'll be able to write some nice, brief, posts related to things that are only indirectly related to the walking route, itself.
First, there's the season. In Winter it's a balancing act to get out in time to do the walk and still, ideally, get back before it's gets too dark (and even more ideally, to get out of the evening rush hour traffic which a) can seem worse when it's dark at 4:30 p.m., and b) can seem particularly confusing and difficult for a pedestrian crossing where I need to cross at that time; but also to get out out late enough in the morning that the worst of the cold (and dark) may be a little better. Things get better with Spring, but there's a time when it's darker later in the morning and not light all that late in the evening.
Summer is good daylight-wise - but then there's Summer sun, and also mosquitos (etc.). Summer is a balancing act about getting out early enough to get back before, say, 9:30 a.m. sometimes (certainly by 1:00 p.m. on other days).
It's Massachusetts, though, so daylight aside, there's seldom much of a guarantee (no, never) that weather will be what one would expect at any given time. This year, we've had temperatures in the 40's in June. April was colder than we generally think of April, and even though March is "official start of Spring", it's just as likely that March will seem like February. A few years ago we had a freak "almost non-Winter". Last Winter we had both record-breakng snow AND cold.
Then, of course, there's rain (sometimes downpours, sometimes quick thunderstorms, sometimes (as with the last few days), tornado watches/warnings from morning until 9:00 p.m. "across the whole state").
There's a great time around May when it's kind of the best of all worlds - a little more light, no mosquitos, decent temperatures, etc. That's if May is normal. This year it wasn't; and April was far from 'completely away from the record-breaking Winter".
Then, too, we have "hot and humid", but we also have "hot and not-so-humid". I don't know... as far as I can tell we tend to have wind, no matter how hot and humid it is or isn't; and it all depends on where the wind is coming from (although sometimes I think on the route to the store, the wind is mainly coming from the traffic that's whizzing by - or maybe it's a mix of both, or maybe it has to do with those areas where there aren't trees to break up the wind). The point is, wind is a major factor for any number of reasons not necessarily associated with contributing to a wind-chill factor (or even to turning one's umbrella inside out).
If there are downpours expected I don't make plans to go out. One problem is that I dodn't plan to let rain stop me from going out either. That means being out on a walk that takes hours (and or the return trip) and trying to stay dry on a walk that can take an hour (or even a half hour) one way. The trouble is, rain can contribute to making the walk slower.
The balancing act bit isn't just about timing. It's about having with one, or wearing, things related to weather without either being too cold or too warm if/when the weather isn't cooperating.
Factored in too is having whatever it takes to protect, say, one's purchases from any weather, as well. Also factored in is having whatever may be needed most quickly handy (which can be tricky when one either wraps up one's whole, neatly organized, wallet in a plastic bag that will protect contents from rain; or else otherwise finds oneself needing to go through a purse/bag anywhere near or in, either the difficult "road conditions" or any weather conditions.
Sometimes weather means bringing stuff with one that one wouldn't otherwise need. Ordinarily, I keep a pair of gloves (the ones that look least Wintry) in my bag until April. l April morning and evenings (and afternoons, for that matter) can be cold. This year it became clear to me that I should leave the gloves in my bag much longer. Actually, in spite of the forties that we had a few days ago, I finally decided to go out without the gloves in my bag (but I still haven't put them away entirely). It's now the beginning of July. I finally think putting away the gloves is safe.
The balancing act related to outdoor conditions, and that particular walking route, also involves finding some "all purpose" clothes that won't be too uncomfortable, regardless of weather conditions (which often means never being completely comfortable, but at least not being super-uncomfortable).
I've learned from experience that between rainy curbs and chunks of ice that hide under snow, there's something to be said for having one's (over fifty-year-old) knees covered up with the layers that nylons, a skirt and long slip, and a coat (and in particularl cold weather, sometimes a second skirt that doesn't show). There's even those times (it's only happened once in my case) when a tire comes flying off a vehicle not far from where one is walking, and one doesn't know where one may have to run to find shelter from it.
The balancing act also kicks in with things like whether or not to bring a flashlight that's small and lightweight, but bright versus one that's small and lightweight but not entirely as bright versus one that's tiny and bright and will light a dark street but not do much for helping drivers see a pedestrian. The no-flashlight at all option is nice because it's one less thing to carry. The trouble is that can limit options like deciding one might like to eat out, rather than at home as planned.
Umbrellas. In general, the most compact ones are also the ones that offer the least coverage and are more likely to turn inside out. Bigger ones (that still fold down to fit in a bag) are heavier. Balancing act with regard to umbrellas: Will the bigger umbrella even stand up to some winds better than the smaller one? And, does one want to add the weight of a back-up umbrella in the relatively unlikely event that one is going to turn inside out? The super-cheap, lightweight, umbrella that I may have with me when I'm out with someone in a car isn't the same one that I want with me when I'm an hour-and-a-half away from home "in the weather".
The point is that before anything else is factored in, the weather and outdoor conditions combine with the other elements of the route;; and create the need for having to think out what one will/won't need at any given time (while doing yet another kind of balancing act - the "what-keeps-the-weight-of-the-bag" down" best versus the "what I'll definitely need/what I only may need, and what I might be sorry I don't have" factors.
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