With this information, it can be estimated that Gwaihir could fly from the Shire to Mordor in just over 2 days, uninterrupted. Again referring to the map mentioned above, this trip from Isengard spans roughly 125 miles. The eagle rescues Gandalf from the Tower of Orthanc on the night of September 18th and drops him off in Edoras " ere dawn," suggesting a flight around 6 hours in length. ![]() Working out how fast the Great Eagles can travel in The Lord of the Rings is much harder, especially since the creatures only carry Frodo and Sam from Mount Doom " out of the fire to the King," suggesting that the Hobbits were flown down to the field of battle, rather than directly to Gondor.Īnother notable journey Gwaihir makes is more helpful. Using a scale map (via EncyclopediaOfArda), the distance between the Shire and Mordor as the crow (or eagle) flies can be estimated at around 1100 miles. With that target in mind, how much faster could the Great Eagles have made the journey? This is somewhat trickier to calculate, requiring a mixture of arithmetic and guesswork to reach an answer. This suggests that, without being chased by Ringwraiths or giant spiders, one could actually travel from the Shire's Bag End to Mount Doom in Mordor in a brisk 148 days. A physically fit person could cover roughly 12 miles per day, taking into account breaks, sleeping and difficult terrain. Widely respected cartographer, Karen Wynn Fonstad, nails the distance Frodo covered on his route to 1779 miles. However, Frodo took many diversions during his journey, meaning this figure doesn't give a true representation of how long the trek should take. This means that the events of The Lord of the Rings take place over six months, or 182 days using the Shire calendar. ![]() In Return of the King, Gandalf declares that, " In Gondor the New Year will always now begin upon the twenty-fifth of March when Sauron fell," pinpointing the date Frodo Baggins finally stood upon the crack of Mount Doom. The first question to ask is: how far did Frodo travel on his journey from Bag End to Mordor? It's known from Tolkien's text that Frodo left the Shire on September 23rd, a day after turning 50. Related: How Games Of Thrones' Ending Is The Same As The Lord Of The Rings One major point of contention among fans of both Lord of the Rings versions is why Gandalf didn't let Frodo fly to Mordor on an eagle in the first place? This surely would've been quicker, easier and avoided many of the hardships Frodo faced during his trek. After finally completing their mission to destroy the ring, the two beaten and battered Hobbits sit on the black slopes of Mount Doom and quietly give up any hopes of seeing their home again, at which point Gandalf appears alongside a trio of Great Eagles, rescuing Middle earth's heroes from a slow demise. ![]() Thankfully, Frodo needn't bear this burden alone, and he is accompanied every step of the way by faithful friend, Samwise Gamgee.
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