One of the unexpected pleasures of the trip has been an experience that's crept up on all of us and slightly taken us by surprise; the feeling of becoming more connected to your own country.
It's a combination of slow travel, small acts of kindness, the acknowledgement of strangers and having time to enjoy the uniquely British eccentricities that are everywhere when you look.
Through the Black Country today. Should be fun.
Friday, 31 July 2009
Thursday, 30 July 2009
The whether to forecast
Despite the star quality of Marion's cooking (breakfast was the equal of anything you'd eat anywhere), if we emerge from this tour with a Michelin Guide, it will be of the rubber tyre genre The day started in a bike shop. Again. This time in Street's brilliantly named On Your Bike, with James getting a new back wheel. On a punning note, we couldn't help remarking on this town having missed the chance to rival Okehampton with Street's Ahead.
Anyway, the next four hours were about rain. The only diversion was to agree on an adjective. Was it teeming, driving, persistent or, for the melodramatic types, lashing? It was certainly wet. After five minutes we stopped getting wetter.
Mercifully, this was one of the shortest rides, albeit that it had our longest unbroken climb - 2.25 miles according to James' (Statto's) on board telemetry.
Adam felt the ride required another puncture (he's greedily collected three now), but other than that it was relatively incident free trip.
The inhospitability of the weather was overwhelmed by the hospitality of Bob and Sally's welcome. They are Adam's girlfriend's parents, and they opened their house to us with enormous warmth. More great food, to the point where weight gain is a serious possibility, and a full laundry service from Sally. We've been thoroughly spoilt the last two nights.
So, to Worcester, my liege. We've been promised better weather, but this update has been tapped out in tune to rain tapping on the window. We shall see.
Anyway, the next four hours were about rain. The only diversion was to agree on an adjective. Was it teeming, driving, persistent or, for the melodramatic types, lashing? It was certainly wet. After five minutes we stopped getting wetter.
Mercifully, this was one of the shortest rides, albeit that it had our longest unbroken climb - 2.25 miles according to James' (Statto's) on board telemetry.
Adam felt the ride required another puncture (he's greedily collected three now), but other than that it was relatively incident free trip.
The inhospitability of the weather was overwhelmed by the hospitality of Bob and Sally's welcome. They are Adam's girlfriend's parents, and they opened their house to us with enormous warmth. More great food, to the point where weight gain is a serious possibility, and a full laundry service from Sally. We've been thoroughly spoilt the last two nights.
So, to Worcester, my liege. We've been promised better weather, but this update has been tapped out in tune to rain tapping on the window. We shall see.
Wednesday, 29 July 2009
Martin's Day 5 Update...
Day 5 - Sorry for the silence so far, we've only just managed to get the blog link to work from a mobile, and the small towns of the south west have either not caught up with Internet cafes or they've moved way past them - you decide.
Still on course with the itinerary at this point. The one sentence version of progress is: bodies in better states than bikes. Tom's had to have a new one altogether - the one he was sentimentally attached to (the Rattlesnake), turned out to be, er, not quite up to the task. He ended up with the one almost suitable bike that Bodmin Bikes could sell us. Adam had two punctures and a broken spoke on day 3 and had to stop in Okehampton on day 4 to get sorted out. Martin has so far escaped with nothing more than replaced brake blocks in Launceston, but James had a spectacular tumble yesterday (degree of difficulty 8.5), which did for his back wheel. It was only three miles from the end of the (80 mile) day. The brilliant landlord of our B&B, Mr. Salmon, came out to collect James and the bike. His wife cooked us a quite brilliant meal, which would have been outstanding under any circumstances, but after yesterday, well... They deserve a plug - if you're ever near Street, check out the Old Orchard House B&B.
So we'll start today in a bike shop. Again. They're all brilliant down here. Family owned, friendly, give you cups of tea, and superbly positioned to attract woefully unprepared End to End chancers like us.
More soon. Solid rain today, but a short ride to Bristol. We could do with an easier day - partly for the sake of James' bruises and stiff knee and elbow and just generally after the brutal hills of Bodmin and Dartmoor.
Oh, finally, for any devotees of civic branding, ever seen a better one than Okehampton - the town with moor? Genius.
Still on course with the itinerary at this point. The one sentence version of progress is: bodies in better states than bikes. Tom's had to have a new one altogether - the one he was sentimentally attached to (the Rattlesnake), turned out to be, er, not quite up to the task. He ended up with the one almost suitable bike that Bodmin Bikes could sell us. Adam had two punctures and a broken spoke on day 3 and had to stop in Okehampton on day 4 to get sorted out. Martin has so far escaped with nothing more than replaced brake blocks in Launceston, but James had a spectacular tumble yesterday (degree of difficulty 8.5), which did for his back wheel. It was only three miles from the end of the (80 mile) day. The brilliant landlord of our B&B, Mr. Salmon, came out to collect James and the bike. His wife cooked us a quite brilliant meal, which would have been outstanding under any circumstances, but after yesterday, well... They deserve a plug - if you're ever near Street, check out the Old Orchard House B&B.
So we'll start today in a bike shop. Again. They're all brilliant down here. Family owned, friendly, give you cups of tea, and superbly positioned to attract woefully unprepared End to End chancers like us.
More soon. Solid rain today, but a short ride to Bristol. We could do with an easier day - partly for the sake of James' bruises and stiff knee and elbow and just generally after the brutal hills of Bodmin and Dartmoor.
Oh, finally, for any devotees of civic branding, ever seen a better one than Okehampton - the town with moor? Genius.
Tuesday, 28 July 2009
Friday, 24 July 2009
The itinerary
For all you keen followers (and if you'd like to join us), here is our itinerary for the ride:
Day 1 – Saturday 25th July
Arrive by train in Penzance – 14.30
Penzance – Hayle, via Land’s End – 26 miles
Hayle: Travelodge, A30 Carwin Roundabout, Hayle, TR27 5PN - 0871 984 6314
Day 2 – Sunday 26th
Hayle – Bodmin – 39 miles
Bodmin: Hotel Casi Casa, 11 Higher Bore Street, PL31 1JS – 01208 77592
Day 3 – Monday 27th
Bodmin – Okehampton - 40 miles
YHA, Klondyke Road, Okehampton, EX20 1EW - 0845 371 9651
Day 4 – Tuesday 28th
Okehampton – Street – 70 miles
Old Orchard House B & B, Middle Brooks, Street
BA16 0TU - 01458 442212
Day 5 – Wednesday 29th
Street – Bristol – 32 miles
Susie’s parents
Day 6 – Thursday 30th
Bristol – Worcester – 63 miles
Gables Bed & Breakfast, 166 Bromyard Road, Worcester, WR2 5EE
01905 425488
Day 7 – Friday 31st
Worcester – Market Drayton – 53 miles
Hermitage B&B, 44 Stafford Street, Market Drayton Shropshire
TF9 1JB 01630 658508
Day 8 – Saturday 1st August
Market Drayton – Manchester – 60 miles
Adam’s flat
Day 9 – Sunday 2nd
Rest day in Manchester
Adam’s flat
Day 10 – Monday 3rd
Manchester – Ingleton – 72 miles
Seed Hill Guest House, Village Centre, Ingleton, LA6 3AB – 01524 241 799
(x1 twin, x1 triple) – deposit paid.
http://www.come2ingleton.com/
Day 11 – Tuesday 4th
Ingleton – Dufton - 45 miles
YHA, Dufton, Appleby, Cumbria, CA16 6DB - 0845 371 9734
4 bed room plus 1 dorm bed
Booking refs: 7620634 & 7620635
Paid in full
Day 12 – Wednesday 5th
Penrith – Lockerbie – 57 miles
Corrid Lodge B&B Corrie Road, Lockerbie,
Dumfries & Galloway, DG11 2NG - 01576 710237
Day 13 – Thursday 6th
Lockerbie – Strathaven – 57 miles
Alison Girdwood, 33 School Lane,
Day 14 – Friday 7th
Rest day in Glasgow/Strathaven
Alison Girdwood
Day 15 – Saturday 8th
Strathaven – Loch Lomond – 36 miles
SYHA Loch Lomond, Auchendennan, Arden, G83 8RA - 01389 850 226
Day 16 – Sunday 9th
Loch Lomond – Crianlarich– 31 miles
SYHA Crianlarich, Station Road, Crianlarich, FK20 8QN - 01838 300 260
Day 17 – Monday 10th
Crianlarich to Glen Nevis – 54 miles
SYHA Glen Nevis, Glen Nevis, Fort William, PH33 6SY - 01397 702 336
Day 18 – Tuesday 11th
Glen Nevis – Glen Urquhart– 58 miles
SYHA Glen Urquhart, Bearnock Country Centre, Glen Urquhart, IV63 6TN
01463 230 218
Day 19 – Wednesday 12th
Glen Urquhart – Carbisdale Castle – 27 miles
SYHA Carbisdale Castle, Culrain, Sutherland, IV24 3DP - 01549 421 232
Day 20 – Thursday 13th
Carbisdale Castle to Altnaharra – 23 miles
B&B Altnaharra, 1, Mcleod Crescent, IV27 4UG – 01549 411 258
Day 21 – Friday 14th
Altnaharra to Tongue - 26 miles
SYHA Tongue, Tongue, By Lairg, IV27 4XH - 01847 611789
Day 22 – Saturday 15th
Tongue – John O’Groats – 63 miles
John O’Groats, Caithness,
Scotland, KW1 4YR - 01955 611 220
Monday, 20 July 2009
Land's End to John O'Groats 2009
Messrs. Lee, Lee, Lee & Lee are delighted to announce their forthcoming perambulation along the length of England, Wales and Scotland, starting at the foot of Land’s End (Cornwall), and to finish at the tip of John O’Groats (Caithness), beginning on the 25th day of July, the year of our Lord 2009. Transportation will be facilitated purely by Mr. Raleigh’s new and fantastical invention, ‘the bicycle’, illustrated in the daguerrotype above. The journey will encompass divers byways and highways, resting at hostels and inns along the way. Charitable donations on behalf of the MS Society are being most humbly and gratefully accepted, and can be given through the agency of Mr. Berners-Lee’s even more fantastical world wide web, at the address below. The merest ‘click’ will transport you, by some infernal mechanism, to their invisible money depository. All farthings and, dare we say it, groats, will make a valued contribution, sovereigns and guineas are more desirous still.
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