Some final thoughts on LEJOG

As we travel home, I look back very fondly on the trip.  Here are some final thoughts:

1.  This trip was tough.  England is a lot hillier than I imagined.  After crossing the Canadian Rockies and France's Massif Central, I didn't expect this UK trip to be as challenging as it was.  However, this was the most, and toughest, climbing of any of my cycling trips thus far.  The trip across Canada was epic because of its length.  This trip was epic because of its difficulty and lack of rest days (see below).  The France trip didn't feel as epic, but it had the best roads, least traffic and most consistantly wonderful scenery of any of the trips.

2.  Fifteen straight days in the saddle is something I had never attempted before, and it wore me down a bit.  Having a day to rest after every 4 or 5 days across Canada made a big difference in my energy levels.

3.  It wasn't difficult to get comfortable cycling on the left hand side of the road.

4.  Rest-and-Be-Thankful pass was the highlight of the trip.  It is definitely very wet in Scotland, but the scenery is well worth another visit. 

5.  I didn't get to know all of the other riders on this tip well.  Partly this is because I rode with Roe and partly its because the group was so large and split between campers and B&Bers.  However, it was another good group.  Whippit Andy was the token speedster on the trip, and the Boys from Bath (a.k.a. Team Quickstep, a.k.a. The Umbilical Boys) were always entertaining as well.

6. With James' broken collar bone, there has been someone forced to retire from each of my cycling trips due to injury.  A bit scary.

7. Canada might have more than its fair share of mosquitos, but midges are just as annoying and Scotland has a lot of them.

8. Visiting England and France has made me more interested in learning about their histories.  A first for me.  This should warm my father's librarian heart.

I phoned my grandmother in Gosport today, and told her about the trip.  She and my grandfather were avid cyclists in their day.  They were in a cycling club, raced on weekends and toured around England on their bikes.  She said that my grandad and Ben (a longtime family friend fellow cyclist) would have been so proud of me and interested in my trips.  Its funny that I stumbled into cycling after it played such a big part of their lives.  Obviously skipped a generation for my mother.

All-in-all, another fantastic experience.  In case I havn't done so already, I highly recommend Kevin's Bike Adventure's company to both experienced and novice cyclists. 

Looking forward to my Irish bike adventure in August.  Not sure if I'll be able to post daily updates on that one, but I'l try.

Day 15

Saturday, June 24
Bettyhill to John O'Groats
104km

We made it.  Arrived safely in John O'Groats.

It was clear skies but cool as we left camp for the last day of cycling.  The first half of the ride was pretty hilly, as we rode up and down the moors along the coast.  There were several lovely views of cliffs and a couple of quick decents too.

It rained hard for about 1 minute mid-morning; just enough time for Roe to put on all of her rain gear in a bus shelter.  The rest of the day was dry.

My back felt a lot better this morning.  Still a little sore, but noting too bad.  By the end of thr ride I did,jt even notice it.  I'm sure that with a few days of non-cycling rest it will be as good as new.

We had lunch in Thurso at 50km.  We had sandwiches and deserts in a little bakery and the Roe looked around for a phone card to call home.

After lunch, we reached Dunnet Head at 70km.  This little peninsula is the most northernly point of mainland Britain.  There were some steep moors to climb before reaching a lighthouse and lookout point at the end.  There were nice views of the Oakney (sp?) Islands which are just off the coast and also part of Scotland.  They were long, flat, green islands, with tall brown cliffs dropping into the ocean.

After Dunnet Head, it was a short ride to John O'Groats, a little bit of civilization that sits on the end of the ocean and hosts a small ferry dock, some campsites and B&Bs, and a few "top of Britain".related attractions.  We met the other riders at the camp site, and ate our customary tea before I rode the one last stretch of road available.  (Roe wasn't interested in any post-tea cycling.)

I rode 4 more kilometers to Duncansby Head, the Northeast tip of Britain.  Again there was a bit of a climb up to a lighthouse, but there were also great views of the Stacks of Duncansby.  There are cliffs that feature a few columns of rock rising out of the ocean.  The cliffs themselves were really stiunning, as there is grassy grean field (complete with grazing sheep) right up to the lip of the cliff, which then drops hundreds of feet to the ocean.  That climb and view were a nice way to end the trip.

We had some group photos, packed up our bikes and then a group meal at the local pub before calling it a night.

I'm surprised to report that I didn't have any flat tires all the way from Land's End to John O'Groats. Roe also did well, with only one front and one rear flat.

Someone at dinner passed around a list of total vetical climbing distance (in feet, by day) for the trip.  It was as follows:

Day 1 - 4,200 feet
2 - 7,660
3 - 4,880
4 - 4,280
5 - 4,480
6 - 2,860
7 - 3,640
8 - 6,140
9 - 3,020
10 - 3,680
11 - 3,360
12 - 2,860
13 - 3,500
14 - 2,720
15 - 3,060

Total - 60,340 feet

Day 14

Friday, June 23
Evanton to Bettyhill
124km

Lovely ride today.  We woke up to sunshine for the first time since we arrived in Scotland.  Makes a big difference.  It was cool, but didn't rain for the entire ride.  Amazing.  I had all of my rain gear with me, just in case.

My back was still stiff this morning, but I was able to ride without much discomfort, which was lucky.  Getting on and off the bike was a bit slower than usual, and I was cautious riding out of the saddle at first, but I was soon riding very normally.

Kevin (the tour leader) billed today as "the most interesting day of the trip".  There was a lot of nice scenery and a lot of variety.

We started with a long, steady climb through farmland to a lookout point over Dornoch Firth...a large river in a wide valley.  We folloiwed the river a wile before climbing into a forested area. 

We stopped for tea at the Falls of Shin, a very touristy little cafe by a waterfall (1hich we didn't walk down to see).

After a short break, we rode through the little town of Lairg before leaving civilization behind and riding through moorlands for 30km.  It was lovely: a small road cutting across rolling hills with majestic mountains looming around every corner.

The only thing we past in those 30km was a small pub, where everyone stopped for lunch.  It was a long wait for food, since we filled the place to capacity, but it was tasty.

After lunch, was 30km of wonderful scenery.  With lots of donwhill, we rolled through a wide valley and along a loch.  Roe felt energetic again and pushed the pace to 35km/h for much of the distance, but I managed to stay with her this time.  My back felt good.

Reaching Bettyhill at the end of the ride, we saw the ocean for the first time since Cornwall.  It felt like the beginning of the end of the trip.

The campsite is very basic, with long grass and dirty washrooms.  It does, however, have a lovely view of a small snady beach, with rocky cliffs on both sides and waves crahing violently into the shore.

It got very cold and started to rain once we had set up camp.  I'm now sitting in a nearby B&B where we'll have dinner soon.  We had to pre-order our dinners for the next two nights, since there are few places to eat, and they are typically very small.

Roe's comments:
Hi.  Just back from the bar where I ordered a hot chocolate.  Yum.  The bar is quite dodgy!!.  Lots of drunken sheep farmers.                             

My gears are working better now.  I'm eating way too much.  Looking foward to the last 100km tomorrow as this has been quite a challenging trip. 

Day 13

Thursday, June 22
Fort William to Evanton
127km

If its not one thing, then its another.  Wind and rain out.  Bugs and dirt roads in. Tired legs out.  Sore back in.

It was raining again when we woke up, and still raining as we left camp.  However, the biggest annoyances were the midges: tiny little biting bugs that leave little red dots on your skin.  There were swarms of them at breakfast this morning.  Almost as bad as the mosquiots of Gravel River.

My legs felt strong again today after a poor performance yesterday., and I had no trouble keeping up with Roe.  My back did feel slightly off though.  I figured that I might have strained it yesterday while I struggled up the hills with weak legs.

There were nice views of Ben Nevis (lhighest peak in Great Britain) as we left the camp site, and more great scenery as we rode along Loch Arkaig.

Then our route took us on 10km of bumpy gravel path.  Roe was not impressed.  Some of the sections were pretty steep, and tough to climb and decend on loose gravel.  We did alright though.  Slow and steady.  My bike did slip once, but I managed not to crash it.

Next was a canal tow path, which was also loose gravel.  Roe was further unimpressed.  Our skinny little road tires don't feel very secure on gravel.

We stopped for lunch in Fort Augustus; a touristy little village on the shores of Loch Ness.  Having never been to Scotland, I had never been to Loch Ness.  It wasn't any different from the other Lochs we'd seen.  If anything, it was less scenic, with fewer tall mountains surrounding it.  I took some photos of Loch Ness when we past Urquhart Castle.  Don't think I got any of Nessie...but we'll have to check them closely when I get home.

At our lunch stop, I tweaked my back as I lifted my bike onto the curb.  It had felt a bit off all morning, and now there was a sharp, stabbing pain when I walked around.  It actually wasn't bad when I was hunched over on my bike, so I didn't have much trouble with the rest of the ride, but it is still bothering me when I stand and walk around.  Hopefully a good sleep will sort it out.  There was a 16% climb for 1 km near then end of today's ride which I managed, so I don't think I'll have any trouble making it to the end.  Fingers crossed.

Day 12

Wednesday, June 21
Inveraray to Fort William
125km

More Scotish rain.  Lots of Scotish rain.  Still nice scenery, but too much rain.  I can't decide whether its everyone who comes to Scotland, or anyone who doesn't come here that is crazy.  I can certainly see strong arguments each way.

I was tired today and had a sluggish ride.  I had a headache and felt a general malaise throughout.  Roe took the opportunity to, as she proclaimed when we arrived in camp, "kick my butt today".  She sped of into the distance a few times and then waited for me by the side of the road with a big grin on her face.  I didn't have the energy to chase.

It was raining as we left camp so we wore our full gortex outfits: jackets, pants, gloves and booties.  It was cool today as well, which actualy made it more comfortable to be cloaked in our warm rain gear.  The rain was very heavy for most of the ride, but we stayed dry and cool.  Other than our hands.  We need better wet weather cycling gloves.

The route was much simpler today.  Only 3 sheets of instructions versus yesterday's 10.  There were several long stretches without changing roads.

Out of Inveraray we climbed into some lush green woods and around a tall mountain before decending to Loch Awe.  Our first of many views of Loch with misty mountains behind.  There was even a small castle by the Loch to inspire photographs.

Riding around the Loch was very very windy again.  We were blown all over the road and had to concentrate to stay on the bikes.  Not quite as bad as yesterday's decent, since we were on flat ground, but close.

At 57km we stopped for a snack at a small Tea Shop.  That's when the rain really became heavy.  And it stayed heavy.  Lots of wind too, which again blew us all over the road when we crossed a bridge just past Connel.

The next 40km or so were a bit miserable, as the rain was heavy and Roe kept showing me how much more energy she had by sprinting away from me.

At 100km, Ballachulish had more nice views of Loch and misty mountains.  The rain even eased a bit.  We grabbed some sandwiches at a gas station and kept riding.

As we arrived in Fort William, the sun finally came out (and washed out all the rain) so we saw Scottish mountains in the bright sun for the first time.  It felt a bit unnatural, like seeing a nightclub with all of the lights on.

Hopefully I will have more enery tomorrow.  Three more days.

Roe's comments:
Cold and wet all day.  Nice flat terrain made it a easier riding day.  Gusting wind required all of my concentration to stay on my bike and riding a straight line.  I had tea biscuits at "The Robin's Nest".  They tasted just like my mom's.  Dropped half my sandwich at the gas station.  Was really mad.  Desert tonight cost me $10. Not worth it.  Camping tonight beside the tallest mountain in Britain, Ben Nevis.  Looking forward to seeing it tomorrow under blue skys.

Day 11

Tuesday, June 20
Motherwell to Inveraray
135km

Best cycling scenery ever.  Worst cycling weather ever.  Wonderful day.

Bright and sunny when we woke up.  Cool though, so we wore leg warmers and long sleeves.  Brought our heavy-duty rain jackets as well...this is Scotland after all.

First 20km of the day followed bumpy cycle paths along a river into downtown Glasgow.  We had 10 pages of directions today instead of the usual 5 or so.  The orienteering made an interesting challenge.  (I kept us on track...Charlie and Roger would have been proud.). Stopped for a snack at 35km in the Glasgow suburb of Clydebank.  More cycle paths until Balloch at 58km, where we stopped for lunch.  That's where the rain started.  It rained heavily and constantly for the rest of the day.  It was terrential!

The afternoon is where the scenery really impressed me.  First was a wide valley, then a long, narrow loch that we cycled along for 15km.  All of this was lovely, despite the rain, but our climb away from Loch Long was absolutely unbelievable.

By this point the wind and rain were at their worst.  Together, they were occasionally blinding and had us all completely drenched to the bone.  Somehow though the weather just made our surrounding more powerful. 

We climbed along the side of a valley, with huge green mountain peaks disappearing into the mist all around us.  The steep canyon walls beside us had bunches of tall trees, rushing little waterfalls and jagged grey rock protrusions that seemed to have been forced through the mossy green hills they stuck out of.  It was stunning.  I tried to capture it with my waterproof camera, but there were so many raindrops on the lens that all the photos were blurred. A photograph couldn't capture the magnitude of the scenery either...it wouldn't all fit in the frame!  I can't imagine a more magical setting.

Cresting the peak, I soon found myself flying down a long decent at 45km/h.  I was relaxing from the effort of the climb, and replaying the scenery in my head when a huge gust of wind almost blew me off my bike.  No exageration - I thought that it might knock me off my wheels.  I've never felt such strong wind.  It swirled around, pushing us in every direction.  Headwinds brought us to almost a complete stop, while tailwinds sent us hurdeling down the wet roads.  And crosswinds required absolute concentration and blew us from one side of the lane to the other.  With wet roads, wet wheels and a steep slope, it was hard to slow down and impossible to stop.  A very stressful decent, but thrilling all the same.  My forearms hurt from all the braking.

The last 20km of the ride were tiring.  We had to keep moving to avoid getting chilled.  The scenery was still lovely, but didn't compare with what we'd just seen.  I kept my head down and didn't pay it much notice.

I hope that oure last 4 days in Scotland have more great scenery in store for us.  What a beautiful country.

Day 10

Monday, June 19
Ecclefechan to Motherwell
137km

It rained intermittantly last night and it was still raining when we woke up, had breakfast and packed up the tents.  Everything was pretty wet.  Aparently it rains every year in Ecclefechan.  Last year, someone on the trip got pnemonia on todays ride!

With that in mind, Roe and I were in full gortex attire as we headed out for the longest ride of the trip.  Given the weather, Keven ofered a shorter, but less scenic option for today's route.

A few km out of camp, the rain stopped, although it was still pretty overcast.  The scenery was lovely though.  Huge grassy-green rolling mountains, with little clumps of trees and sprinklings of sheep, goats and cows.

At 37km we arrived in Moffat, where we had to chose either the short or scenic route.  We chose scenic.  The views coming into Mofat were too impressive.  We had a snack in Moffat, and then climbed, steadily by gently, for 10km to enter the Scottish Borders region.  From there, we had 25km of steady downhill, back into another scenic valley.  The afternoon was filled with lovely vistas.  It only rained on us once, for about 2 minutes.  Not bad at all.

We had a nice lunch at a small coffee shop in Biggar.  After lunch, we faced a stiff headwind for 30km, which made for some slow riding over undulating terrain.

The last section of the ride was on major roads between Lesmahagow, Larkhall, and Hamilton.  The roads were very rough and jarring.  Not fun.  At one point we rode on a cycle path which had long raised bridges over expressway on and off ramps.  Big city cycling at its best.

The sun was shining as we arrived in camp this afternoon, so all of our wet tents and clothes are drying on the lawn.

Lovely dinner of meat and veggies at a carvery tonight.

Day 9

Sunday, June 18
Kirkby Stephen to Ecclefechan
117km

Well...it had to rain sometime.  Welcome to Scotland.

Flat day today which made for easy cycling.  However, much of the ride was in a lovely valley, giving the rare combination of scenic, easy cycling.

It was overcast this morning, so we packed some rain gear.  However, we were only hit by a couple of short showers in the morning.

With good weather and flat roads, Roe and I made good time.  We skipped "elevensies" in favour of an early lunch after 57km.  We picked up pre-made sandwiches at a convienance store, and ate then by the side of the road.

The afternoon featured a brief section of narrow gravel path, that felt more like mountain biking than road touring.

With about 20km to go we left England and entered Scotland.  On cue, it started to rain heavily and it has still not let up.  Everyone is soaked to the bone.  There was a headwind into the camp as well, so it didn't make a very pleasent end to the day.  I'm starting to wonder if cycle camping in Scotland was a good idea.  (And, after this trip, its Ireland!!!)

Forgot to mention that one of the other riders on our trip crashed yesterday and broke his colar bone.  He was taken to the hospital by air ambulance, and is going home today.  Sounds like he is going to be ok though.  Didn't know him well as he was one of the B&B people.

I also realise that I have not commented yet on our daily routine.  We wake up at 7:30am; put on our cycling clothes; pack up the tents; eat breakfast at 8am, where Kevin (the tour leader) gives a short summary of the day's route; hit the road around 8:30am; cycle until 11am; eat a snack; cycle until 1pm; eat lunch; cycle to the camp (usually around 4pm); set up tents; shower; write blog; eat dinner around 7pm at a nearby pub; go to bed around 10pm.  Repeat.

Roe's comments:
A Scotsman in the group told me that I needed a visa to enter Scotland today.  He offered to sell me one for a discounted price.  He was only joking.  Turns out that there wasn't even a sign when we entered Scotland, let alone a border crossing.  We were only welcomed by rain when we crossed the river Sark.

Now sitting in my dry, cozy tent trying to figure out how to dry my shoes.

I've been having troubles with my gear changes, and have received lots of different advice on how to fix the problem.  I wish dad was around to help.  He would fix the problem until it was fixed, not just give advice.

Day 8

Saturday, June 17
Clitheroe to Kirkby Stephen
90km

Best day of the trip so far.  Definitely one of the best days of cycling for me ever. Absolutely beautiful scenery and lovely weather.  Lots od tough climbing as well, including the toughest climb of the entire trip.

This was the shortest day of the trip, but it had almost as much climbing as our tough day through Devon.  Today was definitely a contender for toughest day of the trip.

It was full of steep, long climbs from start to finish.  From the campsite we took some small, twisty lanes to the picturesque town of Waddington, where we ate dinner last night.  There was tall grass on either side of the road, which made it feel like we were riding through fields.  Waddinton had old stone buildings and a small creek running through the middle of it.

First climb of the day was about 5km long, including 1.5km of steep uphill into the moors.  There were great views of rocky valleys and lots of piled stone walls that stretched into the distance.  They must have taken years to build...and most of them had nothing in them but tall field grass, little rocks and, ocasionally, a sheep or goat.

We had a lovely sweeping downhill from the moors, which was only interupted by my constant urge to stop and take photographs.

The second climb of the day was 3km of steady uphill across open fields on the side of a hill. You could see the road stretch out in front of you for miles, with the colorful dots of cyclists travelling along it into the distance.  The decent was even quicker than thwe first.  Sections of the road just fell away in front of you, as the terrain headed straigjh down.  Since we were so high up, and decending into a lush green valley, it really gave an amazing sensation of freefalling.  We were warned in advance that the sheep occasionally wander onto the road (which they did) and that thwere were closed gates halfway down the climb (which there were) so I ended up using the brakes a lot more than I would like.  Even so, my speed was in the low 70s.

Next, we stopped at a lovely bakery in High Bentham where I had a delicious brownie and Roe had a doughnut.

The third climb of the day was 3km long, including about 500m of steep incline to start it off.  Again there were sheep and gates to contend with on the decent down into Dent.

We had a big lunch at another small bakery.  We even let some of the other riders carry on before us while I took 5 minutes to digest before heading out for the toughest climb of this trip.  It was 1.6km of very steep switchbacks followed by 3.5km of less steep climbing.  It was the first mile that was really tough.  I was in my easiest gear and standing for at least half of it and it felt like it was 100 degrees out, even though the sun had gone behind some clouds as we started climbing.  At the top of the climb were more windy moors and views of two different valleys.  The decent was another thriler.  I hit 72 km/h on twisty, lumpy roads.  Great fun.

Overall, the scenery on this trip has been less spectacuar than France, but today was definitely an exception.  The landscape we rode through today was as magnificant as anything I've ever seen.

We did some laundry in the camp today.  Dinner at a pub next to the pub: steak & ale pie with chips and veggies.

Roe's comments:

I am now sitting in the pub waiting for dinner.  Dan ordered steak & ale pie and I ordered the fish and chips.  The portion sizes are much smaller here in england..  It is healthy, but after youi finish a hard day of cycling you need more.       

Today we rode along the Yorkshire Moors.  It was really beautiful.  The hills were tough.  My old Norco bike has three chainrings at the front, which gives easier gears.  However, my new Litespeed only has two chainrings.  That means that 've got to use harder gears on the hills.

I got sunburn on my shoulders today.  The sun was intense.  Looking forward to a good night sleep.  Dan had too many deserts at lunch and almost puked.  We're halfway done the trip and going into Scotland tomorrow.

Day 7

Friday, June 16
Action Bridge to Clitheroe
106km

Another short day.  Flat in the morning.  Bumpy in the afternoon.

From the campsite, we crossed over a bridge and headed into the countryside.  Unclear whether this was THE Action Bridge.  There was a lot of trafific, which I imagine is all the action that Action Bridge ever gets.

We rode over the Manchester ship canal, and then through Leigh and Hindley today as we made are way between Liverpool and Manchester.  We were on city streets for most of the morning, which gave the ride a different feel from the narrow country lanes where we spend most of our time.  There were a couple of large roundabouts as well, which I found a bit nerve-wracking on a bike.

We stopped for a mid-day snack at a department/grocery store and ate an entire bag of chips in the parking lot while Roe complained about unhealthy snacking between mouthfuls.  Unfortunately, the store didn't have public restrooms and finding toilets in a city is much harder than finding bushes in the country, so we both rode with our legs crossed for much of the morning.

Roe and her cycling computer/heart rate monitor also had a bit of a falling out today.  Roe hasn't had much luck getting the (admittedly overcomplicated but very high end) cycling computer that I bought her to work.  It came to a head today when the speed readings would jump up by 20km/h, down by 15km/h, up by 30km/h etc. as we rode along at a steady pace.  Not sure what the fix for this is.

At the 60km mark, there was a 3km climb across some open moors, followed by a lovely decent into Belmont.  For once the road surface was good enough that I didn't get shaken to bits while decending quickly.

We had lunch at a small cafe at the top of the next climb and ate with 6 other people from our trip.  I still don't know many names, but I am recognising a lot of the other riders now.

Nice dinner at a local pub.  We had pasta, veggies and garlic bread, with a plate of local cheeses for desert.  Didn't get back to camp until 10:30pm.  Time for bed.

Day 6

Thursday June 15
Wentnor to Acton Bridge
111km

Lovely day of cycling.  Perfect weather and very flat.  We rode with Andy again for most of the day, and met up with a larger group at lunchtime.

After several tough days to start the trip, today was a nice "rest".  Since there are 15 straight days of riding, easier days are all we have to look forward to.

Weather was brilliant.  Bright and sunner, but not too hot.  There might have been a bit of tailwind in the morning as well because we were flying along.  Without the steep hills to contend with, Roe rode in front of me for most of the day, and got her first real taste of navigating on this trip.  Every other direction involved a T-junction, so it wasn't too tough.

With lots of flat fields, the scenery today reminded me of home.  The flocks of sheep and herds of cattle looked British to me though, as did the thatched roof cottages.  We saw a few more rabbits today, and I managed not to hit any of them.

Our lunch stop was at 68km in Malpas.  We found a little bakery to buy sandwiches and pasteries.  Very nice.  I miss all of the french boulangeries.  I even had a crossant today in their memory.

We got to the campsite in time to watch the England vs. Trinidad & Tobago World Cup match in a nearby pub.  England won 2-0.  I didn't find the game that interesting, but it was fun to see all of the British fans dressed up and cheering in the pub.  The women were more vocal than the men!

Roe comments:
Dan only thinks about food all day.  I have been navigating for the entire trip...I just let Dan ride in front.

Day 5

Wednesday, June 14
Monmouth to Wentnor
113km

Cool day today with a surprising amount of climbing early on.  Someone with an altimeter said that we had climbed almost 1,000 feet in the 13 km between Maypole and Bagwyllydiart.

I had a bit of trouble getting to sleep last night, as there were other people talking loudly when I went to bed.  Until now I've slept very well, likely due to full days of sunshine and exercise as well as cool night air in the campsites.

After the early climbing, we stopped for some snakes at a cornerstore in Madley.  Lunch was cheeseburgers and fries ("chips") at the Red Lion pub in Pembridge.  Pubs are definitely the dominant cuisine in rural England.

The scenery today was lovely.  There were large valleys with checked fields of crops; steep climbs through lush green woods (where the trees cover the road entirely, making a natural tunel); and, of course, twisty single lane roads with tall hedges on both sides.

I also ought to mention some of the wildlife we've seen so far on this trip.  In addition to numerous incidents of road kill, we have seen a lot of live animals as well.  We've chased a hare, five chickens, and a cat (on seperate ocasions) down the road after we spooked them and they took off in front of us.  A few days ago, Roe almost hit a free-roaming horse that walked out onto the road in front of her, and today I did hit a tiny little rabbit that did the same.  Today we also were delayed by a flock of sheep that was crossing the road, and we were briefly chased by a barking dog (until Roe scared it away with her yelling).

Roe' comment of the day:
I am impressed by our campsite tonight. Until now the sites have all been in wide open fields.  Tonight there are trees, birds and a bubbling stream beside the tents.

We did a load of laundry at the campsite tonight.  It cost four pounds (eight dollars) for one load.

I have circled the word "climb" 3 times on tomorrow's route sheet.  Not too bad.  Today's sheet had 12.  (And he only ever mentions the really steep ones.)

Day 4

Tuesday, June 13
Bawdrip to Monmouth
119km

Longest day of the trip thus far.  Definitely less climbing than the past few days, but still a few steep grades throughout the day.  We also got rained on for the first time...but just a little.

The ride started out on the Sommerset Levels...which, as the name suggests, are dead flat.  It was nice to ride on a straight, flat road without any hedges.

At about 25km the flattness ended as we climbed through the Cheddar gorge.  It was scenci, with tall, rocky rock faces and switchbacks, but the grade wasn't as bad as I had expected.  It also had nothing at all to do with chese...which was disappointing. 

There were several other "unmarked" climbs today that were much tougher than the gorge.  A few of them were slick with manure, making it easy to spin your rear tire if you tried to stand up while climbing.  This gave new meaning to the expression, "the roads were crap".

We stopped for lunch at the Kings Arms pub in Easton-in-Gordano.  Just as we got in the door, it started to rain.  After a slow lunch, and a bit of extra waiting, we headed out into the wet.  Luckily, we only got rained on for about 5 minutes, so it wasn't too bad.

We crossed two large bridges in the afternoon: Avonmouth Bridge and Severn Bridge - into Wales.  We rode across both in special cycling lanes, which gave some nice views.  My mother was born is Wales, and this is the first time that I have visited here.  It is beautiful.  Lots of rolling, forrested hills with little streams at the bottom.

The final decent into Monmouth was lovely.  Beautiful valley panoramas and thrillingly steep road.  Unfortunately the pavement was still wet from the rain, so I didn't try to take the corners too quickly.  But otherwise, it reminded me a lot of France.

Before dinner at Andy's house yesterday, we did a load of laundry.  The sun was shining when we arrived at camp today, so all of our clothes are out drying on a picnic table.

Day 3

Monday, June 12
Drewsteignton to Bawdrip
97km

Another good day.  Shorter and less hilly than yesterday, but still a couple of really tough climbs.

It rained again last night.  It has rained each night that I have been camping, but not at all during the day (so far).  With my waterproof tent, I don't mind the rain at night.  The weather varied today between hot, bright sun and cool, cloudy and overcast.  Overall, very nice cycling weather.  We even had a bit of a tailwind on the way into camp.

The hedges continued to bother me today on the decents.  The roads were very narrow, with loose gravel in the middle, forcing us to ride near the edge of the road.  The hedges were frequently overgrown and would scratch our arms as we rode by.  There were also some really big (garbage truck sized) trucks on these tiny little roads that forced us to stand in the hedge as they drove past. 

Roe got her second flat tire today: this time on the rear wheel.  She hit a pothole on a steep downhill and got a pinchflat.

Andy is a quick young guy from Bristol, and we have ridden with him a few times in the past few days.  Today, we stopped for lunch together at a pub.  After passing by a few places to eat in Tiverton (always a mistake when cycling close to lunch time) we decided to stop in Holcombe Rogus...but the bar was closed.  Luckly, the barman took pity on us and made us some sausage sandwiches anyway.

The toughest climb of the day was into the forest near Cothelstone.  It was 17% gradient and lasted 1 mile.  It was the first climb of the trip that had me completely exhausted by the top.  I rode up with Andy, and we were both spent.  Roe was not very far behind either, which is very good for her on such a tough climb.

For dinner, Andy invited us over to his parents house to eat.  They live about 20 minutes from our campsite.  It was a great meal and they have a lovely old cottage in the country.

Day 2

Sunday, June 11
St Columb Major to Drewsteignton
111km

Today was billed as the toughest day of the trip.  I can certainly see why - lots of steep climbs.  More climbing, and tougher climbing, than any day from the France trip.  Roe says it was the toughest day of cycling she's ever done.  I still think that the ride out of Hope on the Tour du Canada was the toughest day for me.  It had less climbing, but more total distance...and I am likely in better shape now.

Roe started the day with a flat tire, which we repaired quickly...although I did discover the joys of stinging nettles when I leaned my bike into the hedge at the side of the road.

There were loads of narrow roads today, with tall hedges on either side.  This made the decents especially difficult.  After my practise in France, I felt confident going down at up to 60km/h, but more people seemed to be hard on their brakes the entire way down.  They complained of sore hands arms and sholders from all the intense braking, and one rider said that his legs were covered in brake pad dust by the end of the ride.

We stopped for lunch at a little tea shop in Minions - the highest town in the county of Cornwall.  The food here is so expensive.  Lunch for two was 18 pounds...about 36 Canadian dollers!

The toughest climb of the day was into Dartmoor National Park.  It was almost 10km of climbing, with a few flattish bits in the middle along with a few very steep sections.

Coming down from that climb, I took a wrong turn and Roe and I sailed down the steepest decent of the day only to realize my mistake and climb right back up again.  I'm sure that no one from my France trip would be surprised by this misadventure - but I really am doing a pretty good job navigating most of the time.

After 8 hours of riding, we finally arrived in camp at 6:45pm.  Quick shower, dinner at a pub, and time for bed now.

Day 1

Saturday, June 10
Land's End to St Columb Major
93km

The first three days of this trip are supposed to be the toughest, but I didn't find the riding today too bad.

It was cool when we woke up thid morning and there was a fog so thick that I couldn'( see more than two other tents...and there are 18 people camping on the trip, as well as 4 tour leaders.  There are also 20 people staying in B&B's on the trip, making a very large group. Not sure if we'll get to meet or know everyone this time around.

Breakfast was put on at the campsite by Kevin (the tour operator) and company.  Cerel, fruit and bread.  Unfortunately, no peanut butter.  I did put in a request, so perhaps we'll get some in a couple of days.

After eating we packed up our tents and rode down to Land's End for some photographs.  There were some nice cliffs rising out of the water which were picturesque but didn't allow any dipping of wheels.  Unfortunately, the fog made it tough to get any scenic photos.

Riding on the left hand side of the road has not been too hard to get used to.  I have to thiink a bit when we turn, especially onto busier streets, but we were mostly on small lanes with little traffic.

The roads here have no shoulder at all.  In fact, most have short, steep "hedges" on each side - almost as if the road has been sunk into the surrounding landscape.  Not only do they take away your emergancy stopping area, but they also make it touger to see what's ahead of you on the twisty roads.

The scenery was quite diverse today. There were steep, rocky cliffs that fell away into the Atlantic; rocky green hills with short rock walls dividing them; sandy beaches in the little valley inlets; and, patchwork faming fields with a different colour in every section.

Roe and I mostly cycled alone today, although we met up with a few other little groups along the way.  We stopped for lunch at a beach, where Roe took off her shoes and walked into the water.  By that time the fog had burned off and the bright sun was out.

There were several steep climbs towards the end of the day.  They were steeper than the climbs in France, but shorter.  Roe and I didn't find them too tough and the ride was pretty short as well. 

Fish and chips for dinner at a local pub tonight.

Roe's comments:
I found the hills steep and I had macaroni for dinner.  The little village where I walked in the water was called Portreath.  My face got sunburnt.  Hi mom.

Land's End to John O'Groats

Cycling trip number two begins.

Both Rosalyn and I have arrived safely in England along with our bikes and other belongings. 

The train ride from Gatwick Airport to Penzance was a bit boring, and took almost 11 hours (including layovers; where I read and Roe sunbathed on the train platform).  At one point, one of our train's engines started to smoke which had everyone coughing and complaining. They eventually turned off that engine, eliminating the smoke but slowing the train so that we arrived 30 minutes late.

The weather was scorching hot for the train trip.  I think it was probably over 30 degrees outside - much warmer than anything I experienced across France.  It quickly cooled off once the sun went down, so its shaping up to be a trip with many clothing changes.

Almost as soon as we arrived at the Penzance campsite it started to rain.  We rushed to get our tents up and get our stuff inside.  Then we fell asleep with the relaxing sound of raindrops on the tents and the jingle of zipper-pulls in the wind.