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.