Day 13 – Over The Struie to The Crask Inn - place of legends

Fiona was kept awake in the night by the revellers in down town Inverness.  This was Monday; I wonder what it is like on a Friday or Saturday night?  However boisterous, I doubt they could have kept me awake!  After a delicious porridge with honey for breakfast, and retrieving my bike from the store room at the Mercur hotel in Inverness, I was ready to leave by 9.30am.  Fiona was taking her Mum to the railway station for the long trip back to Coventry.  I expected to be at the Crask Inn before Sheila got home.

The Kessock Bridge across the Moray Firth at Inverness

Cycling out through Inverness was strange – it was the first time I had been in the centre of a town with buses and coffee shops for a while.  I followed the road out past the new flood defences and towards the Kessock bridge across the Moray Firth.  High up on the bridge in the middle of the crossing I stopped to photograph Inverness and to look out along the estuary towards the North Sea.  Crossing over onto the Black Isle, I enjoyed the sunshine – particularly as the weather forecast was for a front coming in from the west during the afternoon.  I was soon in Dingwall and then cycling up the short but steep hill out of town.  Breathing like a steam train I was soon at the top and then enjoying magnificent views over the estuary and looking down at the tiny cars and lorries on the long bridge further out to the East.  I spent a few minutes answering text messages which all arrived together as I had picked up some phone data service.

Enjoying the view of Dornoch Firth

I was soon through the last village and then onto the mountain road known locally as the Struie.  This 19 mile section up and over the mountain has grand scenery and I was blessed with sunshine and a tailwind.  Yesterday I said cycling couldn’t get much better, but today it did!  I felt for all the cyclists who must have struggled over the top into the teeth of a headwind, but counted my blessings and enjoyed the view while pedalling easily.  As I started the descent down towards Bonar Bridge, I paused at the Cadha Mor viewpoint and was soon joined by Fiona in the car as she had followed the same route.  We enjoyed the warmth of the sunshine and a good picnic lunch while soaking in the view of the Sutherland Munros to the north.

The pedestrian bridge to Lairg Railway Station

On starting out again, I had a speedy descent to Bonar Bridge and turned left heading for Lairg via Invershin.  The entire afternoon would be a steady climb up to 223m above sea level, though I added to this by missing a turn and completing a whole climb before realising my mistake.  I passed the Falls of Shin, famous for the leaping salmon and infamous as the visitor centre burned down last year melting a waxwork of the owner, Mohammed Al-Faid, wearing a kilt!  Approaching Lairg and before seeing any buildings I was surprised to find a narrow pedestrian suspension bridge with wooden treads signed as 500m to Lairg Railway Station, which must have been just over the hill.  Inspired by Indiana Jones I parked the bike and walked across the bridge and back again enjoying the tread bouncing as I walked.  Fortunately I was not chased by savages firing arrows as Indiana Jones had been.

Within a few minutes I was in Lairg and cycling past the loch which looked like it had been dammed to run a small hydro-electric power system.  I swiftly left the village as the weather looked like it was closing in and I had 10 miles to go to The Crask Inn.  As I headed north the landscape became more barren and the views more Scandinavian.  I met a group of cyclists heading south, including one guy on a recumbent tricycle!  We chatted for a while and I learned that they had already met Fiona over a cuppa at the Crask Inn and knew of my ride.  They sent me on my way with supportive comments and I pressed on for the final miles. 

The Crask Inn - Famous amongst End to End Riders

The road surface was new and smooth and I arrived at The Crask Inn at ten to five – the earliest arrival of the whole trip.  I was greeted by Mike, the landlord, who took an interest in my bike, having not had a single speed cyclist to stay before.  I had completed 68.3 miles in 7½ hours elapsed and 5 ¼ hours moving at an average of 13.1mph and a maximum of 36.7mph.

He took my bike to store in the outbuildings while Fiona and I played fetch with Old Ken, Ned and Gail the three border collies.  It was a rather one sided game as Old Ken was too old to move, Gail was too young and daft to work out what was going on and Ned was an expert!  Mike provided a very welcome tray of tea and Ned came and put the tennis ball on the chair next to us.  Depending on how long you ignored him, Ned would move further from the ball, but was always quick enough to grab it back if you tried to take it.  He was very pleased to have somebody to play with.

We chatted happily with Stewart, a retired engineer and one of only two other guests staying.  He has been a regular visitor to the Crask Inn for 17 years and now visits twice a year taking photographs of the area.  We had a delicious, home cooked dinner of game pie made with Mountain Hare and Woodcock followed by Eves Pudding.  Michael invited us to join a game of guessing the number of eggs he would collect from the 25 hens.  The prize was a free glass of malt whisky, but we both missed out – Fiona having underestimated by just one egg!  The Crask is not on the mains electricity grid, so we headed to bed before the generator was switched off at 11pm.

It is a big final day tomorrow – over 90 miles to John O’Groats via Dunnet Head to visit the RSPB reserve.  If you have not already done so, remember tomorrow is your last chance to sponsor me while I am still cycling.  You can do so by visiting www.virginmoneygiving.com/jamesalty.  Thank you!

Day 12 – Coast to Coast over the Biggest Climb

Knowing that today was both a long ride – over 80 miles – and included the biggest single climb of the whole journey, I was up early for breakfast.  We ate at a table with a picture window looking out over the hills constantly changing in colour as the sun rose in a bright blue sky.  Ben Nevis had cloud on top, but the general view was much clearer than yesterday.  Having retrieved my shoes and clothes from the drying room, I departed at 9.15am.

Riding East along the Estuary

I was soon enjoying fantastic views as I rode alongside the Atlantic inlet, crossed the bridge and turned inland to head for the East coast.  The road twisted and turned following the coastline and I kept clear of the timber trucks and tourist coaches.  At one point I arrived at a set of traffic lights with a warning sign that the wait could be up to 10 minutes due to forestry works.  After a pleasant rest at the side of the road, the lights changed and I cycled through chased by a HGV and saw that the forestry department were felling trees on the steep slope above the road.

Loch Lochy

Reaching Fort William, I enjoyed great views of Ben Nevis where the cloud was clearing all the time.  It would be a great day to be up on the top!  I crossed the Caledonian Canal and headed North East towards the Great Glen alongside the Canal.  I enjoyed bright, warm sunshine, fantastic views and a tailwind – cycling doesn’t get much better than this!  Riding alongside the rather comically named “Loch Lochy” (Slartibartfast must have run out of inspiration for names), I was on a forestry track that climbed up above the canal.  The shale surface was rough and bumpy, but I managed to avoid getting a puncture.  I overtook several groups of walkers on the Great Glen Way which shared the same route.  There were two steep climbs, but I knew they were only warm up acts for the big climb this afternoon and my legs felt strong.

Cruisers in the Caledonian Canal

Emerging into sunshine I descended back down to the canal and watched a swing bridge close after a couple of motor boats had passed through.  Although the canal was built to save shipping the dangerous route around the top of Scotland, it was never really used as shipping got bigger with powered craft and nowadays is primarily used by leisure boats.  I headed along the canal path, carrying my bike across a lock and was soon in Fort Augustus for lunch.  I met up with Fiona and her Mum who had been exploring Fort William and we sat outside with a young couple who are walking from John O’Groats to Land’s End.  They are carrying big packs, camping whenever possible and hope to finish by Christmas!  I wished them well, as the first End-to-Enders that I have met on the whole ride!

Leaving Fort Augustus I was immediately at the base of the biggest single climb of the whole Land’s End to John O’Groats ride.  I pedalled hard, stopping occasionally for a drink and counting sets of 100 standing-up pedal pushes.  Where the road was steepest, I zig-zagged up the hill enjoying the width of the road to turn and keep climbing.  Although it was a long steep climb, I never ground to a halt as I had done on the two steep hills before Bishops Castle.  With sweat dripping off my nose and into my eyes, I reached the top of the main climb next to Loch Tarff in bright sunshine.  I had taken just under an hour to complete the climb.  What I hadn’t realised was Loch Tarff was not the top and I had another hour of more gentle undulating climbing.  When I eventually reached the peak, I was rewarded with the most spectacular wide views of the highlands.  It was worth every minute of the climb and I enjoyed a break to take in the scene.

Loch Ness in the early evening sunshine

Descending from the top I could see Loch Ness stretching wide below me.  It was an exhilarating, high speed ride down to the bottom and then simple navigation along a mostly flat route for the last 15 miles into Inverness.  I arrived at 6.15pm after 9 hours elapsed and 6 ½ hours moving having completed a total of 82.6 miles at an average of 12.8mph and a maximum speed of 37.4mph.  The biggest climb was now behind me and I could look forward to the last couple of days riding to reach John O’Groats.

Day 11 – Up to Glencoe in the Clouds

After a sociable breakfast of fruit, porridge and scrambled eggs at the Premier Inn, I started out at 10.15am.  Fiona and her Mum were going to visit Helensburgh Hill house, designed by Charles Rennie Mackintosh, but it did not open until lunchtime.  We joked about using the drive-through Costa opposite the hotel, but I decided not to try it on a bike.

I made my way out of Dumbarton by going the wrong way through a one way system in an industrial estate and then crossed the river on a steeply stepped pedestrian bridge with a track for rolling your bike.  I followed the river on a smooth cycle path and enjoyed the peace of the Sunday morning – most of the houses were still quiet.  I soon reached the bottom of Loch Lomond and the cycle path continued up the west side alongside the A82 main road.  I notice most of the cars coming south had their lights on and before long they had wipers on as well.  It was clearly going to be a wet day and I was in and out of my rain jacket as the showers passed.

Catching up with Fiona

Cycling through Aldochlay, I texted Fiona an update on my progress and found that she and her Mum were visiting the historic village of Luss just up the shoreline.  Ten minutes later we met up in the village and enjoyed a few minutes chat before going our separate ways.

Loch Lomond

The Loch was very still and the cloud hung low over the hills and islands as the cycle path weaved through woodland, on and off the old road and sometime alongside the busy main road.  The sections on the old road, right on the shores of the Loch were particularly enjoyable.  Eventually the cycle path finished and I was onto the main road, turning west at the top of the Loch.  I climbed up to Crianlarich in heavy rain and considered stopping at the hotel for lunch.  I decided that I was so wet I would only get cold, so pressed on to Tyndrum, where I stopped at The Real Food Café for an excellent fish burger, chips and tea.  I dried my gear in front of the stove and followed progress in the Ryder Cup on my phone.

Eerie, cloudy loch and islands on the climb to Glencoe

Leaving Tyndrum I couldn’t offer a lift to four rather wet looking students hitchhiking, but counted 1,000 standing pedal strokes climbing the hill – it is a good way to keep warm!  I continued up to Bridge of Orchy where the pub advertised “Real Ale, Real Food, Real Bridge”, though I had never doubted it until then!  I paused several times to take photos of the eerie cloudy landscape, but it was so wet that my camera started to get steamed up!  Climbing up to Glencoe, the cloud got lower over the hills and I could only see a few hundred meters in each direction.  I was pleased to pass the sign for the ski area, complete with advert for a café offering magnificent views (though presumably not today!).

Glencoe in the cloud

The descent to the village of Glencoe

Soon after starting the descent, I was overtaken by Fiona and her mum who stopped at the next layby and we chatted before heading on down the mountain.  I thought it would all be a straight descent, but there was one more climb at the end of the glen.  I overtook a couple of tourists on bikes who looked rather unprepared for either the weather or the climb and was soon on the descent to the village of Glencoe.  After speeding down the mountain, pausing only to photograph the waterfalls, I arrived at the Glencoe Inn at 6.15pm rather wet but very happy!

In total I had cycled 74.2 miles in 8 hours elapsed and 5 ½ hours moving at an average of 13.2mph and a maximum of 28.8 mph.  We had dinner at The Glencoe Gathering – vegetarian haggis burger & chips – which I’m sure my Scottish forefathers would think was wrong in several ways!  We were entertained by an excellent local singer / guitarist who made a very friendly atmosphere for the evening.

Day 10 – Finding a way through Glasgow

We had a great breakfast of whole milk porridge at the Queensbury B&B in Moffat.  After loading the car and chatting to the owner of the B&B, I set off quickly into town to photograph one of the world’s narrowest hotels.  As I started towards climb out of town, I noticed the front tyre was soft.  What a Muppet – I should have checked the bike before hopping on!  I decided to return to the B&B as the car was still parked there with the track pump.  A few hundred meters from the car, the GoPro camera fell off the bike as the foot of the mount had broken in two!  I guess it had suffered from all the vibration on the coarse roads yesterday.  The morning was not going well!

I found the puncture had been caused by a tiny piece of wire embedded in the tyre.  Although I had checked the tyre at the time, I think it may have been there since the first puncture in Avonmouth!  After a couple of attempts, I got the tyre inflated, lubricated the chain, adjusted the brakes and set off again properly at 10.45am.

Cycle path, Road, Rail & Motorway all heading for Glasgow

I climbed steadily out of Moffat up into the Lowther Hills and when I crested the first summit I found I was high above and running parallel to the A74(M) motorway.  The cars were small enough to look like toys and I enjoyed the long descent to meet and eventually cross a bridge over the road.  I then joined the A74 which ran parallel to the A74(M) and the railway line.  The road surface was very rough but at various points there was a smoother cycle path alongside and I enjoyed the four transport routes all heading to Glasgow.  As I climbed to the top of the hills I counted the huge windmills in the Clyde wind farm, reaching over 50 in total.  I was very pleasing to see they were all pointing sideways to my route – a side wind being much less of a challenge than a headwind!

High on the hills, I encountered a group of motorcyclists in full leathers standing on the cycle path around a motor bike.  I stopped and quickly realised that the bike was damaged and one of them had fallen off!  A quick check revealed all were ok, but the guy who had come off was pleased to have a drink from my water bottle.  He had changed down, got a wobble, done a somersault or two before crossing the verge and ending on the cycle path ten minutes before I got there.  He was hobbling around with a sore ankle, but didn’t want to take his boot off in case it swelled up.  Standing and chatting for a while I learned that he had only picked up the bike that morning and had owned it for a total of 2 hours!  The language was consequently pretty fruity.  He had rung the garage to collect his bike, but had not yet raised the courage to ring his wife to tell her what had happened!  I offered to take a photo of him and the bike, but he really didn’t want that so I wished him well and continued up the hill.

Despite the late start and the time with the bikers, I managed to meet Fiona for lunch at the Cairn Lodge motorway services before she headed into Glasgow to pick up her Mum who was travelling up by train.  It amused me to arrive by bike in a car park full of motorway travellers.  We departed towards Glasgow and I found the road service very rough – the handlebars were vibrating so much at one point that I found it was easiest to just hold them loosely rather than try to stop it!

Approaching Glasgow through Hamilton

Making my way through a series of towns each strung out along the main road towards Glasgow, I eventually hit the urban area of Hamilton with apartment blocks on the horizon.  Getting closer to the city I was cycling through housing estates with large grey blocks of flats.  I saw the first campaign signs left over from the referendum – surprisingly almost all for the No campaign given Glasgow had voted Yes.  The GPS helped me navigate successfully and I joined a cycle path on the north side of the river Clyde.  This path was easy to follow and wound its way into the city following every twist and turn of the river.  It was surrounded by woodland so you would never know you were in the middle of a huge conurbation.  There were a few other cyclists, walkers and fishermen using the path, but it was very peaceful.

The path alongside the river Clyde

Fiery Tiger in Glasgow

Emerging into the city centre, I rode along cycle paths stopping to take photos of the old architecture and the new buildings from the Commonwealth games.  Heading out of town I failed to join a cycle path along a disused railway and ended up fiddling through industrial estates and housing estates sometimes having to double back on myself to find a way through.  At one point I got on the path, only for it to finish within a mile.  It was painfully slow progress, not helped by the road service which was bumpy, potholed, broken and course.  After riding from Land’s End I’ve become a bit of a tarmac connoisseur and the surface in the industrial estates was as bad as it gets!

It was only when I realised I should be on the tow path on the other side of the canal that I really got going again.  The final few miles into Dumbarton were a real pleasure and I bombed along trying to get my average speed back up to 13mph.  It was only in the last quarter mile that the average finally changed!  However, I found I had arrived at the back of the hotel and it took me two attempts to find a way round to the front of the building only to find my average had dropped down again.  Drat!  In total I had covered 76.3 miles in 7 ½ hours elapsed and 6 hours moving at an average of 12.9mph and a maximum of 30.1mph.

After a snack of sandwiches and crisps, we enjoyed a glass of Prosecco to welcome Sheila, my mother-in-law, to the trip.  We had a rather slow supper at the Brewers Fayre restaurant as it was busy and the main meal took an hour to arrive.  The waitress had warned us the food would be slow – it sounded like the chef was having a bad day - so we just chilled and chatted and were amongst the last to leave.

Day 9 – Across the border and into Scotland

We stayed at the Salisbury B&B in Keswick where the owners provided a very beautiful vegetarian breakfast.  As we ate, the cloud descended down the mountainside and the rain got heavier outside.  Rob and Fo were ribbing me about how long it took to leave the B&B, but the wait proved worthwhile as I turned north and saw blue sky and sunshine on the hills.

A long road ahead across Uldale Commons

I cycled through Keswick then onto the minor road to Uldale.  Steep hills and descents followed one another as I climbed.  An RAF fast jet flew down the valley, presumably on a training mission, but I wondered how long it will be before that pilot might be working in Iraq?  I had to pause on several steep hills, but after about an hour could see the summit with a tall radio mast.  When I eventually reached the top on Uldale Commons I had a huge panorama and I enjoyed a few minutes rest to send text messages, change the GoPro handlebar camera orientation and eat a food bar in the bright sunshine.

Carlisle Castle

I descend fast down a wide road towards Carlisle to the north and reached over 45mph which was suitably exciting!  The GoPro video should be funny as I was certainly hanging on tight over the bumps and had to use full braking to stop for a road junction.  You don’t often get to go that fast on a bike!  Through the busy streets in Carlisle, I past a huge brick chimney and then the castle and headed north, dodging cars round the M6 junction roundabout.

Longtown Church

As I headed for Longtown to meet Fiona for lunch, I saw her going first in the opposite direction and then overtaking me.  She was on the main road which was busy with trucks, but my route took me onto the country lanes.  Unfortunately, I missed the National Cycle Network turn twice and so took rather longer to arrive than Fiona expected.  On the way into the town I stopped to photograph a church with the most amazingly densely packed graveyard.  I wonder whether living in Longtown is bad for you?

Crossing the border

I had a sandwich, followed by fried egg sandwich and a huge Eccles cake at the Gretna Bakery & Café and headed north again towards the border.  After a few miles I saw the border signs and stopped for a few minutes to take a celebratory photo.  There was no border post and no passport was required to get into Scotland.  It is clearly still part of the UK!  There are many things shared between Scotland and England – land mass, language (mostly), economic interests, currency, etc.  I have one more: the headwinds in Scotland are just the same as those in England.  This time I was on a long straight road alongside the M74 and kept my head down as I tried to reduce the wind resistance.

I passed Gretna where Fiona was going to look at the outlet stores (and where, rather bizarrely, she found Irish tweed for sale!) followed by Ecclefechan.  I expected to find a bakery selling Ecclefechan tarts as we can get them in our local Sainsbury’s (where they are notorious in our family for having an almost completely red health traffic light indicator), but there was none!  Somebody missed a business opportunity there.  I was amused later on to learn that the residents of Ecclefechan are known locally as “Fechers”.

I crossed the M74 several times under bridges so big they had permanent lighting underneath.  Fortunately, the traffic was light and I just followed a long, wide, straight road all the way.  I imagine this was the main road north before the M74 was built.  The HGV traffic had changed with logging trucks heading south loaded with timber and returning empty going north.  I passed a forestry saw mill so large I found myself wondering what they needed the height for.

I arrived in Moffat at 6.30pm to be greeted by Fiona at the Queensbury B&B.  In total I had cycled 73.7 miles in 8 ½ hours elapsed and 5 hours 40 minutes moving at an average of 13mph and a maximum of 46.4mph!  After a good chat with Peter the owner who kindly stored my bike in the utility room, I had a snack of salty crisps before a shower and heading into town.  We walked around the main street and got a good meal including Haggis, Neeps & Tatties at The Stag.  As we left for a reasonably early night the bar was getting going for a big end to the week!

Day 8 – Riding and Running

On first venturing out of the Hark to Bounty pub to load the car, I found that the forecast of rain was correct.  Today would be the first wet weather ride.  We had a good breakfast and prepared to ride.  Today’s route had 3,840 feet of ascent – the second highest of the whole trip.  I delayed our departure slightly when I put my new shoe covers on the wrong feet – durhhh!  When Fiona checked us out, the Landlord said that he got more Coast-to-Coast riders than End-to-End riders.  An interesting crossing point!

Rob and "Fogbow"

The "Skaithe" snaking across the moor

We left the village and soon hit the first climb.  As it got steeper, Rob was swiftly off the Brompton and running up the hill.  I think he has invented a new sport of Long Distance Brompton Running!  The rain was heavy drizzle and we saw several beautiful rainbows close to us.  One of the rainbows was only a couple of hundred meters across and Rob invented a new word – a Fogbow – as the weather closed in.  When the fog cleared we could see the single track road called the “Skaithe” snaking onwards and upwards across the moorland.  After about an hour and a half of climbing we reached the top at the Cross of Greet and celebrated with a photograph in the drizzle!

We descended through High Bentham, Bentham and Low Bentham in steady rain and reached the village of Hornby rather cold and very wet.  We were pleased to find a tea shop and stopped for a hot cuppa and a piece of cake.  Revitalised we headed on as the weather cleared up.  We had one smaller climb out of Gressingham which got us warm again and managed to stay the right side of the M6 as we headed into Burton-in-Kendal.  We were overtaken by Fiona heading for the Kings Arms where we met for a hot lunch and a chance to dry out.

No entry - except for cycles!

We still had over 40 miles to ride and knew there was much climbing to do, so we pressed on towards Kendal.  In the centre of town we enjoyed the no entry sign where cycles are excepted and were soon through the one way system.  We climbed the steep hill out of town and on to the busy main road towards Windermere.  We were pleased to join a cycle path and then to descent down to the lake.  We continued to Ambleside enjoying the view of the hills topped with heavy low cloud and arrived just in time to get a cuppa and cake at the tea shop on the jetty before it closed.

The final stage of the day included a big climb up from Grasmere to the Dunmail Raise.  The road was wide with fast traffic, but we rode and ran onwards and upwards with our bike lights shining brightly in the darkening gloom.  Eventually reaching the well preserved old AA Phone box at the top, we turned left to ride along the west side of Thirlmere with Helvellyn looming above us to the east.  It was a beautiful, peaceful and flat part of the ride.  With the big climbing behind us, we were both confident of making it to our overnight stop in Keswick so paused to take photos of the Brompton against the Lakeland backdrop.

"We rode over that ..."

We had one small final climb and saw Keswick appear in the dusk as we crested the hill.  We were pleased to arrive at our B&B after just over 10 hours riding.  The route book had said this is one of the days when the Land’s End to John O’Groats ride could be won or lost.  We had certainly won by completing 70.3 miles in 6½ hours moving at an average of 10.6mph and a maximum 30.1mph.  We had done the equal biggest day of climbing on a single speed and a running Brompton!  After a quick shower we headed into town and enjoyed a well-earned pie and a pint!

Day 7 – Motorway Crossings

After a great breakfast of fresh fruit and hot porridge at the Premier Inn, I removed the bike rack from the car and we loaded the bags.  After checking the bike’s tyres, tightening and lubricating chain, it was 10.30am by the time I started riding.

My route passed close to my paternal grandparents’ old house so I spent a few minutes finding the road.  Slightly surprisingly, given it is a short road, I couldn’t actually find the house which I visited numerous times as a kid!  I concluded that either the house had been significantly extended or actually demolished to allow space for new build!  However, the neighbours were friendly and interested to hear of the history I knew of the street.

Crossing the Manchester Ship Canal Bridge

Leaving Hartford, I hit a headwind and it was hard work going north.  I travelled North West and crossed the M56 – the first of several motorways to pass today.  I navigated into Warrington, photographing the Manchester Ship Canal without stopping on the bridge as it was so narrow.  I found my way through the centre of town, giving our business partners Qbase a wave as I passed near their office.  Leaving town along urban dual carriageways, I crossed the M6 and then the M62.

Take care with the soap - how wrong can it go?

I stopped for lunch in Glazebury at the biggest garden centre I have ever seen – think airport terminal rather than a few sheds!  My sister had asked me to stop and look at a garden building on display there, which I successfully found and photographed.  After hot soup and chunky bread I was on the road again heading for Bolton and then Blackburn to meet Rob “Matt” Downs who was joining me for the last 20 miles of the day.

Having already delayed the meeting by an hour, I was due at Blackburn at 4pm, so kept up a steady pace climbing up to and then through Bolton.  As I left the town behind, I climbed for over an hour past Dingle Reservoir to reach the top of Darwen Moor.  It was great to reach the summit and see panoramic views opening up to the north.  I should have been in Blackburn by this time, but knew the descent would be rapid.  I sped down through several small villages, pausing only at the last big motorway crossing of the day as I passed over the M65.

I found my way into Blackburn, noting the Ewood Park football stadium close to the centre and eventually to the railway station surrounded by road works.  Unfortunately, there was no sign of Rob so I did a couple of laps of the station.  After a quick exchange of text messages, he appeared with his Brompton folding bike having been to look at the Cathedral.  Rob had decided to ride on the Brompton to be in keeping with my single speed bike ride.  The Brompton has just two gears, but has small wheels making country touring and potholes more of a challenge!

Rob on his Brompton

We started riding through busy streets with lots of rush hour queuing traffic.  Leaving town there was more descending than we expected but we had to ride single file to avoid fast traffic.  As we reached the smaller roads in the Trough of Bowland, it was quiet enough to ride two abreast and we enjoyed the fabulous countryside.  There were many cyclists out enjoying the sunny weather and great views.  Rob and the Brompton did fine, coping with climbs and descents without any real problem.  Eventually we reach the hamlet of Cow Ark and the one big climb of the afternoon.  For the steepest section, Rob got off and ran alongside the Brompton and I made it to the top with a few zig zags.  We were rewarded with a beautiful vista of the Forest of Bowland – an area of outstanding natural beauty.  It looked like we had reached Scotland already.

We cast long shadows late in the afternoon

The sun was setting as crossed the top and started the steep descent into the valley.  The landlord of the “Parkers Arms” came out to check whether Rob really had just ridden the Brompton over the top and wish us well on the final mile to Slaidburn.  He didn’t tell us about the one final short but steep climb before reaching the village and finding the “Hark to Bounty” pub.  The name dates back to the local land owner exclaiming on hearing his favourite dog “Bounty” barking outside.  We arrived just before dark and stashed the bikes in the laundry room.  After a quick change we had dinner in the pub while the pool team played a match that didn’t sound to be going well.

Arriving at the Hark to Bounty pub for the night

In total the day was 75.4 miles in 9 hours elapsed and 6 hours 20 minutes moving at an average of 11.8mph and a maximum speed of 38mph.  This stop marks the halfway point of the ride – one week gone and one week to go.  Tomorrow brings a day of climbing - the second biggest of the whole route, so we went early to bed in preparation.

Day 6 – Crossing the Cheshire Plain

Comedy place names!

We had a very sociable breakfast in Bishops Castle with Matt, Mum and Mota and I departed at 9.50am.  Fiona was headed to Ludlow to meet her folks for lunch and drop off Matt.

Having completed the steep climb at the very end of yesterday’s ride, I had the pleasure of coasting downhill out of town.  However, I was soon on the first climb, but knew that once it was done, most of the rest of the day was flat as I headed across the Cheshire Plain.  After reaching the top of the hill at 311m above sea level, I had a beautiful, five mile descent through woodland in the Hope valley to Minsterley.

The Quantum Leap Sculpture in Shrewsbury

I was soon in Shrewsbury and paused for a food break under the “Quantum Leap” sculpture honouring Charles Darwin, the city’s most famous son.  The ride was flat and easy – I even had a tailwind at one point, but the weather forecast was soon confirmed as the headwind returned.  I was surprised to find the road signs were once again in dual English and Welsh, though I had not seen any border signs.

Lunch by the lake at Hanmer

I stopped for lunch by the pretty lake at Hanmer with rolls and a piece of Rocky Road (which seemed appropriate) bought from the village store.  The storekeeper said she got lots of LEJOG cyclists in the summer, but only one every few days at this time of year.  The village have made a good effort to benefit from the route by putting picnic tables on the verge by the lake.  I’ve seen a few cyclists who look like they are on long distance trips, but all going the other way and I’ve not identified any other LEJOG / JOGLE cyclists for sure yet.

Road Closed - except for cyclists!

Soon after lunch I found the route was on a road that was closed ahead due to a bridge repair.  After contemplating the signed diversion, I decided to press on to see whether there was any way to cross the river.  After a couple of miles, I was pleased to find the bridgeworks were preceded with a sign says “Cyclists Dismount”!  The bridge was completely missing, but the civil engineers had built a pedestrian path along the side of the security fence wide enough for just one bike – yay!

Mid-afternoon, approaching Chester I turned east and headed cross country towards Northwich using a route segment I had created with Matt Maltby using Google Maps’ cycle option.  Unlike most of the ride, this section used several bridleways and I encountered a variety of surfaces.  At one point the ground was soft, fine sand – great if you are riding a horse, but hard work if you are riding a bike!  However, the section along the old railway was great and I was able to keep up a better pace.

I sent a “Glympse” of my position in the last half hour of the day as I arrived in the edges of Northwich and got navigational advice by text message from Matt and Rob who could see my position live online.  Fortunately, both of my apparent navigational errors were simply me returning to interesting sights to take photographs!  I took one of the Winsford salt mine as my Grandfather Stanley Alty was foreman of the ICI brine works.  Enjoy for a moment the thought of the sign on his office door “S. Alty, Foreman, Brine Works”.  No wonder he got the job!  He got an OBE after the war and although the details were not disclosed, I have always understood it was awarded for hiding stuff in the mines.

I arrived at the Premier Inn just just before the rain arrived.  In total I had cycled 82.2 miles in  7½ hours elapsed and 6 hours moving at an average of 13.9mph and a maximum of 29.7mph.  Fiona and I enjoyed a hot meal at the Woodpecker pub next door and I was asleep before 10pm!

Day 5 – I only ride with people called Matt

I was joined today by Fiona’s brother Matt who started proceedings in grand style with two breakfasts at the Riverside Hotel.  He might claim it was a mix-up over some scrambled eggs, but we saw the full English breakfast arrive!  We were both stocking up for a day of riding from Monmouth to Bishops Castle.  The original plan had this day as the shortest distance of the whole route, but I had extended it with a diversion to see my grandparents’ old house at Cholestrey and to end at Bishops Castle rather than Clun.  We started out rather late after retrieving the bikes from their overnight store in the function room and re-fitting my front wheel with a new inner tube.

We set off with a typical initial climb after leaving an overnight stop, passing the Monmouth school under their covered pedestrian bridge to the playing fields.  We soon crossed back into England and reached the hills above Hereford enjoying the ride in warm sunshine.  We paused for a snack break at Wormelow before continuing for several miles and joining the busy A49 into Hereford.  Matt’s entirely justified verdict after dodging several high speed HGVs was “that road sucks” so we took a detour via the back roads.  After half the detour, we accidentally re-joined the A49 for a few hundred meters and had to wait to perform a U-turn to get back on our intended road.  As we waited, Fiona passed with a cheery toot and wave, probably wondering why we were stood at the side of the road like a pair of Muppets rather than doing any pedalling.  The reason was confirmed later when she reported that she was stuck in a traffic jam after the A49 was closed by an accident.

Matt and I routed via the village of Grafton and then finally into Hereford on the A49 which had very few cars as most were stuck in the traffic jam.  We were quickly through the centre of the city with great views of the cathedral.  We continued north for a couple of hours having agreed to meet Fiona at the small hamlet of Cholestrey for lunch.  My grandparents lived there when I was growing up, but unfortunately I didn’t recognise the main road and we cycled too far north before retracing our steps back through Kingsland to reach Cholestrey.  I remember by grandmother answering the phone “Kingsland 321” which seemed like a different era even when I was a kid.  We had a great picnic in the quiet lane and were greeted by two local residents who made an on-the-spot donation to the Buwan Kothi charity when they heard why we were there.  On returning to our previous position, we had added a total of 10 miles to the route!  Oops.

A Darlek in the garage!

The afternoon ride was mostly a steady climb as the landscape changed from rolling farmland to steeper hills with wooded top slopes.  A few small, steeper climbs came and went without problem as we debated the benefits of different mobile phone service providers and the new features of iOS8.  My phone provider appeared to have no coverage whatsoever while Matt had 3G most of the afternoon.  As we passed an isolated farmhouse we saw a full size Darlek in a garage – now we know where the invasion started!

Reaching the top of the steepest climb

Just when we thought that we must have done all the climbs we had read about in the guide book, we turned sharp right and were faced with a narrow road littered with pebbles and going diagonally up the side of the hill.  After a snack break to gather our resolve, we hit the hill and it hit us back!  I now rank hills by how many rest stops I have to take and this one was a “two breather break” hill.  You pedal until your lungs are bursting and you have lost your momentum then take a few minutes break for your breathing to slow and your heart rate to drop below racing.  I find it only takes a couple of minutes to get some power back in your legs.  However, this time the hill was so steep and the road so narrow that I couldn’t even get a full crank turn and so made the first couple of wobbly zig zags with one leg pedalling and then reversing to push again.  Pushing as hard as I could, I just got the bike moving again.  Matt cycled passed sitting down and in bottom gear doing wheelies with every push - show off!

We congratulated each other on reaching the summit but were soon faced with an even bigger challenge.  A similar road, strewn with even more stone debris and with no end to the climb in sight.  We didn’t pause before making a start and with tired legs from the first stage, this one became a “three breather” hill.  I was determined not to take any more breaks and pushed on and on in the last few hundred meters to reach the summit.  Matt said at the top that he had been worried that I might have a heart attack I had been breathing so hard, but I’d been more worried about bending the handlebars or snapping the chain!  Fortunately, with both bodies and bikes intact we larked about at the top of the hill doing slo-mo ride by videos with the huge expanse of Herefordshire countryside laid out below us.  I managed to accidentally start recording when Matt passed me his phone and so stopped the recording when I pressed the button just in time for his ride by.  On reviewing the recording we had shots of my feet, handlebars, GPS and the sky and none at all of Matt looking epic.  He had to ride back to the start point and do it twice more before we finally got a decent shot.  Fortunately it was flat on the top of the hills.

The Bowling Green at Clun

With spirits lifted knowing the “sting in the tail” was behind us, we careered down a huge descent through woodland and farmland to reach the valley as we headed for Clun.  I realised that it would take me a good distance to stop with both brakes full on, so wound on a bit more braking when I reached the bottom.  On the outskirts of Clun we successfully forded a river without falling in before a gentle climb through the town centre.  We paused briefly to photograph the Clun Bowling Green under the walls of the ruin of Clun Castle.  The scene was reminiscent of Warwick Boat Club’s Bowling Green under the walls of Warwick Castle.  I think Clun’s pavilion may be cheaper to maintain as it is shed, but the location is just as beautiful.

Tree lined road in the evening sun

The last few miles to Bishops Castle were easy but we were faced with a surprise final climb up the steep main street to reach our hotel.  Fiona thought Matt was having a religious experience looking at the sky when he arrived, but he said he was just trying to catch his breath.  We met up with my Mum and Mota who was looking rather bashed up after accidentally falling on a ladder through his greenhouse roof while picking plums.  We were all glad to see him in good spirits after an operation on his nose and a few days in hospital.  We’ve banned him from doing stunts on his own from now on.

We had cycled 69.1 miles in 8 ¼ elapsed and 5 ½ hours moving at an average of 12.6 mph and a rather scary top speed of 43.4 mph.  A great day, followed by a beautiful meal and excellent service at the Castle Hotel.