Day 9 - Tebay to Canonbie (No, we hadn't heard of either place before either!)

We’ve made it to Scotland! Cue the picture!


It may be a while before you get to read this as, now that we are in the far flung frozen wastelands of the north, mobile coverage seems patchy. Earlier, Stephen was able to speak with his mother and sister, but now, after dinner, there is no network available. Maybe the phone people have gone home for their tea!

Update on Christine’s health. She felt better today after 12 hours sleep but still not 100%. The conclusion we have reached is that, even though she has been getting her normal 8 or 9 hours sleep, with this amount of physical effort day after day she needs more - at least 10 hours - and yesterday her body said “enough is enough”. Let’s hope another 12 hours of quality shuteye tonight gets her back to normal.

Omission from yesterday’s post (due to Stephen almost dropping off while writing it in the pub! Stop sniggering kids! It doesn‘t happen THAT often!). We went through 500 miles/800 km right at the end of the day which means we are (just) over halfway in 8 days out of 16 - so right on schedule.

Turning to today it was another 100km/62 miles. Here’s the route - by clicking here and also below.

Actual Day 9

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Initially from Tebay it was downhill but that soon changed as we started the first and longest climb of the day. The following picture is looking back towards Tebay from near the top but unfortunately seems to emphasise the downhill and underplay the uphill - completely the opposite of both what our legs felt and what the elevation profile of the route shows!! Still, it shows what a beautiful part of the country we are in.


After the uphill there was a more gentle downhill followed by an undulating road with the occasional short sharp climbs and descents (10 to 13%, or 1 in 10 to 1 in 8 in “old money”). All the time, the Pennines were close by on our right hand side and the Lake District more distant on the other side.


The following sign amused Stephen! For all of those of you with pampered pooches in need of a bit of a workout - please give Ingrid a call. It does strike us that we are members of a privileged generation to even contemplate such a thing. Sorry for the pontification!! (And apologies to Ingrid if we, in any way, damage her business - that is not our intention.)


Gradually the route flattened out as we got closer to the border (much to our surprise, we must say). We ended the day heading up the A7 - nowhere near as bad as it sounds. That makes 3 “single digit” A roads we’ve cycled along and survived - the A4 around Bristol (albeit only briefly), the A6 between Preston and Lancaster and now the A7 - and still one more to go in the A9 once we are past Edinburgh. On none of them, so far, have we felt particularly threatened - just like other roads, there are drivers who get impatient or come too close (see previous rants!) and there are others who can spare the few seconds that are sometimes necessary to pass cyclists safely (out heartfelt thanks to them!).

On the other hand, the weather gods decided that, in giving us yet another tailwind, they had done their bit and they could not let us have a first day without any rain. They therefore sent us a brief shower in the last 10 miles just to make sure that Stephen got out his rain jacket and Christine her overshoes (dry, toasty tootsies = a happy Christine!)

Almost as soon as we crossed the border (passports at the ready), we were grateful to see the sign to our destination in Canonbie and were checked in well before 6 o’clock giving us time to see the news (including the cricket score (go England!) and the weather forecast (things are looking up for the weekend after a ropey start to Saturday) before going down to dinner.

Day 8 - Leyland to Tebay

It’s difficult to believe that a week ago today we were just getting off the train in Penzance about to start and now we are in the last county before Scotland. Time and distance has gone quickly!

However, today was a pretty grim one as Christine was feeling decidedly under the weather. She says that it is nothing that 12 hours of solid sleep will not sort out but Stephen was seriously worried that she was pushing herself too hard. Being the trooper that she is, she soldiered on despite the offer of a hotel room in Lancaster for the afternoon and night followed by a train journey to “catch up” the lost time.

Our journey (available here and also below) took us through Preston - a city that looked to be doing pretty well for itself - and then up the A6 (not as horrendous as you might imagine) to Lancaster.

Actual Day 8

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Straight through Lancaster, we then set off north-west across country, heading towards our evening stop in Tebay - a small village in the gap between the Lake District and the Yorkshire Dales. It’s the same gap that the M6 goes through and also the West Coast main line. That does not, however, make it flat!

Of course, the hills make it very pretty - even more so than we expected (neither of us know this part of the country at all). But there was a lot of up and down! And it all came in the second half of the day.

Day 7 - Winsford to Leyland (or Weyland!)

Based on the weather forecast, today promised to be a “W Day” - wet and windy. It was certainly the latter as our friend, the south westerly, continued to push us along except when the route zigzagged to the west. However, the dire forecast of torrential rain proved to be far from accurate.

The “W” proved to be true though as, starting from Winsford, we passed through Warrington, Wigan and Wrightington, saw signs to Widnes and ended up in Weyland (as Stephen insists on calling it - everyone else sticks with the traditional name of Leyland!!) (It’s near Preston for those of you who are interested.) See our route by clicking here or looking at the map below.

Actual Day 7

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We set off early (8.15) in an attempt to get a couple of hours under our wheels before the storm hit and felt that we had made good progress when we felt the first spots at about 11 o‘clock.. But by the time we had pulled the wet weather gear on it had just about stopped. Shrugging our shoulders we continued, expecting the heavens to open at any stage.

Other than a few further, half-hearted attempts at showers, the rain stayed away until, nearing our hotel, Stephen spotted the name “Paul Hewitt” and insisted in stopping at a bike frame builder’s shop that he had heard of. While Stephen was drooling, it started coming down.

Christine eventually dragged him away but luckily the hotel was only half a mile up the road so we didn’t get soaked! We had made it by 1.30. Granted, it was a shorter day than usual (44 miles/ 71 km) but we were still mighty impressed with ourselves!

What to do on a wet Wednesday in Lancashire? Go and see the new Harry Potter film, of course! So, whistling up a taxi (who needs bikes?), that is what we did and thoroughly enjoyed ourselves.

By the by, another hotel recommendation - the Farington Lodge in Weyland (or Leyland if you are not Stephen) is well worth a visit.

Day 6 - Ludlow to Winsford

We set out with a long day ahead of us. Ludlow had been lovely, well worth a return visit some day. Full of lots of pretty buildings, but when Christine wandered around the evening before it seemed one of the quietest places she had been, as there was no-one about.

Today was a bit of a respite from the hill-climbing of the previous days. We rolled along the gently undulating roads and covered 32km in the first 2 hours. Usually we reckon on doing something in the region of 10km per hour when you take into account stops for water and examining maps etc. Today's route is here and below.

Actual Day 6

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The main downside was that it was along the A49 so there were plenty of lorries and cars going too fast. Why haven’t they got the patience to wait for just a few seconds?? Oh no. It’s a blind corner/brow of a hill, but if I slow down behind the cyclist I might take an extra 15 seconds to reach my destination so I’ll overtake anyway, and risk colliding with an oncoming vehicle. We did encounter a couple of steep hills near the end. Revenge for Stephen declaring it was really flat and that you couldn’t see any hills, so a 10% incline appeared out of nowhere. Christine was pushing her bike up, the road was narrow and the lorry driver sounded his horn. What was she supposed to do - leap into the hawthorn hedge?

After 28 miles we rolled down into Shrewsbury. Stephen had a flat tyre. The second and eventually he managed to find a tiny piece of glass embedded in the rubber. We found a lovely Tudor building which gave him cover as he replaced the inner tube. Shropshire was very pretty. We even cycled past a timbered church with a thatched roof.



Fortunately after Shrewsbury it was on to quieter roads through Wem and around Whitchurch and then Nantwich where we had hoped to stay, but everything had been booked. Christine thought they said it was the cheese show, but signs just said it was the Nantwich show tomorrow. At least we avoided all the traffic for that! Unfortunately that meant we had to cycle on a further 10 miles to Winsford, which turned out to be nowhere near as pretty as Ludlow. As we reached the end of the over 70 mile day it started to rain a bit, and is now raining hard. We were lucky to just get caught in one sharp shower today. Let’s hope tomorrow’s forecast of heavy rain all day is wrong!!

Day 5 - Chepstow to Ludlow

Poor mobile phone coverage in Ludlow has made updating the blog difficult so it is straight into the long version of Day 5. A map of today’s route will be available here when we can connect to the outside world for those of you who want more details than the embedded version below - assuming we can connect to the world outside Ludlow sometime tomorrow! Here's the map.

Actual Day 5

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After last night’s meet up with Lynn, we were delighted to see Sally and Marwood (“old” friends from days in Southampton) who drove up from Newbury to Chepstow to join us for the first part of today’s ride. Ignoring the occasional showers, we made our way to Monmouth through the edge of the Forest of Dean (more hills for those of you who do not know the area!) where we found a lovely café for Kaffee und Kuchen (coffee and cakes for the non-German speakers amongst you).

Marwood and Sally continued with us towards Hereford before turning off to take a different route back to their car in Chepstow. It was a real pleasure to have their company.


Through Hereford we were careful not to upset any military looking types (the town being the UK base of the SAS) and then it was “heads down” as we carried on up the busy A49, before turning off onto the old road through Leominster and on to our base for the night in Ludlow.


We had high expectations of the night as we were booked into The Feathers, a hotel that we had both heard of in connection with its food rather than its accommodation. As it transpired, it didn’t disappoint in either respect. Our room is simply enormous with two queen-sized beds and a correspondingly large bathroom with Jacuzzi and very fancy shower.

The menu was frustrating - we both would have been very happy to have almost anything on offer. What to have? Out came the metaphorical pins and we were both more than satisfied our choices.

Christine did, however, have to wrestle with her conscience when it came to the homemade truffles served with the coffee. Stephen, not having a sweet tooth, gallantly forewent his two sweets and Christine, feeling rather full and showing admirable restraint, asked for a paper napkin to save them for tomorrow. The dilemma kicked in when the waiter asked her if she would like some more. She is still not sure that she made the right call to decline the offer!!

This is a second hotel to thoroughly recommend to those looking for a treat! Comparisons with the Headland in Newquay are difficult. The meal in the Headland cheaper while that in The Feathers was (probably) slightly better. Which was better Value For Money? Impossible to say - both were great and we were more than happy to pay the prices asked. The room in The Feathers was better but the setting of the Headland was superior. Which to choose? Well, at the risk of stating the obvious, we would suggest the Headland if you are in Newquay and The Feathers if you are in Ludlow! We’re sure you won’t be disappointed.

Day 4 - Bridgwater to Chepstow - the longer version

Sorry for the delay in posting - we hadn't finished writing this when we left Chepstow (too much of a good evening with Lynn) and then the hotel in Ludlow (Monday evening) didn't have wireless and mobile phone reception was poor! But now we are back in civilisation.

As the short version says we were promised heavy rain for much of the day by the forecast but, other than a few brief light showers, it stayed away until about 3 o’clock. Even then it wasn’t really heavy - until we entered Welsh Wales! Luckily there was only a couple of miles to go into Chepstow at that point so, although we got wet, we were not out in it for long enough to get too cold and miserable thankfully.

Bridgwater looked as uninspiring as Christine remembered it but without the smell of the now closed British Cellophane factory that she recalled from her childhood. But we soon left the town behind us and, after one short sharp climb swiftly followed by a fast descent we were on the Somerset Levels and bowling along with a mostly tailwind. A passing cyclist called Dave stopped for a chat and then he turned round to join us for a spell which was very pleasant as he told us of his plans to do Lejog next year averaging 90-100 miles a day but supported by his wife in the car carrying his luggage and sorting out accommodation.

Waving goodbye to Dave, we made our way to Cheddar where we climbed into the Mendips - not via the Gorge with its 16% gradient but our route was quite steep enough thank you very much! Christine walked most of the way but Stephen toughed it out doing the first kilometre in about 9 minutes and the second in 7 before the downhill started.

This road took us onto the A38 which we followed all the way to Bristol - not a pleasant stretch with its heavy traffic and undulating profile, but certainly quicker than the back roads through the Mendips.

On reaching the outskirts of Bristol we turned off alongside the A4 through the Avonmouth Gorge having passed Ashton Gate, the home to the mighty Bristol City Football Club. Stephen was mightily impressed by his first visit to the Gorge although the roar of the traffic does take the edge off the enjoyment.


Avonmouth is not the prettiest place on God’s earth being a port but if you are going to cycle through it, then Sunday afternoon is a great time to do so. The roads are straight and, with a tailwind, you can get up a fair turn of speed, even if you are called Christine!

We soon reached the original Severn bridge which has a cycle and pedestrian path on each side of the motorway and, passports at the ready, we were off to foreign parts! The stiff breeze blowing up the river made an eerie sound as it whistled through the stays holding the bridge up and, as Dave had suggested earlier, if you get off the bike in the middle you can feel the bridge bounce up and down as the lorries cross. All in all quite an unnerving experience.



With the heavens opening as a greeting to Wales we were glad to make it to the hotel by 4.30, where, after a leisurely clean up and drying out, the highlight of the day was being joined by Lynn (Christine’s sister who lives between Bath and Bristol) for a very pleasant evening of catching up.

Day 4 - Bridgwater to Chepstow - the short version

The weather was not as bad as we were led to believe by the forecast this morning with the rain only really setting in about 3 o'clock and we finished our 55 miles before 4.30. Map to be found by clicking here or see below.

Actual Day 4

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Day 3 - Okehampton to Bridgwater - the long version

As expected the day started with a climb out of Okehampton but thankfully nothing too steep. Soon we were making good time on a rolling B road towards Crediton. We passed over the Dartmoor Railway and also saw a rather stunning house made from the local stone surrounded by an immaculate garden.




Eventually we came to the point where the road to Crediton joined the main route between Exeter and the noth Devon coast. Deciding that it looked rather busy {a fact no doubt made worse by the fact that it was the first weekend after most schools broke up for the summer} we decided to cut the corner, missing out Crediton, and headed towards Tiverton on a network of small roads.

Big mistake. BIG MISTAKE. It started with a manageable climb and then a short spell on an undulating road. It turned out that the “hills gods” were just lulling us into a false sense of security! We were quickly forced to revise the view, expressed yesterday, that Cornish hills are steeper than their Devon counterparts as Devon responded to the slight in spades!

Christine seemed to spend at least half her time walking and the remainder clutching on the brakes for dear life. Stephen initially refused to be beaten and ground his way him - even resorting to his “granny gear” in which you cyle little faster than you can walk. In the end, however, even he succumbed and started pushing.

After an hour and a half of leg-breakingly slow progress, we decided that we had seen enough of this part of Devon and headed down to the main road (by now a different one from that thronged with escaping schoolchildren and their families) in the valley. A fat, 1½ mile downhill ensued and we were back in the land of the speeding car upset at being held up for a few seconds by two impertinent cyclists having the temerity to use the road, for goodness sake!

Thankfully, we made our way into Tiverton safely and enjoyed a late lunch picnicking in the Tesco car park. {We know how to live!}

Back on the road again, we unknowingly crossed into Somerset, Christine being piqued that the county of her birth did not see fit to put up a sign for her to photograph! We had hoped to meet up for a quick coffee with Betty and Peter (Christine’s parents) as we passed through Taunton but the slow progress in the morning meant that it nearly 6 o‘clock by the time we got to the town and we still had a way to go.

At least it was flat as we joined the towpath beside the Taunton (home of the mighty Somerset County Cricket Club) to Bridgwater (as appealing as Slough or Basingstoke) Canal but there was to be another twist of fate. A puncture! The first of the trip and hopefully the last. With a new tube fitted we were back on our way and were thankful to reach the hotel just before 7.30. The Boat and Anchor is an old canal pub right on the towpath and within earshot of the M5.

Day 3 - Okehampton to Bridgwater

An even tougher day - mainly thanks to a diversion "off piste" into "them thar hills" in an attempt to cut the corner and avoid some A roads. BIG MISTAKE!! We encountered some steep hills - steeper than those we went up in Cornwall but we're not trying to encourage competition between the two counties - they are more than good enough at doing hills as it is. Anyway, another 65 miles under our wheels. Here's the route.

Day 3 - Okehampton to Bridgwater

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Just discovered how to post maps direct into the blog!

Actual Day 2

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Day 2 - Newquay to Okehampton

That was a tough day! The map says 63 miles - you can see it by clicking here. If you do look at the map, also take a look at the Elevation Profile (click on the word "Show" in the top left of the Bikely.com map) - you will see that we did over 4,100 feet of climbing and it feels like it!!

We were later getting started than we intended as a result of Stephen fiddling around while mistakenly under the impression that breakfast was at 8 o’clock rather than 7.30. As it transpired this was a blessing in disguise. While eating breakfast overlooking the sea we could see storm clouds all round and it soon started to rain heavily. Fortunately by the time we had finished packing and retrieved the bikes it had just about finished. If we had left half an hour earlier we would have been soaked!

Although we encountered a couple more showers later in the morning they were brief and nowhere near as heavy as the earlier one. And our friend, the South-westerly wind continued to blow helping us up the hills to come!

We climbed steadily out of Newquay passing Spitfire Corner near the RAF station at St Megwan.



Not long after, we reluctantly joined the A39 as it was the only obvious way of avoiding crossing Bodmin Moor. Most of the time this busy road was tolerable but every now and then a car or a lorry would hurtle past far too close for comfort. (A message to all you drivers out there. Please, please, please, if the road is narrow and there is traffic coming the other way, then just wait a few seconds until you can see that it is safe to pass while giving cyclists enough room. After all, you will only be a few seconds later joining the next queue behind a lorry or tractor or stopping at the next red light!)

After Wadebridge the climbing started in earnest as we skirted around the western and northen edges of the moor. Every so often there was a downhill but that only caused our hearts to drop even further because we knew that we would be going up the other side on our way to almost 1,000 feet above sea level.

After passing the summit of the day’s climbing we turned off the A roads (thankfully) onto much more enjoyable minor country roads all the way to Launceston. Just the other side of the town in the words of a dimly remembered song from Stephen’s childhood we “crossed the Tamar land to land” and entered Devon after 100 miles in Cornwall. Cue the first picture of county signs - Christine’s aim is to get a photo each time we cross a border.




The Devon hills (at least so far) aren’t quite as steep as the Cornish ones but they keep coming! But there were a lot of them and as we tired they got harder than they looked. Thankfully, the last two miles into Okehampton were all downhill - although that does not bode well for tomorrow morning of course!

Day 1 - Penzance to Newquay via Land's End

Day 1 and 56 miles behind us! You can see our route by clicking here.

We travelled down to Cornwall on the overnight sleeper from London Paddington - a remarkably civilised and surprisingly reasonable way to travel. Arriving at Penzance at 8 o’clock we hitched up the panniers and set off on the 10 miles along the A30 to the real start point of our journey.

The weather was perfect - just a few puffy white clouds and a strong wind keeping things cool. Well, not quite perfect for the first stretch as the wind was coming from the South West so it was a headwind until we got to Land’s End and, as the cyclists amongst you will know, the wind is probably worse than the hills when you are on a bike. Of course, all that changed when we turned round to come back to Penzance. For the rest of the day we had a tailwind pushing us along which was much appreciated!

We didn’t spend long at Land’s End - just enough to take the obligatory photographs including Christine on the Start/Finish line.


Passing by Penzance station, we joked about having had a good ride and jumping back on the train but then decided that, as we had come this far, we might as well see a bit more of the place! A cycle path along the sea wall gave fabulous views across Penzance Bay to St Michael’s Mount, but it was soon back on the road and climbing towards Redruth.

The real highlight of the day for Stephen was, while waiting for Christine at a crossroads, the Google Streetview camera van went past. He is now expecting to be immortalised with proof that “he was there” in the depths of rural Cornwall!

We decided we did not like Redruth as it is hilly, full of traffic and, just beyond the town, the heavens opened! The clouds had been rolling in for some time and getting darker but we could see blue sky on either side. Maybe the weather gods were exacting some revenge for the tailwind! Out came the wet weather gear and we took shelter from the worst downpour but, as it didn’t last long, we were soon back on the road replete in bright yellow raincoats and cycling bootees. Yes, they look silly but they are totally wonderful for keeping your feet warm, and dry!

After that it was a long haul along an A road into Newquay with traffic rushing past as we toiled up the hills and sailed down the other side. The Headland Hotel was a welcome sight as we rolled down the drive. Inside it was just as impressive and, if you want to indulge yourself, it comes thoroughly recommended by these two weary cyclists!

Here are the promised pictures of the bikes

Our Bikes

Confession time! We have indulged ourselves!! We will be riding custom made bikes from Roberts Cycles.
If you are "into" bikes there is no better way to while away a couple of hours than going to Chas Robert's shop in Croydon to drool over the machines on display and to talk to Chas or Brian about what they and the "boys out the back" can do to fulfil your dreams. If you are in the market for a bespoke piece of engineering excellence that is easy on the eye, then we urge you to support London's last remaining bike framemaker - even though "you could buy a car for that much" is the inevitable response, rest assured it is money well spent.

Stephen's bike was a reward to himself for losing a significant amount of weight, Christine's a Silver Wedding present. We suspect that each gender will have a different perspective on the relative sacrifices involved!!

Pictures of the bikes to follow at which point you will be able to see the extent to which Chas and his team can customise the same basic design (in both cases a "Roughstuff Lite") to suit the buyer's individual requirements.