Day 4
I know its been a while again, but to be fair i have been a little busy, after three days cycling I had a small break. This was split between Ashford and Nottingham where I attended the wedding of an previous house Mate. Congratulations to Sarah and John Fletcher, it was a really amazing day and i feel very privileged to be able to celebrate with you.
The short stop in Ashford enabled me to catch up with some friends, sort the phone issue and do some all important washing - well to be fair Becca did it for me. Thanks Becca - the sign of a true friend.
Monday morning arrived and it was time to start again, I was a little apprehensive at the thought of it, not least as the bike felt excessively heavy. However once on the bike, i remembered how much I love cycling in the Kent countryside, visiting some very familiar roads and villages as I made my way back down to the coast. The garden of England does have a slightly brown tinge at the moment though and the maximum temperature registered was 37 degrees. No wonder i was a little on the warm side.
So once reaching the coast at Hythe, I picked up the coastal route and cycled along through Dymchurch, St Marys Bay, Little Stone and Great Stone to Dungeness. Taking a small rest, long enough to take a few photos of the light house and munch on the all important Banana, I found myself chatting to a very friendly Man from the power station, who was trying to have a few minutes peace and quiet in his lunch break. The conversation - cycling,of course (if you are reading this, thanks and You really should get out there and do that Lejog ride)
After Leaving Dungeness it was on to Camber and Rye. The head wind started just after as i made my way through Rye Harbour - previously known as the washing machine ride (due to the winds and rain present when we last cycled it) by my friend Claire - it has now been renamed the wind Tunnel. The beauty of the Nature reserve was distracting enough and not to mention the thoughts of the hill that knew was coming. Fairlight hill was tough but the views at the top where definitely worth the slog and were almost as enjoyable as the down hill afterwards as i rolled into Hastings, My stop for the Night.
54.76 Miles completed
Day 5
After a great welcome( the BBQ was amazing) and stay with Russell ( a fellow Demelza rider ) and Cecy, i felt rejuvenated and ready to start on a day that was always going to feel tough. Why i hear you ask? well the route from Hastings to Brighton (my lunch stop) is just a little hilly - you know its going to bad when it includes Beachy head. The initial run out to Eastbourne is not to bad, the head wind had not picked up to much and there is a good cycle path that takes you near the sea. a quick stop in Eastbourne and it was time to pysch myself up for those hills. They were tough but I actually enjoyed the experience and challenge of getting up them, I may have been slow but i made it, and didn't even get tempted to throw off a pannier or two to lighten up the bike. The views are spectacular and it is yet another place I would like to revisit with my walking boots. One of the most enjoyable moments overtaking a cyclist twice , who was very cross that with panniers I even made it past him once.
Brighton was at last in sight and that meant a stop fro coffee and a sandwich, overlooking the pier of course and readjusting my thoughts for the afternoon stretch. I was delighted to realise there were only about 20 more miles to go for the day. The head wind had really picked up though, so it was going to be slow and my legs had really had enough.
Onwards and upwards - or straight along in this case through Worthing and Lancing and on towards Littlehampton. I have such great memories of these places as a child, was lovely to be done there again and yes of course it has all changed. So pleased that at the end i got the real treat of stopping with an old school friend, that i haven't seen for over 20 years.
60.89 miles completed
Day 6
It was great getting to see Debbie again and met the rest of her family, I cant believe how easy it felt and like we had seen each other yesterday. The best bit having company cycling the next day. Debbie and I set off on a rather warm morning, after a little bike maintenance and thanks to the fact she was getting a lift back - no panniers - the freedom!!!!
First stop Rustington beach - we had to stop to walk over a pebbly stretch before pushing on the grass front at the beach, after a wiggle back to the road again, a small navigation error on my part meant we dipped down to the front too early. The result a slightly extended stretch of walking bike over the pebbles. It was beautiful though, so no complaints here.
We gradually made our way down to the Selsey Bill, the most southern tip, and another childhood memory point and then wiggled sideways to a the beach area and a little tea hut for the obligatory coffee and sandwich stop, not to mention the re-tighten your cleat stop and sort out the slow Puncture stop ( Debbie ). One of the things I love about the trip is stopping and talking to people, they are always so interested in what i am doing but it is also great to hear from them. We met two lovely couples down by the front and had a donation for Demelza from one.
Anyway, time to crack On Debbie had to get back to pick up the children and wanted to get a little more cycling in, despite aching legs. She is almost as crazy as me - especially as her slow puncture was causing problems again. We went on to Bracklesham, after a few wiggles and stops and had a quick change of personal and a Sad goodbye/ see you later.
The change in personal meant i got to cycle with her husband Neal in the afternoon, a slightly scary though, as i was back with panniers and he is a good cyclist. we set off and hopefully i didn't do myself too much of a disservice. It was a slow start and a bit of time to chat before he gradually took the lead and very kindly allowed me to sit on his wheel and be pulled along. So grateful.
The route took us through the witterings (as in east and west) and then the side of Chichester quay and the Harbours, passing Dell quay, Bosham , Southbourne and stopping at Emsworth for a little look around.
Neal provided great navigational skills and showed me the way to the cycle route to Portsmouth, before he turned round and headed for home. Getting there much quicker than had he been towing me along. Thank you so much and hope to see you all when i have finished the trip.
It was then a slower meander for me back along the beauty of the estuary, mainly as I stopped to talk to someone who had been enjoying the peace and quiet before my arrival. It was a welcome break and gave me a rest before i pushed on down to Southsea, where i admit i caught a train home to my Parents . Inland i know but Mum cooks really well and Dad and i had a date with the Isle of wight the next day
55.91 miles completed
Day 7
The day that didn't really work out according to plan, but was still an excellent day. I do like the Isle of Wight and it holds lots of memories from family holidays (both as a child and more recently) and school trips there. I do always seem to forget the hills though, however gratefully it was a pannier free day so at least that made them slightly easier. The day started not so well when we missed the ferry and had a slightly longer wait than had hoped for the next one. It was almost lunchtime by the time we arrived but it had enabled me to buy some new luggage cages for the bike to aid in weight distribution. Silver linings and all.
We got into Ryde and stated off in a clockwise direction, a few false starts and changes of directions later we decided the best option was definitely yo follow the main roads or we may be there all Day. Progress was slow going, not only due to the hills, but my bike had developed a little click, by little i mean annoying and frequent and to be fair it had been there before but i think the noise of the panniers drowned it out.
This however was Minor in comparison to dads issue - his chain , did not want to stay on. After numerous stops and starts and trying to work out how to prevent it from doing so - we had great conversations about gear changing and pressure being put on - but it didn't make much difference. However we persevered, well he did, until Vetnor where we stopped for some Lunch and a little bit of bike maintenance.
So the chain stopped falling off but Dad was now reduced to one chain ring, not so great for the flat and the downhill but great for going up hill (if you don't count the fact that you cant get as much momentum prior to the hill - or so i thought). We toyed with the idea of turning back or getting back to the port but both wanted to cycle the military road, its a great stretch followed by a couple of hills and is actually the first place Dad and I rode after he got his bike a few years ago.
I am so pleased we pushed on, Dad sat on my wheel and we pulled our way along the road, reaching a not too shabby speed at times. The hills were a little more challenging - well for me, I couldn't believe it when Dad sailed past me and continued in that manner all the way to the top of the hill.
As we reached Freshwater, we decide it was probably best to start heading back to Ryde by aiming for Yarmouth, then through to Carisbrooke and Newport. The hills were definitely a feature of this stretch and after a stop for refreshments half way along, made it back in time for the earlier sailing than planned. Next stop Portsmouth and then home for a well earned rest Day and the plans to take the bikes in to the shop to be checked over.
60 miles completed
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