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After donning their lycra for the final time & downing a tasty breakfast, Johnny & Mark set out in the Cornish sunshine to complete the last leg of this mammoth cycling challenge.
They had expected the going today to, perhaps, be more demanding than it actually was, because they know how hilly the 'toe' of England can be. However, their carefully chosen route, shadowing the A30, allowed them to make steady progress to the south coast.
At Marazion, which overlooks Mount's Bay, they stopped for coffee & cake (well, it has become a tradition now, hasn't it?!) before counting down the last few miles & finally reaching Land's End shortly after 2pm.
And, as you can see from their happy smiles, they are extremely pleased to have completed every one of the 1710 kilometres, which is about 1062 miles in old money - 'impressive' doesn't begin to describe it, Mark & Johnny - you are both absolutely awesome, & so say all of us - well done & congratulations!!
Well it's really getting down to the wire now (or should I say, the rugged rocks at the end of England?!)
Today saw our super-fit bike boys wend their way out of the deep valley that is Boscastle's home (what a climb that was!) - & was also where they managed to photograph a White-Tailed Sea Eagle (you can see the photographic evidence (left) so it's time to cough up, Simon!). From here they made their way towards Delabole, St. Endellion & Rock, using all the B roads they could lay their tyres on :)
They then took the ferry across from Rock to Padstow (top), & were delighted that cyclists were invited to board first (especially as so many of the awaiting foot passengers had annoyingly employed the European style of queue-jumping!)
Lunch in Padstow was not quite the treat they had anticipated as the whole place was absolutely thronging with grockles, so they made as hasty an exit as possible to return to pounding the tarmac.
The net result of all this effort was to bring them to the Perranporth road, & this is where I finally laid eyes on them as I have travelled down today to bring Johnny home after the big finish tomorrow (I think I startled, perhaps, even irritated them because I beeped as I went by - oops!). Then I pulled into a lay-by ahead so I could photograph them cycling by, but they were simply too quick for me - faster than a speeding bullet - (perhaps bikes don't have to observe the speed limits like us law-abiding car drivers?!!)
Anyway, they are safe & well in tonight's lovely hotel where they can enjoy a last well-deserved rest before the final push to Land's End tomorrow.
Tonight our valorous boys with vivacity, velocity & verve are in the final county they will encounter, Cornwall, having only 2 legs left to cycle (they are on their last legs, you might say!!)
Today Mark & Johnny followed the A39 & B3263 roads & covered another 40 miles across some long hills but, even so, it was a pleasant ride avoiding the showers & enjoying the sunshine. Today's journey also marks another major milestone in that they have cycled more than 1000 miles since they first arrived at Inverness Airport - congratulations, you dynamic duo :0)
They are staying in the Boscastle Youth Hostel (top) overnight which goes by the rather grand title of the 'Palace Stables' (d'you think H M the Queen ever visits?); it sounds as if the facilities should be pretty good as it was only fairly recently re-built after the terrible floods in 2004, & it is in a wonderful situation close to the harbour of this bustling fishing village (upper middle).
Dinner will be found in The Wellington Hotel (lower middle), 'The Welly' as it is affectionately known, which dates back to the 16th century, is one of North Cornwall's oldest Coaching Inns & is supposed to be haunted by several ghosts - I have a feeling that the only spectre they will see will be the Boscastle Busker, John Maughan (bottom), who is performing there this evening - let's hope so anyway!!
Our stupendous cyclists have again made good progress today, first heading south from Exford to Withypool, then south west to South Molten. Here they stopped at the (reputedly) world-famous Corn Dolly Cafe (top) for tea & crumpets, but they also picked up some advice about which route to take; unlike some of the previous 'pointers' they've been given, this proved to be very welcome local knowledge which helped them avoid a 3 in 1 hill &, instead, put them on less frequented B roads to Barnstaple.
This is not to say that it hasn't been hilly, but the real joy of the ladies' recommendation was to follow the Tarka Trail (middle) which follows a disused railway line. It was a beautiful, smooth &, above all, flat route which took them from Barnstaple, through Fremington & Instow, to Bideford. From here they left the trail in order to make their way to their overnight destination at Westward Ho!
Tonight they are staying in another youth hostel (bottom) which has lovely views of the sea but is, otherwise, a bit on the tatty side (much like themselves after so long on the road, I should imagine!!). After riding through rain & pedalling through puddles much of the day I'm sure they will be grateful to use the showers, so thank heavens there is hot water tonight - hurrah!
And just to illustrate how far they've come, Johnny says that they started on page 94 of Mark's map book, & they are now on page 6 - keep turning the wheels (& the pages), boys, you're nearly there :0)
Last night our gallant guys with the gargantuan glutes had a disturbed rest because the only other person they were sharing the dorm with snored like a bass foghorn! At this stage in the journey I'm sure they could do without any loss of sleep, as cumulative tiredness can easily set in.
However, they had a substantial breakfast & set off walking (briefly) over the River Wye, via an old footbridge, then cycled the first 10 miles through the lovely Forest of Dean. They then followed the A40/A466 route to Chepstow, where Johnny was befriended by a beautiful silver-blue tabby cat who settled on his lap whilst they enjoyed their morning coffee & cake.
From Chepstow it was a short hop across the River Severn using the M48 National Cycle Network route, which is part of the 1600m long Severn Bridge (opened 1966). Then it was on to Bristol where they crossed the River Avon using Isambard Kingdom Brunel's iconic Clifton Suspension Bridge, opened in 1864, & which may only be 414m long but is 75m above the high water level - quite a view of the Avon Gorge from up there! They took the A370 to Yatton then headed south to Cheddar, cycling over the top of these, the highest limestone cliffs in England, rather than through the gorge itself.
With all this talk of gorges you can imagine how very hilly the 57 miles has been today, so they were happy to reach Cheddar youth hostel with its promise of a nutritious meal & a chance to re-charge their batteries - hope there are no snorers tonight!!
Does it make him look like a monkey? You decide....!
Well, our boys with the pedal-power prowess had a very good rest at Clun last night, which may in part be due to the Wizard's Wand & Spitting Feathers they felt they had to try at the pub!
They had breakfast in a local cafe this morning, & the owner was, apparently, the most miserable man in christendom; now whether Johnny & Mark brought out this reaction in him, or whether it's his usual demeanour is unknown, but they were his only customers so, hopefully, it's the latter. Fortunately this has not been their typical experience; along the way they have met some really kind & engaging people which, I'm sure, will be an abiding memory of this trip long after the aches & pains have been forgotten :)
They headed south on the A4110 to Hereford, stopping along the way at a little place called Kingsland. After a panini & a cuppa in Hereford they took the A49/A4137/B4229 route to Welsh Bicknor.
The youth hostel here was formerly a rectory & dates back to the Victorian period. It is set in 25 acres of riverside grounds, is adjacent to the Wye Valley Walk & has views of the Royal Forest of Dean & Symonds Yat rock - sounds fantastic! Because it is in rather a remote spot, dinner & breakfast are included which I know they are looking forward to as they have hammered the hamstrings up many hills, in high humidity - quite an arduous day!
It has been a comfortable 50-mile ride today, & now they have arrived in the small town of Clun. They will spend the night in the local youth hostel which is housed in a recently restored water mill. Apparently it is very beautiful as is the rest of Clun, which also boasts a Norman motte & bailey castle. Clun castle is thought to have been built in a good defensive position close to the Welsh border, & the motte is largely formed by the natural confluence of the Rivers Clun & Usk.
Clun's most famous (adopted) son is John Osborne who lived in The Hurst, overlooking the beautiful Clun valley; he said to his wife about buying the house: "It's the best thing we've ever done - marvellous!" & people are still able to go there & share his wonderful view, because it is now a centre for learning & contemplation for aspiring playwrights. After his death, in 1994, he was buried locally & the inscription on his headstone reads: 'Let me know where you are working tomorrow night and I will come and see you' which he frequently said to his friends within the acting fraternity.
The main thing the hostel & town lacks is somewhere to get some food to cook, so this means our poor fellows will have to go to the pub for dinner - I simply don't know how they endure the hardship of it all!! The other thing lacking is a signal which is why we have no further photos today; maybe they'll be able to send some tomorrow, though, if we keep everything crossed :)
Enjoy your night in the Marches, maties, & we'll catch up with you again anon.
Mark & Johnny's day got off to a good start with a hearty breakfast at their B&B, including porridge (Johnny's favourite), then they were off again, heading south on the A49. The route this morning has been fairly gentle, but no doubt the heat is taking a toll; they are certainly having to slather on the sun cream & drink lots of water, as you can imagine.
They made a stop at Shrewsbury which, you may not be aware, is the birthplace of Charles Darwin. Whilst there, Johnny managed to visit a barber shop to have a trim, & he says he now looks like a monkey! I hope he's just making a Darwinian joke but, you know thinking about it, bananas are his favourite fruit, so maybe there's some truth in what he says! I've asked for pics so, hopefully, we'll see for ourselves later :)
They continued south to Craven Arms, where they are having afternoon coffee & cake, & from here I believe they will follow the B4368 west southwest towards the hills around Clun - well, I say 'hills' but they are only 400m above sea level at the highest point, so this shouldn't pose too many problems for our lads with the quality quadriceps - let's hope not, anyway :0)
So ferry 'cross the Mersey
'Cause this land's the place I love
And here I'll stay....
....well not quite as, after a great time in the fair city of Liverpool, Johnny & the Pacemaker (Mark) caught the ferry across this renowned waterway at 10am this morning, in order to pick up the A41 to Chester!
They report that the route during the first half of today's ride has been quite flat &, of course, they are also enjoying this clement spell of weather :)
They've had a coffee stop, right by the canal, in the picturesque village of Christleton (near Chester), & will continue to follow the A41 south to Whitchurch in Shropshire where they will spend the night in the relative luxury of a B&B.
They are pleased to say that all's well with their bikes &, more importantly, their bods - good news, boys :0)
The Cavern Club & the two Johns together (just glad the less-famous John wasn't wearing socks with those sandals!)
Mark & Johnny will tonight be in a 6 bedded room with an en-suite that actually has a bath to have a nice soak in - hope you remembered to pack your radox & rubber ducks, boys, or perhaps you could take a salt bath now!
Each corridor in the hostel is named after a Beatles song, & they'll be sleeping on Penny Lane :) There are even a couple of gold discs in the reception; I suppose the Fab Four were running out of wall space in their own homes for all their accolades!
The bikes are safely padlocked away in a metal shed so this should, hopefully, avoid finding them up on blocks, with their wheels missing, by morning!
Enjoy your rest day, maties, & remember you are our Fab Two ;0)
