A wierd anachronism, a toll bridge cross the canal which costs 12p for cars to cross. I wonder how long ago the cost was last changed!
I’m about 5 miles before Chorley. Been dodging black clouds all morning but happily never got very wet. I’ve ducked into a pub for lunch to avoid the latest rain cloud. The roads have been fine, despite the scary motorway laced appearance of the map.
My right knee started getting a bit sore yesterday. I think i twisted it slightly when i was changing down gears and went down one too many. Plus the roads have been a bit rough at times. If you hit a bump just at the wrong point of the pedal stroke, your joint gets a knock. So i ended up taking ibuprofen for the first time and have been fine since.
I’m kinda enjoying this phase – by the end of the day I’ll be halfway. I’ll be one day away from Kendal, which is the start of more familiar territory for me. Then one more day sees me in scotland! Yay!
Month: May 2009
M6
The over way to do lejog i guess! Early on today i got a good view of the landscape ahead, and was pleased to see a complete absence of hills.
Aston-juxta Mondrum
I’ve seen a lot of weird place names on my travels but Aston-juxta Mondrum is the current winner.
Today started at ironbridge with a pretty steep climb up out of the gorge, but after that it was very flat with a tail wind. Gps said 51 miles, ctc route says 57. I had the gps on battery saver mode and it lost reception a few times in the rain. Either way, 3h44 pedalling, 1h lunch, and 30mins sheltering from rain. Arrived at bnb at 3pm, all admin done by 5pm and i’m having a relaxing time. The weather forecast was spot on – rain in morning, dry at lunch, heavy rain later. I arrived just as the later rain started, phew. Rain at the end of the day is a big deal because you have to dry all your gear overnight.
I just checked the map, and i’m nearly at the top of wales! Tomorrow’s map page is full of colored ink – manchester and motorways everywhere, but hopefully that’ll keep the traffic off the wee white roads i ride on.
Into Cheshire
Well, it rained pretty hard until i reached Market Drayton after 33 miles. In some ways, stopping to shelter was a bad plan because you stop generating heat and it’s unpleasant to start again. One small benefit of foul weather is it stops you thinking about tired legs! Definitely gives you motivation to grind away and keep the speed and heat up. I needed google maps to get through Market Drayton since i entered through a massive housing estate that my road map didn’t show. The sun made a brief appearance, enough to dry out a bit on the way to Nantwich, where i’m having a pub lunch. Some bumpy farm trails today, but also some more manicured countryside too. All the raindriven pedalling means i’ve done about 45 miles this morning, even with a late start due to late sunday breakfasts. So only 15 to do after lunch up to Wimboldsley. Gps says 417 miles done in total so far.
Ironbridge
Iron bridge in Ironbridge. And then it started raining, and hasn’t stopped. Currently huddling in a bus shelter at Great Bolas having something to eat and trying to guess if the weather is going to get better or worse.
Stanton Long
More pretty countryside to cycle through today. There was no room in the inn at Much Wenlock, so i had to come across to Broseley for the night. All in all, 67 miles today, and I got here at 1715 which is my earliest ever arrival. Gps says i was moving for just over 5 hours, which means an average speed of 13.4mph. What a difference a tail wind makes! I spent the last hour of the day sprinting to keep ahead of a massive rain cloud which was blackening the sky behind me.
Techwise, today was all about adapting to changing weather. I just kept the rain covers on my shoes all day. Rain jacket and trousers lived on top of each pannier, held down by the strap so that they were easy to get to. Rain gloves were in the jacket pocket. I also found that i could wedge my map case between the aerobars, which makes it much easier to get to.
So what shall we do tonight? Same thing we do every night – shower, wash clothes, yoga, food, route review and bed.
De Greys Tearoom, Ludlow
I’m sure i read about this place on someone else’s lejog trip report – probably Andrew McHattie’s.
I stumbled in here, panniers swinging, before i made the connection. I’d describe it as the Jenners of the tea room world. I think i walked past Miss Marple on the way in. Not exactly cyclist central, but i’ve got used to brazenly stomping into delicate tearooms with full cycling gear. They served a tasty steak pie but lousy latte – but what was i thinking walking into a tea house and asking for coffee?!
I managed 40 miles before lunch at 1pm, aided by a useful tail wind. Wait, what’s that? It’s like a wind . . that helps you rather than hinders you. A cyclist power-up if you like!
Weather has been showers on and off. I’ve stopped four times to shelter under trees to avoid the worst of the rain, but the wind blows it over quickly (the rain, Anthony, not the tree!). I was very focused on getting the miles done this morning, lots of heads down pedalling and munching of snacks whilst on the move. The biggest hassle was switching clothes a million times – jacket on, jacket off, rain trousers on, then off again. Still, i have my gear stowage nicely optimised now! Another 25 or so miles left to Ironbridge, though the forecast for the afternoon was poorer.
Withington
I was looking in my phone camera to see if the had am exposure control (no) but i did find that it has a timer mode! So more self portraits from now on, and fewer photos of road signs. However, i did suffer my first nettle sting of the trip whilst setting up the shot!
Travels with my Spork
Never leave home without your spork. So far i’ve used mine to fix a puncture, eat food, align dilithium crystals and create controlled nuclear fusion.
Ross on Wye
Ross on Wye turned out to be a lovely place to spend an afternoon. I got a new water bottle finally and had a very pleasant lunch, coffee and cake!