I was out, with a quick farewell circuit of the castle, by 8ish. Today was sun sun sun at last, and Anglesey looked serene and bright over the saturated blue of the strait. I was soon across the Menai old suspension bridge, a compactly impressive thing in fat bricks. I cycled across followed byimpatient overtakers….
Category: End to Ends
Wales 4: Corris to Caernarfon
A better day all round, except for the discovery that my glasses had disappeared. (Left in Corris YH? Bizarre. Another victim of beer amnesia?) The morning ride, out into the misty hills. Green steep sides, sheep, square and stern slate houses. A long climb up a stony path, frankly unsuitable for touring bikes as well…
Wales 3: Rhayader to Corris
A bad, testing, but ultimately not unrewarding, day. I had my brake blocks replaced at Rhayader’s local bike shop and, to the ripping-off sound of velcro the size of a tablecloth, was rushed £22. I set off back into the rain……and it rained and rained and rained all day, non stop, a wall of water,…
Wales 2: Merthyr Tydfil to Rhayader
I was off by 7.45am into a miserable, nagging, repetitive drizzle. It was like a failing marriage. A convoluted series of paths, roads; a few good runs on cinder railtrails; grimy backdrops of misted hills; more drab housing… a world of grey and drained green. Eventually I came out at Ponsticill, the reservoir, ringed by…
Wales 1: Cardiff to Merthyr Tydfil
Not great weather. The air was softly textured with drizzle, so fine it enveloped me like a hangover. Though I also had a hangover, the product of a convivial stay in Bath last night, which enveloped me like drizzle. It wasn’t cold, or warm, or dry, or humid. But it was grey. Cardiff looked grim;…
Britain 22: John o’Groats to Thurso
With my End to End completed I enjoyed a smug breakfast, and a morning of leisure writing smug postcards, followed by a smug lunch, in the John o’Groats House Hotel. I amused myself watching the trickle of arrivals at the fingerpost from the comfort of my warm dry table – it was cold, drizzly and…
Britain 21: Helmsdale to John o’Groats
Today was the day I finished the End to End. Yesterday’s sunshine was too good to last, and today was another long slog into a chilly headwind with grey, blank, Tupperware skies. Riding up and down the Ord of Caithness (pic) felt like tracing a sine wave. I stopped at a farm, run by a…
Britain 20: Invergordon to Helmsdale
A frustrating morning of cooling my heels, twiddling my thumbs, tapping my toes and drumming my fingers. I’d given my bike to a monosyllabic mechanic who took all morning to fix my noisy bearings. He certainly made a difference. I set off impatient at noon and found to my fury that the cracking noise they’d…
Britain 19: Aviemore to Invergordon
A dreary morning haul through yet more freezing cold rain and gusty winds. I was getting fed up of this. At Carrbridge I didn’t cycle over Carr Bridge (pic). I did however cycle up and over Slochd Summit, not that I could tell in the thick cloud and mist. At Tomatin (you say Tomartin, I…
Britain 18: Pitlochry to Aviemore
Another dull, wet day of hard going into headwinds and rain. Just out of Pitlochry I dropped in on Blair Castle (pic), whose grounds were free to cyclists. They must be quite proud of young Tony. For the rest of the day, the A9 was my companion. The sort of companion you don’t really want….