At 2.20 pm we finally ran out of land to cycle on and found ourselves at the last signpost on mainland UK. After 5 hrs of the worst weather on the entire trip John O'Groats appeared through driving rain and howling gales marking the end of our adventure. Not much to report about todays ride except to say don't rush here on holiday! A surprise bottle of chamagne awaited us from Liz which was a great way to end.
Tonight we are sharing our hotel with the BBC Top Gear team who are starting a race to Lands End in the morning - we are thinking of challenging them on our bikes but looking at them we don't think they're up to it!
We've had a fantastic trip and are so grateful to have arrived safely with no falls, accidents or even a puncture between us. We have been overwhelmed by the generosity of those who have hosted us and have greatly appreciated all the comments, texts and calls along the way.
It has been a privilege to do this trip in support of Thembalisha and our hope is that in some way we've been able to make a difference to some other lives.
For those who like statistics:
Total mileage 992.77 miles (including our ride to start at Lands End we've actually cycled 1003)
Total climb approx 50,000 feet
Max speed 36.9 mph
Average speed 9.5 mph
Total calories 61,626
We plan on uploading pictures from the trip to this blog over the next few days. we will keep this blog open for the next challenge, whenever that might be!
Over and out!
Chris & Louise
Sent using BlackBerry® from Orange
Friday 5 June 2009
Thursday 4 June 2009
Day 19
Our first 10 miles today were wet and cold as we headed up the main A road north from Lairg - single track all the way!
This has been the most isolated part of the entire trip, even the sheep disappeared and our only company has been the occasional logging truck. A real highlight was coming across The Crask Inn - the second most remote Inn in the UK. They served us up some wonderful coffee and shortbreads and fuelled us with stories of other travellers-it was hard to leave.
Lunch stop today was beside a tiny Church of Scotland church in an equally tiny hamlet, it was beautifully maintained with the door always been kept open. We thought we were all alone until we saw the herd of Red Deer grazing just behind the church - it was a great sight.
Around 4 pm we eventually saw the sea and it felt quite an achievement to have reached the northernmost coast at last. Our overnight stay tonight is at a lovely little Inn in Strathy where we are preparing for our final ride to John O'Groats just 40 miles away on Friday morning. The weather forcast for our last day looks diabolical but we're nearly there!
We also realised today that if we include gift aid then we have almost reached our fundraising total! Thanks so much to everyone who has already sponsored us, its really a motivation to pedal up the hills!
Distance from Lands End 948
Sent using BlackBerry® from Orange
This has been the most isolated part of the entire trip, even the sheep disappeared and our only company has been the occasional logging truck. A real highlight was coming across The Crask Inn - the second most remote Inn in the UK. They served us up some wonderful coffee and shortbreads and fuelled us with stories of other travellers-it was hard to leave.
Lunch stop today was beside a tiny Church of Scotland church in an equally tiny hamlet, it was beautifully maintained with the door always been kept open. We thought we were all alone until we saw the herd of Red Deer grazing just behind the church - it was a great sight.
Around 4 pm we eventually saw the sea and it felt quite an achievement to have reached the northernmost coast at last. Our overnight stay tonight is at a lovely little Inn in Strathy where we are preparing for our final ride to John O'Groats just 40 miles away on Friday morning. The weather forcast for our last day looks diabolical but we're nearly there!
We also realised today that if we include gift aid then we have almost reached our fundraising total! Thanks so much to everyone who has already sponsored us, its really a motivation to pedal up the hills!
Distance from Lands End 948
Sent using BlackBerry® from Orange
Day 19
Our first 10 miles today were wet and cold as we headed up the main A road north from Lairg - single track all the way!
This has been the most isolated part of the entire trip, even the sheep disappeared and our only company has been the occasional logging truck. A real highlight was coming across The Crask Inn - the second most remote Inn in the UK. They served us up some wonderful coffee and shortbreads and fuelled us with stories of other travellers-it was hard to leave.
Lunch stop today was beside a tiny Church of Scotland church in an equally tiny hamlet, it was beautifully maintained with the door always been kept open. We thought we were all alone until we saw the herd of Red Deer grazing just behind the church - it was a great sight.
Around 4 pm we eventually saw the sea and it felt quite an achievement to have reached the northernmost coast at last. Our overnight stay tonight is at a lovely little Inn in Strathy where we are preparing for our final ride to John O'Groats just 40 miles away on Friday morning. The weather forcast for our last day looks diabolical but we're nearly there!
We also realised today that if we include gift aid then we have almost reached our fundraising total! Thanks so much to everyone who has already sponsored us, its really a motivation to pedal up the hills!
Distance from Lands End 948
Sent using BlackBerry® from Orange
This has been the most isolated part of the entire trip, even the sheep disappeared and our only company has been the occasional logging truck. A real highlight was coming across The Crask Inn - the second most remote Inn in the UK. They served us up some wonderful coffee and shortbreads and fuelled us with stories of other travellers-it was hard to leave.
Lunch stop today was beside a tiny Church of Scotland church in an equally tiny hamlet, it was beautifully maintained with the door always been kept open. We thought we were all alone until we saw the herd of Red Deer grazing just behind the church - it was a great sight.
Around 4 pm we eventually saw the sea and it felt quite an achievement to have reached the northernmost coast at last. Our overnight stay tonight is at a lovely little Inn in Strathy where we are preparing for our final ride to John O'Groats just 40 miles away on Friday morning. The weather forcast for our last day looks diabolical but we're nearly there!
We also realised today that if we include gift aid then we have almost reached our fundraising total! Thanks so much to everyone who has already sponsored us, its really a motivation to pedal up the hills!
Distance from Lands End 948
Sent using BlackBerry® from Orange
Wednesday 3 June 2009
Day 18
We left the lovely home of our generous hosts Rob & Gwen this morning and travelled through the Black Isle to Cromerty where the Nigg ferry whisked us at a very leisurely pace across the bay to continue our journey north.
We stopped to chat to a group of men in full lycra also heading to John O'Groats with industrial strength support vehicle carrying all luggage and offering full catering services. It made us feel rather smug having carried our own gear most of the way!
The scenery is changing as we head further north appearing wilder and more remote and its not now really getting fully dark at night. Tonight we are staying in Lairg, pop 800 in an amazing converted croft, home of our hosts Greer & Moira, complete with peat fire, stunning views and a jacuzzi!
The end is finally coming into view and tomorrow will be our last long ride over 62 of some of the most remote roads in the British Isles. This has been an amazing trip but we are now feeling ready to finish when we reach the end of the road (literally) on Friday.
Distance from Lands End 891 miles
Sent using BlackBerry® from Orange
We stopped to chat to a group of men in full lycra also heading to John O'Groats with industrial strength support vehicle carrying all luggage and offering full catering services. It made us feel rather smug having carried our own gear most of the way!
The scenery is changing as we head further north appearing wilder and more remote and its not now really getting fully dark at night. Tonight we are staying in Lairg, pop 800 in an amazing converted croft, home of our hosts Greer & Moira, complete with peat fire, stunning views and a jacuzzi!
The end is finally coming into view and tomorrow will be our last long ride over 62 of some of the most remote roads in the British Isles. This has been an amazing trip but we are now feeling ready to finish when we reach the end of the road (literally) on Friday.
Distance from Lands End 891 miles
Sent using BlackBerry® from Orange
Tuesday 2 June 2009
Day 17
Today, as yesterday we spent a lot of time cycling the wrong way down the A9. Thankfully it is the old A9, abandoned for the past thirty years, with grass growing in the middle and now part of the National Cycle Network. It’s a rather eerie experience as the road still has white lines and reflective cat’s eyes in the middle and was obviously once a busy thoroughfare. But now it has over grown and hasn’t seen a car for some time. The new A9 still runs at a close distance, howling through the central High Lands of Scotland up to the North. And it is the North of Scotland that we have now entered. With only 3 days of cycling left, we have just 150 miles between us and John O’Groats. Tonight we are in Avoch 10 miles north of Inverness, staying with the Barlow family in their lovely home overlooking the Firth.
Today has been another long one (63 miles) routing via Aviemore ski resort… well it is for some of the year. The last time we were here was twenty years ago for a family holiday. My main memory of the place was finding a dead fly in my chicken at dinner time. The waitress just offered to replace the chicken! The restaurant was still open for business today, so it must have cleaned up its act since then.
After climbing another high mountain pass we passed the battle field of Culloden, where in 1746 the Jacobites (mostly Scottish) suffered a huge defeat at the hands of British Government forces. Today a very swanky visitors centre offers an interactive museum, access to the battle fields and a rather nice café. After wondering around sites of ‘intensive hand to hand combat’ in the cold we decided it was time to hit the road and dice with our own death on the A9 as we crossed the Kessock Bridge at Inverness during rush hour.
High points of the day: Crossing the 800 mile mark.
Low point: crossing the A9 bridge
Today has been another long one (63 miles) routing via Aviemore ski resort… well it is for some of the year. The last time we were here was twenty years ago for a family holiday. My main memory of the place was finding a dead fly in my chicken at dinner time. The waitress just offered to replace the chicken! The restaurant was still open for business today, so it must have cleaned up its act since then.
After climbing another high mountain pass we passed the battle field of Culloden, where in 1746 the Jacobites (mostly Scottish) suffered a huge defeat at the hands of British Government forces. Today a very swanky visitors centre offers an interactive museum, access to the battle fields and a rather nice café. After wondering around sites of ‘intensive hand to hand combat’ in the cold we decided it was time to hit the road and dice with our own death on the A9 as we crossed the Kessock Bridge at Inverness during rush hour.
High points of the day: Crossing the 800 mile mark.
Low point: crossing the A9 bridge
Monday 1 June 2009
Day 16
Today was always going to be a tough one with a 63 mile ride into the Scottish Highlands. It's turned out to be the hottest day of the year up here which is very different to the low cloud and horizontal rain we were expecting at this stage of the trip. Our biggest concern was the 13 mile ascent to the top of Drumochter Pass which is both remote and high. However Colin & Liz, our hosts for our stay tonight in Newtonmore, very kindly drove over to take our luggage - taking Scottish hospitality to a new level and enabling us to tackle the hills with considerably lighter bikes ... thank you. Fabulous scenery, snow on the mountain tops and a herd of deer made this a memorable day.
Distance from Lands End 777 miles ... Even a perfect number!
Sent using BlackBerry® from Orange
Distance from Lands End 777 miles ... Even a perfect number!
Sent using BlackBerry® from Orange
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
