e2e4e Day 15 - tongue to john o'groats

E2e4e Day 15 Tongue to John O Groats.

The day began for most of us by leaving the excellent Tongue YHA, near the Causeway linking Tongue to the road to Durness (see photo), and cycling the short distance up to the hotel where Sara and Anthony had stayed, the Ben Loyal.

We had booked breakfast at this hotel and it was very good indeed and a wonderful start to the day. We knew that the first part of our 66 mile trip today would be pretty hilly and this proved to be true, with some challenging climbs for the first 25 miles, through Betty Hill village, and well on the road to Thurso.

The scenery was different yet again. Scotland has so much variety to offer. This time we had some great views of the coastline and some impressive sandy beaches, all deserted given that the day was cool, cloudy, and windy, but still,still, DRY. Over 15 days we have had only one wet day, on the road to Dartmoor. I’m told that 6 consecutive days in Scotland without rain can in no way be guaranteed. Herbie has been lucky on his trips to Scotland over the years as he always seems to bring good weather.

Some distance before Thurso , at Strathy, Herbie let us know that we had reached the magic 1000 MILES ! We stopped to take photos of the computer reading at this momentous instant.

Bike-computer showing 1,000 miles!

Roy, David, Sara, Herbie and Anthony at 1,000 miles (thanks Andrew!)

After 27 miles we stopped for a coffee at a seaview hotel in Melvich and this was a very welcome break from the regular climbing which we had gone through since the start of the day. Interestingly, a group of three women came in, who were the support crew to a group of three men. It had been four, but one became ill in the Lake district and had to go to hospital in Carlisle, due to problems brought on by the heat. So, we now knew that another group was just behind us !

Having the bit between our teeth we made further good progress along our route until we reached Dounreay, the nuclear power station. I don’t know why, but I started thinking about Homer Simpson, the world’s most incompetent employee in a nuclear power station. I also looked closely at the cows nearby, half expecting some unusual, nuclear power affected, features. However, they all seemed to have the normal complement of ears, eyes etc.

Beyond Dounreay lies the town of Thurso, which is also the town we need to catch a train from early in the morning to Inverness. We took a short break here and had a sandwich. Davey came upstairs and met us, having parked the van, and asked if we had left our computers on our bikes. We said we had, and he replied that someone must have taken them as they had all gone
. He then dumped them all on the table and said he had removed them for safekeeping ! There was then a frantic scramble as owners tried to retrieve their computers to avoid a mix up.

I telephoned Jenny, our British Red Cross contact for John O Groats, arranged via Beth Swarbrigg, and, by a sheer stroke of good luck, she said she was in Thurso and would pop in and have a chat, prior to our welcome by red cross at JOG later.


Jenny came to see us, with two BRC volunteers and her young granddaughter.Sara took their photo and made them feel at home, and we arranged a welcome at JOG at about 4pm.

A word now about Andrew. He led us out from Thurso for 13 miles and never flagged, even though there was a headwind at times. This was really welcome, especially as the 5 e2e4e’rs were all pretty tired after 1000 miles.

I’m afraid to tell blog readers that the infantile sprinting for any village sign still carried on, even after 1000 miles. Herbie, I and others had indulged in this childish practice every day.Basically, the score is, Herbie 296, Roy 5, Anthony 4, Harris 2,Simon 2 , Mike 1, [ but broken chain at Land’s End means point lost, sorry Simon ], Graham 1 [ he got more, but set off too soon so it didn’t count], Andrew 1. So, the important point to note is that Herbie just pipped me somehow.

I am sure that our hearts started beating faster as we approached JOG. As the miles clicked away we began to see a settlement in the distance, and realised that it must be JOG, the top of our world, and the Orkneys were visible over to our left, an imposing sight with clearly defined hills.

In no time we could see that the holy grail of the JOG sign was in sight, just a few hundred yards down the arrow straight road. Herbie, Anthony and Sara made way for me to reach the sign first and I yelled out as I passed it and the end had been reached. We exchanged embraces and hugs, and were joined by David too at this point.

Then there was an exhilarating few hundred yards down to the van, parked by the side of the road, and Davey waved a chequered flag, esp provided by Herbie for just this moment. We were joined by Mike’s friend, Kate Skinner and her friend, and also passed a car festooned with welcome balloons.

After this, it was down to the seafront, and a great welcome from Jenny and red cross volunteers, and loads of photos, including the official end to end photo. A quick rush to get our final stamp on our cards, and the Sara opened the champagne and truffles which her friend, Nicky, had thoughtfully posted to her for this moment. Later, there was even more to come as Nicky hd posted a huge cake and more champagne to the YHA at JOG ! As I write this, we are back at the hostel, getting ready for a slap up meal provided kindly by Mike.

The five again at John O'Groats, with Red Cross welcoming committee.

The full team at the end: (left to right) Andrew, Roy, Sara, Dennis (at back), Mike, Herbie, David, Anthony, then Davey and Harris kneeling.

Roy, Anthony, Sara, Herbie, David - after 1,040 miles!

One rider who completed the ride is missing from the phtot - Martin 'Flagboy' Ingram - as he rode with us until Clun and then completed the rest of the ride at a faster pace to get back for a social function - well done Martin, and thanks for the company in the early stages!

This has been one fantastic experience and it’s going to seem so odd not getting on a bike to ride over 70 miles tomorrow.

Today’s mileage: 64.90 miles; avg: 15.2 mph (4hrs 16mins)
Cumulative: 1040 miles!!.....
.....and not one puncture - 5 full e2e4e's, 17 stagieres - in all around 10,300 miles puncture-free!

e2e4e Day 14 - carbisdale to tongue

e2e4e Day 14 - Carbisdale Castle to Tongue

Having said goodbye to Ed and Rosemary after last night's meal, we were losing Jayne and Jeff this morning. Though, not until we had had a great continental breakfast amongst the 300 Italian students in the diningd room. So we are now down to our final complement of riders: Roy, David, Sara, Anthony and myself as the full End to Enders, and Mike, Harris, Andrew and Dennis as stagieres extraordinaire!

We are now so much into the rhythm and routine of this ride now that we could probably just keep going without too much effort - just as it is coming to its end! It is going to be very strange for us to stop - physically, mentally and socially! For each of us this is a great personal achievement, requiring commitment, but we wouldn't have got through it without the great leadership and organisation from Roy. He's made sure everyone played their part, and that everything we needed was available at the right time.

Leaving the castle and rolling down the hill to the railway line in Culrain we had fantastic views back at the hostel/castle on the hill. Over the railway on a footbridge, soon we were climbing on the hills again. Lairg was a small town in a depression in the plateau, with Loch Shin stretching out before us. We then followed the Strath Tirry stream with incredible 'big' scenery openeing up in front of us. On to the Crask in via a dramatic descent.

Here we were around halfway to Tongue and still it was fairly early. Rather than lunch we settled for coffee and Highland shortbread. Like Lairg, Crask was another settlement in a bowl on this high plateau, surrounded by peat bogs and distant brooding mountains. The pub stop was very welcome, and even meant we sat in for the brief cloud-burst that passed quickly. Davie found a tame lamb around the back of the pub, and later the landlady, Kai Geldard (originally from Yorkshire – it’s amazing how many times complete strangers have been prepared to tell us their life’s story as soon as they’ve met us!), got Sara to feed the lamb from a bottle. Like so many over the last couple of weeks, unasked for, the landlady gave us a donation for the e2e4e cause.

From here the road, all single track with passing spaces, and they’re can’t be many A-roads like it, rose slightly before an even more impressive descent through forestry. First we flew through Altnaharra, and then descended to turf roofed cabin on Loch Loyal. Here Davie instigated a skimming competition, but no-one could touch him, despite valiant efforts from Roy, David and Dennis. Rain came on a little here, but only briefly, and after sheltering in the lee of Cnoc na Cuilean we continued on our way.

This journey across the Sutherland Highlands has shown us just why Scotland is known as the ‘Big Country’ – good name for a band! Beside Cnoc Craggie the road steadily rose at a low gradient, and Mike pulled away for the Tongue town sign – yes, we’re still chasing those place-name signs after nearly a 1,000 miles, and I seem to have infected most with this childish pursuit.

At some point Roy asked Andrew to play some Scottish tunes on his tin whistle in the Highland scenery, so we stopped for the most atmospheric impromptu concert. Andrew gaves us Mingulay Boat Song, Ye Banks and Braes, and the Blantyre Explosion - all recorded for posterity on camera videos.

The final descent into Tongue gave us fantastic views over the Kyle of Tongue, with its causeway and a medieval broch on the hill opposite. In the post office Mike and I bought postcards, and in a scene reminiscent of one in the film Local Hero, the lady behind the counter of the shop informed us that we would have to buy stamps for our postcards at the post office counter at the back of the shop. She promptly walked over and then served us from there herself.

As we had arrived in Tongue at 10 to 2 in the afternoon, and the local hotels had finished serving lunch, we made our way across the causeway to Melness on the opposite side of the Kyle, and had lunch in the Craggan Inn. It had fantastic 180 deg views of the Kyle, Rabbit Isles and Eilean nan Ron, with ghostly distant views of the Orkneys. A great lunch was had with stunning weather changing by the second in front of us. In this remote part of Britain strangely the signal for the wireless connection of Roy’s laptop (required for blogging) was one of the strongest we’d had. So, we were able to send out yesterday entry complete with several photos. Again the landlord of this establishment gave us a donation.

We had to wake Harris up, in order to leave, but only once he’d got up off the floor where he’d fallen asleep! A quick roll down the hill at 5pm and we were at the Youth Hostel on the Tongue side of the causeway. Unpacked and showered, we soon found ourselves at the Ben Loyal Hotel, having a well deserved aperitif and then setting about yet another meal.

It was amazing being able to walk back from the hotel to the hostel in what seemed like early summer evening light, but in this case nearing 10:45 pm when we arrived back. The hostels surprising us all with their quality and diversity of style. We’ve now stayed in English manor houses, corrugated tin shanty dwellings on dank hillsides, castles, Swiss chalets, bunk houses, and stone cottages. In Tongue we’re treated to a large Victorian house with Scottish styling on the outside and Scandinavian-like efficiency and luxury inside. What other form of accommodation could offer such variety at a blanket price?

And so to bed, but alas the signal has deserted us here, so this may be being read a day late again, or at best without photos to start with!

Today’s mileage: 55.42 miles; avg: 15.3 mph (3 hrs 37 mins)
Cumulative: 975 miles

e2e4e Day 13 - loch ness to carbisdale castle

E2e4e Day 13 Loch Ness to Carbisdale Castle

Imagine waking up in a hostel on the shores of Loch Ness. I guarantee, you will find yourself involuntarily scanning the surface of the Loch , just in case you will be the lucky one to spot Nessie, even though you doubt her existence

We woke up and had one of our famous e2e4e homemade breakfasts, muesli, cornflakes, bread, marmite, toast, yoghurts, bananas. I must also put in a word for Sara and Anthony’s unending supplies of dried mango, which are a real treat on our rides.

Our ride today was 64 miles, and began with some flat riding to Urquhart Castle, near Drumnadrochit. We stopped at the ruined castle, which is a significant tourist attraction and took some photos. It looked very imposing overlooking the Loch, and must have been a fantastic castle in it’s prime.

It was a short ride to Drumnadrochit, and then we faced a very steep and long climb, at 15% . Basically, it consisted of several sequential climbs and was a good test. Everyone rode strongly. Ed started strongly three days ago, and has basically got stronger every day. Harris is a delightful person to ride with and has some good talent for cycle racing if he chooses to pursue it. Mike has adapted well to his bike and loves riding with his shirt off when the weather is warm enough. He is almost always in good spirits, and you can hear his laugh from some distance away. Jayne is great company and has soldiered on even though she has had a sore knee.

Sara has been consistently strong during the ride, and has been our number one fundraiser as we have gone along. She has also ridden through a pretty painful injury, from which she is recovering, and yesterday she took part in a long, 15 mile sprint group, and was an essential part of it’s effectiveness.

Anthony is always great company and has a bon mot for every situation, as well as a rapidly developing turn of speed and he has been a real delight since we started.

Andrew is still as strong as ever, is brilliant company and I know from previous experience that his photos will be fantastic.

David Ward takes all the stages within his stride and remains unflustered by steep hills in particular. He is also taking loads of photos and we look forward to seeing them later.

Dennis is such a strong and consistent cyclist, and is a wealth of good knowledge and always helpful [ except when I crashed in France recently and he said I shouldn’t be allowed to have a plaster as there was not enough blood! ].

Herbie has been the lifeblood of the ride and is the one we all naturally turn to for advice. There is no doubt that we have all got stronger as the days have passed, and the 5 e2e4e riders now have some 900 miles under our belts.

David, the driver, is a fantastic chap and cannot do enough to assist us, and is always interesting to talk to.

At noon, we observed the silence for the 7th July bombings 2005, and stood quietly by the side of the road.

Lunch was at Dingwall, which is sited near Moray Firth. It’s very interesting how the parts of Scotland we have toured through have differed. Our run over a fairly barren Rannoch Moor two days ago, contrasts sharply with the pine, gorse and heather clad features of the Struie near Ardgay, which then led our way up to Carbisdale Castle.

View from the Struie.

When approaching the castle by bike, prepare for a stiff climb,and to be awestruck by the size of the castle and the number of rooms. There were four large tourist coaches when we arrived, and we discovered we had turned up at the same time as more than a hundred young Italian students, as well as others. The building seemed to be run on an industrial scale and our room contained 16 beds. Once again we chose our bunks and ‘bagged’ a bunk by putting a helmet or bit of kit on it. Mine is once again a bottom bunk, with David having the bunk above me.

Some great news, folks. Martin ‘flagboy’ Ingram, who came to carbisdale before us, has left us a message on the bike shed door saying ‘e2e4e almost there’. Good old flagboy.

We said a fond farewell to Ed and Rosemary this evening, and looked forward to the ride to Tongue tomorrow.

Today’s mileage: 64.19 miles; avg: 15.4 mph (4 hrs 09 mins)
Cumulative: 920 miles

Media coverage: Le Tour de Fragrance

I just got a Google News Alert on this article Le Tour de Fragrance - Why Roy Taylor, Andrew Webster, and Mike Reid are in Lycra which appears on the CareandHealth site:

"As the crew eased into their lodgings for the evening they were greeted by their host Helen who was waiting with acupuncturists and a masseuse. Having just proclaimed that their ride was hardly taxing and that they were looking forward to some hills in the next leg, all of the riders suddenly found some muscle pain which needed immediate attention. Roy Taylor remarked, "I've never seen so much enthusiasm as each rider went the whole hog and had all the treatments going." The therapists were also pleasantly surprised to find so many sweet smelling men, completely against their expectations."

e2e4e Day 12 - glencoe to loch ness

The daily blog!

e2e4e Day 12 - Glencoe to Loch Ness

Well after a few near perfect nights' sleep, and some easier riding (yes, cycling in Scotland has been the easiest terrain so far on our journey, but that will probably change!), last night was probably one of the most sleepless nights for most of us. We left the window open in the heat and returned from the Clachaig Inn to find our room full of midges! The compromise between boiling in our sheet sleeping bag to keep the midges away, or cooling off slightly only to be bitten to death was not one we were going to win. Well I'm speaking for the lads, the lasses having been slightly more sensible and did keep the windows closed. As for the famed Avon 'Oh so Soft' - useless!

Oh well. After a continental breakfast bought from the hostel we set off through the village of Glencoe and back to the main A82. Not for the first time in Scotland, the day started overcast with some rain in the air, but very soon had cleared up and was ideal for cycling. With a following wind we were soon at Balachulish, where I remember catching the old chain ferry with my parents years ago- now replaced by a large metal bridge, offering fantastic view back towards Glencoe.

A flat 20-21 mph stretch to Fort William saw us have an early tea stop at the Ben Nevis mountaineering store café, where Roy and I were able to get really up to date with the blog as the signal was on strength 5 of 5. We managed to add photos for the last 2 days, and publish yesterday's entry with photos. This first strecth had been a nice introduction to Jayne Aplin, our new rider for the next few days, while Dennis and Ed were now into their second day's ride with us.

Mike Reid, Ed Naylor and Andrew Webster, some of our 'stagieres' for Scotland stages.

Back on the road tanking along the Great Glen (Gleinn Mhor) Harris mixing it with the best, and certainly earning his Sigma cycling jersey as he took his turn time and again on the front as we 'bit and bitted' (sharing the slip-streaming) through Spean Bridge, even winning the village sign sprint at Laggan.

Our next stop was to have a quick look at the Laggan Locks, before lunch at the Glen Oich Restaurant at the Great Glen Water Park. In great weather we sat outside the Swiss chalet style restaurant, really taking our leisure for the first time, not being able to believe how quickly we were covering the miles.

From here still with a slight following wind and nice temperatures we continued the short way through Fort Augustus to Invermoriston, where we again could afford some time to ‘sight see’ the Old Invermoriston Bridge built by Thomas Telford between 1800 and 1820. Real watercolour scenery!

Just round a few bends and we were at the Youth Hostel in Alltsigh, and for the first time too early to check in. We were able to get into the lounge, where Roy made us all play Trivial Pursuit, every else being put to shame by the easy win of Harris and Davie’s team!

Later, after our first real leisurely afternoon, we made our way down to the Glenmoriston Hotel in Invermoriston for a meal. After helping to rearrange the dining room to fit us all in, and with a few pints of Red Cuillin local real ale inside, we sat down to a well deserved meal. Several having haggis for starter or main course, with the obligatory neeps and tatties. Maths by this time of the trip and evening was becoming tougher so they gave us a calculator to sort the bill out with.

Finally we all piled back into the support vehicle, some amongst the kit in the back, and returned to a midge free dorm at the YHA. The sky was still light, and the sound of the water lapping on the shingle beach below us was very soothing. Every glimpse of Loch Ness seeming to offer the possibility of a ripple or shadow being Nessy!

Today's mileage: 60.98 miles; avg 17.6 mph (3hrs 28 mins)

Cumulative: 855 miles

e2e4e Day 11 - loch lomond to glencoe

E2e4e Day 11 Loch Lomond to Glencoe

PLEASE REVIEW THE LAST COUPLE OF DAYS ENTRIES SOON AS PHOTOS WILL GO ON THEM ASAP.

The morning after a great night. Mike Reid arranged for a catered meal for us all in a private room at the YHA, and it was sheer bliss to have had such a treat.

This morning, Ed Naylor joined us for the first leg of his 3 days, looking very much the part in his Pakistan Cricket team shirt. It was also Andrew Webster’s first day. He is riding all the way with us to JOG. The morning began with the usual briefing, and today it was straightforward, given that all we needed to do was to follow the A82 up to Glencoe, 65 miles north.

We had a few mechanical probs to sort out. Harris’ front brake had lost a key component which needed replacing, and somehow, two bikes were locked together and no key could be found to undo the lock. But, hey we’re all in a mellow state after our recent massage, acupuncture, and last night’s meal. No need to panic, just put the two entangled bikes in the van, and Harris’ brake parts, and send it off to a bike shop to get fixed, with the riders joining us later en route when ready.

The day began with mist, and some rain over Loch Lomond, and the A82 is a narrow road which gets a lot of tourist buses, lorries etc. Fortunately, on the western side, there is a well marked hard shoulder which doubles as a cycle lane, and we covered the first 15 miles pretty well, except that the road surface, especially round the Loch itself, was really bumpy.

We had a short pit stop at Tarbet, where there was a visitor info centre, at the north end of the Loch, and then made our way through another 15 miles to Crianlarach where there is a famous little tea room on the railway station platform. This made a great stop and we met two super local people,one of whom was Neal Cook of Scotrail, and they told us to watch out for the stags as we approached Glencoe, and also to watch for the midges. Apparently, one stag had managed to stop a train, as it put it’s antlers through the compressor at the front of the train, thus disabling it !

They also told us that Jimmy Saville owned a house near Glencoe, and that, if he was at home, a flag flew ! Same policy as Buckingham Palace, I guess.

Next stop was a refuel with the van at Bridge of Orchy, and this is where Mike decided to take a dip in the river. Then began the long climb up to Rannoch Moor, which was gradual, and absolutely breathtaking as we could look down on the rail line, and begin to get a feel of the enveloping hills, which loomed ever larger and more imposing.

In the distance, coming the other way, from Fort William, we spotted a familiar figure. It was our e2e4e rider, Dennis Clarke, who was due to join us for the rest of the trip.

A quick refuel with the van in the middle of the moor,where our driver, David, got stung , and it was then down to Glencoe itself. Our CTC notes explained that we would probably have to pedal, even though we were going downhill. This turned out to be the case as the headwind was strong. What is it about desolate places that calms the spirit? It was very awe inspiring in the midst of three huge peaks, and I began to try and imagine what it must have been like to have been in the middle of the Battle of Culloden.

We arrived at our youth hostel in good time and we have a room for 6 blokes, one for 3, and one for Sara and Jayne Aplin to share. Right on cue, as David the driver arrived with the van, Jayne phoned to say she had been dropped off at the crossroads and was ready to be picked up , so David went to get her straightaway, spraying his armpits with ‘ Avon Skin So Soft’ which not only repelled midges, but gave an extra aroma of ‘metropolitan sophistication’ , he claimed.

We heard that Mike, David the driver, and Harris, had decided to book in to a local Inn, the Clachaig, and arrangements were to all have dinner there.

A really good day, with all doing well. Ed was a star and his training paid off handsomely. It was great having Andrew, who helped the faster riders keep a good pace by leading the group with fresh legs.

Today’s mileage: 66.68 miles; avg: 15.6 mph. [ 4 hrs 15 mins ]

Cumulative is 794 miles.

e2e4e Day 10 - wanlockhead to loch lomond

e2e4e Day 10 – wanlockhead to loch lomond

Well that last stop was definitely the ‘high point’ of the trip so far – Scotland’s highest village, acupuncture and massage, and a fantastic meal. After a treatment enhanced sleep, and a great breakfast, we said goodbye to Blaine, after his 3 days on the ride, having been great company. We also said goodbye to the landlady, yet another friend made en route – this seems to be a constant feature of our trip. Her and her husband are moving to run a guest house in Normandy – we left our address so that we can look forward to a Scottish breakfast while on a St Lo cycle trip sometime.

Following the Captain Mainwaring briefing at 9am where Roy tried to describe the route from Loch Lomond to Glencoe, just a day early (‘wondered who’d spot one, good show Pike!’), we set off down from Leadhills near Wanlockhead, and soon the sun was out and we were crossing from one valley to another high in Scottish moorland. After the splendidly named Crawfordjohn we found a quiet B-road alongside the Motorway to Glasgow.

We met the support van at Happendon services, Davie Jones proving another great driver/soigneur (technical cycling parlance!) – with his own laid back style. The next stop he suggested for us shortly before Hamilton and the urban jungle that awaited us, was a café/garden centre at Chatelherault Country Estate. This set us up with a good lunch before the push through Glasgow.

A 20 mile stretch of gritty route and map reading took us through Cambuslang, Rutherglen and then into Glasgow City Centre proper. Over the Clyde on the Victoria Bridge and there was the Loch Lomond cycle way – all the way to our days destination (not!). A great stretch of the cycle way took us past the new Scottish Exhibition Centre and onto Govan. Here the diversions started, and the shipyard disgorged its workers just as we were trying to refind the route. A quick pub stop in Old Kilpatrick and we were soon back on superb tracks beside canals and waterways, slowly leaving the city behind.

After a massive weir and a few more twists and turns we found ourselves in Balloch at the head of Loch Lomond. It was a short push on to the Youth Hostel, Auchendennan House, which was more of a castle/country house. The place was huge and baronial, and only slightly blighted by 300 US kids running a-muck (what’s US-speak for ASBO?)!

Here we were greeted by Mike Reid’s mum, Jean and her friend Wilma. Between them they had organised for caterers to provide us with a meal in a function rook of the hostel overlooking the loch. This was a great reception for us, and an opportunity to welcome Ed Naylor to the ride, accompanied by his wife who will shadow us for the next 3 stages. Andrew Webster, due to join us at 6:30pm for tomorrow, didn't arrive until 10:30 courtesy of BA delays dept., but luckily the caterers had put something aside for him.

Today’s mileage: 68.72 miles; avg: 14 mph (4hrs 54 mins)
Cumulative: 728 miles.

e2e4e Day 9 - carlisle to wanlockhead

E2e4e Day 9 Carlisle to Wanlockhead.

A truly brilliant day from start to finish, folks. In Carlisle we said a very fond farewell to John Legate and wished him well on his journey back home. John has done a fantastic job for us and will also decommission the van when it finally comes back south after e2e4e. We’re also looking forward to some great photos given John’s skills as a professional photographer.

We welcomed the team from Scotland at 8am, Mike Reid and Harris Stockbridge, who will both be riding with us all the way to J O’Groats, and David Jones, who is our next driver. John and David had a good chat as John showed him the ropes.

Today, Jeff Jerome is on a rest day.

We set off north from Carlisle, also with Eric Chasseray, who joined us last night. Although the temperature at Wimbledon was 30 degrees, ours was much cooler, with a threat of rain, and welcome for it.

We had been anticipating another tough day, with a big climb to Wanlockhead, Scotland’s highest village, but we started with a lovely, long flat run for over 30 miles,going past the magic ‘Welcome to Scotland’ sign, and passing Gretna, and Annan . Mike spoke to me about the amazing transformation which has taken place in Gretna as a result of the football team being taken over and getting to the Scottish cup final.Most importantly, the amount of engagement with children and young people in the town really seems to be paying off and crime has fallen.

We had our lunch stop at Dumfries in a very good tea rooms with friendly service. It was good to see our new riders settling in quickly, and enjoying the pace. David got right into the hang of being our driver, and was rapidly supplying us with bananas and other fruit. At our van stops the sounds of Bob Marley and Johnny Cash began to be heard. Between Harris, Mike and David we now have some excellent local knowledge at our disposal too.

We set off for Wanlockhead via Thornhill and the estate of the Duke of Buccleuch, with it’s impressive castle.

Here’s a question, ‘What creature can you find half a million of in one square metre ?’ The answer is not ‘ Scottish M.P.’s at Westminster’, but the dreaded Scottish midges.

We sprayed ourselves with the famous ‘ Avon Skin So Soft’ which Mike had obtained. This was to be our midge repellent, and has a great reputation, even with the military, I understand. David Ward called it ‘ Avon Crawling’ !

I’ve never smelled such a sweet smelling group of cyclists before. We kept looking for the midges to left and right and wondered when the first wave would attack. We were told the evening would bring them out.

Then came the final 7 mile climb up to Wanlockhead, and our stop for the night at ‘ Mona B and B’ in nearby Leadhills. This was a great climb , right in the midst of some very impressive hills, and it was a struggle for most of us but manageable.

We had a warm welcome from Helen, our host for the night, and our big treat, acupuncture and massage, were waiting. I’ve never seen so much enthusiasm as each rider went the whole hog and had all the treatments going. The two therapists, Lynda Sharp and Blair Templeton, were first class.

Blair not only gave excellent massage to legs and other parts, but he was so skilled that he could spot strengths and weaknesses, and work hard on the parts of our bodies most needing treatment.

Lynda, as well as her massage skills, gave us acupuncture and ‘ cupping’ which involved putting heated glass cups on the skin, which drew the blood up from deep inside and diffused it.

As I write this, we are all still full of wellbeing from these treatments.

Lynda has a website, http://www.solwayholistics.com/; and Blair can be reached at his e mail address, blairtempleton@hotmail.com.

Our thanks to Lynda and Blair for their exceptional gift of these treatments to our charitable cause. Lynda also has skills as an equine muscle release therapist, which must be unusual.

Our mileage today turned out not to be the alleged 62 miles, but was over 70.

Today’s mileage 71.70; avg 14.0mph (5hrs 5mins)
Cumulative: 659 miles

e2e4e Day 8 - slaidburn to carlisle

e2e4e Day 8 – slaidburn to carlisle

A day when the tarmac popped like bubble-wrap as we rolled over it – it was that hot! Also my route-finding seemed to be back on track after a slip blip yesterday, except for a quick tour of the village of Ingleton! After a well organised breakfast and briefing, then planning the rendezvous points with John Legate, we set off, up!



Having climbed Bradford Fell and then descending to Slaidburn in the Trough of Bowland the night before we had to climb back out. This time over Great Harlow, a massive climb through beautiful moorland and a chance for a photo opportunity at the top – here we have Blaine making it look easy.

Featured rider, Blaine Cole - compare this to the profile photo on the e2e4e website for Blaine!

Shortly after this we entered High Bentham and made good use of the cash point for those of us running a bit low of funds. A few miles up the road we were swamped by a motor-bike rally, and the peaceful roads to Sedburgh were occasionally rumbling with groups of our leather clad kin.

A lovely ride alongside the Langdales brought us to our lunch stop at the Cross Keys in Tebay. It might seem like the ride is all cafés and hills, but the feared climb out of Tebay to Orton never really tested us after our good lunch.

This brought us to the ‘downhill’ part of the day, where following the Lyvennet and Eden rivers should have guaranteed us a virtually hill free run in to Carlisle. Somehow the road contrived to leave the river valley several times to remind us not to get complacent. One of these meanderings however, did bring us to a important ‘mile stone’ – the probable HALFWAY mark on the e2e4e. I say probable as the promised mileages of each day’s stage have been exceeded by a good bit on several occasions (must have a word with the Cyclist Touring Club when I get back!). This point was the village of Culgaith, almost level with Penrith (the commonly recognised mid-way point).

Getting over the disappointment of arriving at the halfway village and finding a tea rooms had just closed, we followed the river Eden for a bit longer and then got ourselves onto the A6 to fly down into Carlisle.

Another long day, but most of us finished in better shape than yesterday.Jeff went off to meet a friend and take a well earned rest day. While the rest of us made our way to Stanwix Tandoori and had a blow out curry to see our driver John Legate on his way. After 4 days dringing the support vehicle and attending our every need john is handing on the role to David Jones – and like John Azah before him has left a high standard for the next to follow. We also picked up our next new rider, Eric Chaseray, who will be a useful addition as he lived near Glasgow and might be able to pilot us through 'Old Reeky' better than the route-sheet and our hazy knowledge of the area!

Today’s mileage: 85.52 miles; avg:13.2 mph
Cumulative: 587 miles

e2e4e Day 7 - chester - slaidburn

Photos now added!

The Magical Mystery Tour moves on ! Our night in Chester was eventful at the backpacker’s hostel, with lively activity going on outside in the street for much of the night. We awoke to find our van with blood smeared on it. But, what a sunny morning, with our longest day’s riding in prospect, an early morning heat haze, a Brit playing at wimbledon, the start of the Tour de France, and England in the World cup !

Our featured rider of the day - David Ward, here on the climb our of Slaidburn, in fact on day 8 - turning out to be great company and dropping into the role of our 'rear gunner' and bike mechanic.

We had a pit stop at a great bike shop in Chester, ‘ The Bike Factory’, and then began the trip to Slaidburn, an alleged 80 miles away. This was the day on which we had to circumnavigate Manchester and it’s environs, and so, was set to be a day of complicated map reading and careful planning re rendezvousing with the van, esp as the heat was mounting by the hour.

We made some really good early progress, although we could not get away until 10.30 or so due to our bike repairs. Jeff Jerome, on his way to our start point from his digs, managed to rip a tyre and burst a tube in a pothole, we had some minor repairs to Sara’s bike, and Anthony needed work on his disc brakes.

The Cheshire cycleway, which took us into Delamere Forest, was a dream on a day such as this, and hundreds of England flags were on display on passing cars.

As we got nearer to the outskirts of Manchester the heat was really building up and the intrusion of an urban landscape came as something of a shock.
We stopped for lunch at a canal side pub in Leigh, which was pretty good, and a relative oasis among the urban scrawl.

After lunch it was off to Chorley, and then once more into calmer lanes until, eventually, we made our way towards Preston and Blackburn, getting sight of the Reebok Stadium at one point.

Throughout the long day, Herbie had once more been a stalwart, taking long turns on the front and map reading splendidly. As we reached Hoghton, the route instructions let us down a bit and we ended up, fortunately, at a bike shop with an incredibly helpful owner, who printed out precise route instructions for us to get to Slaidburn, 25 MILES AWAY ! As we were all more or less tired out by this point [ nearly 70 miles in baking heat] this was something of a shock , as we’d put our money on the trip being 80 miles.

The sat nav route sheet took us along the A59 and it was really quiet, as the England-Portugal game was nearing the end of normal time. We had a great ride into Clitheroe and met up with John in the van. Clitheroe is only some 10 miles from Slaidburn, and so we thought we would be home in good time for the ‘meal curfew’ at the pub near our Youth Hostel for the night.

Unfortunately, as we were in Clitheroe, a noise erupted as England lost a penalty shoot out and were dumped out of the world cup. The world then went temporarily mad as cars whizzed about, all with angry drivers with little heed for anyone. It didn’t last but was unsettling. As we rode through the town, the local groups of people who had spilled out on the pavements, suddenly started shouting, ‘ here’s the bloody yellow jersey from the tour de france, come on you bugger !’. At this point, I sort of wished I had not chosen today to wear a yellow jersey ! Still it was all fun.

We then made our way to Slaidburn, and gradually began to realise that we were ascending, at first gently, and then, increasingly steeply. Turned out that we had to go over a huge Fell, taking us right up into the hills. This was a real challenge as our meal deadline [ ‘ if you are not in your seat by 8.45, you don’t get fed !] was rapidly approaching.

Somehow, despite there being several climbs, we all made it , although most riders did not even have time to shower first.

The service in the pub was pretty unique, with the world’s most miserable barman being teamed with the world’s rudest waitress, who barged her way through customers using her shoulders, ignored requests to take food orders and was generally a female Basil FAwlty in terms of charm. However, when the pressure was off, later, she was much nicer, but by that time we were all terrified and even had to offer Jeff £5 to be brave enough to ask her for some mustard !

Sara was doing a great job fund raising with locals and got £70. She has tremendous powers in getting people to donate. And even got an actress from coronation street to donate

Later, the second curfew came over the horizon, we had to get back to the hostel by 11pm or the door was locked. As David Ward said, ‘ we were between a rock and a hard place !’

A word about our new recruit today, Blaine Cole. Blaine, who is with us for 3 days, had a real test today, with such a difficult [ over 90 mile ride ]day as his first day. He did really well and is our third vegetarian in a group of 7 at present. In fact, everyone did well today . Unsurprsingly, the barman informed us that our next day would be diificult and that the only way out of Slaidburn was ‘ UP’, and so to bed……….

e2e4e Day 6 - clun to chester

After a good nights sleep in the Clun YHA, we formed two lines to send Martin Ingram on his way - this mad fool is attempting to reach John O'Groats before us, by doing over a 100 miles a day, in order to make a social commitment at the same time as our last 2 days.

We then retrieved our washing - one of the obsessions of a trip like this is to get this done wherever the opportunity presents itself. With Jeff and Bruce now in toe, we set off into the Shropshire countryside, alongside the Long Mynd. After this the hills were behind us for the moment, and the ride took us back and forth across the Welsh-English border.

Nick Edwards then left the group to catch a train home after his 2 days on the event, and then at Ellesmere Bruce McDonald and Graham Everson similarly left the ride, after we'd all had lunch.

We really were now in easier country, with rolling hills and ornate black and white timbered buildings, and a second day of warm sun. John Legate taking the opportunity to get some professional photos of the team with Mark Roy as we bowled along the Dee Valley into Chester, meeting Blaine Cole who's joining for the ride for the next 3 days.

As we arrived the city of chester looked great on a sweeping bend of the river, and we quartered ourselves at the Backpackers Hostel. Having stabled our bikes in the kitchen, on the fire escape and in the back yard, we then met Herbie's old friends Pete and Julie who had a table booked for us all at the Old Harkers Arms just around the corner on the canal.

Then back to the hostel and the Blog, plus the stats:-

Today's mileage: 68.71; avg: 13.0 (5hrs 16mins)

Cumulative: 411 miles

e2e4e Day 5 - welsh bicknor to clun

John Legate at our Leominster lunch stop.

Mark Roy joining us at Ross-on-Wye

e2e4e Day 5 - welsh bicknor to clun

Hi everyone,
Our day began today with some goodbye's and some welcomes.We all said goodbye to John Azah and wished him well on his journey home,and thanked him for his great contribution to the success of e2e4e so far.

Avid readers of our blog will recall that our new driver, John Legate, joined us last night and he has been a great organiser for us and taken on the challenge of being our driver.

Our two e2e4e riders, Graham and Nick, joined us at Ragman's Farm as planned and it meant we got off to a prompt start, and, unusually for us, it was a downhill start.Next, we had to rendezvous with our third new rider, Mark Roy, at Ross on Wye, and this also worked out well as Mark was waiting for us by the market place.This was a very busy market town, with traffic whizzing by, but we still found people who stopped us [ actually, we usually stop them !]to ask about e2e4e. It's really heartening how people are taking to the purpose of our ride and are genuinely interested.

Today was scheduled to be an easier day, of some 50 miles, but it turned out nearer 60 overall. There was the most fantastic part of the ride which went down the Wye Valley, with a beautiful morning, a very warm day in prospect, and the river as calm as a mill pond. Some of the riverside cottages were stunning.

Generally, we're finding that the quiet country lanes have a sting in the tail with steep gradients at some point and this proved no exception as had some pretty steep climbs for a time.We met a couple at a beauty spot whose son is currently cycling across Bhutan ! It's amazing how often we meet people who have ridden the e2e at some stage.A man at a cafe this pm had done it twice.He also gave us a generous donation,encouraged by Sara , who is very effective at this!

The day grew hotter and we lunched at Leominster. This was where I finally thought I would put some sun cream on, only to discover that I had packed insect repellent instead.This was odd, because, just after I swapped the repellent for suncream, I got stung !

We made good progress during the afternoon and reached our destination, Clun, in good time.Clun YHA is really good and has a brilliant view and good facilities.

Our rooms are a 7 bedder and a 4 bedder.We went into the Sun pub in Clun for an evening meal and were joined by 2 e2e4e riders who start with us tomorrow, Bruce and Jeff.Bruce is riding with us to Chester tomorrow and Jeff is hoping to reach JOG, but will see how he gets on.

First rule of e2e4e is that all those who have to leave us keep in touch, and so we heard from Simon and from John Azah tonight, both of whom really enjoyed their time with us.

As we're heading for Chester tomorrow , it feels as if we're beginning to go north.

Today has been a good day [ although I did take a wrong turn and get lost temporarily]and i'm really looking forward to tomorrow's stage.

roy

Caption Competition!!!

.....and now Roy has gone to bed and isn't looking over my shoulder - here is a photo for you to add a caption to - use the Guestbook to send in your suggestions. The winner gets Roy's e2e4e T-shirt that he's been wearing all week!

e2e4e Day 4 - Wednesday

Martin Ingram called today 'Herbie's Adventures of Tintern' - and somehow that stuck. Finally an almost entirely dry day, with a fair amount of sunshine.

It started with us saying goodbye to Sara's aunt Rene and close friend Lena at the Street YHA. Rene and Lena have great experience as two exceptional midwifery trainers and provided us with up to date info re the work which a midwife, trained by them, is doing in the earthquake region.

In all we took in Glastonbury and the Tor, Wells Cathedral, Chew Valley Lake with 11'ses stop, the Clifton suspension bridge, the old Severn Bridge (Pont Hafren), Tintern Abbey for afternoon tea stop ( the only tea rooms in the country with a dance floor!), and the magnificent Wye Valley.

The first day with Martin and James now on board, and finding out just how tough life is on the road - Providence Hill near Long Ashton nearly killed us all, and climbing out of the Wye Valley to Coleford was close to alpine! - and this was supposed to be the first of the flatter days!!

It was a great relief to see John Legate, our next driver, as we approached our bunkhouse at Ragman's Organic Farm at Ruardean, and in the evening we set off for our meal at the Royal Spring Inn. This gave us a chance to say goodbye to John Azah, who has been such a great driver and support for us.He was simply, fantastic.

At the pub, we were joined by Martin, 'flagboy' Ingram's friends, Paul, Ros, and their son, Joe, who has just finished his 'A' levels.

Roy is very grateful to his P.A., June's, daughter, Georgie, who texted him from Centre Court with the latest scores from Wimbledon !

Tomorrow we should welcome three more riders.........more to follow!

Today's mileage: 78.53 miles; Avg speed: 13.6 (5hrs 46 mins)
Cumulative: 284 miles