In January of 2012, I decided I was going to attempt the C2C Cycle Challenge.
Initially I was going to do it myself and as a personal challenge but decided to do it for a charity - and soon after decided to invite a friend along. In the end there were 3 of us - myself (Billy Riley), Andy McIntyre and Davey Blackmore. There was meant to be a fourth member (Grant Boardman) but he had asthma and was advised not to make the journey.
This blog will hopefully give an insight into what to expect along with (hopefully) some useful information. It will not be incredibly detailed as I have a short term memory issue - but I'll try and recall as many events and information on the trip as I can.
I'll be updating this shortly. We did it in 3 days so there will be 3 parts. We did the trip from Whitehaven to Tynemouth. It's generally regarded that the wind will be in your favour (West to East).
Some general info before I crack on writing about the days individually.
Type of Bike
First, I did it on a road bike. I have a Cube Peleton Cmpt. I bought this bike from a local sports shop in Colchester called 53-12. They are advertised as Triathlon as they sell running gear, swimming gear and cycling gear. They are a very helpful and friendly bunch and if you need some kit for your sport - I'm sure they'd help.
You can find 53-12 website here http://www.53-12.com/
It's a great road bike. Before I bought this bike, I was in two minds on whether to get a road bike or a hybrid. However, in the end it was an easy decision - ALL my daily riding (and I mean 100%) is done on the road. So a road bike it was.
Now, I had concerns about the trip with this bike and looked around the internet. I found one blog on the C2C site here http://www.c2c-guide.co.uk/road-v-hybrid/ which basically said - yeah, road bikes can do it. Both the friends who came with me had hard tail mountain bikes. I have to say, there was only one extremely uncomfortable section, and that was the route out of Keswick. Most of the rest of the journey was absolutely fine and indeed very comfortable...and you can get some fantastic speed on the downhill sections on tarmac. Coming off Hartside, I was doing over 40mph.
Also, I purchased some self sealing inner tubes and some Schwalbe Marathon Plus tyres. Although they were 25-622 (28x1 700x25c), they only just fitted my bike with very little clearance with the frame. So before getting them, check to see if they'll fit with your local store. I didn't get a puncture so cannot rate the inner tubes. I guess on a road bike and not getting a puncture may tell a positive story about the tyres. I passed by many many people repairing punctures.
Also regarding road bikes - obviously I have no idea on what route all the different people we saw took, but there were plenty of people on road bikes. I'd have to say 50/50 in the people we passed.
Special Equipment I Used
Required or otherwise, this is the equipment I took
C2C Cycle Route Map. A very valuable piece of kit for first timers at least. Not quite as accurate as perhaps it should be (for example the Whinlatter Pass shows the start of the climb and the end of the climb as being less than a mile when in fact Whinlatter climb (according to The Ultimate C2C Guide book) is 3.7 miles. The map shows the very steep part as less than a mile though - and perhaps that's the case - though we found it all very draining! The whole climb (which I would rate as steep and very steep) is apparently 3.7 miles.
The Ultimate C2C Guide. A great little book detailing the route and with fairly detailed maps and info. Also lots of information about places to stay, attractions, bike shops/facilities. This book is split into 5 days which makes the trip easily manageable.
The C2C Android App. This was a fantastic app - and whilst my pals laughed at how often I looked down at it and called them back, they can't deny it saved us a VERY costly mistake out of Braithwaite where we were heading towards Cockermouth (watch it at Braithwaite - there's NO SIGN telling you to turn right down a small road before the pub!) as opposed to Keswick and then later on stopped us heading to Appleby instead of Langwathby. I had read some of the reviews of the app where people suggested it crashed often. Basically I download and cached the locations on our route before going and it never crashed once on me.
I would say it could've been somewhat less confusing at times - you'll get to junctions on it and it's not entirely apparent which way you are menat to go. This is mainly because the app is showing the whole of the National Cycle Network on a map - so there are places where another route will connect with yours.
The app could do with being refined - more info on upcoming hills, the ability to download and cache ONLY the route you want (C2C should ONLY show me the C2C routes). But the app is free and like I said, it saved our arses a few times. Caching the route is a slight pain for two reasons...if you want to go to detail level 6 (very detailed street view) then you can only do relatively small sections at a time...and also they take quite some time to download.
To download and cache the route zoom in and then select the option to cache visible area...this will only be enabled if you have zoomed in enough (made a shorter visible area). If the area you are viewing is too large, you either have to change the detail level of the map (from 6 to 5 say) or zoom in a bit more until you have a manageable area. Like I said, the app is a little awkward, but still very useful.
Get it - but make sure you cache the route before you go!
Portable Battery. I bought this to charge my phone as I travelled - so I could use the C2C navigation app mentioned above and google maps occasionally. It was great. I basically plugged my phone into this and it kept my phone charged all day. When it had ran out, my phone still had a considerable amount of charge left to get me to the end.
Tigra Bike Console. I got mine from CycleWiz and it was fantastic. Because I planned on using my mapping software, I needed something that would allow me to touch the screen but keep it waterproof. I have to say, my Galaxy SII was as sensitive to touch as it was outside this unit - and it was VERY waterproof. Our second day it did nothing but rain and there was no water inside the unit! Beware though - you will likely need to use fingerless gloves.
Well worth the money if you plan to use your phone on the move.
General Equipment
Apart from the special stuff I purchased, the obvious things to take are a puncture repair kit, the correct allen keys/spanner mix for your bike, a pump and a water bottle. I took two water bottles as we were doing 50 miles a day.
One last thing - before you do the ride - don't forget as we did that if you are booked into a hotel in Newcastle that you will have to cycle the last 9 miles back into Newcastle. When we realised this, we were rather deflated...we just needed a shower and a beer!
I think that's all on the general information front.
I'd just like to add a massive thank you to everyone who had donated to St Helena's Hospice on my Just Giving page.
On top of that, I'd like to thank my partners in crime on the journey - Andy McIntyre and Davey Blackmore. They kept spirits up (especially a very difficult second day) and made the journey a journey to remember. Great trip lads.
Tuesday, September 04, 2012
C2C Day 1
**All distances are going from the map and the C2C guide - I simply cannot remember how long each climb/descent is. Times are kind of estimates too. Also when there is a descent, there may be some gentle climbing involved, but generally nothing worth mentioning (especially compared to the actual proper climbs you will come across!)
Day 1 started at 06:00 for me. Truth be told, I had very little sleep the previous night - worrying about things I had no control over or things that obviously hadn't happened. I had around 3 hours sleep. Davey and Andy had travelled down by the train the previous night to Carlisle and stayed overnight. So they had quite an early start too from Carlisle to Whitehaven by train.
Everything had been done. Everything was packed. So we headed to Whitehaven, leaving (to both my daughters disgust) at 07:20.
The journey took about 1 hour 40 minutes, getting us to the harbour at Whitehaven for just gone 09:00. It was trying to rain. I got my bike off the car, put my saddle bag on the saddle stem and put my cycle shoes on and was ready. I just waited for the call from Davey and Andy.
At about 09:20 I got the call - they were here. Just round the corner as it happens, so I got on my bike and headed round to the official C2C start point. Davey and Andy were taking shelter from the drizzle under a fixed canopy structure.
We got ourselves together, had some photos taken, put our back wheel in the water (as is tradition) and headed off. It was 09:45.
The route is pretty well sign posted. Some are proper "stick out" signs, others are stick on "wrap around" signs. You can miss the occasional sign if your head is down and you are going too fast.
The route out of Whitehaven is a mix of road, tarmac surface and decent off road track. The first 9 miles out of Whitehaven through Cleator Moor and Rowrah is a long steady climb. Nothing too taxing but it warmed us up. We stopped a couple of times for photos. The first time we stopped seemed to catch Andy off guard...and he didn't get his foot off the pedal and promptly decided to lie down with the bike on top of him. No damage done. A small graze on his calf. Little did we know this was a sign of things to come for Andy!
One thing I would say was we stopped when we felt like it - and therefore missed some nice photo opportunities. There are some great landscape photos and some nice structures which would've been nice to get a photo of but because we had stopped we didn't want to stop anymore...we just didn't know how long it was going to take to do the first day. So - choose your photo opportunities well.
It was road surface out of Rowrah and a fairly steep mile long climb to Kirkland followed by a welcome mile long descent into Lamplugh. From there it's a short climb out of Lamplugh and a nice long 5 mile descent to Loweswater and on to High Lorton. Of course, these downhill sections generally mean there's a climb coming up...and so there was.
It's at High Lorton we hit the climb to Whinlatter Pass. Now - looking at the Sea 2 Sea Cycle Route Map, I could be forgiven for telling Andy and Davey (when we reached a small plateau) that we had just climbed the worst of it. However, we got back on our bikes, turned the corner and the sight in front of us almost made us cry. It was as steep (if not steeper) than the section we had just completed, but seemed to go on and on and on. According to the C2C Guide Book, it's around 3.7 miles long. And it was. We were struggling to keep going. None of us spoke because our lungs were pumping just keeping moving.
The climb levels out and there's a right turn into a forest track. However, that way looked steeper than the road alternative so we stayed on the road. Also being on a road bike I was keen to stay on the road.
A little further on there was a very beautiful, welcoming pub - The Royal Oak. The sun was out, the sky was blue and we had worked hard...so we stopped for lunch. I guess the time must've been midday. 26 miles done! 20 to go.
We had a big lunch and a beer. That was our first mistake. We should've eaten small amounts and often...and definitely stayed off the beer. We just felt really heavy after that. Our next mistake was to listen to someone as opposed to sticking to my map! Some old codger told Davey the way out. So we headed off...and a couple of miles in we passed a sign with 3 markers on it. One showing Whitehaven, one showing Keswick and one showing Cockermouth...and we were heading to Cockermouth...BACK to the start of the C2C at Workington!
I called Andy and Davey back and explained the error...and we headed back. About a mile before the pub, I realised I didn't have my glasses (I got a fly in my eye!)...and Andy said he saw them fall but thought I had seen them and picked them up! So the lads offered to stay put and guard the junction whilst I cycled back a mile or so to pick up my glasses. I thought that was nice of them! Picked my glasses up, went back to them, back to the pub and off on the right road.
Now - at the pub at Braithwaite, BE CAREFUL. There is no sign saying to turn right down a small road (or we didn't see it!). But the turning is on the right just before the pub at Braithwaite.
We carried on and went through a small village were we saw the old codger that had given the directions. Davey thanked him in a strange kind of way and we move on.
We rode into Keswick at a nice steady pace. It was a very gentle climb into Keswick. Out of Keswick was a different matter. It was a rough "forest" track...not at all comfortable on my road bike. To be fair, Andy and Davey on their hard tail mountain bikes also said it was uncomfortable. That was about 3 miles long - to Threlkeld.
From there we passed under the watchful eye of the great hulk of rock that is Blencathra (aka Saddleback)...a mountain I had climbed twice with my daughters. Luckily we weren't going over it - we were going round it's base. You are off the main A66 road here...and even when you are on it, you are actually on a cycle/foot shared path beside it. You aren't ever actually on the A66. I passed Blencathra wondering if I would ever tackle Sharp Edge...
It was getting quite dim now. The light was definitely diminishing. We had about 10 miles to go to our first stop...Greystoke...just west of Penrith. We were feeling tired now - and saddle sore!
The route was downhill from Troutbeck and a slight incline into Greystoke. The trip from Threlkeld was pretty uneventful...we arrived at Greystoke at Beech House B&B around 17:30.
We had a shower and went off to the Boot and Shoe Inn for a beer and a meal. We were not the only cyclists staying/passing through Greystoke. The pub was rather busy.
We hit the sack about 10pm. It was a long, gruelling first day - but we knew there was worse to come. Day 2 was considerably harder...the first day was literally a warmup.
Day 2 will follow.
Day 1 started at 06:00 for me. Truth be told, I had very little sleep the previous night - worrying about things I had no control over or things that obviously hadn't happened. I had around 3 hours sleep. Davey and Andy had travelled down by the train the previous night to Carlisle and stayed overnight. So they had quite an early start too from Carlisle to Whitehaven by train.
Everything had been done. Everything was packed. So we headed to Whitehaven, leaving (to both my daughters disgust) at 07:20.
The journey took about 1 hour 40 minutes, getting us to the harbour at Whitehaven for just gone 09:00. It was trying to rain. I got my bike off the car, put my saddle bag on the saddle stem and put my cycle shoes on and was ready. I just waited for the call from Davey and Andy.
At about 09:20 I got the call - they were here. Just round the corner as it happens, so I got on my bike and headed round to the official C2C start point. Davey and Andy were taking shelter from the drizzle under a fixed canopy structure.
We got ourselves together, had some photos taken, put our back wheel in the water (as is tradition) and headed off. It was 09:45.
Myself, Andy and Davey
Megan, me, Sharon (trying to hide) and Cathryn at the start
The route out of Whitehaven is a mix of road, tarmac surface and decent off road track. The first 9 miles out of Whitehaven through Cleator Moor and Rowrah is a long steady climb. Nothing too taxing but it warmed us up. We stopped a couple of times for photos. The first time we stopped seemed to catch Andy off guard...and he didn't get his foot off the pedal and promptly decided to lie down with the bike on top of him. No damage done. A small graze on his calf. Little did we know this was a sign of things to come for Andy!
One thing I would say was we stopped when we felt like it - and therefore missed some nice photo opportunities. There are some great landscape photos and some nice structures which would've been nice to get a photo of but because we had stopped we didn't want to stop anymore...we just didn't know how long it was going to take to do the first day. So - choose your photo opportunities well.
Andy and myself having a break...with the Lakes looming in the background
Davey looking all pumped for the ride
It was road surface out of Rowrah and a fairly steep mile long climb to Kirkland followed by a welcome mile long descent into Lamplugh. From there it's a short climb out of Lamplugh and a nice long 5 mile descent to Loweswater and on to High Lorton. Of course, these downhill sections generally mean there's a climb coming up...and so there was.
I own all this!
It's at High Lorton we hit the climb to Whinlatter Pass. Now - looking at the Sea 2 Sea Cycle Route Map, I could be forgiven for telling Andy and Davey (when we reached a small plateau) that we had just climbed the worst of it. However, we got back on our bikes, turned the corner and the sight in front of us almost made us cry. It was as steep (if not steeper) than the section we had just completed, but seemed to go on and on and on. According to the C2C Guide Book, it's around 3.7 miles long. And it was. We were struggling to keep going. None of us spoke because our lungs were pumping just keeping moving.
The climb levels out and there's a right turn into a forest track. However, that way looked steeper than the road alternative so we stayed on the road. Also being on a road bike I was keen to stay on the road.
A little further on there was a very beautiful, welcoming pub - The Royal Oak. The sun was out, the sky was blue and we had worked hard...so we stopped for lunch. I guess the time must've been midday. 26 miles done! 20 to go.
We had a big lunch and a beer. That was our first mistake. We should've eaten small amounts and often...and definitely stayed off the beer. We just felt really heavy after that. Our next mistake was to listen to someone as opposed to sticking to my map! Some old codger told Davey the way out. So we headed off...and a couple of miles in we passed a sign with 3 markers on it. One showing Whitehaven, one showing Keswick and one showing Cockermouth...and we were heading to Cockermouth...BACK to the start of the C2C at Workington!
I called Andy and Davey back and explained the error...and we headed back. About a mile before the pub, I realised I didn't have my glasses (I got a fly in my eye!)...and Andy said he saw them fall but thought I had seen them and picked them up! So the lads offered to stay put and guard the junction whilst I cycled back a mile or so to pick up my glasses. I thought that was nice of them! Picked my glasses up, went back to them, back to the pub and off on the right road.
Now - at the pub at Braithwaite, BE CAREFUL. There is no sign saying to turn right down a small road (or we didn't see it!). But the turning is on the right just before the pub at Braithwaite.
We carried on and went through a small village were we saw the old codger that had given the directions. Davey thanked him in a strange kind of way and we move on.
We rode into Keswick at a nice steady pace. It was a very gentle climb into Keswick. Out of Keswick was a different matter. It was a rough "forest" track...not at all comfortable on my road bike. To be fair, Andy and Davey on their hard tail mountain bikes also said it was uncomfortable. That was about 3 miles long - to Threlkeld.
Andy and Davey on the route from Keswick to Threlkeld
Davey - because I'm worth it!
From there we passed under the watchful eye of the great hulk of rock that is Blencathra (aka Saddleback)...a mountain I had climbed twice with my daughters. Luckily we weren't going over it - we were going round it's base. You are off the main A66 road here...and even when you are on it, you are actually on a cycle/foot shared path beside it. You aren't ever actually on the A66. I passed Blencathra wondering if I would ever tackle Sharp Edge...
It was getting quite dim now. The light was definitely diminishing. We had about 10 miles to go to our first stop...Greystoke...just west of Penrith. We were feeling tired now - and saddle sore!
The route was downhill from Troutbeck and a slight incline into Greystoke. The trip from Threlkeld was pretty uneventful...we arrived at Greystoke at Beech House B&B around 17:30.
We had a shower and went off to the Boot and Shoe Inn for a beer and a meal. We were not the only cyclists staying/passing through Greystoke. The pub was rather busy.
We hit the sack about 10pm. It was a long, gruelling first day - but we knew there was worse to come. Day 2 was considerably harder...the first day was literally a warmup.
Day 2 will follow.
C2C Day 2
Because we knew the second day was a tough day with lots of climbs, we decided to get up early. So we booked breakfast at the B&B for 08:00.
I woke up at 6 and packed my kit and checked the route for the day.
We met downstairs for breakfast and had a Full English. Not too much mind - just enough. I was gutted there were mushrooms on my late mind! We looked out the window and it confirmed what we already knew...it was raining.
We got our bikes out and headed off. The first part of the journey out of Greystoke was mostly downhill to Penrith with a slight climb about midway. By the time we reached Penrith, we were wet enough not to care too much about the rain now. What the rain did do was make you not really want to go into your back or take photos.
We got to Penrith and head up quite a long steep climb to Langwathby. The climb was about 100 metres over about a mile. After the climb was a considerable descent - and quite long - and it was here that Andy was to have his off. We were going downhill at considerable speed...I'd reckon 25-30mph...when we approached a sharp left hand bend. Andy misjudged it slightly and applied his brakes. However, it was wet - as was the road - and his back wheel locked...swinging out from under him and off he came. All I could do was shout "ANDY! ANDY!"...I don't know why - I'm sure he knows his name. Anyway - I was bearing down on him...now - I had slowed enough to take the bend...but I hadn't slowed enough to avoid the new obstruction now laying in my path - Andy and his bike. So I applied my brakes fiercely. My back wheel locked also...and started to slide to the right. But I kept my front wheel facing the way of the slide and prevented the wheel coming out from under me...and missed Andy and his bike by no more than a couple of feet! A lucky escape for both of us...though Andy did suffer a bit of grazing to his arse.
Coming out of Langwathby saw us with a considerable amount of climbing to do. In fact, it was pretty much a steady 10 miles of climbing interspersed with some pretty minor downhill sections...which were always followed by a climb!
The dreaded Hartside loomed. We were soaking and cold. In fact, we were so wet, when I lifted my arm up to point at a hill, the water than had collected in my jacket ran down into my armpit...and was cold!
Hartside looked fearsome in the book. A 3 miles climb of 1348ft. As it was, I didn't find it too bad in so much as whilst it was long and energy sapping, it wasn't overly steep. The short steep climbs on the route really killed me...the longer ones like Hartside, whilst long and hard, were not so hard for me. Don't get me wrong...I was puffing for air at the top...and we all made it to the top. Davey was first to arrive. All I had to do was keep the pedals turning.
At the top was a very, very welcome cafe. The Hartside Cafe. We jumped in there (and very busy it was too) and had some nice sugary food. I wanted a photo of Hartside Summit sign, but we were way too cold and wet.
After about 40 minutes we decided to head off. We were wet through and very cold now. We looked outside and couldn't believe what we saw - the mist had come right down and it was raining harder than ever. On top of that, the wind had picked up!
I actually wanted to put my long sleeve top on, but really couldn't be bothered to go into my bag on my bike (I had another bag bungee tied on top of it and it was a bit of a pain taking things in and out.
However - I wished I had within 10 minutes. Coming off Hartside was amazing for me. I was able to get my head down and speed off that summit. I had my lights on, the road was clear and good tarmac. I headed past Davey and Andy doing 40+mph and once up to speed pretty much free wheeled. Whilst it was nice to get that speed, it was also painfully cold. And the rain ws hitting my face with such force (from the wind and my speed that every drop was stinging my face - but I just wanted off that hill as fast as possible!
Coming off Hartside was amazing - and cold. But once off we had a pretty long undulating climb followed by a steep short descent into Garrigill. And after Hartside were we not pleased to come across a very, very steep 1 mile climb of 250 meters out of Garrigill? It was hellish. Andy hit the bottom of the hill in the wrong gear and could not get any purchase and had to come off and walk up. Myself and Davey continued - until I had absolutely nothing left in my thighs and my bike came to an abrupt stop. Davey managed the climb. I think it's worth mentioning here that Davey has the honour of being the only one of us who pedalled up every climb.
After the climb out of Garrigill, the rain had slowed somewhat. It was downhill from there to Nenthead and a sharp incline again to the highest point on the C2C route...Black Hill at 609m. Yet another very steep difficult climb at 150 meters over 1 mile! There was more to come!
Downhill off of Black Hill saw us with a short steep incline across Hartley Moor. We now had a very welcome long descent into Allenheads. Yet another short very steep climb out of Allenheads and into Currick - and from there...all downhill to our second days destination...Stanhope!
I've never been so happy to see a B&B! We were staying at the Bonny Moorhen in Stanhope. A very welcoming pub B&B. The landlord and landlady were very nice...even took our kit to dry it as best they could...which it needed. We were soaking.
So it was a nice shower a wee rest and down to the pub for a few beers and a nice curry...that'll go down well tomorrow I thought!
Day 3 and a daunting climb out of Stanhope and a trip to the other side of England will be up soon!
I woke up at 6 and packed my kit and checked the route for the day.
We met downstairs for breakfast and had a Full English. Not too much mind - just enough. I was gutted there were mushrooms on my late mind! We looked out the window and it confirmed what we already knew...it was raining.
We got our bikes out and headed off. The first part of the journey out of Greystoke was mostly downhill to Penrith with a slight climb about midway. By the time we reached Penrith, we were wet enough not to care too much about the rain now. What the rain did do was make you not really want to go into your back or take photos.
We got to Penrith and head up quite a long steep climb to Langwathby. The climb was about 100 metres over about a mile. After the climb was a considerable descent - and quite long - and it was here that Andy was to have his off. We were going downhill at considerable speed...I'd reckon 25-30mph...when we approached a sharp left hand bend. Andy misjudged it slightly and applied his brakes. However, it was wet - as was the road - and his back wheel locked...swinging out from under him and off he came. All I could do was shout "ANDY! ANDY!"...I don't know why - I'm sure he knows his name. Anyway - I was bearing down on him...now - I had slowed enough to take the bend...but I hadn't slowed enough to avoid the new obstruction now laying in my path - Andy and his bike. So I applied my brakes fiercely. My back wheel locked also...and started to slide to the right. But I kept my front wheel facing the way of the slide and prevented the wheel coming out from under me...and missed Andy and his bike by no more than a couple of feet! A lucky escape for both of us...though Andy did suffer a bit of grazing to his arse.
Coming out of Langwathby saw us with a considerable amount of climbing to do. In fact, it was pretty much a steady 10 miles of climbing interspersed with some pretty minor downhill sections...which were always followed by a climb!
The dreaded Hartside loomed. We were soaking and cold. In fact, we were so wet, when I lifted my arm up to point at a hill, the water than had collected in my jacket ran down into my armpit...and was cold!
Hartside looked fearsome in the book. A 3 miles climb of 1348ft. As it was, I didn't find it too bad in so much as whilst it was long and energy sapping, it wasn't overly steep. The short steep climbs on the route really killed me...the longer ones like Hartside, whilst long and hard, were not so hard for me. Don't get me wrong...I was puffing for air at the top...and we all made it to the top. Davey was first to arrive. All I had to do was keep the pedals turning.
At the top was a very, very welcome cafe. The Hartside Cafe. We jumped in there (and very busy it was too) and had some nice sugary food. I wanted a photo of Hartside Summit sign, but we were way too cold and wet.
After about 40 minutes we decided to head off. We were wet through and very cold now. We looked outside and couldn't believe what we saw - the mist had come right down and it was raining harder than ever. On top of that, the wind had picked up!
I actually wanted to put my long sleeve top on, but really couldn't be bothered to go into my bag on my bike (I had another bag bungee tied on top of it and it was a bit of a pain taking things in and out.
However - I wished I had within 10 minutes. Coming off Hartside was amazing for me. I was able to get my head down and speed off that summit. I had my lights on, the road was clear and good tarmac. I headed past Davey and Andy doing 40+mph and once up to speed pretty much free wheeled. Whilst it was nice to get that speed, it was also painfully cold. And the rain ws hitting my face with such force (from the wind and my speed that every drop was stinging my face - but I just wanted off that hill as fast as possible!
Coming off Hartside was amazing - and cold. But once off we had a pretty long undulating climb followed by a steep short descent into Garrigill. And after Hartside were we not pleased to come across a very, very steep 1 mile climb of 250 meters out of Garrigill? It was hellish. Andy hit the bottom of the hill in the wrong gear and could not get any purchase and had to come off and walk up. Myself and Davey continued - until I had absolutely nothing left in my thighs and my bike came to an abrupt stop. Davey managed the climb. I think it's worth mentioning here that Davey has the honour of being the only one of us who pedalled up every climb.
On the border of Northumberland - looking wet
After the climb out of Garrigill, the rain had slowed somewhat. It was downhill from there to Nenthead and a sharp incline again to the highest point on the C2C route...Black Hill at 609m. Yet another very steep difficult climb at 150 meters over 1 mile! There was more to come!
Downhill off of Black Hill saw us with a short steep incline across Hartley Moor. We now had a very welcome long descent into Allenheads. Yet another short very steep climb out of Allenheads and into Currick - and from there...all downhill to our second days destination...Stanhope!
And on the County of Durham border
So it was a nice shower a wee rest and down to the pub for a few beers and a nice curry...that'll go down well tomorrow I thought!
Day 3 and a daunting climb out of Stanhope and a trip to the other side of England will be up soon!
C2C Day 3
Day 3 was a late start. We were up pretty early - 6:30 or so - but showered and down for breakfast at 08:30. I think Andy woke us up with his Usain Bolt impression to the loo! Sorry Andy - that had to be told - I was pissing myself laughing in bed seeing you whizz past
A nice full english again - this time no mushrooms (and WHAT IS IT with no smoked bacon - on ANY of our breakfasts!). A glass of orange juice and a nice sugary cup of tea.
Now you will recall from Day 2 that we had some alcoholic beverages...perhaps more than we should have had. And that we had a curry. Well todays start was pretty daunting...we were heading out of Stanhope and there's a 2 mile climb out of it...and it's steep!
We thanked the landlady for her hospitality and off we set. Back the way we came for about 1/2 a mile and then turned right...onto a very steep looking hill. Just as you thought you were getting to the top at a bend - on it went - round that bend - then another! It seemed to take an age...and the countryside was opening up. Alot of flat terrain around us...though this road just seemed to climb...and climb...and climb.
But - the weather was nice - and it was a good detox for our night of debauchery! To be fair - after the second day - we deserved that night!
So we carried on up the hill and there was a right turn off the road (which was still going up!) and onto some relatively rough track. And this is where my nightmare started. As I said - my bike was a road bike - and it did not take kindly to this terrain - of which there was around 20 miles (with the very occasional on tarmac bit through Consett. It truly was horrible. Really difficult terrain.
It was made worse by the fact that this was our 3rd day and we had already cycled 100 miles. So we were a little tender anyway.
We showered, changed and headed off. Time for a few beers and some food. A pizza and plenty of bevvy and back to the hotel - oh yeah - after some of the best lamb in the UK - right Davey? lmao!
A nice full english again - this time no mushrooms (and WHAT IS IT with no smoked bacon - on ANY of our breakfasts!). A glass of orange juice and a nice sugary cup of tea.
Now you will recall from Day 2 that we had some alcoholic beverages...perhaps more than we should have had. And that we had a curry. Well todays start was pretty daunting...we were heading out of Stanhope and there's a 2 mile climb out of it...and it's steep!
We thanked the landlady for her hospitality and off we set. Back the way we came for about 1/2 a mile and then turned right...onto a very steep looking hill. Just as you thought you were getting to the top at a bend - on it went - round that bend - then another! It seemed to take an age...and the countryside was opening up. Alot of flat terrain around us...though this road just seemed to climb...and climb...and climb.
A sculpture - I think before Consett (maybe after!)
And it's friend
But - the weather was nice - and it was a good detox for our night of debauchery! To be fair - after the second day - we deserved that night!
So we carried on up the hill and there was a right turn off the road (which was still going up!) and onto some relatively rough track. And this is where my nightmare started. As I said - my bike was a road bike - and it did not take kindly to this terrain - of which there was around 20 miles (with the very occasional on tarmac bit through Consett. It truly was horrible. Really difficult terrain.
It was made worse by the fact that this was our 3rd day and we had already cycled 100 miles. So we were a little tender anyway.
A break was required
At 122 miles done, we were on the North side of the River Tyne - and a very horrible looking river it was too. I wouldn't have liked to have ended up in it! There was the BAE factory on the north side with a beautiful looking Challenger tank sitting proudly outside.
So we were no on Hadrians Way and cycling to the town centre (or at least the riverside town centre). At 126 miles we came across a market on the riverside. It was absolutely buzzing and a welcome change from the previous 20 miles across country track. We saw a chance for a stop. Davey and Andy got a burger each and I bought some different flavoured fudge for the kids...then had a fried egg roll which was delicious. This was the first food of substance we had since leaving Stanhope as there was very little about between there and this point.
Burger time on the bank of the Tyne
As we sat and had our food...Davey looked and said "You know, I think that's where we're staying tonight"...we were only 50 yards from our beds! And yet we had another 10 miles to go...we were a little gutted. But Davey had the bright idea of handing our bags in so we could drop some weight. Unfortunately our rooms weren't ready yet - but for a small donation to a charity (if only they knew!) they would look after our bags. So we dropped our gear off.
A wee rest at the market in Newcastle
However, I forgot to put my fudge in so put it in the back of Andys jacket. It was not to be edible after. Through no fault of his, the sun had sweated it...sorry kids...no fudge for ya.
We cracked on - only 10 miles to go....oh yeah...and the 10 miles back! That really was horrible. 10 miles extra for nothing.
We trundled along with a new impetuous. We could smell the end. It was near. Cycling up a hill about 2 miles from the end I saw a black Forde Mondeo at the top of the hill...could it be? Did Sharon and the kids decide to come? I cycled towards the car...closer and closer...ever excited...and saw it was not our car. My heart really, really sank. I really thought they had made it!
As we headed onto National Cycle Network Route 1, Davey pointed this out to me...and I told him that we did switch routes at some points...but had to come clean that I had no idea what the end looked like. I had seen pictures of the start, but not the end, so didn't know what to look for.
As we cycled through Tynemouth and along the sea front, we saw a group of cyclists up on a hill and suspected that was the end. And it was. We were there. We made it. 150+ miles (read the blog to see why it was 150) and 3 days with some huge climbs...and it was over. The sense of relief was far greater at that point, for me at least, than the sense of achievement.
All together at the end - as we were from the start - though a bit more fatigued
Davey Blackmore
Andy McIntyre
Billy Riley
We had a few photos taken and after a couple of futile attempts to get a taxi company to take us back - we gave up and cycled that horrible 10 miles back to Newcastle. Never has a Travel Inn looked so beautiful.
What? we deserved it!
I'm sorry to the wee lassie in the background there - this was unintentional!
We showered, changed and headed off. Time for a few beers and some food. A pizza and plenty of bevvy and back to the hotel - oh yeah - after some of the best lamb in the UK - right Davey? lmao!
The view from my Travel Inn room
I woke up in the morning very early and as stiff as a board. Little did I know Tuesday would be considerably worse. We had some breakfast and I said my goodbyes to my two comrades and headed off to the train station for 10am to get the 10:40 train to Carlisle. I had a 2 hour stop in Carlisle before I got the train to Kirkby Stephen where we were staying. Sharon and the kids were a welcome sight after sleeping with those two smelly buggers!
In Summary
We had a brilliant journey.
It had it's ups and downs - mentally and literally physically.
We had some great laughs...Andy heading off into the bondi...doing his Usain Bolt impression at 6 in the morning...me coming to a complete standstill on the hill of death...Davey having his cycling shorts on back to front for the whole of the first day.
And we had some bad times...Andy's off down the hill was almost quite serious - especially with me bearing down on him!...seeing the cloud coming down in Hartside Cafe...being pissed on with rain for a WHOLE day...some very, very steep inclines...realising we had an extra 10 useless miles after reaching the end
At the end - we were knackered and sore. We said that's it. Crossed off the Bucket List and no need to do it again. But I think it's fair to say that we wouldn't swap those 3 days for any others. They're in the Journey of Life scrap book - not to be erased.
Davey I've known for years. We met in the British Army in 1986 and have been friends ever since. Andy I had never met - and he was a very welcome addition both to the ride and to the gathering of donations.
Well done lads and thanks for an awesome trip.
Thank you to everyone who donated to St Helena's Hospice through my Just Giving Page.
It's been great.
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