Final thoughts

With the ride 2 months behind me I feel a world away from the 2 weeks I spent on my own travelling across Britain. In some respects I miss the sense of adventure that can only really be experienced from such a trip as LEJOG, with only myself for company. However after a relaxing summer spent at my parents lounging about and enjoying the beautiful weather I must return to uni for my final year and my final few months before entering the real world of work. The total raised in the end was £1,149 which is far more than anticipated and will go towards funding the great work carried out at thorpe hall. I have also set up a website detailing my trip for future LEJOGers.

The lone traveller returns!

Well what a journey it turned out to be! I have been back now for just over a week and still don't feel quite settled back to normality to be honest. I was amazed by how quickly I got into a routine of arising in the early hours (5-6 am), cycling the first 40 or so miles before stopping for a break and a substantial meal, and then continuing for the final few miles to arrive at my camp site by 3pm at the latest. What, a few months ago, seemed like a ridiculous idea soon became the norm for me, and the 80 or so miles I cycled 6 days on the trot seem somewhat trivial. Yet I still get brief flashbacks to sections of the ride itself and how lonely and isolated they were, which help put things back in perspective and make me realise just how far 80 miles on a bike actually is.

On reflection I can safely say that I enjoyed every single bit of the trip; even cycling in the pouring rain along the scottish lochs has a certain hidden beauty woven into it which can only be truly appreciated afterwards. The highlight of the trip for me was Glen Coe which was genuinely breath taking and shall be burnt into my memory for a very long time.

On a more serious note the main reason I did this was to raise funds for Sue Ryder care, and thus far I have raised well over £1,100 which is a great achievement and I would like to thank everyone who helped me reach this amount and double my original target of £500.

Half Way There!

As I write this (says Dad) James is now in Scotland and has cycled over 500 miles. We're keeping track of his progress at home as you can see by the photo here.

I drove to Longtown yesterday to meet him - 3 miles short of the border - and treated him to one night in a B&B, with a real bed.

He seems in good spirits and is incredibly well organised; he spent almost an hour servicing his bike for the second half of the journey.

We ate in the Graham Arms last night, chatted, watched some TV, and slept well. Cooked breakfast (full English) today and James was off, later than usual, by 7:45am. Next time we meet will be the night before he finishes - we're going on ahead then to cheer him at the Finish line!

Set off 6th July, Monday morning at 8:00pm. Lands End deserted apart from three weeping women. Covered first few miles so quickly that my entourage wondered where I'd got to!

Eventually they drove by and I was alone on my first leg. My day went well (the entourage's Fiesta didn't though). Covered 65 miles - in the saddle 4.5 hrs - and pitched bivvy OK after a little difficulty.

Had nice meal in restaurant overlooking the sea at Par Sands. Early night as quite tired and aiming to set off early next day. Will twitter on and of as I cannot update this blog myself - this entry and photograph have been done by the family. Thanks to everyone who are supporting me - I know that sponsorhip is still coming in and I may even top £1000 ?!

And we're off (almost)

It has come up so fast but I feel as if I'm about ready to start this first journey of a lifetime (hopefully not the last!).

My bags are packed and I feel both mentally and physically ready for the trip, but can't wait to start and get on the road. I hope to get a website up and running on my return with a lot more detail than I can into my brief blogs, with full details of the route, kit and other bits involved in planning for the trip and the actual trip itself.

Anyhow I suppose its over and out until I return.

Oh and by the way the attached picture shows what I shall be sleeping in for the next two weeks, and trust me it is uber comfy.

Final preparation

With just under two weeks before I start I'm beginning to get butterflies in my stomach, but remain fairly confident. I have finally got all accommodation booked and all the creases ironed out in the route, however I feel I definitely haven't trained as much as I would have liked. I aim to complete a 40 mile or so ride tomorrow with all the kit to see how the bike handles, and then to get myself over to Nottingham for the weekend for an extended bike ride.

Sponsorship is going extremely well, currently standing at £447, and so I hope to hit my target of £500.

As Tom Petty once said "the waiting is the hardest part"

3 Weeks!

Yes my dears I really do only have around 3 weeks before I head off to Lands End to start this trip. I hope to complete a few training sessions after the weekend to test the kit and to get some miles into my legs, however I still suspect I've not really done enough training (hopefully the first few days will get my legs warmed up though!).

I had an interview with the local paper (Cambs Times) on Monday, which went really well. I ended up being interviewed by an old school friend, Vikki Speed, which also gave us a brief chance to catch up (The article can be found on http://tinyurl.com/n7nynt).

I should hopefully be able to provide some kit pictures in the next few weeks as well.