Day ONE: Harrow to Royston (8 June 2021)
Distance: 76 km (47 miles)
Ascent: 840 m
Legs: Despite this being a long day, with a heavy load, and with a surprising amount of climbing I had fresh legs, took it slowly, and did not feel the work
Dropping my packed bag into the trailer frame and hooking the trailer up to the bike made me slightly nervous as the weight was noticeably more than I had ever carried. Though I had hauled weight in the trailer and had calculated the overall tour pack weight I had not done a full test pack. I know, school boy error. Add to this the task of regaining my trailer towing skills on the bike as the trailer pulled me this way and that and after 100 meters I seriously contemplated turning round to dump some kit. But how could I admit defeat after only 100 meters. Another 400 meters and I was getting the bike and the load under control so decided to push on and see what happened.
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| The 'rig' that would take me to North Yorkshire and back |
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| Bound for the North |
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| Using Satnav - and not checking that day's route! - meant I never knew what to expect |
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| Long may it stay sunny and dry |
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| OK Komoot, my bike isn't designed for this! |
For the route planning and junction by junction navigation I was relying wholly on a navigation app on my phone, Komoot. The exit from London alongside the A1 was not the best, but once clear of the M25 I found myself on cycle-ways, single track lanes, gravel paths and single file earth paths, oftern cutting a swath through the grass and cow parsley that threatened to overwhelm me. Once I had re-acquainted myself with trailer towing, by selecting a suitably low gear I was able to cover the 76 km of day one in one main push with lots of micro breaks to check directions and a lunch stop at a village butchers that provided pork pies, eccles cake and coffee. This cycle tour was an adventure so I was pleased when early in the tour a fellow cyclist pulled up along side me and started talking cycle talk which, with my over-stuffed trailer, would invariably turn to where I was going followed by an enthusiastic description of their favourite tour (Bordeaux to Périgord in this case). Later on when I was pulled up at the roadside checking directions for lunch another cyclist came along, did a U-turn and pulled up beside me for a chat. He had enjoyed lots of French tours and his touring bike was currently parked up in a hotel in Nice where it had been since pre-covid times. It gave me the idea that you could have a bike in continental Europe that you could travel out to when you wanted to resume your grand tour rather than the various onerous methods of bike transport tp a from continental Europe.
On arriving at the campsite the field is empty until after 2 minutes someone pulls in. This is a man from Northumberland who uses the site as his home one week in two as he works as a building controller on a major project nearby and this is cheap accommodation and a home from home. As I was to discover later, some sites provide for everyone including long term residents. He provides some advice on where to pitch to catch the morning sun, supplies a welcome cup of coffee and talks for a while. This is new territory for me and I pitch the tent with just the ground sheet and flysheet as an experiment, cook up some noodles, find someone to pay then head off for a beer at the local pub. The pub is happy to find me somewhere to sit where I can charge my phone and it even had outdoor charge points installed as part of a recent refurbishment. It is quiet in the pub and the landlady is keen to chat about my trip and offers up Godmanchester as a good place to visit.
They say experience is the best teacher and I learnt plenty from day one. Even if you over-pack you can select a low gear and make progress; learning to pace yourself is a good skill. Cooking up noodles and kimchi with fresh coffee to follow is a treat when you get to look out over the Cambridgeshire with Cambridge itself in the distance. The ground sheet and fly sheet solution worked for a basic shelter, if a little drafty, but meant the trailer could be easily wheeled into the tent without the 'step' of the tent inner and would allow me the option of posting items home before I hit any hills. With the trailer secured in the tent I had less need for heavy locks. I am starting to draw up a rational list of what to keep and what to post home based on my experience on this first day
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| Hertfordshire countryside |
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| Hobbit feet: A first campsite at Great Chishill near Royston overlooking Cambridge |
