DAY NINE: Slingsby to Richmond (16 June 2021)
Distance: 73 km (45 miles)
Ascent: 760 m
Legs: This was the last day before a three day lay-over and with the end in sight and the coffin at its lightest so far I felt good
Again, I say Richmond as it is a place people may have heard of, though my real destination is the village of Colburn situated between Catterick Bridge (the race course) and Catterick Garrison (the army camp).
A 6:40 am start after a breakfast of noodles and the last of the Lincolnshire gooseberries. The noodles are prepared in a spicy stock and its a good way to hydrate. My food bag is now light apart from the leftover cake and this is useful as I tackle the Howardian Hills with the coffin. Pedaling along and as I come to a left turn onto a single track lane someone coming from the opposite direction wants to turn right into the same lane. I pull up and let them through. Later, I catch up with the lady in the red car as she navigates one of the two gates that across the lane going through the onerous "stop, open gate, drive through, stop, close gate, go" routine. She keeps the gate open for me as I pass and thanks me for giving her right of way earlier as, in her words "every other cyclist would have just cycled on". The usual chat follows and I include additional elements such as sleeping under a flysheet and the lack of spare clothes by way of an apology for any odour. She talks freely having just dropped her eldest daughter off at the school bus stop, back for breakfast before taking her youngest daughter to primary school. She had married and started a family at the age of 36 and accepts these necessary chores in her mid-life. Off she goes and when I catch her up at the next gate I do the gate closing.
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| Buying eggs |
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| Howardian Hills |
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| Howardian Hills |
After two hours pedaling I stop to make coffee and boil the eggs I bought by the roadside. £1 for 6. Some salt and pepper would have helped. My picnic spot is up on a hill with amazing views. With just 55 km remaining on this leg of the journey it is time for reflection.
My most memorable meals will be the self-cooked ones either in camp or on the road; those steak and ale pies with generic chips will be quickly forgotten. When it comes to regrets on this trip I have none, a few confessions maybe, but no regrets. I relied one hundred percent on a mobile app for navigation and with hindsight that served me well. Getting off the main roads has led to many encounters along the way though it means more miles and more elevation. Brewing up at the side of a cart track has been a simple pleasure and one that has helped create a tour that was close to nature and that provided a certain rawness that we lose when we travel by car. Yes, I have had to learn along the way.
- A 4oz gas canister lasts around 4 days if you cook on and off as I did
- Checking night time temperature forecasts lets you snuggle down with the right level of protection. T-shirt, long sleeve top, cycle top, trousers, socks, sleeping bag liner and thin sleeping bag keeps you warm under the flysheet down to ten degrees centigrade
- If weight feels too heavy then it is; for your safety, health and enjoyment. Instead of starting with the recommended kit list start with nothing and build up the essentials as you go
- Don't over plan as the best experiences are the unexpected ones
- You do have to put in the hard miles to get the reward so get fit enough to be able to cover those miles without any issues; or like me, ensure your daily mileage is well within your comfort zone as the miles and fatigue build
