Please excuse the date on this photo. It is neither 2006 nor 26th August, as you know, but clearly they haven't got around to changing the date on the sign post since the last time I was here. Also, I must mention that while the sign correctly indicates that it is 874 miles from from Land's End to John O'Groats, I am doing considerably further because I am taking the scenic route so that I can stop at interesting places along the way, thus my total distance will be 1,022.5 miles/1,636km.
Anyway, here I am. Or rather, there I was. I made it down to Land's End, having called in virtual help from the Great North Air Ambulance.
I thought it more reliable than magic carpet, and much quicker than road or rail. Sure enough, it was an easy flight, and there were no diversions for emergency attendance.
Seeing as there's a good hotel at Land's End - well, three star, so okay - I thought I'd try and get a good night's sleep here rather than start things off in a tent. There'll be plenty of time for that along the way. It also meant that instead of spending lots of time setting up camp and unpacking the double bed I was able to have a look around. Here are a few photos from my meander
The flight and the wander must have tired me out because I slept well. Rather too well as I overslept and was thus a little late in getting up and getting going on the ride. After dashing to the hotel restaurant for breakfast, I was at the starting point for my virtual bike ride only twenty minutes after I'd planned. So yes, at 11.20am I was ready at the First and Last house of England.
Unfortunately I've had a few technical issues in that I've completely forgotten how to use Photoshop because it's so long since I last used it, so for the moment I'm not able to upload photos of me on site. I am disappointed, but I will rectify the issue as soon as possible.
It was heaving when I arrived at the First and Last House, and I couldn't actually get to my MotoMed for a while. The delay increased the anticipation and nervousness of getting going, the enormity of what I was about to embark on hitting me head-on, but I didn't have to wait too long, and soon enough I was setting off towards Perranporth Beach.
I started off slowly, taking my time to warm up, but as I was eager to feel like I was making progress I picked up the pace fairly quickly, and I had soon left the hoards behind. Here I am well on the way, although I agree it is very difficult to see where on the route I actually was...
...but I suspect it was somewhere around St. Ives, where I was almost tempted to stop and have a look at the Tate St Ives and the Barbara Hepworth Museum and Sculpture Garden. I was still only less than half my way to Perranporth though, so I forwent the luxury of a break and kept on pedalling, even delaying lunch until I arrived at my destination. I think I made pretty good time in the end and arrived at Perranporth Beach shortly after 2pm. It's beautiful.
(These three photos are taken off Google Images)
I took a while to absorb the wonderful surroundings, and to take in the reality that I had actually completed the first 66km of my epic journey. Oh, and here's the proof that I did it - distance is shown on the centre left.
I decided then to take a dip in the sea to cool off and wash away the sweat of the day, but to keep in with the local culture I dumped my bike and hired a surf board to ride the waves. Good huh?
What do you mean you've seen that photo on Google Images?! You think I'm lying, huh?
Okay, there's a small possibility that may not actually be me. Is this one more believable?
Stop sniggering at the back! Yep, that is more more how I would take to surfboarding, and I confess to never actually managing to stand up on a surf board even before my spinal cord injury, way back in the days of my teenage years when I actually tried it. Bodyboarding, which is basically catching the waves whilst lying on a much shorter board, was a lot easier and still great fun, so that's what I did.
Anyway, I digress. Let me get back to the task in hand.
Much to my delight I discovered that Perranporth has a bar on the beach! The Watering Hole claims to be the only bar on a beach in the UK and probably in Europe, so I thought I'd better make the most of it. Having dried off and hungrily devoured lunch, I ordered a drink and made myself at home while I watched the sunset and felt the burn of the exercise in my thighs. It was those up hill miles that did it, those for which I increased the resistance on the MotoMed so that I get some variation in difficulty and give it a degree of authenticity for undulating terrain. Of course I can't make it real, and there's no way I would be able to do the real thing no matter how fit I get because the Cauda Equina Syndrome will never again allow me that strength in my legs, but I want to make this as authentic as I can. I won't be doing whole sections of the ride at higher resistance, but I will increase resistance for some period along each stretch, and for this section I increased it by four gears for around 15km. I can still feel the effect today, and I suspect I will tomorrow too. I'm hoping it eases in time for Monday's ride.
I would have quite liked to have stayed at The Watering Hole all night, but it's a bar not a hotel, and having failed to book anywhere to stay (oops!) I had to pitch my tent.
It looks small, but it's much bigger on the inside than the out, and as you can see, there was plenty of space tonight for setting the table for Sunday dinner tomorrow
There's no harm in taking some of the creature comforts from home when you're going camping. Sure it makes cycling harder when the panniers are packed with a dining table and chairs like this, and the candelabra was an awkward shape to squeeze in, but it's nice when you have space at the table to invite those you meet along the way to come and join you in your tent for a meal.
So I'm all set up at Perranporth Beach and I'm here for the weekend. I'm taking it easy, probably spending most of my time lazing on the beach, perfecting my surfing and getting to know the locals at The Watering Hole. Of course there'll be Sunday lunch at the dining table tomorrow and who knows who I might bump into to share that with. Right now I'd better get back to the tent. I took a photo of the pitch before I set up camp...
Yup, it's a giant sundial just outside The Watering Hole. I thought it'd be grand if I woke up in the night and wasn't sure what time it was ... only then I realised that it'd need to be a moondial. Still, helpful in the morning when I haven't got my glasses on for reading the time on my watch.
Now then, to bed. I'll get back to you in a day or two, most likely after the next leg of my journey from here to Tintagel Castle. Remember that you can sponsor me for the ride on my Just Giving page and that every penny helps.
