LEJOG day 10 - Durham to Amble

99 km  Elev gain: 805 m  (62 miles / 2641 ft)
2 °C (real feel -1 °C)

I wake up to find the street outside covered in a fresh blanket of snow, my lucky streak with the weather at an end. I bide my time, watching the forecast and waiting for the temperature to rise as the student household dash off to lecture and library. I ride down to the river and put my bright green Felix Project beanie on for a photo which I send to the charity to chart my progress and reassure them that I'm still alive on my fundraising odyssey.

Fundraising for Felix

I ride out of Durham, choosing a B road instead of the snow covered river path, before picking up NCR 70 taking me north east back to the coast. I start to doubt the wisdom of this cross country route as I ride through a wind farm near Hetton Le Hole. The ominous swooshing sound of the turbines adds to the sense of isolation. It's so cold, it's so bleak, I pray I don't come off or have a mechanical issue out here on my own.

Re-joining NCR 1, I stop for coffee in Sunderland before crossing the River Wear, then pushed by the easterly wind, I find myself flying north west along the bike path up to the Tyne at South Shields. The snow now behind me, my luck with the weather has returned.

I take the ferry over to North Shields, pass the long sandy beaches of Tynemouth, and navigate the industrial quarters of Blyth. Finally I get what I've been waiting for as the wild Northumberland coast comes into view. I choose my target destination and follow the rugged coastline on and off road all the way to Amble.

Cresswell

I get a comfortable room for the night at the friendly Wellwood Arms. I have a pub meal in the bar and get chatting to Gary, a self employed trucker who's in town to pick up a cargo of lobsters, bound for France. Gary's led an interesting life and he's good company. As a Glaswegian lorry driver living in Spain, he's quick to give me his views on Brexit, and I ask him about Scottish independence. He's a "no" on both counts and doesn't hold back. A retired couple sitting opposite us shoot us some dark glances, but they're not about to take on Gary.

Running total: 1168 km 11,558 m  (726 miles / 37,920 ft).  59 hrs 52 mins