LEJOG day 5 - Corsham to Stratford Upon Avon

135 km  Elev gain: 1241 m  (84 miles / 4072 ft)
2 °C (real feel 0 °C)

Rob joins me in the morning for the first 30 miles up to Cirencester, crossing from Wiltshire into Gloucestershire. He sets the perfect pace for me and I selfishly draft him all the way. Ordinarily this would be poor form, but I'm dragging 11kg of luggage, and Rob is happy enough to oblige. We have a nice coffee and cake at Keith's on Black Jack Lane before parting company.

I resume my solo ride through the Cotswolds, passing through Bourton-on-the-Water before stopping for lunch in Stow-on-the-Wold. It's a cold Saturday in March but the town is heaving. 

Bourton-on-the-Water

It's hilly around here but not too steep, though I hesitate before passing up the opportunity to tick Dover's Hill off my bucket list - another day and another (lighter) bike for that kind of shenanigans.

I push on through Moreton-in-Marsh, before leaving the Cotswold stone behind, dropping down into Warwickshire - my 6th county in 5 days - and picking up the Stratford Greenway for a fast and flat run-in to my friend's house in Stratford-upon-Avon.

Running total: 557 km  Elev gain: 6638 m  (346 miles / 21,778 ft).  28 hrs 49 mins 

LEJOG day 4 - Glastonbury to Corsham

76 km  Elev gain: 1154 m  (47 miles / 3786 ft)
6 °C (real feel 3 °C)

I've not been to Glastonbury before, so I've planned a short bike day to allow for a nose around town before setting off. I take a walk up to Glastonbury Tor which overlooks the town, pausing at the White Spring on Wellhouse Lane. The cavern like spring is closed at the moment, but a succession of  people arrive to fill bottles and jerry cans with water from the outdoor overflow. There must be something in the water.

I don't have time to visit the abbey ruins, but take a short stroll through the town, checking out some of the murals which sum up the Glastonbury vibe.

My wonderful AirBnB landlady, a lifelong resident of Glastonbury, tells me how much the town has changed in the past 20 years, where a growing hippie / new age culture has taken over. There's an abundance of shops on the high street selling crystals, kaftans and folklore. If you hang around long enough you'll see a few "characters" she tells me.

I get away late morning, getting a final view of the Tor as I loop around the town.

I pass through Wells, refuelling at the excellent Pickwicks Country Kitchen. I don't do justice to the town by stopping for a quick snap of the gothic Wells Cathedral.

I pass through Frome ("froome"), opting out of the school run traffic frenzy with a tactical coffee stop, then on to Bradford upon Avon to rendezvous with my friend Rob who lives nearby. He hightails it out of town, losing me in the Friday rush hour traffic before I've had the chance to admire the place, which looks pretty. I catch up and follow him for 7 miles to Corsham. After 3 days of riding solo in the wind it's pure joy to have someone to draft!

We call in at the Quarryman's Arms pub on Box Hill for a pint of local Butcombe IPA before heading to Rob's house for a lovely home cooked meal and comfy bed.

Running total: 421 km  Elev gain: 5397 m  (262 miles / 17,707ft).  22 hrs 43 mins 

LEJOG day 3 - Cullompton to Glastonbury

93 km  Elev gain: 567 m  (58 miles / 1860 ft)
4 °C (real feel 1 °C)

A short and flat day today, but it feels harder than it should. I must be tired after fighting the wind for two days. I follow NCR 3 - a peaceful mostly traffic free route along the Tiverton canal which reflects beautifully in the sunlight.

Lunch stop is in Taunton at The Shed cafe (excellent), then I continue on route 3 along the Taunton and Bridgwater canal towpath. More crystal clear water and lovely reflections.

Route 3 continues off road all the way to Glastonbury, where I find my AirBnB and a warm welcome from hosts Tina and Martin in their family home.

Running total: 345 km  Elev gain: 4243 m  (214 miles / 13,921 ft).  18 hrs 37 mins 

LEJOG day 2 - Bodmin to Cullompton

140 km  Elev gain: 1977 m  (87 miles / 6486 ft)
4 °C (real feel 0 °C)

This morning's breakfast is last night's leftovers. Lamb biryani, cold, straight from the foil tin using the lid as an improvised shovel. I'm really living the dream.

Leaving my AirBnB, I follow the Camel Trail through the woods out of town, before the climb up onto the windswept Bodmin Moor, double taking and doubling back to gawp at the macabre skeleton family in a garden on the hill. The owner opens a window and we have a friendly chat while the assorted mannequins that peer out of every door and window give me their glass eyed stare. "I just can't help buying them" she says.

Up on the moor it's another battle against a 9 mph constant headwind. It's beautiful up here, but not a place to hang about on a day like this, even if the beast is a myth.

View towards Brown Willy, Bodmin Moor

I arrive at Launceston, the former Cornish capital and find the friendly Liberty Coffee cafe. Non cake options are limited so I snaffle up a couple of their excellent home made sausage rolls.

Launceston

Shortly after I cross the border from Cornwall into Devon and follow the rolling country lanes to Oakhampton where I'm in need of another cafe stop. This is turning into a long day. I'm behind schedule arriving at my destination in Cullompton after dark. This is slightly off the beaten LEJOG track, but it seemed to make sense at the time. Shame I didn't notice the brutal 16% climb up Cullompton Hill when I booked.

My AirBnB for the night is "The Nook", a garden room that couldn't be more nookish. It's has a bathroom, kitchen and bedroom all ingeniously squeezed into a tiny space. You couldn't (and definitely shouldn't) swing a cat in here.

Tonight's dinner is a Tesco ready meal. Accompanied by a bottle of Devonshire Otter Ale - it would be rude not to.

Running total: 252 km  Elev gain: 3676 m  (157 miles / 12,060 ft).  13 hrs 44 mins 

LEJOG day 1 - Land's End to Bodmin

113 km  Elev gain: 1699 m  (70 miles / 5574 ft)
6 °C (real feel 1 °C)

A beautiful start to the day at The Land's End Hotel. Seeing a pink glow in the sky from my window, I rush outside in time to watch the sun come up.

Down to the iconic landmark after breakfast. It's too early in the day or year for the official photographer, so I get the mini tripod out and spend a few minutes doing the "self timer dash". After a few fails I get the shot I want.

Then to the start line. No big send off, just a brief chat with a solitary long distance hiker who's passing through.  Spirits high, I cross the line and make a left turn onto the gravel track to Sennen Cove - straight into a strong headwind that's going to dog me most of the day. I'm loving the buzz of getting started to care too much as I take in the Cornish coastline.

Sennen Cove

That headwind! I'm slowed down so much that my planned mid morning coffee stop at Portreath morphs into lunch. The friendly Portreath Arms is a great find though, and I take a little time trying to get the perfect crashing waves shot at the harbour wall, where the sea is positively churning. Mostly I just get wet.

Portreath harbour

The rest of the day passes grinding out the miles into the wind, following a lumpy route through country lanes with the occasional punishingly steep hill. I discover there's a price to pay for putting blind faith in the cycle.travel route planner (tagline: "Life's too short to ride busy roads"). Normally I love going out of my way to take on a 16% gradient - not so much when I'm hauling 11kg of luggage. Gripe over, I stop for a short rest at Saint Columb Major - the final town before I reach my destination at Bodmin and check into my AirBnB for the night.

There don't seem to be many food options in Bodmin on this Tuesday night, so I end up in a nearby Indian restaurant. The food is ok but I order way too much. I hate wasting food - one of the reasons why I'm fundraising for The Felix Project - so I take the leftovers home for breakfast.

It seemed like a good idea at the time.

LEJOG day zero - to the start line

10 weeks after hatching my plan, the day before the day of action has arrived. My friend Julian has kindly lent me his bright yellow Ortlieb waterproof panniers. They're so well designed and easy to fit, "basically idiot proof" he tells me. I pedal off to the station, waving confidently to my wife standing on the doorstep. I'm just out of sight 100 metres down the street, over the first speed bump when a pannier comes flying off. Fortunately there's no 10 ton truck in the vicinity to run it over, only a car that steers around it as I retrieve it from the middle of the road and refit it carefully.

I get to Paddington via Hyde Park and catch the train to Penzance, then ride the long way to Land's End via the pretty fishing village of Mousehole. I reach The Land's End Hotel by 5pm, in time to watch a magical sunset while drinking a celebratory bottle of Proper Job Cornish IPA - it would be rude not to.

The hotel is perfect, with references to the "End to End" adorning the walls. I'm inspired by this one at the reception desk. 

I'm a little more troubled by the posters on the stairwell celebrating the records for fastest LEJOG via unorthodox means.

Hopefully I'll beat that skateboard. 

It Has To Be Felix

Although LEJOG started out as a personal project, it would be a missed opportunity if I didn't raise some money for charity.

I've been volunteering at The Felix Project for the past 9 months, giving some of my spare time in the evenings to help prepare meals and reduce food waste.

Find out more and sponsor me at www.justgiving.com/page/wardill