LEJOG Day 6! We’re halfway there with 479 miles covered in the last 6 days on the bike, taking us from Land’s End on Sunday morning to the north east of the Lake District where we are staying tonight. Today we cycled 79.5 miles from Preston, through the edge of the Yorkshire and then Westmorland Dales and into the Lakes climbing 3996ft. We seem to have missed the Cumbria country sign much to our great disappointment but I think today’s breathtaking views have more than made up for it!
Luckily the wonderful countryside we were surrounded by today has helped distract from my increasingly uncomfortable saddle, rather tired legs and the heat rash prickling over my arms, hands and legs!
It was another beautiful sunny day and the increasingly wild countryside was resplendent in the sunshine, laid out at our feet like a patchwork quilt, or a picture of the countryside in a children’s book!
On our way out of Preston I made a new friend who was interested to hear about our ride, and delighted to hear our admiration of his county. He was keen to show us the best of the Lancashire countryside took us down some country lanes parallel to the not so scenic route on our Garmins – something we all appreciated!
After stopping for numerous photos and to admire the views, we had a lovely cake break in the Hornby tea rooms! I chose chocolate orange cake and the very kind lady gave me a huge portion ‘to help me peddle faster’! Everyone around here seems so welcoming, from the ladies in the Hornby tearoom, the farmer we talked to in the hills, the Orton post office with their exclusive postcards and the friendly staff in the pub we’re staying in tonight!
As we peddled along we felt like we were going into Postman Pat country – full of winding roads and oddly shaped fields, all bordered by drystone walls with mountains found the edges. There was so much to see and admire and once again I feel so lucky to have this chance to explore and enjoy our country by bike. How could anyone ever want to sit around watching television or spend their weekends at the cinema or going shopping when there is such awesome natural beauty all around us?
Aside from being totally overjoyed at my surroundings, I’ve had a chance to reflect on how my hill climbing is improving today. I’ve given up on the ‘saving my gears just in case’ method I’ve always used and now just get on and go into the lowest I can find when the steep hills appear again, spinning my legs out as much as possible rather than exhausting myself grinding the gears. (Please don’t say I told you so to this! I can see now it makes sense, but think I needed to work this out myself!)
Sorry that was a rather long one! Thank you so much again for all your kind comments and support that keeps me smiling on those hills! I’m now halfway through my LEJOG adventure for Alzheimer’s Research and tomorrow we’re off to Scotland! https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/harriet-bowyer-lejog