After over a year of planning and preparation, the day finally arrived for us to embark on our epic cycle trip from Land’s End to John O’Groats!
We set off from our AirBnB Avalon Annexe, which was very comfortable, and drove to Land’s End, the starting point for our ride.
It was quite deserted early in the morning but fiercely windy with a lively Atlantic.
We took the obligatory photos at the Land’s End signpost, and before we knew it we were at the start line, pressing start on our bike computers, and taking our first pedal towards our 1,000 mile journey.
The day’s section would take us from Land’s End to St Columb Major, see Strava route here
I had been feeling quite unwell the previous week with an infection that was causing pain in my kidney area. I am near the end of a course of antibiotics. I hadn’t ridden for over a week and had been trying to recover. I was therefore quite nervous about how I would get on.
It was quite a long day of riding with 94.33 km and 1,635m elevation. But it was reassuring to get started. The bike felt comfortable. In particular, my saddle felt just right and indeed was comfortable for the whole day.
We passed ‘The Last Inn’, Land’s End Airport, our AirBnB, St Just and a tin mine. The the route wended along the North Cornwall coast providing many stunning sea views along the way. The landscape was bleak yet stunning.
The morning mist was brooding as the sun gradually broke through. The temperature comfortable. The wind strong but very thankfully helping us along our way.
At around 30km we met Claire at The Scoff Troff Café. The area was packed with tourists but we managed to enjoy a coffee and toast and a well earned rest.
As we went to leave, we were encouraged by a family at another table who expressed an interest in our ride and took details to promote on their social media!
Riding out of St Ives past the picturesque bay and along the coast to Hayle. Hayle hold special memories from having camped on the sand dunes on childhood holidays with the Kent family. Happy memories indeed!
Continuing towards Portreath, the weather started to turn grey with a light drizzle and then rain!
Approaching Porthtowan, the rain really started driving, the wind picked up. We ascended one of the steepest hills of the day. The road was close to a cliff edge with only a low hedge to guard. We had to really focus to just keep spinning to reach the top. Soon after that was St Agnes where we met Claire at the Railway Inn for a late lunch.
Then the final 30km. The sky was dark with grey clouds. The rain continuing. We were getting tired and the remaining hills, although not the steepest of the day, got the better at times and were walked.
Finally reaching our AirBnB for the night at a 3 bedroom house in Columb St Major. An opportunity for a hot shower and to put our wet clothes through the washing machine.
My Video:
Claire’s Video:
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