The Best of the UK – Part One

It has been a while coming...

14 August – 2 September

I should really call this the best of England and a wee bit of Scotland.  Although I had six weeks over here time just disappeared on me with weddings, catching up with mates, sight-seeing and squeezing in the odd bit of cycling.  I managed to get some great touring around southern England (Cornwall area) and the main trip, London to Edinburgh via the epic scenery way: Oxford – Stratford – Midlands – Peak District – Yorkshire Dales – Lake District – Along Haydrian’s Wall – and finishing up along the East Coast into Edinburgh.  Just over 2 weeks with one break day. 

You have to use one of these over here

After arriving in London and gazing around in awe at the age of everything I headed off to Bristol to catch up with Kerry, her man Scares and their house on the hill.  I was put through my paces here. Arrived on the Tuesday and off for a run that evening (running club doing “efforts” around a hill loop), MTB ride on Wednesday, another run Thursday evening and Friday to recover before leaving on Saturday.  Well I have found out that cycle touring does not help running fitness.  I died after about 30mins and ended up hobbling home shuffling my feet not much faster than an old man with a walking frame.  Thursday I showed no improvement just totally dead legs, one days rest then it was on the bike to explore around the Cornwall coast for a few days.

My memories of cycling around the small piece of Cornwall were ridiculously steep hills passing through the Dartmoor National Park (anywhere between 12% and 17% climbs), hairy cuws (cows) wandering over the road causing traffic jams, loads of quant little old villages, the very impressive Eden Project (that I would recommend for everyone to see), pub meals, speaking English to everyone, more steep hills, very narrow roads, having to sleep on a newly purchased self-deflating mat, and always trying to convert miles to km.

One of the narrower roads.
Just enough for two bikes to pass each other 

Kerry and Scares

A wandering Hairy Cuw

Dartmoor National Park

What the Eden Project started out as

WEEE Man (Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment)
3.3 tonnes of waste an average UK person throws away in their life time.

The Tropical Rainforest Bio Dome.  Felt like I was back in Asia, humidity and all.
77m at its highest 

Mediterranean Bio Dome, a stark contrast. 

Sunset at Bude

The Well House Bar.  Underground at the well. Me, Kat and Jay

...and the skeleton they found when excavating.

Only time enough for 5 days of exploring Cornwall coast area before jumping on a train back to London for the Moon wedding.  I thought since I had my bike I may as well bike out to the wedding.  It was a bit further than anticipated 50km and 2 ½ hours of riding through wind and rain I made it.  Good times were had, a few to many drinks, ripped up the D floor and we may or may not have decorated the newlyweds car with flowers (soil and all), toilet paper, coffee, tea bags, sugar and milk.

A few days of the usual suspects sight-seeing around London:

Watched The Changing of The Guards.  The most impressive part was the swarm of people that came along to watch it. 

Introducing the Moonies

We got sick of waiting to throw confetti on the newly weds we had our own celebration

Deep

mmmm baguette

Always stretch before walking the sites

The impressive Tower Bridge

Changing of the guards.  Everyone raise their hands in the air!

Notting Hill Carnival.  I thought they just blocked off one street and maybe a couple hundred people.  Try blocking off a suburb and several thousand people!