I was rudely awoken by the climb ot of St Bees. Staying in coastal village is a great idea. At the end of a long day’s cycling, there’s a nice roll downhill. I certainly wasn’t complaining last night. This morning, I’m paying the price. It’s warm and the wind is with me. Sweat is already dripping off my nose. I’ll travel 70 miles today and half the climbing is in the first two miles. I’m kept amused by thinking back to a guy I’d met briefly at one of the vllage’s information boards this morning. “I’d expected this place to be a proper shit’ole,” he announced. He followed quickly with, “but it isn’t, mate. It isn’t” The village council should immediately adopt this declaration as its tourism campaign slogan and appoint this man as chair of Visit St Bees.
Whitehaven glistened i the morning sunshine. It was quiet on the seafront. A few people queuing around the C2C sign with their bikes. I waited and took a photo.
Route 72 followed the coast to Lowes, then climbed to another old railway line that took me to Workington.
I hit 300 miles for the trip as I arrived at Newlands cycles. I had phoned ahead and Mark was expecting me. An hour later I was enjoying a riding experience that didn’t include a squeaking and sticking front brake.
Riding out of Workington, I was looking at the way sign and looking at the map trying to work out which way to go when a guy in a Sustrans jacket came over and reorganised the pointers. Suddenly they made sense. Andy has looked after these cycleways for Sustrans for 20 years. He told me he looks after as far as Newton Stewart, so I’ll be seeing his work for at least two more days.
It was warm riding up to Maryport. I had lunch at the aquarium cafe and headed northward again.
The wind was with me for the first time this trip and I was enjoying it. Route 72 switched between dedicated tarac strips through the dunes, and on-road sections. A couple of times it headed inland. The first time, I fllowed it. Then I just stuck to the coast road. I had a lovely chat with another tourer who is celebrating retirement on the road with only a rough plan and absolutly no timescale. The sense of freedom that must bring!
The road kept rolling under my tyres and I found myself i nthe cobbled streets of Silloth. The village shone in the afternoon sunshine. I could see right across the Solway to tomorrow’s ride.
The riding got tougher as I headed west into the wind to round Bowness Common in the far north west of Cumbria. With the wind at my back I pushed on along the cast to Carlisle, stopping only for a rural traffic jam and quick coffee as a chance t to recharge my phones.
Day total: 75 miles, 1,848ft climbed
Tour total: 261 miles, 9,129ft climbed