17th August (cloudy and mild) 60 km

Up at 7am and into the bathroom for a shave and a shower. Nothing like feeling refreshed, even if we have a day of cycling ahead. This will be officially our first day touring and we are looking forward to it.

Enjoyed a nice breakfast with David and Jane, before gathering our gear together. Julia wanted a final photo with them before we cycled off into the cloudy skies and left Jane to prepare for her gym class. It has been a really nice visit and we hope to be able to catch up with these guys in Portugal perhaps, as they are down there for a holiday in October.  

Cycling along the River Dee, we saw some magnificent
homes and buildings.

In Chester, we took some shots and bought a water bottle from Cotswold, the adventure store. Out of town following “Maps Me” and what a great discovery.  We are slightly Jurassic when it comes to technology and this is our first tour with a smartphone.  I have to say it has proved incredibly useful so far.  Just being able to contact all the friends and relatives quickly and easily made having it worthwhile, but then also having a back-up camera and now the use of MapsMe (which can be used offline) has been revolutionary for us.

Spent the whole day cycling on quiet country roads with little traffic. At one point I nearly started singing “Jerusalem” …And did those feet in ancient times….walk upon England’s mountains  green….Such was the beauty and peace as we cycled on, through lovely old villages, including Farndon, where Princess Diana’s former butler, Paul Burrell now resides. He owns a floristry shop and although he was married with a couple of kids, he now has a male partner. His van was parked outside his shop as we rode past.  Just prior to that we had bought some lunch at a Spar store, in the quaint village of Holt, where a nice lady had spent a few minutes giving us the history as we packed up our bikes, including the info on Mr Burrell.  It was only as we were packing up, we realised we had inadvertently lunched at the bus stop – we thought it was a covered park bench in the village square…..oops!

Lunch stop in Holt.  For the observant, you'll
notice the Bus Stop markings on the road, which
we failed to spot.

Gorgeous farmhouses, renovated barns, new builds, manor houses, they were all along the route and it was one of the nicest days cycling, whilst on tour that we’ve had in years. Nothing was phasing us as we pedalled on at a steady pace. In Whitchurch we stopped at a Sainsbury’s to pick up some dinner. When we emerged, the rain which had been threatening, had begun. It wasn’t heavy, but consistent and at one point Julia suggested that we may want to don our wet weather gear. We persevered without and eventually the rain ceased. The route all day had been undulating, but it was just what we needed to break us in for the riding ahead. Found Abbey Green Farm and the lovely owner, a lady, who was upholstering when we arrived. She showed us the facilities, which were spotless and we made use of the pristine showers and bathrooms as soon as we had erected the tent, which went up easily. (Glad we had those few practice runs).

Fantastic cycling today!

Abbey Green Farm was an idyllic place to pitch up for our first night.  A beautiful English farmhouse with green fields all around in a lovely quiet out of the way spot.  No trains, no traffic….aaah the peace and quiet.  We made ourselves a cup of tea and buttered a scone and sat on the picnic table outside, inhaling the tranquilty.  A van pulls up not far from where we pitched and out tumble Mum, Dad, two kids and a big dog.  Immediately one kid starts shouting, the other kid starts crying and the dog starts barking.  Not content to be left out, Mum and Dad start having a go at each other as they pitch the tent.

Then we have a Dad and his five year old son come over with a football and the kid kicks it right at the picnic table.  Pete kicks it back to him and he launches another kick at our cups of tea.  His Dad calls him away and the kid runs off to play with the other boy from the van.  Chatting to the Dad of the five year old, we learn he has ADHD and they struggle to get him to bed before 9pm and he’s always up at 6am wanting to play – terrific.

Then we have a third boy of about 8 who talks belligerently to his mother in a very loud voice and she answers him in a very loud voice threatening that they will go home if he didn’t do as she asked.  I thought to myself “Great!  At least we’ll get rid of one”, but by the time she had threatened him with the same consequence for the third time, I knew they wouldn’t be going anywhere and groaned inwardly as the soccer ball hit the tent for the second time.

Dinner followed, a Thai coconut curry, very nice, but not enough, so we indulged in a coffee and some more scones. The rain had put in another appearance, the wind had got up and the temperature was dropping.  We were glad we had a chosen a sheltered spot behind the barn wall.