LEJoG - new, squeaky clean, new member!!

[CafGriff]

Hi Everyone.!!
I'm the above topic, I'm planning a route for Match 8th this year, starting in Cornwall - averaging between 10 and 12 miles an hr speed - covering between 50 and 60ish miles a day, with a few odd days having to cover 70 + - moving over the roads and a few Sustran Trails including 'The Strawberry Line' from Cheddar to Yatton; if it's not under water at the mo!!?? .... and following Route 26 on towards Nailsea under Bristol. ( staying with family ... or getting excommunicated !! )
Same thing up and around Preston, I'm taking a right there and heading towards Poulton - Le - Fylde .... if possible, I'm begging for help around that route, cos I'm having difficulty getting detailed information around there.
I have between 14 days and 17 days to cover the distance; my plan B is simply to mark the map with a big fat X .... either make a phone call / catch a train and come home to Plymouth, and come back next year and hit the big fat X and carry on.

My master plan is to mix YHA's to stay at along with Pub's .... if a few lists of them I have are still open, I'm due to join both YH Assocation and CAMRA this weeknd ... and to use a small one man tent.

As I fall n stumble through Feb, I shall fill you guys in on more of my plans, I'll either have you creased up laughing ... or have you exclaimimg ' what the 'ell if she thinking of !!

It's late now, guys, so I'm off to beddy - bo bo's now!!
I would really value EVERYONE's expertise and northern knowledge
I am a mere cyling sponge in this mad whirl wind of a bikey world !!
Nice to meet everyone.

Shine On Moonbeams!!!

[Norman H]

I'm taking a right there and heading towards Poulton - Le - Fylde .... if possible, I'm begging for help around that route, cos I'm having difficulty getting detailed information around there.

Did you mean left?

We did a C2C a couple of years ago from Lytham St Anne's to Scarborough. On the first day we crossed the Fylde and stayed at Ingleton YH. I can send you the gpx file if it helps.

We also went that way on our lejog but we stayed at Slaidburn ------ Dufton ------ Carlisle. I've also got gpx files for that route.

[CafGriff]

Hey!! thank you for the reply. I'm cycling to Poulten because I'm staying with family members!
I'm not the cleverist on these computer things and being a new member I have no attachements or apps or anything 'electronic - scary ' devis's set up. If you could just keypad in the - on this site - directions or words of golden knowledge, I would be most appreciative.
again if you fancy a trip out, come meet me and I'll buy a beer! I'll know my timings better in a few weeks, when I have finalised my route.

[eileithyia]

I have frequently posted a route around Preston on these forums; Approach south side of Preston from A6/A49 junction, depending on your route this can also be accessed via a cycle route through Cuerden valley Park which runs alongside A6 north of Chorley.
1. Go North from this junction toward Bamber Bridge.
2. Turn First left into side road with cycle route sign (care very poor surface at present).
3. Follow obvious route at end of houses and turn right on shared cycle path (watch out for various mounds of dog waste).
4. Turn right at the end and pass Matalan
5. Straight on and Right to pass Matalan car park
6. At the end of the path turn left under road bridge (care Glass)
7. At end of road turn right and imm before roundabout turn left on to cycle path.
8. Straight on across road.
9. Continue on cycle path and take obvious straight on thru double off set gates. This takes you onto the 'Tramway' and was developed to link 2 canal systems across the Ribble.
10 continue on this to the Ribble River Bridge.
11. Option 1 turn left just before bridge and keep Ribble on your right.. follow obvious route until end of houses where turn right over cobbled bridge and turn left/straight on joining Preston Guild Wheel (café on your left just before you cross the bridge)
12 Option 2 cross bridge up short very sharp hill and turn left keeping river on your left, advantage of this it is smoother, has another café and is already part of the Guild Wheel.
13. continue Following the Guild Wheel signs this will loop you around to west side of Preston and you can choose where you pick up a route toward Poulton Le Fylde. Plenty of other cafe's at the Preston Arena, Catforth (depending on day) etc.

[eileithyia]

PS Be aware that March could mean some pretty awful weather up thru Scotland (though have been there at Easter and ridden in shorts) but you do have short daylight hours still.

[Norman H]

We followed a route which was based around the CTC Youth Hostel route. Approaching from Culcheth it went via Leigh and Westhoughton which was the most urban part. And then cut between Blackburn and Preston via Adlington, Hoghton, Samlesbury Bottoms, Mellor and Whalley and then on up to the YH at Slaidburn.

The next day on up to Dufton YH was through The Forest of Bowland to High Bentham and the scenic route to Sedbergh and then on the minor road alongside, but to the East of, the M6, to Tebay. One of the best days of the entire End to End.

There are hills whichever way you go!

[CafGriff]

Thank You my Lovelies!! Beautiful pieces of info there.

U have such cycling wisdom. I am merely a sponge in your presents!!
I only have this March available to do this trip my people! My hubby is 60 this year and I work, so I have limited time and days off and I'm taking ' Him with baggy slippers' to Rome on a surprize week away. I am sooo aware that the snows haven't come yet ... it's been too wet!
I know, when I a 100 miles away from home, I'm going to get major dumped on!!
My master paln is simply to get as far as I can on this trip ... if nec my B plan is to simply call my / meet up with my back up driver, get to the nearest pub, have a debrief and home wheel it home
Plan B is = if the bike breaks, I break, the weather breaks !!!

[Bicycler]

Hi, and welcome to the forum.

RE: Lancashire

Route depends where you're coming from but for approaching Preston from the South eileithyia has the best route. The old tram road route she describes from Cuerden and Bamber Bridge (A6/A59) is part of Sustrans Route 55, the Guild Wheel is Route 622. Following that to NW Preston, there are a couple of onward routes to Poulton. Route 90 (aka. Lancashire Cycleway) or Route 62 followed by Route 90 are obvious choices. The tramway and Guild Wheel sections are almost entirely tarmacked shared-use routes. The section from Preston to Poulton will be on quiet(ish) roads.

Here is a useful overview map: http://www3.lancashire.gov.uk/corporate ... ?id=101014
(Poulton is just off the map north-west of Weeton and west of Singleton in the top left corner)
I may well be free if you'd like someone to ride this section with you. If you'd like that feel free to send me a message nearer the time.

From Poulton, again it depends where you are heading next. Bowland is lovely but hilly and quite a way to the east and visiting there doesn't take you any further North. So I'd be inclined to stick to the west unless you want to seek out some hills. This probably means going through Lancaster. The route I have used from Fylde to Lancaster is Lancashire Cycleway (Route 90) from Poulton to Cockerham. Staying on the A588 to Conder Green and then taking the cycle path (Route 6) from there to Lancaster. Somebody else will be able to advise a good route continuing North from Lancaster.

Hope that helps

[CafGriff]

Dearest CTC !!



I am so sorry to contact you today, only I desperately need your wisdom and possible help.



You had better get a cup of something, this is going to get a bit .... lengthy! Ha!!



I have been a member of this fabulous organisation for approx 5 years - your records will confirm this and you'll know when I actualy joined.

I have contacted you guys over the years for varying bits of advise and the like and I'm chuffed you are just a push of a few buttons away.



The reason for joining The Club is / was primarily to prepare and organise a journey of my lifetime!!
Yes, like thousands before me, I want / need / must do .... LEJoG !!

You probably receive many, many e-mails and phone calls alone these lines. but I really do need your advise and guidence.



Up until yesterday, last night at 9.30 my plans for my venture was tripping along quiet nicely.



Over the past year, like all LEJoG's and JoGLE's me, I had put the invite to family and friends to join me in my dream ... initially I started off with 6 other 'fool hardy and up for the adventure bods, like me, who were game and capable of the challenge ( girlie hockey players - I shall say no more ) !! We also had the use of one of the girls' husband in the form of a support driver. A Very healthy and promising little troop I thought.

Over the next months we all readied ourselves in fitness, education in bike mainaintance ( organised initially by CTC and for 6 months every monthly session attended at The Cycle Shed in Devonport ) and discussioned and prepared for the venture ahead. All looked and felt promising.

Routes were planned .... and replanned and again Ha!! replanned !!

Equipment was bought ( tent, micro sleeping bag, Vaude panniers and the like ) and Christmas and birthday gifts were accepted with many thanks with Yhe Ride in mind.

Family, work mates and other friends are totally behind me.



Slowly but surely, as life catches up with us and differing people have differing priorities, my dream has started to dwindle away from me. My troop has disappeared to ... just me!



This dream - ironically - is keeping me awake at night!! I am eating it, drinking it and worrying my pants off about it. I'm not worried that phyisically it's too much, on the contrary ... it look's like, I'm only going to make it to Bristol and not be able to carry on!!



My target day to start this is March 8th. We shall travel down to Lands end and stay the night for 8 0'clock early start the next day.

I have two family member's who will - 1 ride, 1 support driver - with me to cover Cornwall, Devon and Cheddar area of Bristol, leaving me at Bristol where I have another family connection to sleep over for a night before I touch the rest of the country. After that .... I am alone, untill I get to my sisters at Poulton - le - Fylde just ouyside Cleverly nr Blackpool. I plan to have a couple of rest days and really wanted to plowugh on after that.




CTC, I'm wondering if you guys could put the call out for me to any other budding LEJoGGer's who paln to conquer this 'Everest'.

My plans have changed monthly; I have spent 24 hrs getting over this bomb shell - my driver has been out of work for two years and now, this week he has secured a very good job,; how can I not be happy for him? He lives in York and was so upset yesterday when he was telling me, I think he knew of the ..... devistation he was about to reap, his day during the day light hours must have been very hard for him, knowing the telephone call had to be made.

I felt so sorry for him, but at the same time, delighted that at long last, good luck was wooshing his way. How can I blame anyone in THAT prediciment ??



My plan now ( all change ) is to forget the triple idea of slitting the camping / B & B's and pubs idea but simply ditch the tent notion, and go for YHA's on route, and even look at ' BedsforCyclist's'. ( This is a bit scarey, I'm 50 + and remember scarey stories as a child.) It would be more money expense and less weight to carry around but I figure if I stick with my original plan to cycle around 50 / 60 miles a day, and then touch secure accommodation before 5 pm in the form of pre-booked places , before it gets dark in the evenings, then I still could be on track to get to the end safetly



The other pressure issue is that, I'm planning to raise money for a Sarcoma and Click cause. I have a great nephew, who isn't 3 yet, he was born with testicular cancer and even though Dr's operated when he was only a few months old by removing a testie, the cancer spread to his soft tissue. Our short story is on www.virgingiveagift/CafGriffLejog ( I think that's how you write it)



I'm desperate to know guys if:-



Has anyone else contacted you guys looking for a fellow cyclist for this venture? I'm willing to meet and buddy up.

Are there any groups that you know of, where there would be room for a little one, and they wouldn't mind me squeezing in.

Is there a way that a call out could be organised for a few cyclists to get together on differing stages of the route - from - Nailsea - Bristol - Cheddar - 'The Strawbery Line' poss - Monmouth - Clun - Chester - Poulton - le - Fylde ( stay for two days ) - Windemere - carlisle - Moffat ( maybe ) - on toe Glasgow - Fort William - Fort Augustus - Thurso and eventually 'Mecca> ''' oh! sorry ... I mean ... Val Halla !!!

People may simply want to go out for a round trip for them, maybe a sleep over somewhere and I could venture on the next meeting point .... I could be a human baton !!!!

How are the flat plains of Somerset? .... I don't think I can tow a boat as well, if needed



Plus the added set back is the weather!! I'm wayching it every day - like the rest of nation. There has been massive structural damage to Plymouth on the foreshore and ofcourse Dawlish in Devon has been spliced away from the rest of GB.

Lately it's just wet and windy ... we haven't got into the snowy season yet!! What will happen to our country then I wonder??

This may well be a reason to pnce again cancel my dream for another year!!

Safety is paramount, that goes without saying. it's really not a problem to pull the plug - begrudgingly but necessarily a realistic option but ... my great nephew may not have the time.



This is such a long e-mail, I'm so sorry but if you guys at the CTC could help in anyway, that would be beautiful !!

I look forward to you guys getting back to me.



The other thing I have thought about is, getting as far as I can on route this time around, as I can.

If I have to stop, then I'd put a bloody graet big X on the map, making a 'rescue me phone call ', come home and then coming back to the X next year and taking off again.

My only question there would be ... if I keep all the route proof, milage records, shop receipts etc, could I syill apply for a T-shirt and certificate staing I had completed the route.



Hope you guys can help.



Shine On Moonbeams!!

Cathy Griffin

[eileithyia]

Do you feel physically capable of doing the ride daily with accommodation at the end of the day? If so go for it, to me it is simply a 2 week touring holiday that I would contemplate doing every year. Doing an unsupported E2E is not necessarily that difficult if you can do the daily mileage. We have had this conversation before with someone who also found problems with their support.

You worry about accommodation in someone's house but would trust to a stranger providing help with transport. The majority of people you meet when doing a trip are mostly decent people, if people want to fleece / steal etc from someone then there are more lucrative pickings than the occasional E2E-er I would have thought. If people have offered their services via 'warm showers' etc then I am sure they are perfectly genuine people.

Following an accident recently I trusted the kindness of a stranger to assist with my son.

Camping; I did wonder at your plans in an earlier thread, March is quite early to go for an E2E and I would have thought camping a bit ambition... yes I know people do do winter camping but it is not much fun with the early sunset etc.

Accommodation; You may have to look at booking because a lot of places do not open until 'Easter' Obviously heading for a town is more likely to generate more accommodation 'on speck' than if you aim for a small village and hope for accommodation.

I would think trying to link up with a group at such an early time of the year would be fairly difficult because there will not be so many people doing the trip quite so early that also fit in with your dates/plans.

Good Luck

[LollyKat]

The link in your last post doesn't work - it should be http://uk.virginmoneygiving.com/CafGriffLEJoG.

Part of the problem as I see it is the time of year, though I understand your reasons for it. I could be tempted to join you for the Glasgow-Inverness stretch BUT the weather can be pretty dodgy still in March. Rannoch Moor is very exposed. You could go round by Inveraray and Oban but that adds extra mileage. Then I wouldn't want to cycle up the west side of Loch Ness on the busy A82, but the military road (B862) is again very exposed, while the forest path at the loch side could be very muddy and slow.

Also it could be difficult to book accommodation at that time of year as it is a bit early for the tourist season. Some of the hostels will be open for the climbers, though.

IMO you should assume that you are going the full distance, plan a route accordingly and post it here, with dates. I think that way you'd be more likely to attract company.

Good luck!

[Norman H]

That's a desperately sad catalogue of setbacks. It does seem as though the Gods are conspiring against you. The physical challenge of LEJOG is achievable by any moderately fit cyclist but the mental challenge is always the unknown quantity. Your choice of start date was always going to make things harder but, given these latest setbacks and the current weather, you will need to dig really deep. There is a world of difference between a solo LEJOG in May/June and the same thing in early March. Most End-to-Enders put themselves outside their comfort zone in some way or other. It's what makes success all the sweeter. What you are contemplating is certainly beyond what I would want to do. Bear in mind that above all it should be enjoyable.

Only you can make the call. We can only offer you advice and moral support. For what it's worth here are my views.
I think your two biggest problems are going to be the weather and the lack of companionship. With regards the weather, given the current state of emergency in the south west, it might sound daft to say this but do bare in mind that the seasons, particularly in Scotland, are liable to be at least a month behind what you are experiencing in balmy Plymouth. With regards companionship, I'm sure members of the forum may be able to meet up with you for moral support but time to organise things is getting short. Sadly I'm in London but would otherwise willingly join you for a day or two.

On a more positive note. Not completing the whole challenge in one go is no big deal. As far as I’m concerned breaking the challenge down into two halves is just as valid as completing the route in one go. No different than taking a rest day. You will know that you pedalled every mile and who cares what others think.


I Know from personal experience, from this forum and from talking to other cyclists that Completing an End-to-End is one of the most fulfilling challenges for a cyclist ---- Life changing experience is an oft repeated phrase.

I wish you well whatever you decide.

[CafGriff]

ChilBlains!!! How wonderful YOU GUYS ALL are!!
I've posted my route plan to Mattfen - cos the dear has offered to meet and actually do the jaunt with me
I've joined the YHA and would happily book ahead any accomodation - if open.
I shall have a go at - copying and pasting my message to him - and posting it generally, if not hopefully he may be able to post it from his end.

I do have a 'base camp' where, following daily calls back .... 'They' can call ahead to a number of pubs / YHa's and B&B's to the next town or stopping point .. arrange the necessary and then direct me via my HTC phone, or simply speak / text directions to me. '
They' can also pay on the card from home and spend what could be a lengthy time on the phone arranging for bed, shower, bath and food - or just very simply, send an e - mail.

I do agree the time of year is very choice, but ... let's face it in this day and age U have to be unemployed or retired to do anything lengthy, of a nature like this.
My work arrangements are such I have 2 weeks off from my Team, with an additional 5 days on top if needs be. and I haven't included the weekends in on that.
I do like the look of the CTC - E2E route set down in Oct 2019 revised in 23/4/2010
sorry, for the minute I forgotten the Legends name who completed this epic.
I have dreamed of this ever since I first got a bike.
I have thoroughly enjoyed my planning and spending along this venture and feel confident of completion on any part of the stages.
The weather on the other hand - well !! - I don't feel so confident on that front.
It's STILL raining ....

[LollyKat]

Fingers crossed for you!

[oldtimer99]

Don't think Scotland + March=Spring. My hill walking diaries covering 15 years show that March in the highlands (including Lomond-Glencoe-Fort Bill and all points north) is all too often winter. We're talking snow, ice and wind. Crampons and ice axes on the hills, and my little campervan unable to negotiate roads other than main roads. Don't get me wrong, it can be glorious, but it's not usual. Here's a quick guide. Spring heads north at about 200 miles a week (satellite imagery can be used to track the 'greening up of the land from southern europe.... forgot where I saw that). So , from Plymouth to Fort Bill must be, say 700 miles as the little birds fly. So whatever you are getting down south in mid-February is what you can expect in mid March 'up north' alternatively, the weather in mid March down your way doesn't reach the far north until mid April.

Don't decide not to go, but keep tabs on the weather and plan for it to be grim and cold. We use xc weather (google it) and it's a good guide

Enjoy!!! (and there's no midgies until May!0