Day 2 - Lambs to the slaughter

From: Lostwithiel
To: Thorverton
Miles - today: 70
Miles - Running total: 138
Local tipple: Otter ale


The honeymoon is over. As we climbed on board this morning we knew we had the most challenging day of the whole trip ahead. We were headed across the last bit of Cornwall and on into Devon, finding a route cross country down tiny lanes, flanked on either side by the moors – Bodmin and Dartmoor.

In a jungle the person at the front breaks trail. Although it’s hardly the same, a similar role exists in cycling, so we have decided to call this 'breaking wind'. Rest assured we have all done our fair share of breaking wind today.

By mid morning we bid farewell to Cornwall, but the terrain didn’t get any easier and nor did the navigation. These country lanes have no name and no road number. Following a route even on the most detailed map is far more difficult than one might imagine, which necessitated a great number of stops to ensure we kept on track.

Eventually we escaped the lanes and hit a larger road as we headed towards Okehampton for our lunch stop. The road was a rollercoaster and the hills weren’t getting smaller. Dartmoor was immediately to our right on the other side of the valley. Five miles out from our lunch destination we started climbing. It wasn’t steep but it was endless. On and on we went, all increasingly exhausted and desperate for a break and some sustenance.

At the top we had briefly to join the speeding traffic of the A30 – a motorway to all intents and purposes masquerading as an A-road. Cars and trucks swerved around us at great speeds, while we ourselves were doing 30mph or more as we sped down hill. This may not seem much but is unnerving in the extreme, especially while being buzzed by traffic doing 80mph.

Okehampton and lunch finally arrived at 2.30p.m. The food was not so much consumed as inhaled. At 3.30pm we set off again, another climb out of the town and another 25 miles ahead of us. The navigation was easier than the morning and the terrain demanding but easier, especially with some prolonged downhill sections that seemed to run along the ridge. The miles flew by in spite of tired legs. With four miles to go and atop another major incline, we got our first puncture (or rather I got my first puncture). This changed, we went on our way, faced another two or three significant climbs and cruised into Thorverton after 6p.m. A long and hard day, but a very rewarding one. And the local Otter ale slipped down all the better for that.