Success

I made it back home around 7pm last night. As I approached Crewe, my instinct was telling me that I'm nearly home, but in reality there was still 15 miles of pedalling, and the last stretch was a real slog, especially as a headwind picked up.

I was really quite exhausted by the end of it, although glad to have completed what will be tougher (I hope) than any two day stretches when I do the real thing.

The combination of quite a long distance (79 miles on Saturday, 76 on Sunday) and the big hills of Wales is not something I'm planning on doing over the two week tour. I deliberately planned so that any hilly parts (eg. day 2 in the Lake District) will be a shorter daily distance.

Saying that, I've revised my route slightly so that I'm now stopping in Kewsick instead of Cockermouth, knocking 10 miles or so off both days two and three. After the 80 mile stint on the first day, I think it's going to be for the best so that I don't burn myself out right at the beginning of the trip.

I did get a bit saddle sore, and that's something I'm going to do all I can to try and avoid on the main trip, but the main problem I'm facing today is from midge bites all down my legs. Obviously I'm going to have to re-apply the repellent as I'm going along.

There were a few lessons I learned that made the trip worthwhile (not that it wasn't anyway - I saw some great scenery and in general enjoyed the experience):

Lesson one, well everything I've read told me to avoid carrying much/anything on a backpack and I'm inclined to agree. I didn't have much, but even the weight of the hydration bladder in my backpack was taking it's toll after 30-40 miles.

Lesson two, I think I need front panniers. I had around 12kg loaded on the back of the bike, and it was generally OK once you get going, but it made it quite a slog going uphill with all the weight on the back. If I can move a few kilos to the front I think it will make things a bit easier.

Lesson three: don't use the snooze button on my alarm! I promised myself I'd be out of bed by 8.30am, but by the time I'd hauled my ass out of the sleeping bag (after 9), eaten, got washed, changed and packed the tent away, it was 11.20. I was still home by teatime, but it meant I didn't have as much time to stop as I'd have liked, and also meant that I was stopping for lunch only an hour and a half into the trip.

I was pretty lucky to avoid any dramas - no punctures or other failure, and only one rain shower. Despite the predictions of some, it's not put me off the trip, and I'm all set for going in less than two weeks. Hopefully these damn midgie bites will have cleared up by then!