Fe to Fe 2022

[mikeIow]

So it's time for another pedalling adventure 🚵

The start of this years jaunt begins tomorrow…..driving down to Okehamption, then cycling with a pal between the last two iron viaducts in Britain - Meldon and Bennerley, & on back to Leicester.
About 350 miles over 7 days. Along the way we will cross over a few other interesting bridges: Clifton suspension, Severn and Ironbridge. Looking forward to it!

The inspiration originally came from https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-derbyshire-58597352: Iron to Iron!

The official route appears to not be complete yet (although I think I saw a Komoot map at some stage). It will likely avoid Wales, be a little shorter and less hilly, but we liked the extra hop over the Severn, & hey, more hills are good for me, so why not 😱

Not quite my epic 2021 LEJoG monster, but then I haven't prepared for this as much either....

You can see the overall route I have crafted at https://cycle.travel/map/journey/280520…..& if you feel particularly loose with some change, we’re raising some pennies for a local animal rescue centre: a favoured charity of a favourite local microbrewery we will end at🍻
Just hoping my crank doesn’t break this time 🤪. I’ve had one minor challenge already, resolved yesterday with the help of this forum 😎👍👍

 

[Cathryn]

Sounds brill. Looking forward to seeing the pics and getting updates!!

 

[I like Skol]

Make sure you grab a few jars of cider and a pasty from the Pump & Pedal pub/bike shop at the bottom of the Meldon trail. It really sets you up for a great day in the saddle

 

[mikeIow]

The Pump & Pedal!
Well, we had a painfully slow drive down (3.5hr journey took almost 6), but we were staying at the Travelodge opposite the P&P, so enjoyed some games of frogger to cross the road and enjoy Friday night pizzas and beer/cider 💪

Today was a very relaxed day: originally we had 65 miles to Taunton for day one, then we had to start a day earlier, so pootled to Crediton: great rooms at the Union Road Moto Velo.
The ride was straightforward: along the cycle route to the Meldon viaduct, fab brekky in Sticklepath Stores before our wives drive off home (easy 3.5hrs for them!)

Then we diverted to take a look at Castle Drogo (well: my pal went in with his NT card, I read about it in the shop😉).
All Yin & Yang: after that, we happened upon the Drewe Arms in Drewsteignton for another fine pint of Jail Ale: as a broad rule, I won’t drink alcohol unless I’m within a few miles of the destination, but since this was such an easy day, we broke that one….
….then suffered the Yang to that: a b@$\ard hill that peaked over 15% shortly afterwards
ouch!!
Still, a nice start 👍
On to Taunton tomorrow to gently ramp things up: hoping the weather remains like today: lovely!

Cheers!

 

[I like Skol]

so pootled to Crediton: great rooms at the Union Road Moto Velo.

That was our cake/coffee stop. Great place and cool owner who has also done Lejog and gave us a generous donation to our chosen charity

 

[mikeIow]

Ramping things gently up for Day 2
Just 42miles, with temperatures hitting 30degrees 🥵
Sad to leave the very cool Union Road Moto Velo: *highly* recommended as somewhere to stay: interesting history, lovely owner and a delightful breakfast 👍

Only one particularly gnarly 15% hill that went on and on, and a nice pub 5 miles from the end 🍻
Signs for free range children (none seem!), & a couple of road closed signs to divert us…
Passed through the unusual sounding Upexe….

A lovely flat off road section of the Grand Western Canal for a good few miles: past beautiful Sampford Peverill, with some nice artwork along the sides…

Feels like tomorrow will be the real test, with some rearranged accommodation due to my pal who was putting us up testing +ive for COVID 😱).
At the end we found a decidedly locals pub with Sky footie in just to catch the end of the season…. then left and found a MUCH nicer one (Ale House in Taunton), where one old fella thrust a fiver in my hand to donate to the cause….followed by a surprisingly deciduous pasta meal at Venezia Taunton. Only curiosity being when 4 unmarked dark XC90s came hurtling along with blues’n’twos blazing….either something big kicking off somewhere, or they were missing closing time at the chippy!!

One more callout for @RichardFairhurst for the cycle.travel planning website - my pal commented on how fabulous the roads had been…perhaps 20% off-road (mostly canal), 60% single carriageway quote lanes: lovely!!

Things build up more tomorrow….earlier start 😱

 

[mikeIow]

Who knew the Somerset Levels would be so….flat 🤣

A moderately featureless day on the road, I have to say, some of it emulating parts of my LEJoG last year….complete with steel swans:

A lovely cream tea at the delightful Strawberry Line Tearooms in Wiscombe:

followed by a similarly delightful ride on the old Strawberry Line….& a nice finish across the Clifton Suspension Bridge to Bristol

Nope, no idea why that is sideways!

Bit tired now…..and tomorrow is the big bad day of the trip….so tonight we eat, drink and relax: last pub for 22 yards 🤪

 

[cougie uk]

Looks fantastic !

 

[mikeIow]

Day 4 of Fe2Fe.
A day of the Bs: Blockages, Breakage & Brutal hills (almost 1,700m climbed, cycling for almost 7 hours) 😱
Started with a hint of rain in the air, & escaping Bristol included a 15% climb at one point: nasty!
We got a little diverted on our way to the Severn Bridge, but crossing that was bright & not too breezy.

On to Chepstow (18 miles before breakfast 💪)

There we found an absolutely delightful cafe, Chatterbox.

Then the hills began 😱 ….& relentlessly continued throughout the day, including one more diversion that meant we dropped rapidly down to the valley floor then right back up with a hill approaching 20%.
Did I ever mention that I hate hills? 1700m climbing during the 7hrs of pedalling for us:

Just before halfway, the breakage occurred: clearly I put too much POWER into pedalling: my chain snapped 😳
Luckily I carry a few spare links and a chain breaker tool, so sorted it out….but it has made me a little nervous: gears 2-4 clatter a little. So I’m trying to avoid using them much, which means going from perhaps 8-10mph on the flat, straight down to my “happy gear”, 4mph up the hills 🤪

We mostly dodged showers….a few bits here’n’there; met a couple aiming to do LEJoG in 13 days - him carrying the panniers. Apparently the got absolutely soaked the day before from Taunton to Bristol….but they had only started at 3pm 🤷‍♂️

Happened upon the shambling yet grand Skenfrith Castle

Anyway, we cracked on to a lovely B&B in Hereford, & replenished lost calories at the Beefy Boys: second best burger in the world: they have the award to prove it!

This morning, I will endeavour to find a bike shop with a spare long chain (11sp cog) & who might be able to take a rapid look at the gears…still around 160-170miles to go before Friday night…

 

[mikeIow]

Day 5 of Fe2Fe. D-Day…..D for disaster 😳

It started well enough.
A top breakfast, then the lovely fella at Mastercraft Cycles kindly took a quick look at my gears: a little tweaking & things were much quieter, & he was happy I had rejoined it well enough 😇

No charge! (will pop an extra tenner in the charity collection!)

Then onwards towards Ludlow.

A mizzly, grey day: the kind that makes you think it isn’t *that* wet, until you realise you really are quite wet…

Ludlow was an experience.

We happened upon Twigs: a florist with a small cafe inside…the advantage being there was some cover outside for our bikes.
We order a coffee, shake and a couple of cakes. The drinks arrived. Another fella walked in, and chose the cake she had promised me: it became apparent she (& another staff member who we chatted to) had completely forgotten about our cakes. We decided to pay for the drinks & leave: they should stick to flowers🤪
Another cafe accommodated us, as the rain continued to threaten.

We pedalled onwards.

The roads were a little wider than many we have been on, until about 6 miles from the end.

Cycle.travel took us off the ‘main’ road and down a narrow lane: a bit gravelly in places, and a pretty sharp down then up.

My pedalling pal is always faster up the hills, but my excess weight helps on the way down (#physics!), so I headed off first.

After a long and winding run down, I plodded up the nasty incline. Kept checking to see when he would reel me in, but no signs. Maybe I was getting quicker after all!

I paused at the top, and checked my phone….to see a message from him telling me he has crashed: suspected broken arm 😱

I race back down, and indeed a little up, to find him on a chair in a nice couple’s driveway, making quite a bloody mess of it too…..

Ambulance had already been called, so my role was essentially a morale-boosting one of lightening the worried mood with some ill-considered humour….one I am clearly very well suited to.

Ambulance arrived pretty fast, and they did a great job patching him up to take him off to hospital.

I loitered about for a couple of hours to wait for his wife to tell her what had happened, help load the bike up, thank our good Samaritans (who had also kept me going with tea and biscuits!)…before finally, and a little nervously, heading back up that bloody huge hill again, before descending to the beautiful Iron Bridge in Ironbridge.

What a day 😱

I’ve had to drink his beer, and will continue the quest alone…..2 days left 🤞

 

[mikeIow]

Day 6: the penultimate Fe2Fe
Well, a slightly sober day of pedalling on my own without my pal: he was enjoying hospital food without the ascents….
Talking of food, I had the biggest breakfast of the week, with a leisurely couple of coffees. After I had accidentally set my bike alarm off 😱

A climb out of Ironbridge, blustery pedal around Telford

then a lovely long off-road trail, the Stafford to Newport Greenway.

After over 30miles, desperate for a coffee & cake, I happened upon a pub: just in time snacking!

Also passed a pit of truly hideous sphinx-like gate guardians 🤢

The latter part of the day was slightly less appealing…at one point cycling alongside the very busy A50, but at least I mostly had a following wind 🌬

Hotel duly arrived at, and as a bonus, instead of a twin room with my pal, I persuaded mt wife to drive over to join me in a double….extra bonus tomorrow, as I let her take my no-longer needed panniers 🤣👍

 

[mikeIow]

Time to wrap this up!

Day 7 of Fe2Fe: the adventure is complete!!
A relatively easy ride today, albeit a bit breezy for much of it. Made easier by sending MrsMikeiow away with my panniers: now surplus to requirements!

Through Derby to see the old-but-inaccessible Friar Gate Bridge….then onwards to the goal!

A veritable herd of highland cow babies were nestled by a woodland path at one point: very cute!

The Goal: Bennerley Viaduct was reached by noon: it is well obscured by vegetation from the canal path along side, but is a hugely impressive structure, & lovely to cycle along (& back!)!

From that point, the goal was to get to the pub back at home, just in time for opening at 4pm, for a few ales with some pals 😎🍻👍

Just need my pal to have some good surgery on his damaged elbow: scheduled for next week 🤞👍