Spoiler alert – WE MADE IT TO SCOTLAND!!!!
Undercarriage update: skin care routine continues to perform well. Areas remain tender.
Beth’s nature wee count: 6 and getting more brazen by the day. Today’s was literally on the side of a road with only my large frame and 2 bikes for shelter.
You’ve probably guessed it is another Harry blog again today (50% of readers close the tab).
Today was a real mix of emotions and highs and lows. We started in the Lake District with blue skies and headed north east. Despite getting slightly lost trying to find the Keswick cycle path, we made good ground cycling mainly up hill with some more wonderful views and scenery.
We then had our first high of the day as we rolled down into Dalston where we met mum (Tina) and her friend Diane, who had driven up to meet us in Boris (the camper van). After some very large running cuddles we sat down for a drink and catch up in a cafe garden in Dalston. Mum will now be supporting us for the rest of the trip which is an absolute treat, but more of that later….
After a brief detour into Carlisle to head to a pharmacy to pick up some cream for Beth’s hives, we had our eyes set on Scotland. Whilst one of us was singing Loch Lomond (you take the high road etc.) we finally entered our 3rd country and another huge high.
This left us with a very hilly 50k to rejoin mum at our accommodation in Moffat.
We had our first low when Beth had what is commonly known in the cycling industry as a ‘Bonk’. This is where you basically just run out of energy and alongside a slightly dodgy knee, the thought of getting back on a bike and cycling over 3 pretty large climbs is just too much. After a minor ‘paddy’ (in Beth’s words – picture bike thrown on the floor and feet stomping) she was an absolute CHAMPION and got back on the bike. This is a serious physical and mental challenge and Beth continues to absolutely smashed it day by day.
We worked our way up the climbs and were rewarded with some incredible views of Scotland.
We were finally descending on our final destination when we were delayed further by a near death experience (minor exaggeration). We were cycling through some quiet lanes in between some large cattle farms where we came across a herd of cows acting aggressively on the road… after hiding behind a Land Rover, which eventually managed to get past we decided to turn back and try to find someone to help. Shortly after, a nearby farm owner came by and told us she’d heard of the incident (or in her words “beasts on the road ahead”) and would try to help out. She advised we stay put so we took the brave option of hiding behind some bins in a nearby house.
Eventually the lady and her husband managed to get the cows back into two separate fields, and her husband even drove the route we would be taking to ensure it was safe. We then had to cycle what we called the ‘cow gauntlet’ as we cycled between the two fields with all the cows staring at us. We’ve never cycled so quickly and refused to make eye contact with any of them!!!
We finally made it to our accommodation to be met by mum, who made us a delicious dinner of homemade veggie chilli and jacket potatoes – it was delicious and we felt so lucky!
Mum’s actual job (when not supporting us) is a sports masseuse, and one of us was treated to a nice gentle massage while the other was essentially abused for 30 minutes.
This was a long blog so if you’ve got this far – well done!
Daily Summary:
Distance cycled: 116k
Elevation: 1,432m
Time pedalling: 6 hours 44 minutes
County count: 13 (Dumfriesshire added to the list)
Country count: 3!
We also thought after making it into Scotland we would look back at the last 9 days and total up:
Distance cycled: 986km
Total elevation climbed: 10,895m
Total time in the saddle: 54h 59mins
Andddd we’re also going to leave the donation link here just in case anyone is feeling generous!
Towlers' Travels 
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