Hadrian’s Wall Cycle Tour - Day 2

The day started off with some good scenes of the sun rise, viewed from bed in the Bowes Hotel in Bardon Mill.

After an enormous cooked breakfast, the hotel owner wished us luck after delighting in telling us that our route involved climbing a big hill straight out of the village. 



He wasn’t wrong! Bottom gears and standing up off the saddle were tactics that eventually saw us up at the high point, and stripped down to short sleeves. It was worth it for the views though of moorlands and several old Roman Camps. 



The wind was still behind us as our climb gave way to several long and gradually descending stretches of road that were travelled without the need to peddle much.



The colours of autumn are super vibrant; not just the leaves, but the berries too! 



On the way down off the moors as we left ‘The Wall’ and began to head for the River Tyne, we stopped for a break by the rock. Presumably an old Roman one of some significance?



Hexham was our next port of call. A fine town indeed, with an impeccable bowling green in the gardens of the Hall which were open to the public.





Even more impressive was the Abbey in the centre of town.



Well worth a good look around and with plenty of volunteers to show you around and talk you through the history. One of them offered to get the keys so I could look in the crypt. I declined the offer although it is Hallowe’en so maybe I should have?!

Instead we opted for coffee and cake at the adjoining  Cafe instead. 



Conscious of the earlier sunsets, we didn’t linger too long. 



I’m having an issue with me glasses - they have snapped in two! But seem to just about hang on my face.



The last part of the days ride to Wylam was along the Tyne. It’s a big and beautiful river. Plenty of fly fishing going on, but seen no canoes so far. I suspect it could be a great river trip?





We crossed the river a few times. First we crossed on a strange bike bridge.



Which led to a lovely traffic free section…



Before crossing again on an old railway bridge.



Just before four in the afternoon, we arrived in Wylam. It was just getting dusky and a good time to be off the bikes. We found a cafe and had an ice cream before checking into tonight’s guest house.



Dinner in the village pub was superb value and enormous… we were both pleased to have a big feed after travelling 49km with a good amount of uphill thrown in.



A great day - and we stayed dry!

Hadrian’s Wall

Day 1 of the Tour and all is well! The logical challenges of getting ourselves and the bikes up to Haltwhistle went smoothly and apart from actually starting on the west coast, all is on track!



First stop was to visit the historic Hadrian’s Wall. We cycled up to Walltown Country Park, where you can get some splendid views of the wall as well as the surrounding moorland. 



We left the bikes outside the little visitor centre and continued on foot up to the viewpoints and get a closer inspection of the stonework.





When we got back to the bikes, we were delight to find that the park warden had just opened the cafe - for the last day this year! Over a cup of tea, we quizzed him on the state of a small road we’d identified on the map that looked like it might be bikeable. He had no extra beta, but got the map out to check and wished us good luck! The section of ‘road’ looked like it would give us a good circular route and keep us off any main roads. We decided to go for it…



It was certainly traffic free! And passed by some interesting old buildings and remains.



Gradually, the track got worse and worse, but we had the winds at our backs and the views were great.





Black clouds were chasing us and a few drops of rain, carried by the wind, caught us up every now and then, but we stayed mostly dry.



We almost ground to a muddy halt before reaching this farm, where the tarmac re-started. Thankfully, the peddles kept turning and the tyres gripped well. We were mud splattered, but made it though otherwise unnscathed.

A fast downhill on a bumpy track off the moors necessitated a rest at the bottom, where things smoothed out again.



In Haltwhistle, we not only ‘found Wally’, but also discovered the second bold claim of the trip - the Centre of Britain!



A new road links Haltwhistle and Bardon Mill, so we had the old road to ourselves, a tail wind and some lengthy downhill sections! Happy days!



In the small town, Halloween celebrations were in full swing - especially at the local pottery.





We had another brew in the local tea shop, getting inside just as the heavens opened, then checked into the Bowes Hotel which was located conveniently opposite! A warm welcome was given, bikes stashed in a shed out the back and before long we were tucking into a giant Sunday roast. 

Total Ride: 20km

 

On the move again…

Despite the reduction in lung capacity, I felt well enough to set off on this week’s planned adventures, but have toned down the level of challenge to factor in my weakened state as well as a rail strike! We left The Cottage at dusk and drove north in a well loaded van. It was bizarrely warm and despite the M56 being completely closed, we made good time as we travelled through the wet and windy weather to the north of England.

After a few hours of sleep in Darlington, we parked up the van on someone’s driveway (pre-arranged!), and cycled off to find the (very grand!) railway station.



Which boasts the bold claim of being the first passenger railway, not only in the UK, but the entire world!



The train can only accommodate two bikes and it is not possible to book them onto the train, so it was a fairly nervous wait on the platform for the first train of the day. 



Thankfully, we are two of only three passengers and the only cyclists on train so our worries were unfounded! 



So, the initial plan had been to cycle coast to coast across England, from Carlisle to Tynemouth, roughly following the course of Hadrian’s Wall, then to travel south to the Yorkshire Dales to meet Anna, Jonathan and Ben. Having left the van in Darlington, we hoped to take the train to Carlisle, then continue on bikes, to complete the circuit. A train strike now means that it’s not possible to get to Carlisle, so we are cutting the journey slightly short and not quite doing the full sea to sea challenge. My lungs, for one, are quite happy with this! All that remains to to sit back and let the train take the strain for the morning until we get to Haltwhistle - and keep our fingers crossed for a week of favourable weather!

Sea Salt Therapy

Still trying to shake off the lurgy and although much better than a few days ago, we're both still a long way from full health. However, I was well enough to contemplate leaving The Cottage to check out the north coast with Luke. We went over with the proviso that I might just take some photos and enjoy a blustery walk to get some fresh air in my lungs - which are currently working on about fifty percent capacity. 

There was a stiff off shore breeze blowing and the skies remained overcast, but the temperatures were hovering around an incredible 18 degrees! - On arrival there was a lady happily swimming around the bay and body surfing some good looking waves. It's been about ten years since I last surfed here and happily, we were the only surfers on the entire beach. It probably wouldn't have been what the doctor would have prescribed, but it felt like it might do me good on some level at least!

With Poppy and Emma, we had a great little team and all the waves to ourselves - I decided that a quick dip and some salt water therapy might help clear the lungs!

Having decided to get changed, as we waxed our boards, the sun even came out! Surely a good omen.

We all paddled out easily and got a lovely long first ride that instantly made me feel that it was worth getting in! 

After the euphoria of catching the surf, the paddle back out was super hard work in my tired state and the waves changed a bit too, adding to a pounding I then received. Salt water certainly washed my sinuses though and the water felt warm!

I didn't try and over do it, so retreated out after a few good waves happy to have finally managed to have a local adventure and a social afternoon.

Later that night, with salt water still sloshing around inside my head, I was involved with a CPD training session at the Ogwen Valley Mountain Rescue Base that had been organised by the Association of Mountaineering Instructors, looking at how the rescue system works in terms of co-ordinating an operation.

And how the systems work on the ground - how you actually rig for the lowering of a stretcher.

All rather informative, with lots of more 'heavy duty' kit that I'm used to climbing with!