Notre Tour de France #11 (68 mi)

We're getting more efficient at this packing up business. At the beginning of the trip we were looking at perhaps 2 hours 45 minutes from waking up to setting off on the bikes. This morning I think that duration was closer to 1 hour 30 minutes. Will we be able to do it in an hour by the end of the trip? Who knows.

We headed almost directly south to a bike shop in the middle of nowhere which is listed as an official SRAM distributor (the manufacturer of my broken gear shifter). There is nothing particularly exciting to report about the journey there, but when we arrived they of course didn't have the part in stock and it would take around two weeks to order it in. Another plan required methinks.

From here we headed west towards the coast, aiming for a campsite we'd selected on the iPad. Well, were we in for a surprise when we got there. The reception was closed and a sign advised us to speak to the staff at the bar, which is exactly what we did. But as we entered the building, we were greeted by a gentleman wearing nothing but his sandals. Oh yes. We'd managed to choose a naturist site. His meat and two veg were blowin' in the wind and more than willing to give us a little wave. The woman at the bar (clothed, as she was working) advised us that wapping our wangs out was mandatory. Now don't get me wrong, Jwan and I are more than willing to comply with this "hangin' free" rule, but what we didn't agree with was the price. We've been paying between around €8 and €14 a night. This site would have cost in excess of €23, so we left in search of somewhere a little cheaper.

One of the neighbouring villages had a small campsite, but it was literally a field with a toilet and sink, so obviously no wifi - something I needed to order a replacement bike part from England to have it shipped over here. Onwards and upwards. We made our way to Luçon to the next nearest place boasting wifi. It was a tough 15 miles, battling a strong headwind all the way here. The site seems reasonable, was considerably cheaper and is close to Luçon, which we'll go back to tomorrow to explore in more detail. For my family reading this - do any of you recognise the place names on the attached photo? Jealous? :)

C2C #2: Morecambe to Ripon (87mi)

We awoke early this morning to relative silence, meaning the rain had at least temporarily ceased. As there's no rest for the wicked, we immediately began our preparations for the day. I make no exaggeration when I say the moment (and I meant the moment!) we began dismantling the tent, the rain returned with a vengeance and consequently everything got wet through. Wonderful. Just wonderful.

Crack a smile, mate...

Morale was low

Breakfast provided temporary shelter from the typically British weather, though we knew we'd have to step back out into it sooner or later. Neither of us were expecting precipitation for the duration of the trip, so we made the decision, as we sat there in our shorts and short-sleeve jerseys, to find the nearest local bike shop and buy some more appropriate attire.

The moment we stepped back out of the shop donning our waterproofs, the rain bloody stopped. You just can't make it up. At least the forecast suggested the misery would soon end and true to its word, that's exactly what happened. As the day advance and we pedalled ourselves closer to our destination for the day (Ripon), the blanket of white above us gradually dissipated to show the lovely ocean of blue, back from a two-day holiday.

Our suffering had paid off

After being rather underwhelmed by the campsite in Morecambe, we had completely the opposite reaction in Ripon. The sun was out to say hello. The campsite was situated in the middle of the countryside down a quiet country lane, away from any traffic noise and to top it all off, bunnies were hopping around the entrance to the site. The staff were pleasant and the facilities well maintained. Imagine the smiles on our faces as we pitched the tent next to the river Ure. The day couldn't have ended on a better note.

The campsite: Sleningford Watermill