I woke up in the night with toothache which wasn't a great start.  About 2 miles outside Lairg the road became a single track.  This first leg of the final day involved some hills but some really long steady descents down winding roads.  It was really great, one of the memorable journeys of the entire ride.  This single track 'A' road took me to a place called Tongue where I saw the first signpost for John O'Groats.

This second leg will stick in my mind forever.  I caught site of the coast within a mile, it was such a great view and feeling.  I felt sure that the journey was almost over.  Everything was going well, Pablo was in great shape, the Sat Nav was behaving and I felt good.  The sun was shining, but it wasn't too hot.  Within a couple of miles the road had turned inland and suddenly it became a lot tougher.  There was hill after hill.  I was overheating struggling up the big hills and then getting too cold on the descent.  The weather turned a bit nasty and I still had 35 miles of this leg to go.  The countryside was a bit bleak, the road deserted and I was starting to tire.  I stopped twice on one hill to catch my breath.  My left leg, which I hurt on day 2 in Bristol, wasn't playing the game.  My left foot was clipped into the pedal but I'm not sure it wasn't doing much.  The only reason it was moving was because my right foot was pushing it around!  If it had been a sheepdog on a working farm I feel sure that the farmer would have shot it last week.

This got gradually worse until I had to stop to have something to eat and a quick stretch.  The wind was biting and I had to crouch down behind a wall to stop myself from getting too cold.  I only stopped for 5 minutes.  The hills didn't stop and I reached my lowest point of the trip.  I was truly on my chin straps.  Further down the road I passed a place called Bettyhill.  The shop sign said 'open 8 days a week' which made me laugh.  At least it wasn't raining.  Oh, spoke too soon.  Soon the hills became less fierce and I passed Dounreay power station (as was).  The road from here into Thurso didn't seem too bad, it finished with a pleasent descent.  I knew I had broken the back of the final day and felt a great deal happier.

I left Thurso after a brief stop for yet more food and a cup of tea.  There were still hills but nothing too scary.  The roads were wet, so I was lucky to have missed the rain.  I only had 20 miles to go so I decided to fire on all cyclinders and really go for it.  I didn't need to worry about tomorrow.  Amazingly I averaged 16.7 mph for the last 20 miles.  Just outside John O'Groats Jake was waiting on his bike to ride in with me.  He asked me if I would do it again but with him next time; not just now son!
The feeling of elation, exhaustion and satisfaction really made for an emotional rollercoaster of a day.

Preparing for the ride over the last 11 months has taken over my life, but it was worth it.  I couldn't have done it without the words of encouragement and support from everyone.  The support team, Sally my wife in particular, have been an absolute rock and in the words of Isaac Newton and others

"I have seen a little further because I'm standing on the shoulders of giants"

Today was meant to be an easier day as it was only 80 miles to Lairg.  I avoided Inverness and cut 20 miles off my original route, the price though was some seriously steep climb.  This was the steepest climb so far by some way.  I didn't really enjoy it at all.  The cleat on my left shoe has almost worn through, I hope it can hold out until tomorrow night.  After 40 miles I stopped in Conon Bridge for lunch, half of the day’s journey in the bag.  I had some Lasagne from last night and a chip buttie.

Leg 2 was 30 miles with less climbing.  As you get tired though the hills become mountains and you find that you are searching for a lower gear, but there isn't one!  I plodded on at no great pace until I hit the A9 which was busy but fast.  It's amazing what a difference the surface of the road makes and I was averaging over 15 mph for about 12 miles until I turned off and returned to some rutted roads once more.  This road was an A road and took me up and up for what seemed like an endless climb until I was cycling through moorland.  It was bleak, but the rain never arrived and the sun came out for a while.  It was quite breezy which cooled me down.  The descent was awesome and I got up to 35 mph for a mile or so which really helped the average speed.  I finally arrived at Bonar Bridge feeling fairly exhausted but happy knowing that I only had 11miles to go for today.

I didn't anticipate writing anything about the last 11 miles but it was so tough that I thought I would mention it.  I still climbed something like 600 feet and it was into a headwind for the first 3 miles.  The views were spectacular, but boy it was hard going.  I'm still having to visualise success to keep going, but there is only one day to go now!!!!  The Sat Nav is still working perfectly and the roads are better than they were in Lanarkshire.

The messages of support via the blog comments, email and text have been a massive help, thank you.

It was a bit fresh this morning hence all the gear.  I left Tarbet heading for Bridge of Orchy.  This was hard going with lots of climbing and the usual poor road surfaces.  The scenary is spectacular in all directions.  No rain at all today which was a bonus. 

I soon had to stop and take off a layer as it was hot climbing the black mountains.  Lots of traffic and narrow roads didn't make me feel too comfortable.  In a weird sort of way I'm really enjoying the long tough climbs because there is a massive sense of achievement when you reach the top.  At the very top was a fella playing the bagpipes!  The views were simply stunning again.  It wasn't sunny but the light was great and the sky was fairly clear.

I put in an extra stop after the Black Mountains due to fatigue.  I had a bite to eat at Glencoe before pushing on to Fort William.  Fort William is the base camp for Ben Nevis....... that got me thinking, which you have plenty time to do on a bike, maybe my next challenge..........  Then I realised I was a bit delirious and thought that I had better concentrate on finishing this challenge before I even contemplate another.  I had a power nap at Fort William, and didn't want to get back on the bike.  Almost a refusal, but I got on and set off for the last leg to Fort Augustus.

The mind plays tricks on you when you are tired.  I was convinced that this should be flat (ish) as it went across the Great Glen.  Wrong again.  I followed Loch Lochy and Loch Oich and then there were a couple of mean climbs before Fort Augustus.  I had to stop a couple of times to relieve the pressure on my legs and backside.  This flat (ish) leg still involved over 1000ft of climb.  Sure you get to go downhill the other side but it can get really cold on the descent, and the wind seems to whistle across the Loch and into your face.  I was convinced that something was wrong with Pablo as I seemed to be putting in a lot of effort but not really going very fast.  I still managed the fastest average of the day on the last leg (14.5 mph).  In a training run I would have been upset by this speed but on the back of 700 miles in 7 days I was quite pleased. 

I checked Pablo over, all seems fine.  I think I was just tired.  I was considering selling the bike after this is over but I'm not sure I will be able to let him go, trusty friend that he is.  All is well with the Sat Nav.  Since I reversed the firmware upgrade it has been awesome again.  The battery now lasts all day, it takes me to where I want to go and is back to where it was.  A fine piece of kit, I never doubted it for a second.

The campsite is great and we treated ourselves to supper out tonight.

Notice that I'm not putting any weight on my left leg.  It still hurts like hell when I walk or stand on it for too long.  I'm blaming the climb into Clifton on day 2.

Jake rode the first bit with me (only a couple of hundred yards!).  The day showed promise and started off sunny.  This only lasted about half an hour though and then the showers came.  The route looked good but in fact was a slow grind on an old A road.  It was still dual carriageway in places, I think approximately 15 cars passed me during the 30 miles or so that I was on it.  The surface was shocking; Pablo turned into a bone shaker.  The first stop was a truck stop in Lesmahagow.  This turned out to be a Tesco supermarket construction site and the support team had had to stop at the side of the road on a slope and hope that I saw them.

 
After a cup of tea and a bacon roll it was on towards Glasgow.  The road had improved and the run into the city was an easier ride and better than expected. 

Heidi didn't seem to want to drive around the streets of inner city Glasgow, so I was on my own.  I had plotted a simple route, taking a cycle path along the Clyde and out to Dumbarton.  I had visions of this being easy and of sitting alongside the river, eating my packed lunch.  Unfortunately there was a festival on which had closed the path and I had to pick my way around some awful roads through Glasgow.  To add insult to injury, once I had rejoined the cycle path, the surface was cobbled and shook me to pieces.  If that wasn't enough, I got lost and ended up in a car park for an engineering works.  Having clambered (with Pablo) through the undergrowth of nettles and grass to a canal, I then rejoined the path and finally made it out to Dumbarton.  It was a relief to see the support team, which had increased in size with reinforcements, in Asda car park.  Grandparents are great for keeping the kids occupied who were a little stir crazy in the van.

After all this, there was still another leg to go and after a snack stop, I then took the busy road out towards Loch Lomond.  There was a cycle path in places, which made it a bit easier and the views of the Loch made it better.  The sun had been shining and things were looking good.  At the top of the Loch the heavens opened again and to finish me off, it hammered down and I knew that there were 4 miles (in the wrong direction) to go to the campsite.  I finally arrived, tired and wet, but happy to see the support team (well Sally, as the kids had hot-footed it over to the playground).  The campsite was lovely and was right next to Loch Long.  After a long (and welcome) shower and another one of Sally's fab meals, we went down to the Loch and skimmed some stones with the children.  It almost felt like I was on holiday (just for a few minutes until I caught sight of the bike again!)

We were queueing outside Sainsbury in Lancaster at 7.25 am waiting for the cafe to open for breakfast.  The weather was better than expected, but I was still prepared for the rain that was forecast.  The first leg was through Kendal and on to the infamous climb to 1400 ft known as Shap.  It's quite difficult to get going first thing, the miles seem to pass very slowly. About 5 miles in I heard a twang from the back wheel.  Sure enough a spoke had broken.  I bent it around one of the other spokes to stop it catching and carried on.  I spent 15 miles or so pondering where to get it fixed.  Luckily I passed a bike shop in Kendal (Brucie's Bikes).  They were very friendly and fixed it without fuss. All the time they were doing that I was wondering what to do about paying (I only had £10 on me).  The cost was £7.50, phew.

The climb out of Kendal is steady but never ending!  The training runs I had done to Bala were paying off big time today.  I felt a tremendous sense of achievement when I reached the top and utter relief when I saw the van.

After a quick bite to eat at the top of Shap I set off for leg 2.  This was destined to take me to Gretna.  The first 5 miles flew by on the descent, but the next 40 were a real grind.  The rain never really happened so I got too hot in the gear I was wearing.  About 5 miles from Gretna the wind really got up straight in my face.  This was awful and my legs were really aching.  I have self diagnosed tendonitis in my left leg.  I got a bit bored on this leg, I've found that thinking about something else helps to divert your attention.  I was so relieved to reach Gretna and it was really nice that Jake and Grace were waiting by the sign to greet me.  They noticed the gap between the "welcome to England" and the "welcome to Scotland" signs so named the land in between Scongeland.

The final leg was through Lockerbie and on to Beattock.  The road was great with a huge cycle lane for almost the entire 30 miles.  The sun was out and I had changed back to shorts.  Sure enough this was tantamount to a rain dance and it started to rain.  Fortunately it didn't last too long and was actually quite refreshing.

The campsite has a playground for the kids which is great.  The trains go past every 17 minutes to Glasgow.  Sleep well.

I was planning a slightly later start today, but I woke up at 5 ish when the painkillers had worn off.  Still it was nice to be at home, but most of my stuff was on the van.

I had to do a few running repairs on Pablo and a bit of faffing around so I didn't get started until 8.15.  The first leg was relatively straightforward and I was soon in Cheshire.  The first stop was a truck stop, The Let's Eat Cafe.  I had a full breakfast which I regretted some way down the road on leg 2 (see it in all it's glory on the pictures page).

There was a lot of traffic about today and I was passing through a lot of built up areas.  This dragged the average speed down, but it was at least flat.  There are numerous sections of the A49 with cycle lanes through Warrington, Wigan and beyond.  Why hasn't Shrewsbury got many?  It started raining in Wigan so I had to stop and put the wet weather gear on.

I was soaked by the time I got to Bamber Bridge.  After the full English experience of earlier I decided to go steady with some soup and a chicken roll.  It was nice to cycle through familiar places.  We lived in Walton-Le-Dale (which is adjacent to Bamber Bridge) for 6 years so I knew the surrounding area very well.  Neither Jake nor Grace could remember it.  Had a power nap, which seemed to work wonders.  I'm a convert, as long as there aren't anymore pictures taken!

Up until now the Sat Nav had behaved impeccably.  Clearly it was going too well because no sooner had I started to thread my way through Preston then the Sat Nav stopped working altogether.  The directions were straightforward enough though, A6 to Lancaster and turn right.  I used to work in Lancaster so again it was relatively familiar territory.  By now the traffic was horrendous, little did I know that the support vehicle was stuck a long way behind me. 

Just the other side of Preston the heavens opened and it rained and rained.  I stopped in a bus shelter to check the map.  I was so wet that I didn't notice for a while that there was a hole big enough to climb through in the roof of the shelter and the rain was coming straight through.

This was the worst weather I have ever ridden in.  At least it wasn't hilly or windy.  I like to look on the bright side.  When I arrived at the campsite the support vehicle was nowhere to be seen.  I checked my phone to find that the M6 was at a standstill and Heidi was stuck on the A6 in equally bad traffic.  I sheltered in the campsite Gents as it was absolutely chucking it down.  It was cold and miserable if not a little suspicious.  Fortunately Heidi arrived after 20 minutes or so.

I had a monster long shower (for 20p) a bite to eat and felt much happier.  Lots of people have asked me how I keep going.  I honestly don't know where the inner strength comes from, I hope it doesn't desert me.

The forecast for tomorrow is equally poor (and it's very hilly :-( ).  We were not particularly pleased to be parked next to the bins in the overflow car park, at least it's not far to the shower block.

Today I started out at 7.15 am in Clifton, Bristol.  My left leg in particular was not happy.  The Sat Nav on the otherhand seemed to have a new desire to work, come back Garmin all is forgiven.

I had to pick my way through Bristol to the Severn Bridge.  I took it easy because my leg was hurting.  I averaged a miserable 11.5 mph for the first 14 miles.  In the back of my mind I was worried about not getting to school on time.  I pushed on into Chepstow and then Monmouth.  Some fantastic views along the Wye valley, Tintern Abbey a particular highlight.

The first stop of the day was more than welcome; I was so hungry, despite eating plenty for breakfast.  I had a couple of bacon rolls in less than 2 minutes.  My legs were really aching at this point, so they got a bit of physio.  I didn't want to stop for long as I was still worried about making it to school on time.  I also knew that I had another 28 miles to do after Stretton.

Leg two of today's epic was to Leintwardine.  This leg was a bit faster and the average speed picked up considerably, despite the windy conditions.  I stopped for a bit longer in Leintwardine and ate a huge dinner of pasta, chicken, cous cous and bread.  I decided to try a power nap.  Almost a mistake because I was very nearly fast asleep!

From Leintwardine to School is only 16 miles. As I passed through Craven Arms I saw some pupils who waved as I passed through.  You've no idea how much of a fillip that is after many lonely hours in the saddle.  The A49 was predictably horrendous, but fast.  I couldn't wait to turn off into Little Stretton.  I made my way up through the town passing a few familiar faces on the way and on to the school.

I was overjoyed by the the welcome flag and people that turned out to cheer me on.  If I ever needed reminding why I love working at Church Stretton School then this was it.  Awesome.  So many kind words and familiar faces.  My apologies if I didn't get to speak to you.

After a cup of tea and photographs it was time to push on to Wem.  A posse of cyclists set off into All Stretton; fantastic support, thank you.  Crossing the A49 was a bit hairy!  By the time we got to Condover the posse was down to three (me, Simon "Blastman" Jones and Matt Virden).  quite where the others got to I don't know?  No stamina in these youngsters!  Riding with other people makes a huge huge difference.  It takes your mind off all the aches and pains for one thing.

Matt bid us farewell at Atcham, leaving myself and Blastman to push on to Wem.  I would have been really struggling here if it wasn't for him. He was riding a single speed which made me feel better on some of the remaining hills as I could see him struggling too (although he was always in front of me).  Today I cycled 117 miles, the furthest I have cycled in one day.  I got in at 7.30pm.

The best thing about being away is coming home again.

It wasn't raining or foggy today.  In fact it was really sunny for most of the day and I had to put sun cream on.  The Sat Nav was struggling a lot, the last straw was when it directed me to a completely random place.  I don't know if it has got water in it (although it's meant to be completely waterproof) or there is some sort of fault with it.

I left Cornwall and entered Devon before the first stop of the day, another county on the list.  The first leg of the journey was really hard with lots of climbing and some awful roads. 

After that, leg 2 was a lot better.  The first 15 miles were great, fast roads and flat.  To avoid dual carriageways I had to deviate from the beaten track.  This inevitably meant slower steeper roads.  Lunch soon arrived at a place called Wedmore.  It had a great playground for the kids, which got them out of the van for a couple of hours.

It was here that the Sat Nav really threw the toys out of the pram.  First it decided to reset to factory status so I lost all the personalised settings that I'm used to and then it just shut down.  I restarted it and it lasted for 5 miles before shutting down altogether in Cheddar.  The climb out of Cheddar is evil by the way.

I had to navigate with paper maps for the remaining run into Clifton, which included an equally evil climb. There is nothing wrong with paper maps, but it does slow you down when you have to stop and get the map out.  I crossed the suspension bridge and freewheeled to Justin and Jo's house (mates from University days).  The van caused havoc in Clifton with it's congested narrow, steep roads.  We need to get off early tomorrow to avoid the traffic.

The Sat Nav (Garmin Edge 705) wont charge up now and is completely useless.  It is less than 12 months old so I guess I can get a replacement.  Not much good to me now though!

As you can see from the picture it wasn't as foggy today as yesterday.  The place was pretty much deserted at half seven when we arrived.  I did see a local out jogging as the photograph was taken.  He must see hundreds of people setting off but he still took the time to shout  "good luck mate".

The mist and fog set in for much of the first 20 miles and then it started to rain.  It still is raining as I type this (8pm).  I met a bloke cycling to South Wales, he didn't look comfortable on his bike and he went on the A30 dual carriageway.  I however, was so excited about starting the ride that I flew past the first rendez vous point and had to turn around and go back.  The first stop was in a garden centre car park.  Nice.  I had two bacon rolls and a gallon of tea.  I'm sure this isn't in any sports science manual, but it works for me. Grace was in the doghouse because she had thrown up all over the seat and the floor of the van.  I thought it looked extra clean when I arrived.