Minehead to County Gate - 25/26 August 2009 - 18 Miles

This was to have been a walk as far as Lynmouth, but poor weather conditions during the second day dictated that I abandon the walk before completion.

Minehead to Silcombe Farm - 25 August - 12 Miles
Unusually, this trip started late (for me) in order to take advantage of cheap advance rail fares with Cross-Country Trains. I caught the 0942 train from Birmingham New Street, arriving punctually at Taunton by 1200. There was a short wait at the station before the First Number 28 bus took me to Minehead via a number of villages en-route. I finally arrived at Minehead at 1340 and commenced my walk.

My first impressions of Minehead were the large tent-like structure to the right along the seafront and the wooded hill of Higher Town dotted with posh houses to the left. I turned left and climbed out of Minehead along a footpath, then a minor road and finally onto the Southwest Coast Path, which was well defined - more like a track. The track rose through woodland and onto moorland carpeted with heather. The walking was easy and the 4.5 miles to Selworthy Beacon was quickly reached at 1512.

Eventually, the path dropped steeply to the left of Hurlstone Point to meet the sea. The path turned left under Hurlstone Point and followed a tranquil stream into the village of Bossington (1605). Bossington is attractive, quiet and unspoilt. It has a variety of houses of different periods and styles and, in my opinion, is a much more pleasant place than neighboring Porlock or Porlock Weir.

Onwards to Porlock (1605) which has some lovely buildings, but is spoilt by the large numbers of cars that obstruct the main road and impede photography. Porlock Weir was built as a harbour when Porlock became silted. The harbour now mainly contains pleasure boats and is in need of repair and maintenance.

A path then crosses several meadows and climbs to Worthy Toll, a charming stone building, which, for £2 allows the motorist a more scenic route to Lynmouth than the A39 which runs close by. A little further on, the walker reaches the site of Ashley Combe, an Italianate style country house built by the first Earl Lovelace in 1799. Unfortunately, the house was demolished in 1974 and all the walker can appreciate is to pass through two short tunnels built, presumably, to hide the passing rambler from the occupiers.

Further on, Culbone Church nestles in a wooded valley. This lovely building has the distinction of being the smallest parish church in England. I was also informed that Culbone is also probably the smallest parish in England as the number of parishioners living within its boundary numbers just eight. A mile further on, following a stiff climb out of the woods, I reached Silcombe Farm at 1815.The farm house is set in an attractive valley overlooking the Bristol Channel and beyond to Wales. I was warmly greeted and presented with a pot of tea on my arrival. The bedroom was rather small, but scrupulously clean and provided with a comfortable bed. This was more than compensated for by having the run of the comforable guest lounge which was more than adequately supplied with TV, Hi-Fi and books.

Silcombe Farm to County Gate - 26 August - 6 miles
I slept well, woken only occasional by the wild wind and beating rain outside. By morning, the weather had abated somewhat although it was still raining. Breakfast in the elegant dining room was of (very) full English English variety which really set me up for walking, which I commenced at 0845.

At first the weather was reasonably kind and I reached Broomstreet Farm by 0910. Although it was still raining, I had good waterproofs and was sheltered from the wind by the High Hedges. On reaching "The Combe", it was getting ever darker and both wind and rain were intensifying. I decided to head for safety rather than the uncertainties of Countisbury Head, arriving at County Gate by 1035. Within 5 minutes, I was on the Number 300 bus heading for Lynmouth.

I spent a couple of hours looking around a lovely but wet Lynmouth before catching the 300 bus back to Minehead. I was disappointed with Minehead as there was a lot of cheap and nasty development amongst the older, more substantial buildings built using local stone. Thence on to Taunton, a much nicer town which I wondered around before catching the 1853 train back to Birmingham.

Photographs of the trip

Rochester to Herne Bay - 30 May 2009 - 39 Miles

This was the first serious attempt to complete one off my trips by Bike (see following post for details). I took the 0600 train from Birmingham International and arrived at Rochester still quire early in the morning.

From Rochester, a good track ran alongside the Thames for a few miles, past hulks of barges, reminders of London's great days as a major port. Minor road through the pretty villages of, Upchurchand Lower Halstow, took me to Sittingbourne, one of the least interesting towns I have visited.

Onwards, via lovely Conyer, Teynam Street and Davington to Faversham. Now, a town with a brewery at its heart cannot be bad. On arrival, I was beckoned in by the Shepherd Neame Brewery. Progressing further, O came across the delightful, well preserved Market Square.



This was followed by a stiff ride against the wind through Graveney to the sea at Graveney Marshes, then onwards to Whitstable. I have seen many photographs of Whitstable and was not disappointed with what I found there. There was a generally relaxed air among the holidaymakers and this is definitely on the list of places to revisit at leisure.

The wind was freshening from the east, so I cycled my way slowly through the lines of beach huts, listened to the band in the pier pavillion and ate a meal at the wetherspoon pub before progressing to the station and home.

Photographs of the trip

Herne Bay to Dover - 27 June 2009 - 44 Miles

I have been traveling around the coast of England for many years and, having completed over 50% of the distance, I decided that the assistance of a bike would be required if the project is to be completed. In the Spring, I purchased a Dahon "Speed" ("Sturdy" or "reliable" would be a more realistic name). The bike does have the advantage of folding to a fairly small size so that it can be carried on all trains and the majority of buses. It has seven gears which make it adaptable to most terrains.

This was the second serious day out with the bike.

I arrived at Birmingham International Station before 0600, to take the first train to London. The ticket was cheap, but offset by the £6 parking charge. The train delivered me to Euston Station on time, followed by something of a hassle to negotiate the Underground with a folded bike. I eventually reached Victoria Station and caught a train to Herne Bay, arriving at 0927.

The outskirts of Herne Bay were unexciting, but soon found myself at Reculver with its attractive ruined church by the sea.

An even ride along the seafront brought me to Margate (1055) a well known resort. I did not feel inclined to linger here, but carried on to Broadstairs (1130) which was much more attractive and would deserve a second visit. I particularly liked the old world harbour area and the impressive architecture of many of its buildings. Broadstairs also has the feeling of a town which is loved and cared for by its inhabitants.

Ramsgate (1150) is a more workmanlike port, but none the less attractive for it. I sat and devoured a hot bacon butty from a local stall while I sat and watched the movements of the ferries in the harbour.

The ride to Sandwich was uninteresting, on a segregated path alongside the main road, but the arrival at 1240 was well worth the effort. Sandwich was one of the original Cinque Ports, has a lovely riverside setting and retains many of its old buildings.

Onwards to Deal, a seemingly unending seaside sprawl at 1330 after a ride against the wind past two golf courses. The way ahead now became a steady incline and moved away from the coast to reach St Margaret at Cliffe. After that effort, the descent into Dover at 1530 seemed much more straight forward.

Due to engineering works on the railway, a bus had to be taken to Folkestone, followed by a return journey to Birmingham International. On the way back, a minor mishap on the escalator resulted in a broken pedal - must be more careful in future! Since the cycling was now complete, this did not spoil things.

Photographs of the trip

Whitehaven to Gretna - 28/29 July 2009 - 77 Miles

Carlisle to Gretna - 12 Miles
I took the early train from Birmingham to Carlisle. The journey was disrupted because someone had stolen signal cabling from the side of the track overnight. In the event, I was only 15 minutes late into Carlisle. There was some rain as the train passed by the Lake District, but it remained fine, but fairly cloudy for almost the rest of the day. The temperature was not too hot - ideal for cycling.

Leaving Carlisle at 1015, I cycled 12 miles to Gretna via Rockcliffe, which is a small village with an attractive church. Leaving Rockcliffe there is a nice view of Castletown House. Apart from this, the road is fairly featureless with an approach to Gretna along a new road which runs parallel to the recently extended M6. Gretna, where I arrived at 1145, turned out to be something of a disappointment, although in fairness, I didn't visit the main tourist attractions.

I then travelled by bus to Whitehaven via Carlisle. My folding bike fitted in really well.

Whitehaven to Maryport - 15 Miles
Whitehaven is a bustling town with an attractive port, largely given over to pleasure craft. Leaving at 1500, I cycled via Lowca, an former coal mining town and through Workington where I arrived at 1615. I saw little of this town as the route passes through miles of parkland until the River Derwent is crossed over an old railway bridge.

The route onwards followed the line of the main road until a cycle track dipped into
breezy and wet Maryport at 1700. I stayed the night at the Waverley Hotel which had the advantage of being cheap, but had seen better days.

Maryport to Carlisle - 50 Miles
I made a start at 0700 the following day and rode along the sea front through Allonby (0800) (Famous for ice cream), and Silloth (photo) (0900)which has a busy port. The route then took me through Abbeytown (0930) (little of the Abbey left, but the stones much in evidence in local houses), Newton Arlosh (1000), Anthorn (1100), Cardurnock (1130) to Bowness on Solway (1200). From here the route follows the lone of Hadrian's Wall with views of Scotland across the Solway Firth. All that remains of Hadrian's Wall is an earth bank which runs all the way to Carlisle.

At 1300. I stopped at the pub (next to the statue of Edward I) in Burgh by Sands where I had a superb filled potato. The onwards via a very muddy cycle track by the River Eden and back into Carlisle (1500). I had time to look around Carlisle and found it to be a very interesting city. Great effort had been made to preserve as much as possible of the old parts of the city (including an impressive cathedral).

Then back to Carlisle Station and another delayed and diverted journey home.

Photographs of the trip