Penrith - Crossfell Campsite

Well last last full day of cycling today and it was tough going. Not any big mileage or any proper hills just knackered! Probably over did it a bit yesterday if I’m honest. Also, it was really warm. So weatherwise only complaint today is sunburnt knees.

Haven’t really spoken properly to anyone this week (except John on day 2) but today all that changed.

I stopped for some breakfast at a café in Annan and outside was an old bike with some pretty non-aero luggage.
It belonged to Fergal from Cork who was wearing a Tour de France yellow jersey and tucking into a full Scottish. He had arrived at Stranraer from Larne yesterday and ridden all the way to Annan on the dreaded A75. He agreed it was a bit ‘sketchy’, but he was in a hurry. He was starting his second day of a coast to coast - planning on reaching Whitley Bay later that day. He didn’t seem in too much of a hurry as he ordered extra toast, but needed to be back on the ferry on Wednesday.

The 15 miles from Carlisle were really tough for me. Lots of hills. Not proper Richmond or Bray bills, just annoying little lumps that had me scrambling for the tiny gears. That and the heat meant I was on the lookout for any reason to stop. At a roadside cafe I bought two bottles of Coke (118% of my daily sugar requirements!) and sat in the shade and guzzled them both. Then the owner, Oktai, brought out a plate of orange slices with chocolate sauce (‘for extra energy’). It was such a nice gesture.

Penrith is a lovely place - especially on a sunny Sunday afternoon. There are lots of bars and I found myself in one, enjoying a pint of local Ghyll beer. I got chatting to Dave (77) and Lin (70), widowers who had met on an Internet dating site earlier this year. Their romance may be in its infancy, they aren’t hanging around.

As Dave said, ‘life is too short’ so having already been to Italy on holiday, they were in Penrith to introduce Lin to Dave‘s oldest friend,. She said she was nervous and Dave said ‘you’d better have another drink then’. Before they drive back to Lind house in Shropshire, they were going to Yorkshire to get Dave‘s house ready to sell. They were great fun.

The campsite is small and quiet. When I arrived next door to my pitch was another guy on a bike. Obviously being close neighbours we got chatting.

Mick lives in London. He is a market trader specialising in antiques and also runs a car park. For the past two weeks, he has been cycling from Lands End towards John O’Groats. He has done loads of long cycle tours but ‘can’t stand those blokes in Lycra who are only interested in their speed and don’t even look at the view’. I was In full lycra as we spoke, but he could obviously tell that I wasn’t fast. When I asked him
how much planning goes into his big trips, he said ‘I’m lucky I’ve got such a good missus - she agrees to look after my dog otherwise I couldn’t go’. We pooled our resources for a cup of tea (he had milk, I had gas) as the sun went down.
I had toyed with getting up early and cycling over Shap to the boat tomorrow. Craig the campsite operator tells me there is a headwind and thunderstorms forecast. So I won’t be.Read more