Russell Snowden - Lands End to John O'Groats

What Next

2007-06-21T18:37:00.002+01:00

After completing end to end there was only one question left, what next so......

Cycling from Lhasa to Kathmandu, two of Asia’s most exotic cities, we will cycle 5 major passes over 5000m and traverse a distance of more than 1000 km over the backbone of the Himalayas including a visit to Everest Base Camp, a major challenge in it's self as the road climbs almost fifty hairpin bends over the Pang La Pass. This journey will offer some great physical challenges as we cycle "the Roof of the World"

Details of my next challenge can be found at www.highestroad.co.uk

My Route Map

2006-11-24T16:49:00.000Z

The link below takes you to an interactive map of my route. Please note that it does take a few moments to load up.

The Route

I am also more than happy to send on to anyone either a gpx or Memory Map file of the route I took.

10 Tips for other end to enders

2006-11-23T21:04:00.000Z

These are a mixture of tips I picked up from other sites that I took onboard and from my own findings on the trip

If at all possible get a copy of Memory Map. This proved invaluable prior to the trip for route planning, especially balancing the length of each day. It also made looking at alternative routes to the obvious main roads easy to do. I am more than happy to forward on to anyone my route as either a gpx or Memory Map file. Many of the best parts of the trip were the little variations that I took from the direct route, such as crossing the Black Isle to the Cromarty Ferry – check it’s running as it would be about 40 miles back round if it’s not!
If you are doing the trip with a support driver who will be doing their own thing during the day then get two copies of a cheap road atlas. One copy you can use to rip the pages for each day, whilst marking your intended route on the other. If the worst happens and you have to arrange a meeting at an unexpected place, you are both looking at the same map.
Remember, midday is most likely not going to be the middle of your riding day. It took me a few days to realize this. Midday would come and I’d be well short of half way through the day’s ride. Come two o’clock though and all was well again.
Travel light, I was staying with friends or family every third or fourth night so I was able to get washing done however several of the B&B’s I stayed in asked if I wanted anything washing. Other than cycling stuff and tools I only had a pair of light trousers and a T-shirt. I hobbled round in my cycling shoes in the evenings! All this was carried in a post mounted bag with very small fold out panniers. My mate who joined me for Scotland had an even smaller pack.
If you are doing the ride for charity, mention this if you have your photo taken at Lands End and you get a second copy of the photo free.
Again, if you are doing the ride for charity, don’t be afraid to mention your ride to bar staff if you go into pubs, they often mentioned what I was doing to locals in the pub, generating a nice extra amount of donations.
Avoid the A74, the bit of road between Carlisle and Gretna Green (this will soon be motorway anyway). Your life is worth more than the risks you would take by riding along side the traffic.
When planning the route and emailing B&B’s about availability, it’s wise to keep a note of each one you contact and their web site address. I mailed upwards of 10 for each place I was aiming to stay at, several through web forms. They often replied with personal e-mail addresses and no full address / details of their place (honest this is true). With a couple I was left having to Google their e-mail address to find them again. I mentioned this to them and each one thought that people would mail one place at a time. I did get haunted by one place who did have availability however replied after another place, mailing me to tell me about the dinner they were sitting down to eat on the day I had been passing asking if I was the cyclist in red!!!!
Whilst riding up the Great Glen, you will have the RAF using you as target practice. Get used to jet fighters coming up behind you! They make you jump even more than Spanish caravan drives!
If you see a bike shop, pop in and ask if you can use a track pump to top your tires up. This should help to stop punctures.
And a bonus one – have fun.

Another End 2 Ender

2006-08-20T20:52:00.000+01:00

Not only have I traveled from end 2 end, there is some one else who has also done this. Not exactly with me however Emma has managed to be at the right places at the right times with the car to collect me and return me to the route when overnight stops were off route, provide encouragement on the rare occasions our paths did cross and generally have more faith in the fact that I could do it that I did at the start.

In the course of the journey she has driven well over 2500 miles and seen more of the country than even I have done.

Many thanks Emma for making this challenge possible.

Day 13 - Almost over

2006-08-18T14:18:00.000+01:00

Berriedale - The end

Staying in a hostel for the night had the unfortunate side effect that there was not a big cooked breakfast waiting on the table for us this morning, all we had available were some power bars. Whilst they might have the required energy provision for a days cycling, they do not have the same satisfaction rating - I am yet to find a company producing the "Full Cooked Breakfast" flavored bar.

The rain had also returned and whilst it was very satisfying shouting encouragement out of the car window to the other two lads from the hostel as we drove past them on the first of the two hills ( we had mentioned the hills that we'd done and they still had to do on just a couple of occasions the night before ) this just spurred them on to catch us up as soon as possible. Starting from the point where we had stopped the night before it was an almost never ending road that wound its way slowly to Wick with the miles seeming to fall very slowly although guess what, we were managing our normal average of 13 mph. As the day started to brighten up we had bacon rolls in Wick - or was it the other way round and as we had bacon rolls the day started to brighten up? Wick meant that there were only 17 miles to the finish and after riding along one very straight section of road the sign at a junction brought news that we had already covered 4 of those miles - I had been expecting it to say that we had only covered 2. This left us racing for the finish with just one final hill to be climbed before rolling down in to John O'Groats and the finish.

All that was left to do was take a couple of pictures at the finish line, get my End 2 End sheet stamped for the last time, get changed in the pub toilets and have a couple of pints of Guinness. There is not much else to do there!

This just left a six hour drive back home to a warm reception from all the neighbours on our arrival. Balloons, banners & champagne.

Job done.

Stats for the day

Miles 45

Average speed again 13

Max Speed 34

Day 12 - A Russell Short Cut

2006-08-18T13:27:00.000+01:00

Beauly - Helmsdale

Rain was falling as we left the B&B however this did little to damp our spirits and by the time we were crossing the Black Isle this had cleared. As our route for the day was going to take us up the A9 for most of the day we decided to avoid this road for as long as possible and the route over the Black Isle to the Cormarty ferry provided almost traffic free roads before taking the little ferry over to Nigg - this is not cheating and actually added some miles to the days total.
Lunch was at a pub in Tain where we met two lads heavily laden with front and rear panniers and a tent heading south. They had decided to do the trip less than a month ago, bought their bikes last week and for training they had managed to get a free DVD on cycle training. They were going to watch it on their return.
Our friends in the RAF were again out playing at scaring cyclists senseless by popping out from valleys and skimming over our heads.
Emma met us on her way up from home at Dunrobin Castle and we took advantage of the car to ditch the panniers. Freed from their burden, our light weight bikes we looking for a good work out and this was just what they got when the two lads we had met a few times before joined us. They we staying in the same place that night and a chain gang was soon formed with the pace up at over 22 miles an hour. On reaching Helmsdale we took advantage of having car support and continued on for another ten miles to reduce the last days distance and also get a couple of big hills out of the way. The first of these hills, just out side Helmsdale was climbed with ease allowing for the fact that we already had 75 miles in the bag for the day. This just left a very steep descent down in to Berriedale past several escape lanes notching up a max speed of over 43 mph. I was thinking of having another descent to try and top 50 now knowing the hill however the accent of the other side was calling. Emma passed us as we were half way up this hill and collected us at the summit to return to the hostel.
As this was the last night on the road, a couple of pubs and a fish restaurant claiming to be in Clarissa Dickinson Wright's (of Two Fat Ladies fame ) top five fish places in the country. Orkney beers added the liquid part of the meal.
Stats for the day
Miles 87
Average Speed 13 - again!
Max Speed 43
Pubs visited 3 + one restaurant

Day 11 - Nessy hunting

2006-08-17T19:56:00.000+01:00

Glencoe - Beauly

Day 11 commenced with a fine fry up with fantastic views across a mirror like Loch Leven - this indicated no wind. Out on the road the northery wind found us soon enough and it was just like old times. Fort William saw a stop at a bike shop to stock up on food before hitting the back roads to Spean Bridge and the Commando memorial. This road was about the best surfaced one of the whole trip and hardly had any traffic on it at all. At the memorial an American couple asked us how far we were cycling and could not believe anyone would cycle the length of the country. We were to latter prove who far we could travel as their tour bus passed us four or five times during the day and they come over to us again at Fort Agustus amazed that we could get there in the same time as them - we'd had lunch however I'm not sure how many stops they'd made.
For the next couple of hours the RAF had decided that flying as low as possible over us was good training, having a jet come up from below you makes some noise and catches you off guard.
A second wind wind kicked in as we road along the side of Loch Ness however all the tourists and or the RAF had scared Ness off. Castle Urquhart provided a convenient place to take on board caffeine and power bars before the "highlight" of the day, a three quarters of a mile long hill at 15% for the duration. This took me back to Cornwall and Derek several different shades of red. The pay back was great though, the descent down towards Beauly and our overnight stop in Kitarlity was worth the pain.
"I'm having three other gentlemen for breakfast at seven thirty, that will be alright with you!" was the classic greeting from the land lady at the B&B - it was.

Stats for the day
Miles 78
Average speed 13
Max Speed 43
Pubs visited 2

Day 10 - More hills & Spanish Drivers!

2006-08-17T19:01:00.000+01:00

Glengoyne - Glencoe

Today was always going to be a day of 2 halves, the morning riding up the side of Loch Lomond followed by an afternoon climbing up to and crossing Rannoch Moor. The road up the side of Loch Lomond is one of the main roads to the north of Scotland however it is windier than most local B roads as it makes its was between the loch and the hills. Given that August is in the middle of the holiday season we had to compete with holiday makers heading north, whilst most people gave us plenty of space they were often forgetting about traffic coming south. One motorcyclist came within an inch of leaving paint from his helmet on an army truck and a Spanish driver had defiantly forgotten that he had a caravan behind him as after passing us he pulled right back in sending the caravan skyward as it hit the curb - he passed us again later in the day and did exactly the same thing!
We also met two lads who had started from Lands End just after me last Friday fixing a puncture - it was their fourth in two days. I have been very careful not to mention the p word at all least I be jinksed by it. We left them just as a car pulled up to wait for two other cyclists, also riding from end to end all be it with an unfortunate delay due to injury. The first two lads soon caught us up, we did consider riding with them however given the second half of the day we opted for our own pace. This was to be the second of many meetings with these lads, the only other people doing the ride I was to meet until the last day.
Reaching Tyndrum and the start of one of the days two big hills we opted for ice creams at the Green Welly Stop before starting the ride up to towards Bridge of Orchy. Looking at a local OS map on the wall I noticed that the height gain was not going to be that much for the first hill however from driving it we still thought it would be tough. Riding up past the snow gates we found to our surprise and pleasure that we floated up the climb and before we knew it we on the long descent down. Maybe ice cream should be made compulsory before all major climbs?
This left the last climb of the day up on to Ronnoch Moor, this was harder however still not as bad as we had been fearing and the layby near the top that is home to a piper etc. for the tourists was soon reached. Derek celebrated this with a drink whilst I had a cigar! Once onto Rannach Moor itself the views were outstanding and we could see the Kings House - it would have been impolite not to stop! After a pint all that was left for the day was the roll down Glencoe past Sir Jim Savile's house to Glencoe. Passing the youth hostel we saw he two lads from this morning again mending a puncture.

Stats for the day
Miles 79
Average Speed 13
Max Speed 39
Pubs Visited 3 - we did only have drinks in 2 due to the lack of bar staff in one!

Day 9 - Another appointment to be kept

2006-08-17T18:33:00.000+01:00

Moffet - Glengoyne Distillery north of Glasgow

After yesterdays long day and maybe a couple of pints over the recommended daily long distance cyclists allowance, I had thought that this morning could be a little slow, however all was fine for the mornings warm up. This involved riding up towards the Devils Beef Tub before climbing up over Beattock Summit and then dropping down towards Glasgow. Again we were following the old A74, with the new motorway running next to us this provided for an almost traffic free day until reaching the edge of the Glasgow area. We avoided most of the city passing through Strathclyde Country Park before popping home in Lennoxtown before continuing on to the Glengoyne distillery who have kindly donated a bottle to the cause.

Stats for the day
Miles 79
Average Speed 13
Max Speed 39
Pubs Visited 1 - Although the distillery does make up for this!

Why Guide Dogs count - by Charlotte Fenech

2006-08-12T23:10:00.000+01:00

Donald Harvey and Teddy

My Grandpa unfortunately passed away earlier this year, but his bravery will surely live on in the hearts and memories of his dearly loved family and friends.

Grandpa always had poor eyesight, indeed he had to start wearing glasses at the age of just 18 months! Many hours were spent by the family of young Grandpa hunting for his glasses which often became lost. They were once found hanging from a bush in a field behind their home where he used to play!

Grandpa was very keen on sport and excelled at running and swimming. After finishing school he went on to train for dentistry at Guy's where his sense of humour involved plenty of pranks! During the Normandy landings of the 2nd world war he ran a mobile dental vehicle following the advancing forces through to Germany.

Grandpa married our grandmother ( Gra-Gra ) during the war and went on to be loving parents to 5 children and wonderful grandparents to 10 grandchildren.

He had a great love of music, reading and poetry. He was a keen member of The Lions Club ( the first ever Lion at his club to be the President twice ). Ironically, he also ran the 'Talking Newspaper' for the blind at K.A.B. ( Kent Association for the Blind ) for the Lions. His church life also meant a great deal to him.

Much later he himself went blind and was given much help from the K.A.B.!! What goes around comes around eh? He was later elected to the Management Committee where he brought experience, commonsense and humour to the meetings.

Grandpa went blind due to a condition called Macular Disease. A very frustrating condition with no cure, whereby blindness is inevitable. He became a member of the Macular Society and supported various charities for the blind. He had a particular concern for blind children.

Grandpa always loved dogs and there was always one in the house! On losing his sight he started to think about the possibility of having a guide dog, fully supported by Gra-Gra. He applied and was accepted. At the age of 82 he did find the training rather a struggle, but Grandpa being Grandpa, he battled on and managed to finish the course. He then became the proud owner of the gorgeous Teddy, a lovely white sandy coloured Labrador.

A short time after receiving Teddy Gra-Gra unfortunately passed away. Teddy enabled Gramps to stay in his own home alone where he bravely carried on. With Teddy by his side Grandpa carried on regardless, he would go to the shops, catch a bus into town and go all around Maidstone. Go to church, walk down to my Mother's house for his evening meal! He even caught the train into London, got around on the tube and onto another train to Wales! An 85 year old blind man and his dog!They were truly amazing together.

If it wasn't for Teddy I really believe that Grandpa would have given up a long time ago. He adored Teddy and Teddy adored Grandpa! He would have to brush him every day and hair would be everywhere, but Gramps would say "I don't care, I can't see it!".

They would go and help raise money for guide dogs by 'tin rattling' as Grandpa put it. He always used to make the most money as he was so funny and cute, with his white hair and lovely Teddy by his side - who could resist?!

Also thanks to Guide Dogs Grandpa made a very good friend called Sheila, who had done her training and received her dog Chrissie at the same time as Gramps. Of course they could understand the pitfalls and drawbacks of being blind.

Grandpa passed away in April, much to the sorrow of all those whose lives he touched. However he does live on in our hearts and spirits.

Grandpa would be thrilled to pieces that my cousin Emma's better half ( only joking Em ), Russell Snowden, is to be tackling the arduous journey of Land's End to John O'Groats by bicycle in aid of Guide Dogs for the Blind.

Gramps and Gra-Gra would be so pleased. Hopefully Grandpa's struggle and bravery will be remembered through this fund raising event.

Grandpa would be especially pleased knowing that others will benefit from his own blindness in the future.

Long live Guide Dogs for the Blind!!!

Day 8 - Meeting a friend

2006-08-12T22:37:00.000+01:00

Sedbergh - Moffet

Today was always going to be my longest day with a climb up over Shap fell in to the bargain. The reason for this long day was firstly that I am being joined on the ride by my friend and neighbor Derek who is going to do Scotland End 2 End. Secondly, making today a long day left the rest of the trip falling into equal days of 80 miles.

Knowing that Derek would be arriving at Carlisle before 12 I hoped to get there soon after this. All good plans have their undoing and today had several. Firstly I stopped in the village of Orton to get my official end 2 end sheet stamped in the post office - I'll return to this later in the ride, only to be distracted by to goods on offer in this post office / general store. Following this I met a couple of lads heading south to Lands End. They thought that they'd had head winds!!!! and then finally in Penrith, the opportunity to check tire pressures and do a bit of shopping in a local bike shop was to much of a temptation.

In the end I arrived in Carlisle at about 13:30 at which point we headed north to the Scottish boarder. Gretna provided the point of crossing. From here we followed the old A74 north west up to Moffat. This provided some of the quiertest roads of the trip so far as we were riding on what used to be the main road north to Glasgow that has now been replaced by the M74 motorway.

On arriving in Moffat we obviously needed food and fluid replacement, this was provided by several establishments however I'd like to thank the locals of the Stag Inn who donated £28.50 to the cause.
Stats for the day
Miles - 97.5 - I did think about going for the 100 however.........
Average Speed - 12
Max Speed - 34
Pubs visited - 2

Day 7 - Wind, wind and more wind

2006-08-12T22:22:00.000+01:00

Wigan - Sedbergh

The first two thirds of day 7 can only be remembered for one thing, the wind. It was the strongest Northerly that I've had so far - remember the reason for doing this ride from South to North is that your more likely to get following winds. All well and good however 7 days, 7 head winds.
The day changed however after Lancaster as I moved in land, following the River Lune. This area soon provided scenery to rival the Wye valley earlier in the ride.

Riding up the valley I'd passed the location for the English national sheepdog trials, taking place over the following weekend. On arriving at the B&B for the night, the other guests were competing and had five dogs with them. I hope they did as well as they hoped.

Stats for the day
Miles 68 - Due to the wind I'm so glad I got the extra miles in yesterday
Average Speed 13 - very impressive due to the wind
Max Speed 32 - no big hills
pubs visited 2

Day 6 - An important meeting

2006-08-09T23:17:00.000+01:00

Day 6 - Shrewsbury to Wigan.
Today, I had an important appointment to keep at midday - I was meeting my parents and they were to join me for a short distance as mother had raised a considerable amount towards the overall total, on the condition that she joins me for part of the ride. I met my parents 5 miles south of where they live and we rode to a nearby pub for lunch.

After lunch, I arranged to be collected further north with the promise of dinner. However, freed from the additional weight of luggage (unfortunately Terry Pratchett's luggage has not been invented yet!) I was flying and passed the meeting point with an hour to spare. This necessitated arranging a new meeting point with the added complication of a mobile phone left at home!!!

Stats for the day:

Miles 75
Average Speed 13 mph
Max speed 33 mph
Pubs frequented 2 - I am now currently working my way through a bottle of my parents' bottle of Bowmore whisky.

Pictures to follow.

Day 5 - One third crops up

2006-08-09T22:45:00.000+01:00

Monmouth - Shrewsbury

Yet again I finished at a pub at the bottom of a large hill yesterday so the first five miles pointed up! This was however the only major hill of the day with only rolling ups and downs for the rest of the day.

The major highlight of the day was passing the 333 mile mark, suitably celebrated with a pint of Stella ( they will be making a donation soon ). The day was then finished with almost 10 miles of un interrupted down hill, just a couple of small ups to remind me what the peddals are for.

Stats for the day
Miles 72
Average speed 12 mph
Max speed 42 mph - impressive with full luggage
Pubs visited 2

Pictures to follow

Day 4 - The map now just says "Here there be dragons"

2006-08-07T22:00:00.000+01:00

Bridgewater - Monmouth

Rain for for the first time on the ride and what a pleasant change it made - I may live to regret this statement later in the ride however it did keep the temperature down. First stop of the day was at Skidmarx cycles www.skidmarxcycles.co.uk for some servicing which was greatly appreciated.
As the day was going well I felt it was time for a detour and an extra curriculum hill by taking in the sites of Cheddar Gorge and I must admit it did feel good powering up the road past all the tourists however it is slightly concerning that I know of several people who have jumped from the top of this with a parachute!!!!! I would try it however Emma has forbidden it! I'll listen to her just this once.
Once past the gorge I had a nice run down in to Bristol where I met up with a lad on a mountain bike who road out to the Seven bridge with me. He had done LE JG a couple of years ago and agreed with most peoples comments that Cornwall and Devon were the worst, I hope this is going to be the case.
Crossing the Severn bridge was interesting as it shakes rather a lot. In fact as trucks go past it shakes more than an earthquake I experienced in Malta a few years back! Rolling off the bridge I entered Wales and had the best 20 miles of the ride so far up the Wye valley, not just due to the pubs!
Stats for the day
Miles 78
Average speed 12mph
Max Speed 35mph
pubs visited 2 - getting better.

Day 3 - Away from the hills

2006-08-07T21:34:00.000+01:00

Torquay - Bridgewater

The morning saw the last of the Devon and Cornwall hills and to celebrate I took the ferry across the Exe to Exmouth avoiding Exeter. It is time to now mention strange place names that I have been through, today's was Dog Village whilst the first day saw me go through Longdowns which was lucky as I was going down! I would have been rather miffed had I been going south and Longdowns would have been actually very long ups.
The only other highlight of the day was passing a chicken farm with the occupants escaping down the road with varying degrees of success.

Today was also the first unsupported day so was carrying a full load, this had a huge effect on the up hills and also made me less enthusiastic to hit high speeds going down.
Stats for the day
Miles 65
Average Speed 11.5mph
Max speed 33mph
Pubs Visited 1 - again could do better although don't ask how many pints ( they sold Stella )

I would at this moment like to thank the landlord and several locals from the Compass Tavern, just south of Bridgewater for their generous sponsorship. This pub is just down the road from the motorway services at junction 34 on the M5.

Day 2 - Newton got it wrong

2006-08-05T22:46:00.000+01:00

Truro to Torquay

Sir Isaac got it wrong, it is not what goes up must come down but what goes down will go back up! All I did today was ride up hill after hill after hill. The biggest mistake looking back was to have driven the days route twice in the last 24 hours as we stayed in Torquay with Emma's Mum last night as well as tonight. I knew every hill that was to come!!!!! This did mean that for the first part of the day moral was at a bit of a low. At least they only put the signs telling you how steep the hill is on the way down and not on the way up.
A number of people have asked me what I think about whilst riding, this is a subject I'll cover off in detail later in the ride however topics of today's thoughts include; Why did I not ride end 2 end in Holland, would it be cheating for each hill to have a chair lift, and how many miles of flat would equate to a hill.

Today also had a taste of home when I stopped to top up the water bottles, purchasing a bottle of mineral water from a small garage. I maybe shouldn't have been surprised that the water came from less than 200 meters from home as other than Highland Spring & Tesco's own brand water, almost all of the supermarket mineral water does come from the Campsie Hills and the bottling plant in the village. I can see a challenge coming, can I have Campsie water every day?
You can see the effects of loneliness on the long distance cyclist!

The other entertainment for the day was riding past cars packed full of kids and just about everything else from the home you can think of - I did see a lightweight sinks in one car, whilst they were sitting in the weekly Saturday traffic jams in to and out of Cornwall. I must admit, on several occasions I did shout at the board, fed up looking offspring in the backs for these cars "Your not nearly there yet". It is the simple things that make the miles go by.

As mentioned, the night was spent in Torquay with a couple of pints down by the water front.

Facts for the day

Distance 85 miles
Average Speed 13 mph - not sure how I managed this
Max Speed 44 mph - I thing a speed camera!
Pubs visited 1 - Better than yesterday however still only a "Could do better"

Jumping the gun

2006-08-04T23:17:00.000+01:00

After the long drive south, stopping overnight in Cheshire we went directly to the start to get the formalities such as registering with the End to End club and having the official picture taken at the sign post.

Once this was done, given the good weather it seamed a shame not to put a few miles in so setting off at 16:00 I made it to Truro before 19:00.

It is true what people say about Cornwall, the roads are either going up hill or down hill, steeply, however I'm sure I had to pedal up far more hills than ones I could roll down. The prevailing wind that prompted the ride from south to north was also not playing fair today, being a strong easterly.

Facts and Figures for today's ride;

Distance 42 miles

Average speed 15 mph - This will have to drop for tomorrows ride

Max Speed 41 mph

Pubs visited 0 - This also may have to be worked on.

The Who and Why Question

2006-07-12T17:15:00.000+01:00

This is the part where lines such as "just recently I have begun to realise that I have no longer got an uninterrupted view of my feet" are placed. Those of you who know me may well agree in part with this statement however I can assure you all I can still see my toes. On consulting several reliable sources , this condition is diagnosed as one of two things, middle age (did I just type that) and being a little to fond of the occasional Stella. These sources go on to say that these most contagious of diseases can only be held in check by one, highly unpleasant course of treatment - what leading physicians privately describe as "exercise". So I've decided to go for a bike ride.

Luckily cycling is not a new past time for me, having spent my teenage years racing in the colours of Weaver Valley Cycle Club in the north west of England. This did however stop on starting Poly in Leeds. Living in the city centre did not provide an ideal base for pleasant cycling, taking half an hour to get out into the country and the same time to get home, all the time risking injury at the hands of other road users, so I took up safer past times such as climbing and caving.

As I grew older and wiser (one way to say I lost some of my nerve), along with a couple of moves around the country the number of times I was getting out climbing reduced to only a couple of trips per year. Whilst the last of these moves was being planned a friend suggested that Scotland, my current home was the ideal place for mountain biking. Twenty four hours later I was in possession of my first of many mountain bikes. These have taken me all round the UK and across the pond (wrapped up in a big bag) to California and Arizona several times.

Riding from Lands End to John O'Groats has been at the back of my mind for many years, from talk of a non stop relay team effort back in my racing days to occasionally talking about it in the pub.
This leads on to the questions "Why now? & Why Guide Dogs?". Earlier this year my girlfriends grandfather unfortunately passed away. He had suffered from a loss of sight however having a Guide Dog had allowed him to continue to live his life to the full. This along with a family association with the Guide Dogs charity, from doing a couple of sponsored events whilst a child including walking from Coast to Coast to my parents involvement with one of their local fund raising groups, Guide Dogs is a charity I am more than happy to support.

Then I opened my mouth and said I was thinking about going to do it! I've read several other peoples accounts of the trip, one of the first things they state is once you tell some one your thinking of doing it, that's it, your committed.

The Route - As planned

2006-07-08T23:11:00.000+01:00

I plan to start the ride on the 5th of August and all being well I will arrive at John O'Groats 12 days later.

This is the route I'm currently planning on taking however I'm sure there will be many changes as I go along, especially as I intend to try and stay with as many friends and family as possible on the way.

Guide Dogs for the Blind

2006-07-08T18:53:00.000+01:00

Making a difference

Guide Dogs' vision is of a world in which blind and partially-sighted people have the same rights, responsibilities and opportunities as everyone else.
Guide Dog's aim to make a difference by:

providing mobility and freedom to blind and partially-sighted people
campaigning for the rights of those with visual impairments
educating the public about eye care and investing millions of pounds in eye disease research

The Cost of a Guide Dog

The figures below will give you some idea of how valuable even a £10 donation can be.
£1.30 - helps feed a puppy for a day
£5 - buys a dog grooming kit
£10 - supports a working guide dog for one day
£25 - provides two dog beds
£60 - buys a harness, handle, lead, collar and bell
£100 - provides four long canes
£250 - feeds a guide dog for a year
£600 - provides training for one visually-impaired person
£1,000 - co-sponsors a guide dog puppy
£2,500 - co-sponsors a guide dog
£3,650 - supports a working guide

http://www.gdba.org.uk

Useless facts about the journey

2006-07-08T13:36:00.000+01:00

I am not alone! About 4000 people do this every year, and roughly 3000 of these cycle. The rest do it by car, or in shopping trolleys, walking naked...

The first person to travel from the route was Eliuh Burritt, an American who walked the route in 'several weeks'. Robert Carlisle was the first Brit to do the route - pushing a wheelbarrow. It is believed that the route was first cycled in about 1880. It has now been done in a Sinclair C5 in about 80 hours, and on roller skates in 9.5 days. The record for the fastest time on a push bike is by Andy Wilkinson who completed the journey in 41 hours 4 min 22 seconds.

The most famous trip in recent times was by Stephen Gough who walked it naked.