Sunday June 8, 2014

Today is the start of the third leg of the Grand Adventure.  Lands End to John O’Groats (LeJog) approximately 1,500 kms.  We left the Backpackers, in Penzance at 8:00 to cycle to Lands End the start of LeJog, a distance of 15.5 kms before we even start Lejog.

It was quite sunny when we left Penzance, and when we arrived in Lands End, which isn\’t a village just a place.  By the time we got to the Visitors Centre it was quite chilly.  We had to put our jackets on.

It is still sunny at this time.

The last time I was at Lands End (about 30 years ago) it was a run down hotel with a booth with people who took photos of you at the sign.  It is now a complete visitors centre with small retail outlets, the hotel has been spruced up and there is information on End to Enders, plus games to entertain kids.  One of the guys in the End to Enders asked if we had registered.  We said no, so he directed us to the reception of the hotel where we picked up a form to register our End to End journey.  Along the way, we get campsites or hotels to sign that we have stayed there to prove that we are actually cycling LeJog and at the end we get a Certificate of Completion.  Not that we really need it, but it is fun.

When we arrived we saw more touring cyclists, than we have seen in the last 6 months in New Zealand and Australia put together.  There was a group of 17 from the Alfreton Cycling Club.  They have a van supporting them and another group of about 12 all ready to do Lejog. Some of them do it for charity, raising money for various causes, others do it as a challenge for themselves.

We took the obligatory sign post photos and headed up the north coast of Cornwall to St. Ives via the quiet country lanes.  The other two groups headed up the A30.  I don’t suppose we will see any of them again, as we have decided to take the scenic route.

The route we took was quite hilly, as most scenic routes are! But it was a good route.  We passed an old tin mine where I had visited with my Mum, Dad and Joy when I was about 13.  The old mine went out under the sea for about a mile.

The Black and White flag flown along side the British flag is the Cornish flag, there are rumours that they want independence from England.

We stopped at this ruined tin mine, it had a path down to a lookout, but it was still quite chilly and windy and we didn\’t want to leave our bikes unattended.

I had forgotten how rugged Cornwall was.

We crossed over a cattle grid – very carefully if you remember me telling you about falling of my bike in New Zealand crossing a cattle grid.  Then we came across these lovely looking cows.  Very curious.

We arrived in St. Ives at just after 12 noon.  We asked at the Information Centre for a camp ground but it was back up the hill that we had just come down.  We decided to stay at the backpackers in Town.  We have had excellent service from Info centres in NZ and Aus, they always had free maps of their Town\’s to give us.  Not in England, the map would have cost one pound – I wrote down the directions to the campsite and backpackers.

The afternoon was spent wandering around St. Ives.  A very scenic town, very touristy and busy.

We had our first ice-cream of the Lejog (not the last).  It was lovely made from Devon cream.  Ralf found a new lady friend and is now learning how to talk like a pirate – aargh matey, shiver my timbers.

We watched a lady create some lovely glass jewelery, in the store behind the pirate.  If it wasn\’t so delicate I would have loved to have bought some.