Saturday 13th October 2012 – Day 62
Sea Palling – South Lynn
78.45 miles
2469 feet climbed
3320 calories burnt
Cumulative miles cycled round the coast = 3,717.39 miles
Please remember that Kirsty Medlock and her Dad, Stephen are cycling the 4,400 miles round the coast of Britain to raise £10,000 for Clifton’s Children Society (CCS) Adoption, the agency that facilitated an adoption for family friends. Please follow this link to donate as much as you can http://uk.virginmoneygiving.com/team/cycling4adoption
Many, many thanks in advance!
Diary – Day 62
I’m really starting to feel the effects of the 3,500 miles we’ve cycled, it’s becoming more and more difficult to make these blog posts coherent, so please bear with me! Overnight, it was incredibly chilly so waking up and getting ready was incredibly difficult. The sunrise looked incredibly, stunning clear skies but they made for an exceptionally cold start to the cycle.
We all agreed on making Wells-next-the-sea our lunch stop, so Dad and I got going, battling the chilly air! It was a really difficult morning, my toes were so cold that they went numb, even with overshoes on! We traced the coast on tiny country roads, because it was a weekend the traffic was nice and light. The most noticeable sight we passed in the morning was Walcott and the great big gas terminal. If I remember correctly we also saw one of the ‘golf balls’ watching over us and keeping us safe!
It’s always nice starting the day on country lanes, as it lets you relax in to the ride. I can really feel the difference in myself when I’m cycling on main roads – it seems I always have my heart in my mouth, waiting for a car to make a wrong decision. It was only when we got to Cromer about 20 miles in that we had to contend with a main road, the A149. Compared to some of the roads with cycled on, it was incredibly quiet and I felt pretty safe. It’s funny how much I’m not focusing on safety, it’s like because we’re so close to the end, I don’t want anything to happen so close to home!
When we hit the thirty-mile mark of the morning’s ride, it was becoming more and more difficult to pedal, the wind had picked up and it was still as cold as it was when we set off. I kept staring at the Garmin, wishing the miles away – not always helpful having such a comprehensive piece of equipment, I try not to look at how many miles I’ve got left but sometimes I can’t help myself.
After the last slog, we finally arrived for lunch, Mum and Harry had parked off the main road and we had a relatively long rest after battling the headwinds of the morning. Once we were ready, we set off again – this time it was a lovely jaunt as I knew we would be seeing my Grandma and Granddad in the evening, definitely helps you to pedal.
I navigated us all the way to Kings Lynn, as we were in Norfolk the terrain was again as flat as a pancake. Once we passed Hunstanton, we had to negotiate the busy A149 that was pretty hairy at times. We witnessed a car wait for another vehicle to pull on to a roundabout before it decided to pull out in front of it… this did not bode well for our cycle on the road! We kept our heads down, churned through and managed to get off the road need Castle Rising unscaithed! Once we arrived in Lynn Dad took over, as this was his stomping ground as a wee sprog.
We found the motorhome, tucked up in the entrance to an industrial park in South Lynn, just before the bridge that would take us over the Great Ouse. Mum had rung my Grandma to see whether it would be possible to park up in her drive overnight, Grandma said we were most welcome, so we packed the bikes into the motorhome and set off on our 15 miles trip to Swaffham.
When we arrived, we had an incredible welcome, Grandma had gone all out and decorated her car with a welcome banner, balloons, streamers, the works – really lifting all of us weary souls! It has been a real treat cycling the coast in terms of meeting up with friends and family – it does absolute wonders for morale and keeps you pedaling!
Grandma kindly treated us to fish and chips and we had a black forest gateaux for dessert, exactly what the doctor ordered. After dinner, my Mum and I went to visit my Granddad, who lives the other side of Swaffham – it was incredible to see my near 90 year old gramps looking so well!
On our return, it wasn’t long before we all went to bed. Mum and I slept in the house whilst Harry, Dad and Jasper slept in the motorhome. Dad said he overheard people around 4:00am, and we’ve just found out from Grandma that two houses within a stones throw were burgled over the night we were there, I’m so glad we were there, I think the motorhome acted as quite a deterrent!
roundtheedge 