LEJOG Day 9 - Keswick to Moffat
Day 9
73 miles
1070m ascent
5h 25min
2724 calories
A mixed day: leaving the northern Lakes, a stop in Carlisle, then crossing the border to endure a hard afternoon.
Sadly due to my father being unwell, & having to share a double bed by mistake - his coughing fits/constant restlessness caused me to set up camp on the floor! It was a little hard, & he did stand on me in the early hours...but other than that, it was a fine night's sleep!
Breakfast at the B&B was lovely (compared to yesterday's), with the couple being helpful, chatty, & interested in what we were up to.
I went into Keswick town to pick up Greg, who had stayed at the YHA, which by the way had the most legendary sounding receptionist (he had called all the town's restaurants to find somewhere vegan for Greg!).
It was raining but we had all of our kit on, & continued up country roads, up a 3-summited climb (which wasn't too bad). This gave us a view of the expansive flat patchwork green land, containing Carlisle in the far middle, & further on to mountains hiding their tops amongst clouds.
Downhill to Carlisle, where we arrived at their sandstone motte & bailey castle around 11:20 as planned (27 miles from keswick).
I'd contacted a cafe the previous night re: vegan options, & so we enjoyed warm drinks & lemon drizzle cake there. Of course there was a slight hiccup to start with as only one waitress was there, who hadn't been informed what was vegan or if they even had non-dairy milk... fortunately we only waited 30min until the owner turned up & set things straight!
From there, things got dark...
Well, it was eventually over 40 miles on a single A road over the border & through south Scotland, in the pouring rain. One.single.road.
Lorries passing, drenching us & throwing more wind our way every so often. I was too stubborn to wear my raincoat (as I get hot easily uphill, so end up taking it straight off again anyway), so I cycled that entire torrential section with bare arms.
I got slower, really couldn't keep up with Greg, & felt so uncomfortable & drained. With 10 miles to go I got a bit light-headed & shaky (a 2nd bonk for me!), so ate more.
We got to Moffat at 1620 - I was SO glad to have a hot bath!!
Greg had not arranged anywhere to stay, so after trying 3 different avenues (to avoid spending a fortune) he ended up blagging himself a £20 night in a £70 hotel room. Amazing. This is after him telling us about his brother bartering them a £75 meal for £45.
These guys... I need to learn this art myself!
Dad was feeling a bit better and so after I ate my cold lentils & quinoa (urgh yes getting bored of this now) we met Greg for a drink, and had some more food.
I think the key issue here was losing so much energy through heat loss. I shall try better tomorrow!
X
73 miles
1070m ascent
5h 25min
2724 calories
A mixed day: leaving the northern Lakes, a stop in Carlisle, then crossing the border to endure a hard afternoon.
Sadly due to my father being unwell, & having to share a double bed by mistake - his coughing fits/constant restlessness caused me to set up camp on the floor! It was a little hard, & he did stand on me in the early hours...but other than that, it was a fine night's sleep!
Breakfast at the B&B was lovely (compared to yesterday's), with the couple being helpful, chatty, & interested in what we were up to.
I went into Keswick town to pick up Greg, who had stayed at the YHA, which by the way had the most legendary sounding receptionist (he had called all the town's restaurants to find somewhere vegan for Greg!).
It was raining but we had all of our kit on, & continued up country roads, up a 3-summited climb (which wasn't too bad). This gave us a view of the expansive flat patchwork green land, containing Carlisle in the far middle, & further on to mountains hiding their tops amongst clouds.
Downhill to Carlisle, where we arrived at their sandstone motte & bailey castle around 11:20 as planned (27 miles from keswick).
I'd contacted a cafe the previous night re: vegan options, & so we enjoyed warm drinks & lemon drizzle cake there. Of course there was a slight hiccup to start with as only one waitress was there, who hadn't been informed what was vegan or if they even had non-dairy milk... fortunately we only waited 30min until the owner turned up & set things straight!
From there, things got dark...
Well, it was eventually over 40 miles on a single A road over the border & through south Scotland, in the pouring rain. One.single.road.
Lorries passing, drenching us & throwing more wind our way every so often. I was too stubborn to wear my raincoat (as I get hot easily uphill, so end up taking it straight off again anyway), so I cycled that entire torrential section with bare arms.
I got slower, really couldn't keep up with Greg, & felt so uncomfortable & drained. With 10 miles to go I got a bit light-headed & shaky (a 2nd bonk for me!), so ate more.
We got to Moffat at 1620 - I was SO glad to have a hot bath!!
Greg had not arranged anywhere to stay, so after trying 3 different avenues (to avoid spending a fortune) he ended up blagging himself a £20 night in a £70 hotel room. Amazing. This is after him telling us about his brother bartering them a £75 meal for £45.
These guys... I need to learn this art myself!
Dad was feeling a bit better and so after I ate my cold lentils & quinoa (urgh yes getting bored of this now) we met Greg for a drink, and had some more food.
I think the key issue here was losing so much energy through heat loss. I shall try better tomorrow!
X
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