End of France, Switzerland and Germany

The last 2 days in France were great. They started off with a climb over the mountains to the east of Belfort. Had a coffee in a cafe in Belfort, which has a very impressive castle. I left France along the Rhone-Rhine canal, which I followed to Altkirch then took a road to Basel.
The change feom France to Switzerland was massive. The language changed to German, but more noticeably the buildings abd people were completely different. More importantly as soon as I entered Switzerland were 2 things that France lacked: a decent bike shop and a clean public toilet with soap and bog roll provided! The tram system looked good and there were some impressive buildings, the River Rhine flows through the city too. A very nice place which I'll go back to one day when I have some more money. It's not cheap!
I left Basel along the Rhine, which I followed for a while, then crossed it into Germany. Was made to feel very welcome straight away with waves and hallos! Maybe it's because I can speak more German than French (which isn't saying much) but I felt more at home here).

I headed north into the black forest and spent the rest of the day climbing up a gorgeous gorge. Ended up camping on top of a very cold but beautiful mountain at about 3000 feet. The next day I descended to the start of the River Danube, at Donau Eshingen. I've been following the river ever since and it's guided me past castles, cliffs, monastries and lovely villages. I'd love to come back here and stay in the guesthouses and eat in the restaurants with some money and some company!

Today was a lovely morning but the afternoon was very wet. Rained for about 5 hours of riding and is still doing now. I was pretty miserable by about 4 but then a really nice bloke cycled up along side mean and we had a chat as well as my faltering German would allow. He was one of the rare people in Germany who doesn't speak English. A bit of company was nice and the time went much quicker. I waved goodbye to him on the edge of Ulm and went to find a hotel because I couldn't face another damp night! It's a fantastic city center in Ulm with an absolutely massive cathedral and loads of traditional restaurants and buildings by the Danube.

I found my room and got a kebab and a beer to take back to it. Won't be up too early tomorrow!

France

France was instantly completely different. Went into Calais, which has a lovely town center. Stocked up on French cakes and meat then cycled 50 miles until dusk. Not a great campsite, just off a big road, hidden from view by a steep verge.

The days in France seem to have merged into one. The scenery through the Northwest didn't change much. Long hard slogs through vast areas of farmland, broken up by quaint but often derelict villages. Each night I've camped in woods off the side of roads. My cooking has been more adventurous than in England, including sausage ratatouille and cassoulet.
The highlight of this area of France has definately been the larger towns and cities. Although near impossible to navigate, the town centers are always beautiful and often accompanied by massive cathedrals. The cathedral in Laon was amazing.

A couple of days ago was the highlight for scenery. I spent the day cycling through rolling hills forests and farmland, all above 1000 feet. It felt a million miles away from the large towns. I went past a huge crater like valley called the cul de clef need to find out how it was formed.
Was nice to meet up with my Dad a couple of times, first on his way to Geneva, then yesterday for an afternoon riding and an all you can eat buffet in Lure, which I made the most of!

I've enjoyed France a lot. I don't think my route has taken me through the most beautiful region but there have been some fantastic highlights. That's the great thing about cycle touring though - you end up in some places that you would never visit otherwise.
Bike is performing brilliantly and I'm happy with how I'm coping. It's been far from easy so far but i'm managing the daily physical challenge and I'm sure as I adapt to riding long distances every day it will get easier.
Right I have to check out of my hotel in Lure (first one of the trip) in 45 mins so going to have a shower and head for Switzerland. Might get there today or definately tomorrow.

Riding stats from England.

Total distance: 494 miles
Average speed: 10.9 mph
Max speed: 42.1 mph
Total height gain: 24,376 feet
Highest altitude: 1,891 feet
Longest day: 133 miles
Days riding: 6.5
Longest day: 133 miles
Average length day: 76 miles

The end of England

The rest of England was chilled out. Started with a 40 mile morning ride from Letchworth to London, where I went to my aunt and uncle's for lunch. Left the bike there and went into town to watch England lose the grand slam, terrible performance but well done Ireland. Met up with a few mates and went for a night out.
Next day had a massive Sunday Roast at friends of aunt and uncle which was amazing after eating out of saucepans for a week!

Monday morning set off towards Dover. Kent is a really nice area of England. Love the old buildings with steep roofs. Camped in a thick forest near Canterbury. Early start the next day got me to the ferry in good time. Went through all the car check in booths. Had to go to security. My heart sank when I saw the scanning machine. I thought I'd have to unload my panniers and put them through. The guy just put my camelbak through (water carrying backpack) and asked me to empty my pockets. "do you have any knives" - no "do you have any explosives" - no. I rode off thinking "good security" remembering my swiss army knife and petrol container on the bike!

Waited in car lane 122 and was eventually called onto the ferry. Rode up the very steep ramp onto the ferry and locked up the bike, which I've christened Sandy by the way (it's made by Sanderson). Went upstairs and waved goodbye to the white cliffs. Won't be seeing England again for a long time. Was an emotional moment but really exciting. This is where the ride really starts!

5 days gone... 13th to 18th March 2011

So I've set off! It came around so quickly. One day I was making final preparations, the next I was saying goodbye to family, friends and Laura. Leaving was really difficult but hopefully everything will be easier now I've made that first plunge.

After I left I cycled with my dad for about 20 miles to a pub where I met my mum, nan, uncle and cousin. Had a nice meal and pint, said a final farewell then set off realising I had no idea which way to go as my map wasnt detailed enough to include the small village we were in! I asked someone "which way to wrexham?" he pointed and I was off again. I cycled til dusk then found a wood and spent the first night in my tent. Pretty uneventful but sleeping bag was very warm even though it was freezing outside. Fell asleep with all sorts of thoughts going through my head, worried, lonely but sure I'd made the right decision in leaving.

The second day was mercifully sunny and lovely riding through north and mid Wales. Thanks to Richard Owen of bangor-on-dee who made a donation after chatting with me. Managed a respectful distance and finished the day with a pint, think im gonna rate every beer I have in my diary and compare world beers!
The third day was an average morning, where I reached the coast, but the afternoon was brilliant. I followed my map up what was marked as a country lane. It turned out to be an old drovers track after about 5 miles which went into a dark wood. I knocked on the house at the end of the tarmac and the guy who lived there said I could go that way. "Turn left at the first junction right at the second and its about 10 miles". It was an ok track but the seemingly easy directions weren't that simple. I ended up having to guess which way to go on 3 or 4 forest track junctions following a south west (ish) bearing. I had no idea if I was going the right way but had to keep going or turn back for a 40+ mile detour.

Anyway 20 miles and about 3000 feet of climbing later I found the road, which greeted me with a 25% incline followed by a brilliant descent to a pub which had the man utd game on. 2-1 get in! I spoke to a guy there about the ride, he said he'd love to do something similar. I told him he should!
The forth day was bad! Dreary weather and a feeling of worry meant I only managed 60 miles. I gave up at 5 with a resolution to make up for it tomorrow. Had loads of food and an early night. Checked my emails and found out that my Iranian visa had been refused. Was pretty gutted but may be for the best. Will break the only biking across Europe and Asia chain though because will now need to take a boat accross the caspian sea. Much more annoying though was the Azerbaijan embassy's email which told me my visa was ready to be collected tomorrow or Friday, oh and by the way we're on holiday for a week after that! Right- er, well thanks for the notice! So I had to get to London by the morning after next or delay crossing the channel by a week!
I woke up early and feeling refreshed and decided to get as close to London as possible to keep the inevitable train fare as low as I could. There was a very small chance I would make the 130 miles to my nans house in letchworth so I headed in that direction on main roads. After a massive day, I arrived at nan's at half 10 absolutely shattered but to a bath a meal and a proper bed feeling really chuffed that I'd made it. Now I know I'm capable of big days when they're needed.
This morning I went to London and got the visa although not without worry as there was a huge que when I got to the embassy. I picked up my visa 15 mins before the embassy shut for the week. Phew! Having an afternoon off in letchworth now, will ditch any non-essential kit and then cycle into London tomorrow to watch England win the grand slam! Staying with family on Sunday, then down to dover on Monday for a Tuesday ferry crossing.
That's all for now, will upload some photos soon. Feel like im settling in to my new lifestyle well. It's been really hard to leave but I don't regret my decision and I can't wait for mainland Europe. I'll miss you all a lot!

5 days to go.

Only 5 days to go and the last minute nerves have set in. It's only recently dawned on me what I'm trying to do. It's very easy to say I'm going to cycle around the world, planning is fun and you get to buy a load of gadgets and gear. Actually doing it is going to be another story. Leaving is going to be the hardest bit, then it should be amazing although I'm going to spend 8 months being absolutely knackered!

Went on a short ride earlier to test my tent. It's ace - super lightweight and quick to pitch. also tried out fuel stove which is amazing. 1 litre of fuel = around 15 hours burn time.

I'll use this blog to keep people updated. I'll put long detailed posts on here when I get time. My twitter/facebook feeds will have short posts more regularly.

Thats all for now...