Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
soon as the idea of the trip had taken shape in my mind, I suggested it to Ben who agreed
straight away to join me. It then didn't prove too difficult to find three weeks that we both
had free, as neither of us had much on in the way of work, or anything else for that matter.
We didn't need to source or buy any equipment either, as we weren't taking anything. We
didn't need to plan a route as we wanted to allow for spontaneity, and as this was the first
timeanEndtoEndtriphadbeenattemptedinthismanner-asfaraswewereaware-there
was nothing productive that we could do in the way of research.
As for our training regime, that was non-existent. Be under no illusion, Ben and I were
not experienced cyclists. I did ride my bike several times a week, but this was to cover the
400 metres to the local shop. Ben used his bike even less frequently. We had taken part in
the London to Brighton bike ride earlier in the year, which is a distance of 54 miles, and
was the furthest that either of us had ever cycled by some way. It took us most of the day
and made us both realise that we were not cut out for long-distance cycling. It did however
plant the seed in my mind about attempting this journey of more epic proportions.
Originally I had suggested to Ben that we try to acquire our bikes and clothes for free
BEFORE heading to Cornwall and then just attempt to cycle to John O'Groats without
spending any money.
'Where's the fun in that?' asked Ben. 'If we're going to do it properly then we need to
start with nothing at all. No clothes, no money, no shoes and no bikes.'
'What? You want to start from Land's End completely naked? We would get arrested.'
'Maybe just a pair of boxer shorts then, if you're embarrassed about people seeing your
tiny penis. But definitely no other clothes, no shoes and certainly no bikes. That would be
cheating.'
'Do you really think we'll be able to get clothes and bikes for free?'
'There's only one way to find out.'
We were given a lift down to Cornwall the day before by a willing friend and we spent
the night in a nearby B&B and enjoyed a 'last supper' at the local pub. Early the following
morning we handed our clothes, wallets, shoes and phones to our willing friend, who then
waved us goodbye and left us stranded on the cliff tops in our pants.
'Now what?' asked Ben about a mile up the road from Land's End. I wasn't sure how
to respond. We had not really thought the whole thing through and it suddenly dawned on
us that we didn't really know what to do next. Our aim had been to get clothes, and that
had been easier than expected, but we hadn't thought past that. We continued walking and
hoped for inspiration.
The first bit of civilisation we came across was a farmhouse. It was set back from the
road, but we could see movement through one of the windows. We decided it was worth
enquiring about another pair of shoes. We approached the door with nervous caution. Ben
was still without trousers and it was highly likely that any elderly occupants of the house
Search WWH ::
Custom Search