Bikepacking - Plymouth ferry port to Exeter

Day #

72

State of Legs

:-)

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	Distance (miles)	Distance (km)	Ascent (feet)	Ascent (metres)	Punctures
Today	57 miles	km	4111 feet	metres	0
Trip Totals	2737 miles	km	124343 feet	metres	0

Today's Route

Route So Far

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Travelogue

I was up and about early and wandered up onto deck to see what the world looked like.

I had no internet access and was interested in figuring out what the weather might be like today. As we got closer to land, I could see dark rain clouds and decided to play it safe and dress accordingly. This meant wearing my light rain jacket and waterproof over-trousers and my waterproof over-shoes, which I'd not yet used this trip. Yes, I went the whole hog.

I'd bought the over-shoes for this trip. They're light and take up almost no space. And they're made out of a material which is like the material used to make party balloons but thicker. They just stretch over your shoes. Simples. But do they work? Read on to find out!

We docked in Plymouth at 11:30, half an hour late. Plymouth is a small port, so after disembarking I was on the public highway within a few minutes. 

It was weird being back in England and cycling on the wrong side of the road again ;-)

What was weirder and frankly, unpleasant is just how many cars and vans there are on the roads compared to the places I'd been cycling for the last couple of months. And it's not just the main roads. Single track country lanes had quite a lot of traffic too and more than once, I had to turn around and cycle back to a place where the oncoming cars could pass!

Anyway.....

The start of my route followed British national cycle network route 2 and then route 272. Much of the time, the cycling felt very urban but I was kept out of the traffic and on cycle paths of one sort or another. That made it safe, even when the paths followed the line of major roads. It was incredibly noisy though.

I put my head down and focused on getting to my campsite on the other side of Exeter. The urban environment was eventually left behind and I found myself in the hills. There was a field full of piggies. There were thatched cottages. There were quaint English village names.

And then it rained. And it rained hard. And then a large flying insect flew directly into my left eyeball. I swear I could hear the impact. It was like being punched in the eye! For a few minutes, The Mule was piloted with only one eye on the road! Ouchy. 

Thankfully, I got to my campsite in one piece and by that time it had stopped raining. I checked in at the same time as a couple of bikepackers. We talked. They were heading for Spain where I'd just come from! But they'd also done some amazing trips such as a recent one in Peru. It all sounded quite awesome and is giving me ideas :-)

That's it for today!

Welcome (back to) England

National Cycle Network Route 2 sign

Non-scenic cycle path but at least I wasn't forced to cycle on that road

Ahhhh..... country lanes. That's better.

Flag at half mast. No idea why.

Piggies!

Piggies!

Quaint name

Quaint house

At 4,111 feet ascent, today was pretty hilly! My legs did OK, thankfully but I'm guessing I'll feel it tomorrow. Here's the profile:

And what about the waterproof over-shoes?

Epic fail! They both ripped under the toe and weirdly, my shoes were really wet! So, both have been thrown away. Ah well, some you win, some you lose :-)