Day 1: Lands End to Okehampton

It's 11pm and I'm sat in a Travel Lodge feeling pretty happy with the progress on day 1. I made a last-minute change of plan and decided to take a different, less busy route but it added to the miles and caused some navigational issues (ie I got lost twice).

Last night we stayed at a great campsite on the Lizard (Henry's campsite if you're looking for a recommendation) but it was an hour's drive from Lands End. By the time we'd taken the customary photos by 'the sign' it was 10.30 and I was eager to get going.

I rode out to Penzance through coastal villages that reminded me of parts of south Wales, especially as all the Cornish place names sound similar to Welsh place names. It got me wondering exactly how or who these people were and how and when they migrated from Wales (or vice versa). Being on a bike for nearly 7 hours there's lots of time for musings like these!

I rode to Penzance then cut north to Hayle and Newquay. I'd planned to ride on the A30 all the way to Okehampton but when I realised the road was a dual carriageway full of fast moving traffic I decided to take a more scenic route. It was worth it too as I rode across the cliff tops overlooking the English channel, then turned to the north east for Bodmin, Liskeard and Tavistock, then along the western edge of Dartmoor National Park.

The route was consistently hilly but a stiff tailwind really helped on the uphills and downhills. The best descent came on the A3075 into Newquay where I reached a knee-trembling 49 mph!

I finished the day in 6hrs 47minutes with a distance of 117 miles and an average speed of 17.2 miles per hour. It won't be the fastest day but it probably will be the longest.

I felt good all day long though, never too hungry or tired, although thirsty all the way through and I developed a sore throat early on so stopped for Strepsils. I had a bowl of camping stove porrige to start, followed by a handfull of beef jerky (my new high protein friend). During the ride I ate three cereal bars and a banana and at the lunch stop I ate three ham and cheese rolls and half a pack of jelly babies. To be honest that's pretty much a normal day's eating anyway. The one extra thing was a litre of sickly sweet lemon and lime carbohydrate drink - someone once told me that the calorie content in those drinks is enough that you can get by for several days on them alone!

For dinner we drove out to a pub called the Fox and Hounds in Sourton. Its restaurant was nothing to write home about (I had lamb shank with chips, new potatoes and veg) but they did have a 12-bed bunk house for travellers. Worth more investigation if you're planning a LE-JOG cycle unsupported.

Anyway, I'm still feeling good now but I don't want to ride my luck (excuse the pun) so I'm off to bed.

Song of the day: Farewell to Twilight by Symposium
Picture of the day: The Welcome to Devon sign, coming after exactly 100 miles
Missed picture of the day: A sign for the North Cornwall village called 'Cocks'
Check out the pics from Day 0 and Day 1 at: www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=425209&id=751600611&l=316933a515