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I’ve spent some time over the last few weeks planning my route for this summer’s cycling adventure. I’m not out to break any records so I’m aiming for a relatively modest 80 miles a day. Equally I have no intention of playing ‘dodge the juggernaut’ so the route I designed makes use of smaller roads and the occasional cycle path. Whilst this will mean more miles it will give me a chance to enjoy being in the countryside rather than just seeing it flash by over the top of an A-road crash barrier. I wanted to personalise the route too, so I will visit places where I have lived and worked, the town where I grew up and I’ll have a stop at home where I have allowed myself a sneaky rest day!
Having decided I wanted to average around 80 miles a day I used the Garmin Connect route planner to design a detailed plan for each day, bouncing Youth Hostel to Youth Hostel along the master route. The application is really easy to use and it is tailored for the cyclist, maximising use of national cycle routes and minimising time on main roads. I’ll then upload these to my trusty Garmin 800 so in theory I shouldn’t have to worry about navigation when in the saddle! I’ve used this method when training in unfamiliar areas and it works well – although I’ll definitely need a spare battery!
Below is an outline of the final version. If anyone fancies coming along for a ride on any of the days then you are more than welcome – just drop me a message and I’ll give you RV times and a more detailed route for the day. Likewise if you want to say ‘hi’ as I pass by then that would be appreciated too. Frankly I’d welcome the excuse to stop for a few minutes!
| Date | Day | Start | End | Miles |
| 27-May-18 | Day 1 | Land’s End | Tintagel | 73.68 |
| 28-May-18 | Day 2 | Tintagel | Tiverton | 69.75 |
| 29-May-18 | Day 3 | Tiverton | Glastonbury | 42.06 |
| 30-May-18 | Day 4 | Glastonbury | Gloucester | 77.65 |
| 31-May-18 | Day 5 | Gloucester | Nuneaton | 70.04 |
| 01-Jun-18 | Day 6 | Nuneaton | Eyam | 82.95 |
| 02-Jun-18 | Day 7 | Eyam | Boroughbridge | 82.22 |
| 03-Jun-18 | REST | REST | REST | REST |
| 04-Jun-18 | Day 8 | Boroughbridge | Langdon Beck | 64.2 |
| 05-Jun-18 | Day 9 | Langdon Beck | Melrose | 95.35 |
| 06-Jun-18 | Day 10 | Melrose | Glasgow | 82.6 |
| 07-Jun-18 | Day 11 | Glasgow | Glencoe | 83.99 |
| 08-Jun-18 | Day 12 | Glencoe | Inverness | 84.65 |
| 09-Jun-18 | Day 13 | Inverness | Crask Inn | 65.43 |
| 10-Jun-18 | Day 14 | Crask Inn | John O Groats | 83.1 |