I'm cycling to Crackington for something to do. I've missed cycling. I'm using all my gear from the Istanbul cycle - but a new tent, back wheel and seat cover.
I woke at 7 and said goodbye to mum. Had breakfast and finished packing. By then it was 8:30 and dad was about to do the Pill route so he and I cycled down to the Portway together. This seems to be where all my big cycles begin and end.
I've borrowed a friend's Gopro and am trying to do some fancy filming. I filmed myself getting the bike out, loading it up, crossing a bridge - and lots of cycling towards and away from camera. As per, just like last time, I cycled to Queen's Square and filmed a little vlog. I'd forgotten my gloves and bike seat cover. I tried to buy the latter from Mud Dock cycle shop, but they said it was bad for one's hips and told me I wouldn't be able to get one anywhere - so I took a detour to Sports Direct and bought exactly the same one as last time.
The river Avon was very swollen today - the tide was high and the river was almost licking at the cycle path on the opposite bank. I cycled out along the river towards Chew Valley. It took a while to reach the lake due to all the filming - going back and forth to pick up cameras soon adds up.
Once I arrived I stopped by the water and ate a free pastry I'd pilfered on my last shift at Waitrose. Then I was off into the Mendips. Here I found a niggling issue with my new wheel - the smallest gear doesn't work. I tried and failed to fix it, so now I am just doing without. Exmoor will be a struggle.
Next came hills and forest lanes and deep muddy puddles. As I finished listening to Andy Serkis reading The Return of the King I noticed the GoPro battery was draining quickly so I stopped in a pub to charge it. That's where I am now. Progress is slow but I'm in no real rush. I told the bartenders about my Istanbul cycle (of course) and they were astounded (which made me happy).
I have a lot to sort out currently. I’m supposed to start a master’s degree at Salford in September – I’ve just been sent the registration email today. I still have nowhere to live. Ah well. I’ll probably sort it.
I’m glad to be back on the road again. This time last year I was in Ikaria. The cultural show would have been yesterday. So much changes and so much stays the same.
***
Just ate sausage and mash. It was alright – burnt my mouth a little.
After the previous pub I zoomed through Wookey Hole and out towards Glastonbury. On a cycle path I set up my camera for a cycle by. As I did so the GoPro clip fell from my bike’s handlebars. I went up and down the path looking for it. An old lady approached. She was wearing a yellow coat and a grey hat with feathers in it. We got talking. Her name is Antoinette and she’s a healer…
She told me she could see I had a good heart. She asked what my plans were and when I told her I was going to study Journalism she gasped and said “Yes! That’s it, you’re a journalist!”
She said that all the old structures were collapsing and that we needed people with good hearts to rebuild them. She also spotted the clip hidden in the shadow of a branch. Thanks Antoinette.
Soon I left her and continued along the path. I saw Glastonbury Tor from miles off. I cycled back and forth on a wiggly path towards it and stopped halfway up a steep hill to snack because the chain kept skipping on my new back wheel. As I took my nut and raisin. Bag from my pannier it burst and cascaded inside. I ventured in and ate the worst of it, but I’m sure I’ll see consequences later.
Fifteen minutes later I was at the base of the Tor. I half walked, half ran to the top and took in the spectacular view. The Somerset Levels are pretty vast and vastly pretty. Ten minutes later I was back down the bottom and on my way.
I passed through the very witchy Glastonbury town then out onto quiet back roads and cycle paths. Eventually I neared Bridgewater. I stopped at a fishing spot to eat Jelly babies and find a place where I could get dinner. I went to the Hope and Anchor Inn – a very local pub. The owner didn’t want me charging anything because she “pays for the electricity”. I left and took a slight detour over the motorway to The Compass, where I am now. I’ve had a pint. Lovely.
Now I’m going to pay up and head for the Quantocks.
***
I cycled out of town as darkness fell. It took me twenty minutes and one wrong turn to reach the forest by King’s Cliff. I cycled very slowly through the woods looking for promising spots by the light of my bike torch.
I took a side path down a hill and reached a river. Leaving the bike, I took my front light and head torch and ventured along a few paths. Eventually I crossed a river and a couple of fallen trees then found a sheltered spot under a woven lattice of branches. I set up fully in the dark and got stung by nettles more than once.
I leapt back over the river for my luggage then found a way to wheel my bike around it. Once that was secured nearby I went to bed. I slept fitfully. My pillow keeps partially deflating so I had to wake up every few hours to re-inflate it. Ah well.
Over all it was quite a nice spot…
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