Day 14 - Okehampton to Truro

Distance: 72.8 miles
Elevation: 3630 ft
Average speed: 11.7 mph
https://www.strava.com/activities/2463589298

Our penultimate day on the bikes! Not too many pictures today, as perhaps predictably, it was raining steadily – but with the temperatures now at “Devon” level instead of “Scotland”, we set off in light jackets, accepting that we were just going to get wet. After not riding as far up the hill as we expected last night, we finished the job first thing this morning by making our way up to the Granite Trail.

For once, the trail was actually tarmac-ed, so both bikes and riders were happier than on yesterday’s trails! In fact, it felt rather familiar after years of riding on the Bristol-Bath cycle path, particularly as we rode alongside the train tracks and past stations.

We crossed the Melton viaduct – I’d have taken a picture as the views are supposed to be impressive, however we couldn’t see anything for cloud! 4 miles later, we were onto fast B roads, so with heads down against the rain (I discovered that 30mph rain to the eyes is not all that pleasant!), we pushed on towards second breakfast.

I’d picked out a farm shop for our first stop – having learned my lesson from yesterday I took my shoes off once I got there and left little wet footprints around the floor instead. After good bacon/egg rolls and the obligatory coffee, I wrung my socks out in the loos before setting off again.

Back on the bike, the rain was easing as we circled round Launceston (I’d seen the contours on the map and decided round was better than through!). We still had to go “up” though, and as we rounded a bend to see a “Welcome to Cornwall” sign, we knew that it was only going to get tougher.

As we finally got to the top of the hill, the sun came out. After some running adjustment to the setup, we headed for the A39, and I enjoyed a fast descent into Camelford. Having decided at the top of the hill that we’d look for a quick espresso stop, I waited for Dad before we rode up through the town. Disappointingly we couldn’t find a good café – the first time in nearly 900 miles that we’ve not managed to source good coffee! With a Londis at a petrol station the only option, our need for caffeine beat our snobbery and we had a quick Gold Blend before heading for lunch.

We had a welcome downhill section now on quiet B roads, which turned into a very steep drop – not so good for the hands but at least it dried the brakes off! Heading along the Camel Trail, we decided that it was better than the A roads, though once again my wider tyres and stable handling suited the trail better than Dad’s twitchy skinny wheels (though we both rather envied the mountain bikes other people were riding!). We had the advantage of following the river downhill though, and the scenery was great as we rode through the woods.

The river Camel, from the Camel Trail

It was a good job that the weather had improved as the tea-room I’d picked for lunch was more of a tea garden. Mum had spent a happy couple of hours at a picnic table though, drinking tea and reading her book. Now that we were in Cornwall, Dad decided it was time for a pasty!

Cornish fare

What a change to the weather!

After a quick kit change to avoid an imminent shorts malfunction, we set off again, predictably uphill!  We made our way to the third trail of the day, across Goss Moor (once more avoiding too much time on major A roads. After a little bit of gravel, we were then onto fast B roads, with a good 8 miles downhill towards Truro.

We had no option but to follow the main A road into the city, but with a nasty hill to finish the day, we were glad of a climbing lane. Arriving at the B&B after 7pm, we were pleased that Mum had the idea earlier in the day to assemble a picnic instead of needing to head out for food, so we had a relaxing evening to get ready for tomorrow’s final push!