Day 64 - Bath to Bridgwater

It was interesting sharing the dormitory with 9 others…and I was on the top bunk…lucky me! I must say I am getting more agile in getting up and down from top bunks now as I think I have been sleeping in them about 4 times now!

I had a good night of sleep and looking around it seems the others in the dorm were also sleeping well despite my snoring!

So awake at 5.30 am and packed, showered and ready for breakfast ahead of the ride at 6.30am. We wandered around the area near the hostel to find somewhere to have a light breakfast….luckily we found a cafe that served croissants and muffins and coffee…whew!

After breakfast we went back to the hostel to collect our bikes and pack them with our gear and we were on the road at about 8.15 am. It was later than normal as we had to wait until 8 to collect our bikes. I must say generally we have been very fortunate with our accommodation so far as on site storage is concerned. There is normally a shed, room , courtyard or some designated area to lock our bikes away safely.

So the weather today was cooler and cloudy for most of the day with temperatures in the mid teens. There was a fair bit of wind which was generally against us for most of the day.

I was lead navigator today so it was up to me to make sure we didn’t get lost!

Getting out of Bath was interesting as we were straight into one of the designated climbs. This was about 50 metres which was handled with ease. Then we were on a rail trail for quite some distance which was great. All the time we were climbing… There were 3 other designated climbs of about 100 metres each.

Then there was a big downhill into Wells. Got to enjoy the downhills when they appear! Wells was about 40 kms into the ride so we stopped and had a look at the cathedral and then went and had Devonshire Tea as an early lunch. To be frank, I was really disappointed with the scones they were hard and crumbly which made them a bit unpleasant. The tea was refreshing… note I said tea not coffee…. Seems I am enjoying the odd cup of tea now!

Being in Wells reminded me of that great Junior School Headmaster at Wesley College in Melbourne. His name was Eddie Wells. He was an “old school “ headmaster who knew all the names of the boys ( Wesley was not co-ed then). He was renowned for his administration of corporal punishment when required and had a very strong and endearing personality. He was renowned at setting up the obstacle course at the Junior School sports on the College Front Turf each year! Lovely man who died in an assembly doing what he loved. He did not come from Wells or the UK but the name of Wells , the town, always had that Eddie Wells association for me.

Anyway after Tea… as they say here. We were off to Glastonbury next. I was very disappointed in going through the Glastonbury area. It is in moor type country and it is flat and the wind was against us! The town of Glastonbury reminded me a bit of the hippie towns in Australia as you could smell the incense and other “herbs and spices” that the counter culture enjoy. There was people demonstrating about the Israel/Hamas war and the plight of the Palestinian people.

After this it was on to our final destination at Bridgwater which was again through fairly flat country and luckily we had some good shelter from the wind by the hedgerows. We arrived at our hostel accommodation at the Admiral Blake Guesthouse which is run by the The Cyclists Touring Club of the UK. Quite comfortable accommodation but Steve will be on the floor on the blow up bed tonight as we only have 2 beds!

Today we did 84 kms and climbed nearly 700 metres.

Today’s pictures are:

The route

Avon River falls at Bath

Couple of buildings and the Cathedral in Bath

Horse stables used for horse riding school…

Wells Cathedral and the village square near where we had our Devonshire tea

View of the Somerset countryside

Home for the night