He's off !

After arriving at Carlisle station early, Martin's eager anticipation began to give way to something a little more nervous as the departure time drew near. An inspection of the concourse facilities filled in some time, then we said our goodbyes before the train pulled in a few minutes late. The last time I saw Martin was as he loaded the bike into the appropriate wagon, but it took more time than he had expected to secure, and I was instructed by the platform guard to deposit the panniers in the seating coach, leaving Martin to meet up with them (hopefully) after he had walked through three carriages. The whistle blew for the train to leave and I jumped off as the doors were closing, narrowly missing a trip to Land's End myself!

Martin Phoned at 10.30pm, to say that he was sitting in his tent, in a farm field half a mile from Land's End, cooking his dinner. The weather was blowing a gale, thick mist and driving rain. Looking out of the train window at the weather approximately an hour before arriving at Penzance, he had become very despondent. Then he remembered that he still had a banana left from his lunch, and it seemed to cheer him up. He was in good spirits, having stopped at a camp site near the start point only to decide that he didn't want to pay £10 for the night's pitch; but then got them to fill up his water bottles and pedalled off to find a field for free! Yep, that's my husband! He has so far cycled 11.18 miles, and said he can't wait to get going tomorrow. Look out Cornwall.