Camchain and tensioner seen up close in a cutaway bike engine

Home Travel StoriesFarewell to England Tour 2021

Farewell to England Tour 2021 - Day 5

Ride Date 22 August 2021

By Rev. Mick!

It was a bit of a slow start to the day following some serious late night discussions. We had to catch up on news on a lot of people. However once the fried breakfast had been forced down and couple of cups of tea drunk the world seemed a far better place. So off on a bit of a tour of South Dorset.

It was a day of tiny lanes, thatched cottages, beautiful churches, lovely pubs, a great lunch, never over 60kph and always on B roads or less. For touring on the Innova this was perfect. I found that if you only travel on these tiny roads it is quite a navigation exercise. Sometimes two places are 10 miles apart by A road, by using only B roads or less you travel over 15 miles. That for me was heaven.

Narrow lanes, trees, hedges, ditches and fields with a couple of old stone built cottages
A narrow lane shaded by trees either side in the sunshine

Sorry my speeds are in kph but I have an EU bike and that is what my Speedo is set in. I must admit early in the trip the speed limit sign said 50 and I was doing 50 with a convoy of frustrated summer motorists following me (Emmets to the man Upt') when I realised it meant 50 mph.

I think it would be great if a super duper computer whizz kid sort of guy could some how produce some sort of App that allowed you to plan a route only on B roads or less. 

On the way we saw The Cerne Abbas Giant, a man of impressive physique. 

The Cerne Abbas Giant. A massive chalk outline of a man on the side of a hill

Also Tolpuddle, all of us working men owe those guys a debt.

Finally back to Wyke Regis for a quieter night.


Sponsor a page - ren@bikesandtravels.com

Farewell to England Tour 2021 - Day 1 Mick's first day is a simple affair. Load up the Innova, head out and ride.
Farewell to England Tour 2021 - Day 2 Rev.Mick! sums up his arrival back into Wales.
Farewell to England Tour 2021 - Day 3 Mick is having a ride out with a friend, into the wilderness of Bristol. Can a vintage Velocette and a 125 complete the epic crossing of the Severn River?
Farewell to England Tour 2021 - Day 4 Mick receives the soaking of a lifetime before finding the wondrous beauty of Dorset. Beyond that he could tell you but he'd have to kill you.
Farewell to England Tour 2021 - Day 5 Mick finds his way around Dorset using every back road he can find. For himself and the Innova this is a perfect match made in heaven.
Farewell to England Tour 2021 - Day 6 (And 7 And 8) Mick is having one of "those" days as his tour of south west England continues. Not to worry, there's still much to see and think about before reaching the haven of family.
Farewell to England Tour 2021 - Day 9 (And Some 8) After trains and repairs Rev. Mick! is back on two wheels. He seems to be having a fabulous time returning to the haunts of his youth.
Farewell to England Tour 2021 - Day 10 (And 11) It looks as though Armageddon is on Rev. Mick!'s horizon and yet another fine day is to be found on the UK's roads. When you're touring Innova style there's nothing can stop you.
Farewell to England Tour 2021 - Day 12 Heading homewards Rev. Mick! takes us to a special place in his motorcycling career - "The Road" - after encountering a town filled with drunkards and streets laced with MAMILs. Nothing seems mundane in Mick's world.
Farewell to England Tour 2021 - Day 13 In typical chilled out fashion Rev. Mick! is making his way slowly towards the ferry. There's still plenty of time to explore ever more back roads and to dine well. It's a hard life.
Farewell to England Tour 2021 - Day 14 After an epic 2 weeks of touring southern England Rev! Mick is making his way home.

Reader's Comments

Upt'North ¹ said :-
The Right Reverend Mickster,
Love the second piccie of the tree lined sunlit avenue. Could be just about anywhere in France, but Dorset will have to do. Trying to think if I've been to Dorset.......yes, and it was pretty nice in a busy sort of way if I recall correctly. Enjoying the ride along Mick.
Are they groccles in Dorset? The tourists that is.
Upt'North.
21/09/2021 16:44:40 UTC
Rev.Mick! said :-
Hi Upt,

That bit did evoke France. To honest I think it was closer to Blanford Forum. It was a revelation that if you consciously avoid A roads and only use B or below how very rural southern (and I suspect northern) England actually is. The weather on this trip did help, however as I had no space to stash I ended up having to wear bib and braces and heavy jacket. OK in motion but once you stopped you fried. As you will read in the next bit things did go a bit off plan for a while.
Anyway hope I am not boring you all, I feel it could get a bit like showing someone your holiday photos.
21/09/2021 19:31:33 UTC
Ian Soady¹ said :-
If it was in France there would be a nice little cafe just round the corner...

Lovely report - many thanks Mick. I'm chafing at the bit to get back on the bike - I've now been home for a week after the dreaded robotic assault and getting around reasonably well but not even allowed to drive the car for 6 weeks, and expect the bike will be a bit later. The main concern after a hip replacement is dislocating it as the ball & socket are only held together by the various muscles which of course have been chopped about somewhat. So these have to recover. However, reading some reports and forums I've got off very lightly and am progressing very well. I do get very tired by the afternoons however.
23/09/2021 10:39:03 UTC
Ren - The Ed¹ said :-
I find the anaesthetic takes a goodly while to fully leave the system and can cause said drowsiness. That and the boredom of not being allowed to do anything useful or destructive. Here's to a steady recovery and perhaps some time back on 2 wheels in a modicum of comfort.
23/09/2021 19:38:47 UTC

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