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Travel StoriesSome Iberian Mountains
Easing Into The Trip
Ride Date 14 September 2024
By Ren Withnell
I check the tyres. Again. I check the paperwork. Again. I check we've both got our phones and passports and log books and insurances and MOTs. Again. Have I gotten the tent pegs? Did I pack my spare glasses? Can I easily access the email with the ferry booking? I know I am actually as sorted as I can be. There's that twinge of guilt about mother being in hospital, should I really be doing this? I'll be OK as soon as we get going.
Sure enough as soon as we're out of Halewood and onto the main roads it all starts to click into place. I have, as far as I can tell, done EVERYTHING I can think of to give us both the best chance of having a successful trip. To set out without paperwork and the tent and the bikes in good order is clearly asking for trouble. To have done all I can and to still have trouble is bad luck, it's all in the lap of the gods now, I've done my bit, I've done my best.
"Are you SURE we have EVERYTHING?"
We could just hit the motorway. The weather's not too bad today so I decide we'll start off by following the A49 south through Cheshire and Shropshire and some other Shires. I'm riding, I'm into this, I must be because normally I'd be thinking of stopping after an hour and yet here I am cruising through Shrewsbury and I'm still not ready for a brew. Sharon seems fine too.
I'm planning to stop at The Lazy Trout cafe, on the A49 just south of Church Stretton. I was, until I saw it was shut. Oh no! Is it just closed for the day? It, oh dear, it looks more permanently closed. That's sad, good little cafe that and being a trucker's type of cafe it wasn't too expensive. We carry on regardless.
Alas it seems The Lazy Trout is no more. (A photo from my archives).
Instead we stop at Laila's Cafe in Craven Arms. It's just a quick brew stop where we notice Craven Arms appears to be quite a nice place. The A49 leads to the A417, around Ludlow and then Gloucester, where we stop at Sainsbury's and purchase some comestibles. It's not all glamour and selfies out here on the road you know.
The M5 is the M5. Not at all exciting, too much traffic around Portishead, there's some kind of massive car park where you can see lots and lots of shiny new cars while in the traffic, and there's that bit where it splits onto 2 levels. Still, it's better than trying to ride through Bristol which as far as I can tell is just a large industrial and retail estate with the odd house in between.
Our accommodation is at - ahem - The Warrens Holiday Village. We, well we kinda figured it wouldn't be anything special or magical, just a place to rest our weary heads for the night. It is actually OK, it's fine, rather ordinary and perhaps a little weary in places but our lodge is clean and functional and everything works. There is one problem, however the problem is entirely of our own making.
It's certainly not unpleasant, nor stunning.
For some reason we've both got it into our heads it's self catering - the website does talk of self catering holidays. However there's no kitchen or kitchenette or anything save a kettle. We check the booking - no - it's quite right our booking clearly states our chosen (cheapest) option is a room with a bathroom and a kettle. No mention or suggestion of a kitchen at all. Silly us. You can't fix stupid, especially if you are the stupid.
This patch of gravel is the kitchen tonight.
So it is I find myself cooking on the stove on the gravel and grass outside the lodge.
It's a little too early for bed. The evening has clear skies and the air is cooling so we don our jackets and take a walk to Clevedon's Tesco in search of tasty snacks. The edge of Clevedon looks like any other estate in any other town, not nice, not rough, just houses and streets and a Tesco - nothing to see here save for a quartet of swans gliding gracefully under a bridge.
It has been an uneventful start to our trip. That, well that is for me a blessing. We have an easy 110 miles to the port tomorrow and with a 1745 sailing we have ALL day to do that. Nothing's broken, no-one's in tears, and the lodge is warm and comfortable. Uneventful doesn't make for great story telling but I'll take it, gladly.
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Prologue - Some Iberian Mountains
Organising a simple 2 week bike tour should be easy peasy. Watch Ren make this simple task as difficult as possible.
Easing Into The Trip
After plenty of flapping and fretting Ren can calm down and start to enjoy the ride. It's a simple journey today with no purpose other than getting closer to the forthcoming ferry.
Onto The Ferry
Ren takes a simple short trip and turns it into an unnecessarily arduous ride to the ferry. Then all the Dynamic Muppets have to do is get on the ferry. Should be easy - right?
Off The Ferry And Into The Affray
It's all waiting and chaos, confusion and queueing - and that's just getting off the ferry. Despite being in Spain the evening has a very English feel with an English friend.
Reader's Comments
nab301 said :-
Comestibles, I had to grab the dictionary .....
Nigel
18/10/2024 12:01:08 UTC
Upt'North ¹ said :-
Uneventful?
I'd take it.
Cooking in the dirt, meh.
Upt.
18/10/2024 12:39:31 UTC
Ren - The Ed¹ said :-
I no big wuds nab301. I dun went to skool didn I. One also has access to Thesaurus.com and one uses it. Lots. It makes me seem pretentious/intelligent - delete as appropriate.
There's a lot to be said about uneventful ain't there Upt'. By cooking in the dirt we probably spent around £2.50 on the meal rather than £40 at a basic restaurant. I know it's not glamorous but when you are poor like what I is then needs must.
18/10/2024 15:12:38 UTC
Ian Soady¹ said :-
Were you leaving from Portsmouth or Plymouth? If the former there's a nicer route down through the Cotswolds - partly covered in a favourite ride I posted a while ago.
19/10/2024 10:15:51 UTC
Ren - The Ed¹ said :-
Plymouth Ian - more exciting details to follow in the next thrilling installment.
I might be slightly overselling...
20/10/2024 06:57:02 UTC
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Travel StoriesSome Iberian Mountains