I estimated I needed to do just over eighty miles today to give me a reasonable cycle to reach Much Wenlock on Sunday. This morning that sounded too far a distance for the aching and battered body that I woke up to; the miles are definitely catching up with me. I need not have worried though, the terrain today would prove to be kind.
Today’s route consisted of a bespoke cross country section to get me to the small town of Milnthorpe, a long section on the A6 to Preston, and finally another bespoke section to take me to Warrington. I set off early into the grey of an overcast and drizzly Kendal and my bike computer guided me out of the town and through the surrounding Lakeland lanes. More or less immediately I was tackling gentle climbs across the countryside that lay between me and the A6. Although I did not feel I was getting in the fast miles I was at least enjoying being in a landscape of green pastures, hedge-lined lanes and small stone bridges across local rivers. After an hour I reached Milnthorpe, a tiny, grey granite town typical of the lakes, stopped briefly at a cafe and then joined the A6 south.
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| Beyond Kendal |
To say a long and anonymous stretch of tarmac - built for speed rather than scenic opportunities - was a delight might be stretching things a little but it was good and easy riding and for the first hour or so strangely quiet. For mile after mile the road undulated gently and I could pace myself up the long inclines and either enjoy some ‘free miles’ on the long descents or just keep pedalling. The threat of rain had lifted so everything - body, mind, terrain and weather - seemed to have come together as I made good pace towards Preston.
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| Lancaster Centre |
Preston provided the main hiccup of the day. I worked my way through town to the river, impressed with grandeur of the city centre buildings and the large landscaped waterside park. I had planned to leave the city on a section of Cycle Route 6, crossing the river on an old tram bridge and then into woodland, but the bridge was completely blocked off and, according to locals I spoke to trying to get myself through the park to find access to the stone-arched pedestrian bridge further along, has been being ‘worked on for years’.
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| Preston Riverside Park |
I had worked out my route from Preston to try and get to Warrington on a more or less direct route through countryside and largely away from the fast roads that spread like a web across the many conurbations that lie between Manchester and Liverpool and through which I needed to travel. It may have been a direct route but that meant a lot of zig zagging along different roads and at times what had seemed sensible when plotted on the map seemed counterintuitive when riding. With junctions to negotiate and the occasional stop to check the ‘big picture’ route on my phone I felt like progress was slow and the countryside I thought I would see turned out to be limited: I was never in unleashed suburbia but along the first few miles I never broke away fully from a peppering of roadside housing that lay between me and the greenery behind.
I had booked my accommodation late in the day and it lies to the west of Warrington. The last couple of miles turned out to be an enjoyable ride through the delightful Sankey Valley Park. It was mostly track and green woods but there is clearly industrial heritage too, obvious from the long-filled-in and overgrown remains of canal locks that stick up occasionally through the grass. I would like to have explored more but the park was only minutes from my accommodation and the chance to rest won out over the chance to learn a little about Warrington history from the occasional information board I passed.
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| Old Lock, Sankey Valley Park |
I am now in a stifling room in a house but can’t work out where the heat is coming from. Unfortunately, opening the window just lets in the music that is blasting from a couple of the houses crammed around - it seems to be that sort of place. Hopefully it won’t stop me sleeping although today, despite the miles, I feel far less exhausted than I have in previous days.
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