When we had first set off we had listened to some good advice which was to take each day at a time and not to think of the entire length of the journey. Now that we have completed the route I think that this was spot on. After the first few miles while pedalling towards Bettyhill against the wind and into rain it would have been depressing to think that we had well over another 1,000 miles to go.
I can honestly say that although we had some thoughts about the final end of the trip, it wasn't until we were cycling towards Hereford that I really FELT that we were on our way to Cornwall. The day before we had had problems with the bike but they were now recitified the sun was shining and we were travelling along a fast road. It was great.
I never had a doubt that we would complete the route. I know that when we had told people that we were planning on doing it, I could tell from some reactions that they weren't as convinced as us but I could fully understand that.
It has been evident during the trip that you should as the saying goes, "never judge a book by its cover" and that is so true. Being of a large physique some may have believed that I wouldn't be able to complete, but I am pleased to say that they were so wrong.
It has been a fantastic trip. We have seen some fantastic scenery and visited some places that we hadn't been to before. We have seen wild deer and an eagle in Scotland, we have seen birds of prey throughout the whole of the UK and met some amazing people.
We will always be appreciative to friends who have helped us during the trip be it transporting and assisting us or by driving up to John O Groats to camp in a windy field the night before just to wave us off. Amazing.
We loved the messages of support from people who wanted to help out and let us know that they were behind us and were willing us on.
Before we set off we had messages printed on our cycle shirts showing where we were going and that it was for charity. Jackie also had the idea of attaching a flag to the tandem showing the same. This was a great idea. We were amazed how after seeing us people would approach and give us money towards the charity.
The very first time this happened in Scotland was when an ex-marine approached me and appeared to say in a sarcastic voice while pointing at the Pig "You're going to Lands End on THAT?" I was about to defend the pig with some robust when he handed over a £20 note to go towards the fund. This was the first donation and took me by surprise. It soon became common place.
We have had all sorts of people young and old contributing to the charity including a very young boy at Minehead, and an old woman at Loch Lomand who handed over 60p after her friend had contributed and I am still not entirely convinced that she knew what was happening and suspect she might have thought that I was warden and that she had paid to put her deckchair up. Never mind Help for Heroes benefitted.
There was also a motorcyclist who had seen people giving money and came and handed over a few pound coins. It wasn't until he had handed over the money that he asked what the charity was! After I told him he replied "Well I know ******** all about soldiers but I wouldn't want to ride a bike up these hill". Can't fault him.
As far as the charity has gone, we currently have raised well over £1350 so far but will hopefully be able to collect from others who have sponsored us. While travelling the country we were given just over £600 from total strangers. Brilliant.
We had planned this trip as our holiday and at times while we were pedalling up yet another hill while in pain from saddle sores we would shout out "This is not a holiday!" Yes at times it was hard but we never thought that it would be easy. For the majority of the time though, we loved it.
We had some big landmarks such as cycling alongside Loch Ness and also up through Glen Coe. There was crossing over the border into England and tackling the famous Shap Hill after Penrith (not the worst by a long way). We were dissappointed on entering Wales that there was no sign to say we had done, so once we arrived at Chepstow we then went on a tour to find a sign for a picture. Crossing the Severn Bridge seemed a big moment (even though we had a puncture a few miles after). Then there was the moment that we hit Devon and more emotional was when crossed into Cornwall.
We will never forget cycling into Lands End to find family waiting for us and seeing how proud they were that we had done it.
We have spoken to cyclists who were completing it in less time than we took and some who wished that they had taken the same time as us as they had no time to appreciate the trip. Each person who undertakes an End to End (because yes we are End to Enders and are proud to say so) does so for their own reasons. There is no right or wrong way to do it there is just a start and an end point. The rest is up to you.
We had planned a route from North to South and to include the most Northerly and the most Southerly points over a period of time that was achievable and which would provide some classic scenery and allow us to visit places that meant something to us along with those we had not been to previously. It worked for us but might not be the choice of others.
Would we do things differently? Perhaps only slightly - we might have chosen slightly easier places to stay at where we didn't have a huge climb to leave the next day (I am thinking of Lynton, Tintagel etc), but then again we enjoyed visiting those places and as the pain has now passed... No we wouldn't change it.
It was certainly a different holiday to lying on a beach and soaking up the sun (although that would have been much cheaper but never mind) but we have done that before and will again. This was an experience that we will never forget and as we look at the maps, one that we are proud of.
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