Day 2 - nr. Ilfracombe to Hereford

Sunday 23/05/2021

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We had a good night chatting, eating and drinking in the barn last night. Such a cool idea to put the tents up inside the barn so no need to faff with putting up the tent properly or putting a wet tent away the next morning. It was Krysia's birthday so I bought a bottle of mock champagne which we drank (well I drank most of it). 

Didn't have the best night's sleep as I didn't put the tent up properly and also didn't close the door when I went to bed so had a freezing wind blowing on my head all night. Re-packed in the morning and I think we now have a better arrangement. We had breakfast in the barn before setting out on a lovely coastal ride, taking in the Valley of the Rocks amongst other things. Stopped for a break in Lynmouth whilst the weather was still good and then everyone shot off to Bridgwater. I didn't see which way Konrad went and we quickly lost radio contact so we ended-up going the wrong way.... for quite a while. Luckily, after much speeding on bumpy roads, we caught-up with the main pack just before Bridgwater.

A quick lunch at Greggs and we decided to just get to Tintern quickly as the weather was bad. Did the M5 / M48 over the bridge but the road was closed after Chepstow due to a landslide. After a ridiculous detour, we made it into Tintern in the pouring rain. We had coffee and cake and then we were meant to go up to Dom's Bike Stop in Leominster for the night. It sounded promising but the weather was crap and nobody (including us) fancied tenting..... so we all booked into a Premier Inn in Hereford. Good move I think and necessary to lift the spirits a bit. From a riding point, the last run from Tintern to Hereford was the most run, despite the rain. Faster, flowing roads and we were lucky to avoid pretty much any traffic at all.

We had a few drinks and some decent food in the Beefeater across the road. A good evening - lots of tales told before we went back to our rooms to rest before the next leg.

Tomorrow, breakfast at Dom's before we venture through the Midlands into the North.


Mileage: 572
Beers: 9 + 2 bottles of white
Fines: 0
Bribes: 0
Ass pain: 4/10
Mechanical issues: 0
Accidents: 0
Wetness: 9/10
Coldness: 5/10


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