Fuelled up by a lovely breakfast cooked by Brenda at Tranna Hill B&B and with Daisy sporting her new back chain we were off again, day 17!
Our legs felt very heavy and drained from the recent days of hard climbs. as we rode up and over the moorland near Sunbiggin Tarn. Suddenly we were small dots in a huge landscape again!
Pedalling along the hilltop road after passing a remote farm to reach the peak, we were able to ride more quickly, We weren’t far along when we saw the quite rare sight of another tandem being ridden towards us. We both stopped and exchanged tales of our travels. They were on a long ride finishing in Leeds.
The Pennines were rarely out of sight and their soft undulating peaks were quite comforting as we continued to ride parallel with them in the distance.
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The middle part of today’s ride had frequent short but steep troughs and peaks , like riding along the back of the Loch Ness monster!
We passed through the village of Kings Meaburn complete with the old school built in 1831 for £200 . It still has it’s bell above the roof.
The route then zigzagged it’s way north where next to the River Eamont just south of Penrith, stands the ruins of Brougham Castle.
As we skirted the Lake District and moved north the dying ash trees became very evident. Their appearance reminded us of a tree in winter, bare of leaves with mistletoe clinging to it.
The last few miles of today’s ride were slightly downhill along a road which was as straight as an arrow, parallel with the M6 where we were able to fly along in Daisy’s top gear and access the Southwaite Motorway Services Travelodge for the night!
Total distance today 42 miles
Total Hill climbs 2,654 ft
