Last leg(s)

I slept quite well apart from being wracked by bouts of coughing every so often.  When I woke, I realised how much the Lem-Sip had helped me yesterday (it contains paracetamol).   I had a fluey headache and my wrists hurt from all the off-road.  But my legs seemed OK.

Last day today.  I imagine it will be a bit like the final stage of the Tour de France, where the result is hardly in doubt, and the exhausted riders sip champagne while gently riding into Paris - except, well, too many differences to list.

On paper, this week's ride looked fairly easy, with just a few noticeable hills.  It was anything but.  At Faversham,  when I'd really struggled against the wind to ride an unimpressive distance round Thanet and up the estuary, it occurred to me that I could easily get a train home and come back in better weather.  About that time, I got an email from my hero and long-time cycling friend, Mark G.  He said, more or less, I've looked at the map and I can see you're going to finish it.  Congratulations.

I was puzzled.  It seemed a bit premature.   I couldn't see that I was going to finish it.  But Mark's faith, and all of your support, dear readers, has kept me going on this last stage.  Also the thought of having to tell you about giving up.

There's a children's cartoon film, The Little Engine That Could, which tells the story of a little steam engine which has to pull a heavy train across the mountains in a terrible storm, and I feel a bit like that little engine.  I can do it!

Anyway, back to the job in hand.  Which started with breakfast.  No champagne, but a Wetherspoons Small Breakfast for £2.99, with unlimited coffee, £1.33.   And porridge.

I like Gravesend.  In some ways it's the outer border of London.  Back in the day, ships had to moor at Gravesend while they cleared customs, picked up a pilot and waited for the tide and a berth in the London docks.   I've heard it said that the name is because it marks the end of the graves from the Black Death in London in the 1500s.  But it's time to up anchors and sail(?) upriver.

NCN 1 goes inland to Bluewater here but I stuck more closely to the coast.  It was interesting because it was so varied.  Lots of old industrial buildings, and several smart new housing developments - so new that although my route went through them, they were still building them.   A few diversions were needed.  And then there were the cliffs.  Who knew about the white cliffs of Gravesend?  They're about three storeys high, and my route went up and down them willy-nilly.

In the shape of a giant toilet roll

There were little oases of quaint old villages, like Greenhithe, and there was Ebbsfleet, on the Eurostar as a redevelopment initiative and subsequently dumped by Eurostar.

Greenhithe

I crested a small hill and was surprised to see the towers of the City in the distance.  And the Dartford crossing (QE2 bridge) quite near.  Dartford was only three miles.  It was a special moment - I still remember riding under the Dartford crossing on my first day in 2013.  I passed near Dartford Station, and then headed off towards Erith.  There are two routes, the horrid main road (with cycleway) or along Crayford Creek on a rough track.  I chose the latter, which was lovely - back out in the countryside again  for several miles, but required careful concentration. 

Crayford Creek 

I was pleased to get to Erith, where there's a Morrisons, but not so pleased to find that their cafe had closed.  There wasn't a good alternative, so I carried on up the Thames, for quite a long way as it turned out.

For several miles the river is lined by warehouses, either importing things that London needs, like flour, paper, gravel, sand and so on, or just for retail distribution- Lidl, Sainsbury, Tesco and Amazon had mega warehouses, well connected for the M25.  Then there's the Crossness waste & sewage treatment centre, a vast incinerator and the old Victorian sewage pumping station.  The river is protected by levees or flood walls, so I was sometimes raised up with great views and sometimes behind a concrete wall.  There was a fresh headwind - still - but I was able to make OK progress.

Erith

Crossness

London in the distance 

The surroundings gradually became more dominated by fairly new housing as I neared Greenwich.  It was not until Woolwich Arsenal when I found a lovely cafe for 11s which turned into lunch.  By now the City was often in sight in different places as the river looped around.  From Woolwich I passed familiar sights around Greenwich and less familiar places in Rotherhithe, by sticking more closely to the river bank than usual.   Here I found a little farm with cafe right on the river bank - a beautiful local place to sit and rest.

Woolwich Arsenal 

? Near the Millenium Dome

Old and new

Farm cafe by the river

At last, Tower Bridge, my official start and end point, was coming close.   I went down to the riverbank for an obligatory finisher's photo, and I was delighted to see that they had raised the bridge in my honour!   A sailing ship took advantage of my timing to go under the bridge too.   That meant there was a queue to get across the bridge, but cyclists are lucky and I managed to skip most of the queue.   My trip around the coast is complete!

Getting home wasn't so much fun.  There was a far right Christian demonstration in parliament square (more far right than Christian from what I saw).   Lots of people.   The police said I could go through, which took some time, but the police at the other end said I couldn't exit along the embankment, so I had to push my way back and reroute across Westminster bridge.   Then at Battersea, I had a sinking feeling and my front tyre was, very unreasonably, flat.   And finally at Twickenham I ran into a flood of rugby crowds just yards from home when my energy was at a very low ebb after pushing against the wind all day.

Demonstration

Glad to be home.   Not so glad that the whole adventure is over.  I will have to think of another excuse to go and explore new places.

I'll write a bit more when I've unpacked and had chance to reflect.   And I'll post some maps and statistics, if you're interested, in the next few days.

How far can I get in an afternoon?

I had a problem.  The last campsite between Chatham and London was at Grain, on the tip of the isle of Grain, leaving 70+ miles to do the following day, or maybe two days.  I wasn't confident in the wind or my legs to go further today.  In the end, the decision was taken for me, as I rang the camp site but they never got back to me.  I decided to see how far I could get.

There's a nice, new riverside cycle path from Chatham to Rochester and over the Medway bridge.  Nice views of the river but you miss the town of Rochester, which is lovely and historic.  Just after Rochester I felt the need to get supplies for a possibly long afternoon, so I found a bakers in Hoo and following my instincts, bought a doughnut, a cookie and a bottle of Lucozade, all sinfully sweet, to power my legs.  It worked.

On the other side it became rather hilly as I rode back eastwards almost to Sheerness, but on the Isle of Grain, which is not an island.  As I got nearer to Grain, at the point of the not-island, it was flatter and more sparsely populated.  Grain itself has oil terminals and liquid natural gas terminals, so it's got a lot going on.  Also a power station I think.  The village of Grain itself is quite nice with great views of Sheerness and its docks, and also north across the Thames to Southend.  The wind seemed to have moderated and was blowing from the north, so it wasn't really a problem after lunch.

Grain (with actual grain in foreground)

Oil & gas terminals

Grain seaside, looking across to Southend

Apologies for the grainy photos... Grain ticked off, I turned back east, on easy roads, ticking off the miles and swigging Lucozade every five miles.  The countryside was initially nice but nothing worth stopping for pictures.   When I got to Cooling it became very pretty.  There's an old castle there - if I lived there I would call it Cooling Towers.  Ha ha - I bet nobody else has ever thought of that.  By now I'd decided to aim for Gravesend, and the last seven or so miles were alongside a disused canal, very flat and scenic.  Strangely,  none of this ride was alongside the river(s).  And it didn't rain!

Cooling Towers

Cooling Towers - west wing

Tilbury docks, across the Thames 

Church at Cliffe

Random house

Canal

It went on for miles!

Finally, I arrived in Gravesend, and celebrated with a rehydration stop before booking into the Premier Inn for a well earned shower and, I hope, sleep.  It will be nice not to have to wear my beanie hat to keep warm, as it always makes me look like a scarecrow the next day.

Gravesend

Unless I ride into the river, or my bike (or I) fall apart, its the last day tomorrow! 

Sheerness to Chatham

I suddenly awoke in the night, seriously overheating, having put on every item of warm clothing.   Maybe it was my cold out-heating the cold of the night, but I had to quickly remove a few layers and unzip a few more.   Gradually I returned to a snotty form of normal (sorry, too much information), but I couldn't get back to sleep.  I had questions. 

For a start, why is it that when one nostril is completely blocked, you can usually breathe through the other one?  Are colds always left-handed or right handed - two different types of virus that affect different nostrils?  Perhaps it's necessary for survival, so you can eat with your mouth shut.

And what would happen if you were unfortunate enough to get both types at the same time, and you were having tea with the King or Queen with both nostrils fully blocked?  How would you eat?  What is the etiquette?  i must consult Debrett's when I return home.  I feel sure King Charles would be very understanding, but I'm not sure about Queen Elizabeth, for example.  There's so much I don't know.

Also, I wondered about those people at the private hamlet at Shellness.  What was their life like?  I thought I saw an electricity cable going down the track to them, but I guess they had no gas, no piped water.  Living adjacent to a swamp, they could produce their own water.  What about other services?  Rubbish? Sewage? Did they have Internet?  Did they have jobs, pay council tax, have kids in education?  Perhaps I will investigate when I get home, or ask the BBC to do a fly on the wall series..

And another thing.  I'm trying to get my head round the whole point of the isle of Sheppey.  Yes, it's a quiet out-of-the-way island on the doorstep of Kent, but Kent's Holiday Island?  Really?  Apart from Leysdown-on-Sea, which, let's face it, is hardly Las Vegas, there's a nice area of marshy grassland to the south, and some private housing and several holiday parks to the north, with very little public access to the sea.  What do people actually do when they come on holiday here?  And why those massive roads connecting it to the mainland?  I have high expectations of the west side of  the island.

Somewhere nearby, a cockerel crowed, about twenty times.  It was 3.26 am, and still very dark.   A few minutes later, it was 6.30am,  all the birds were singing, the sun was up and it was 13 degrees inside the tent.  It only ever went down to 7 degrees after all.

I'd been unable to find a nearby place to eat last night (in Kent's Holiday Island, the nearest place was four miles away), so I ordered a pizza to be delivered, and ate it in the washing-up area, which didn't really have the suave ambience of last night's meal, but it did the trick at roughly the same price.  (I'm sure I was undercharged last night in Faversham, but I queried it and they said it was fine.)

This morning I continued along the north of the island, heading towards Sheerness-on-Sea.  Inexplicably, the roads along the north of the island are unpaved and in a terrible state.  Most of the houses are perfectly nice with well tended gardens, but it would be an adventure to drive to your house.

Roads on the north of the Isle of Sheppey 

Sheerness itself is on the north-west corner of the island, opposite Southend-on-Sea.  It has an OK esplanade with a cyclable sea wall for a mile or two, and a bit of a green area for dog walkers and so on.  Turning into the town for breakfast was a disappointment for the capital of Sheppey.  I did find a cafe with a giant plate of beans on toast, but once again I couldn't see the tourist attractions. 

Sheerness's award winning beach

Award-winning beans on toast
(Full size mug and cutlery for scale)

On the east of Sheppey, there's a sizeable port, so perhaps that's where all the traffic is going.

There was a pretty little village, Queenborough,  a few miles further on, but it only took two minutes to see the sights.  Then I was heading for the giant bridges over The Swale again, and off the island. 

Queenborough creek

Back on mainland Kent life went on much as before.  Quiet lanes, orchards everywhere, mostly sheltered from the wind by tall hedges.  I wiggled around near the coast, and eventually found a path that was actually on the coast.  Pretty but windy.  I also realised that I was now riding along the River Medway.  On the other side is the Isle of Grain, where I hoped to go that afternoon. 

Along the river bank

You are here

The route took me all the way to Gillingham,  which merged into Chatham, and a detour onto St Mary's Island, full of nice new houses.   I was worn out again and found respite in a Chatham Wetherspoons (there are several) before cycling the last mile into Rochester and crossing the Medway.  Strangely, I couldn't face a Wetherspoons meal after a giant pizza last night and giant beans on toast for breakfast, so I had a dessert instead, which seemed to hit the spot.

St Mary's Island

View across the Medway

Chatham

Are we nearly there yet?

It's only a (longish) day's ride from Whitstable to home, so the end is definitely in sight.  However, as I've said before, it's about the journey, not getting somwhere.  And I'm not taking the direct route.  As I left Margate, a lump of land appeared across the sea in front of me.  Could it be the other bank of the Thames?  Well, no.  It was the Isle of Sheppey, about which I've just told you all I know.  And then later there's the Isle of Grain, which is not really an island.  Maybe it was once.

The hotel was a real treat.  I dined well, but I didn't sleep that well.  Somehow I've developed a streaming cold so I was continually blowing my nose in the night, and I had to sleep on my back to stop getting all blocked up.  Added to that, I've got a painful crack on the dry skin on my heel, so I smothered it either E45 and then had to dangle my foot out of the bed while it dried.  I'm not saying this to get sympathy,  it's just how it is.  But you might be forgiven for thinking I'm trying to make it look hard - well, it does seem to be hard this year. Just look at previous years to see how 'easy' it normally is.

However, it's amazing what an 18 course unlimited breakfast can do for your spirits.  The weather forecast for today is cold, rainy, but less windy than yesterday,  down from 17mph to 10mph, AND it's gone round to the north. I will be going north to get to the Isle of Sheppey, but never mind. 

I left Faversham along a track down the creek - at least that was the plan.  By the way, why are there so many creeks in North Kent?  Faversham,  Dartford, Deptford,  and many others that I encountered today.   Is it because they are very short?  The Medway is a river, but I can't think of any others between Sandwich and London.

Back to the Faversham creek.  Or not in fact.  The cyclepath had a horrid bike-unfriendly kissing gate.   Just after I'd unpacked everything and lifted my bike over the gate, a nice French lady walked past and told me there are another five of them.  She suggested an alternative path, marked as a cycle route on my map, bur nobody had told the farmer.   It went across a wheat field, through long grass, a few nettles, a couple of kissing gates, a field of cows, and two very narrow bridges.   It was fun, in an annoying sort of way.   

First attempt

Bad track

Bad bridge

The rest of the morning was half more tracks with a few unfriendly gates, and half along the real back lanes of Kent, very beautiful,  a bit undulating and with lots of water.  I came within a couple of miles of Sittingbourne but turned north towards Sheppey, through a very industrial area around the M2 before stopping for 11s at Iwade, not yet on the island.  I also got some Lem-sip capsules which seem to have tamed my cold.

Another creek

NCN 1, with a bike gate - but it's locked

Garden of England

First impressions of Sheppey are bad.  The approach is on a busy road, with lifting bridge and parallel railway and cycle path, overpassed by an even busier A249 on a huge high bridge.  Once on the island, the two roads continue through a couple of miles of swampy nothingness, with a few cows grazing. A line of low hills to the north is where it all happens.  And by all, I mean, not much.

Approaching Sheppey

Marshlands

Castellated church at Eastchurch 

I looped up the hill and then back down south again to Harty Ferry, which has nothing but a church and a pub, which was shut for a wedding.   Then up and round again to Leydown-on-sea at the far east of the island, where the fun starts.  It has a few caravan parks, a pie and mash shop, chip shops several amusement arcades and a mobility scooter showroom, in addition to a big sandy beach with beach huts.  A rough road carried on several miles south to Shellness, a private hamlet of perhaps a dozen houses overlooking Whitstable opposite .  At my tea stop the lady serving me referred to Shellness as "the Wicker Man people" which matches my impression.

Leydown-on-Sea

Shellness

View to Whitstable,  from Shellness

It was idyllic in a little sun trap as I idly had my tea and cake, then booked a campsite in the middle of the island.  Despite the forecast, I'd had no rain save a few spots early on, and quite a bit of sunshine.   But as I rode north, dark clouds were gathering over Essex, and the rain started just before I reached the campsite.  Just a shower.

Bliss

Teatime visitor

Dark clouds over Essex

The lady at the campsite was concerned about me because it's going to be cold tonight (4 degrees), and she offered me an electric hookup and heater at no extra charge.  But my tent is so small I can't see how I could safely have it in the tent, so I said no.  I hope I won't regret that.  It was quite cold in the rain, but I waited maybe half an hour, and the rain stopped, the wind dropped, and I set my tent up in the warm sun.