Their story, in their words….
From the 25th to 28th of June 2021, we, Dylan and Jack, cycled from Kemble in the Cotswolds to Southend on Sea in Essex. We covered 215 miles over 4 days. It was for both of us, one of the best things we had ever done, and the sense of accomplishment afterwards was so overwhelming, we felt like we could do anything.
Early on Friday morning we were dropped off at Paddington station, set to go to Kemble, the nearest station to the source of the Thames. We were jumpy and excited on the train, while also running possible disasters through our heads. At the station, we had to lumber our 70kg bikes over the bridge to the right side of the platform, to begin our journey. After both struggling with the weight of our bikes, we soon got used to it and made it to the Source stone, which was honestly, underwhelming. Nonetheless, that really marked the start of our adventure. So started a 50+ mile ride, through rolling Cotswold countryside, through forests, chocolate box villages and along long, winding roads where often we didn’t see another person for hours at a time. We began to realise the scope of our trip, notably that we had a lot of distance to cover. The biggest challenge of the first day was undoubtedly lugging bikes over kissing gates and other gates not designed for bikes. This really took it out of us at times.
After a lovely night camping near Oxford, we woke up bright and early again, to start another 50 odd mile ride, this time to Reading. Full of pasta, pancakes, and SIS energy gels, we set off once more. There was some proper off-roading that day, that really made us question what and why we were doing this, but the rewards in scenery and funny memories made up for it. At times we had to drag our bikes through muddy bogs, we fell off into stinging nettles, and even took an accidental detour up a mountain. We took a short pit stop to buy Dylan a new pannier rack, and hit the road again, now confident that his luggage wouldn’t fall off the bike again. Running on fumes, we finally found the place we had been looking for, premier inn Reading. Here we learnt to appreciate the simpler things in life: a shower, a bed, and four walls around us. The next morning, we took full advantage of the breakfast, knowing that our third day would be our hardest ride yet.
On Sunday morning, we set off, very apprehensive of the nearly 80 miles needed to be covered, to get from Reading to East London. We really enjoyed parts of the ride, through scenic towns like Henley on Thames and Marlow, and when eating a pizza in Eton, we looked at the map, fearful of the distance still to cover. It was 2:30 and we still had to ride many more miles. Riding into London wasn’t the prettiest thing, though the bounty of our hard work was in our wonderful friends who we met in Parliament square to cheer us on. This was just the boost we needed to do the last 20 miles to Abbey wood campsite, an evening that allowed us to discover just how far away from town our campsite was, and that southeast London is far too hilly.
That night was, to be honest, horrid. The rain was torrential, our dinner was soggy, and spirits were low. We persevered however, and came through the night from hell to wake up in the morning itching to get back in the saddle, and finish our trip. We had 38 miles to Southend on Sea, of which only a few would be pleasant. We spent far too long on a cycle lane next to the depressing A13, alongside lorries and construction trucks, but eventually we found the beautiful Essex country lanes. The feeling when we could see the sea was indescribable. We rolled into Southend, reeling with happiness and pride, for ourselves, and for each other. The meals we ate in the local café felt like something out of a Michelin star restaurant, boy, did we eat!
Challenge after challenge was thrown at us, whether it was finding unnavigable paths, being lost at times, so very undernourished, or just purely exhausted. Each one of these things we took on headfirst, and overcame, only making us stronger and more confident in ourselves. We both feel so lucky to have been given the opportunity to take part in the Mark Evison award. We have a taste for adventure now, fuelled by this trip. We also learnt that despite any hardships, we had no limits, and can really do anything.
