I am in the final stages of packing, unpacking, and packing again. It is nuts. It shouldn’t be too hard really, but ultimately I just don’t know what to take. If this was summer it would so much easier, but I really don’t know if I am going to be hot or cold, wet or dry. My bag is however packed, and so it is going as is. I have about 200,000 energy bars and gel sachets, remembering vividly as I do that on Kilimanjaro I was woefully short on everything in that department.

I have also got my bike as ready as it is going to be. I cleaned it for starters, and I hate cleaning pretty much anything, so that was an effort I can tell you. I also have inner tubes, spare contact lenses, a pump, two bottle cages, gloves, a multi tool and various other things attached to it one way or another, and also it was serviced just last week, so hopefully it won’t let me down. What am I saying? My bike won’t let me down at all – there is only one part of ‘man and machine’ that is likely to fail, and it is not the mechanical one I assure you.

I have also just been reacquainting myself with the route – and so here is how my first day looks:

Leaving at 7.40 am, and call through or nearby:

Lands End / Penzance / Redruth / St Austell / Liskeard / Callington / Tavistock

Pit stops at –

27 miles:
St Aubyns Arms, Praze-an-Beeble, Camborne, Cornwall, TR14 0JR.

57 miles (Lunch):
Falmouth Arms, Ladock, Truro, Cornwall, TR2 4PG.

78 miles:
The Crown Inn, Lanlivery, near Bodmin, Cornwall, PL30 5BT.

Total distance is apparently 96 miles. Coupled with the forecast easterly wind, and some of those hills shown above (click on the map links to make them bigger by the way), it cannot possibly be anything other than horrible. And guess what the most horrible thing is? Yes, you did notice didn’t you? Every stop is a bloody pub!

And it gets worse (yes, every stop at every point on the way for the following three days is a pub as well). And also, just look, if you will at the profile of the first stage on day two, after we wake up with nasty horrible painful legs and sore heads:

Doesn’t it look just not very funny in the slightest? 1,500 feet I ask you!

But I cannot wait – I just want it all to start. Thank you to everyone for helping me with either good wishes, donations, or just in putting up me being a very much distracted basket case, for this past few weeks/months.

So tomorrow I will get up at 6am and be on my way to Lands End. My first time there, and hoping for an outstanding experience, which I am sure it will be one way or another.

I intend, and very much hope, as so may people have said to me, to ‘be safe’……..and I hope also to be able to update my blog briefly with progress on a daily basis too.

So, to Cornwall……and beyond!