I knew this was going to be tough day, going over part of the pennines and Shap. The first part of the day was a steady (euphemism for slow) climb up hills to Gisburn forest and Catlow fell. Gone were the fields of Cheshire potatoes from yesterday; sheep ruled the day.
Birdsong was back, seeming to cheer us on our way. Up at the forest, there is a reservoir. The road dips down to it then carries on up the hill. The area around the lake was very damp. Moss grew 4 inches thick on the dry stone wall, making it look like a giant green caterpillar walking along by the road.
At the top of the hill, a great panorama streched out before us, with a single track road weaving its way down to the valley. The descent was fabulous. It felt as if I were completely at one with the bike, hurtling down the hill, following the contours of the land and watching carefully for sheep. The road seemed to go on for ever down the hill. When we did eventualy reach the valley, it took me at leasy an hour to recover from the buzz.
On to the pleasant town of Kirkby Lonsdale for lunch then north from there. it started to rain just past Sedbergh, which continued until we got to Penrith.
Sometimes when.going under trees, a particularly large raindrop would fall and ping off my bell. By the time we got to the top of the pass at Shap, there was an icy wind blowing that felt like it would cut me in two.
I had my waterproof jacket on, but could have done with more layers of clothing. However, i certainly wasn't stopping. At Shap village we defrosted with a hot chocolate and fortified ourselves with a banana. Fully fuelled, we dripped along the last few miles to Penrith.
There was a moment of anxiety when the bed and breakfast proprietor told me he had no record of a booking, but we did get accommodation and our clothes dried out.
Sonewehere during the day we passed the halfway mark today. The terrain is flat for the route tomorrow morning. However, as we discovered, the weather can make a big difference.
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