At a blustery Lands End, ready to go
Our LeJog plan gradually came together over several months, but the day of departure came upon us with a bit of a rush, as suddenly it was the 26th April. At 05:30 we picked up Steve and all his kit and set off for Lands End. With little traffic on the road we made good time and arrived at 08:15. It was blowing hard and very cold but this had not deterred Phil, Maggie and Richard turning out to see us off. We got the bikes loaded up with the panniers, pumped up the tyres and posed for photographs at the famous finger post. The Dorset flag was produced for the first time and it acted as a sail in the strong wind, almost lifting us up.
It was too chilly to mess around for long and we were anxious to get rolling, so at 08:45 we cycled away from Lands End and began our adventure.
For those who do not know – Cornwall is relentlessly hilly. That was the theme of the day and the hills together with the 25mph of headwind made for a tough first day.
Pasties for lunch!
Our route was chosen to be scenic and interesting and to stay off main roads. We were thrilled to have fantastic coastal views at every turn. The sea was rough and quite dramatic. The day was bright and sunny and the sea sparkled. The Cornish hedgerows were bursting with new life and vibrant colours.
The downside of the coastal route was even more hills. The 12 miles from Newquay to Padstow had 4 long, steep hills with a maximum gradient of 20%.We were pleased to reach Padstow and have a sit down on the ferry over to Rock.
The ferry from Padstow to Rock
We met lots of nice people today. Cathy at Porth Beach Tourist Park very cheerfully filled our water bottles. Peter – who runs speedboat rides out of Padstow kept us entertained while we waited for the ferry. Ros is the volunteer warden at Tintagel Youth Hostel where we are staying and she has been very welcoming and cheerful and looked after us really well.
A spectacular setting for the Tintagel Youth Hostel
Tintagel Youth Hostel is an amazing place to stay. It is perched on the cliff just to the west of Tintagel, in a spectacular location.
So we are quite tired after our 8 hour day, 77 miles with over 6,000 feet of ascent into a vicious, blustery headwind. More of the same tomorrow I think!
The GPX file for this ride can be found here.
Old Bat On A Bike. 
Enjoyed reading about your first day. What we need is our friendly south westerly wind for you.! Look forward to tomorrows diary. From P and B at no 19
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