I had written an amazing blog (honestly) but it didn't publish and my phone crashed and so I lost the whole lot. As such this is going to be have to be concise because I can't be bothered rewriting a new one over again.
5am. I woke up it was raining and windy.
I couldn't be bothered cycling even though I really wanted to.
Went back to bed. When I woke up again the weather had cleared up but still overcast.
9am. Tried motivating myself by saying if I don't do it I'll regret it and I bet it'll be amazing if I do go.
1030am. Left house. Went along cycle path outside Penrhos forest towards Valley.
Instead of turning left at the junction to go the way I previously failed my tour, I carried on towards Caergeiliog.
Passing through Bryngwran I headed towards Aberffraw on A4080.
Amazing views of the whole of Ynys Cybi with the south side getting battered by phenomenal waves. Was really windy at this point. (See photos)
I was listening to Richard Herring's "Me1 vs Me2" podcast. I loved his AIOTM (aiotm) series that he did with a cast including tv's (and celebrity masterchef's winner) Emma Kennedy. Because of that show i use the word aside a lot (aside, i dont really). But this solo podcast is very surreal. The premise of a 40yr old man playing against himself in snooker in his basement whilst commentating each match (commentator 1 and commentator 2) doesn't sound very interesting but I was hooked. I actually ended up rooting for one of his personas (Me1 I think). It got me thinking:
Dilemma Three: What happens when I'm miles away from civilisation, how will I keep sane? Or should the question be: if my psyche does fragment, which competitive sport should my personas take part in. I was thinking Left Me vs Right Me Tour de Monde race.
Scorching sun on the road to Malltraeth and Niwbirch after Aberffraw. I even rolled my sleeves up on cycling jacket.
I had heavy rain clouds overhead going through Brynsiencyn towards Porthaethwy but only a few drops of rain, Phew.
Rang Dad in layby overlooking Menai Bridge and the Straits. He told me to now head up to Pentraeth and take turning towards Llangefni and Bodedern. Very sound advice I thought.
I ignore my Dad and cycle into Porthaethwy as I was starving and needed grub. Unfortunately only shop I could find was a Waitrose (which I'd argue was the only store in the country whereby the 4x4s in the car park were unique by actually being used for agricultural purposes)
Waitrose got me at my most vulnerable. Going in with dreams of pork pies and a packet of wotsits, I left with couscous and a bottle of cabernet sauvignon. Ha ha I lie, it was just a chicken and bacon sarnie, a bottle of water and a bag of treat size mars bars.
I then cycled on to Biwmares in what I now call a momentary lapse of local geography and its infrastructure.
I bought a bag of chips which were as dry as the sandwich I'd bought earlier. Thank goodness for the water and mars bars to save my tastebuds!
Sitting in a shelter down at the promenade in Biwmares the enormity of Snowdonia took me by surprise. It dominated the whole landscape with its ominous and oppressive presence. It was at this point I understood why Tolkien chose it for inspiration for Mordor. Looking at it over the waters you just couldn't escape the hills and mountains and the black clouds that were rolling over them. Nevertheless I had a patriotic tear building in my eye as I thought: no matter where I go and no matter what I see, nothing will ever compare to the magnificence of the Welsh and the rest of the UK's countryside. This emotional moment for me was ruined when a seagul stole a pasty out of an old woman's hand and pooed on her to add insult to injury. I ended up not being able to breathe for at least 10 minutes.
After composing myself I left Biwmares via the steepest hill have ever encountered. But not only was it steep. It went on forever. That hill broke me. But it did lead me to think of a lovely little quote:
Quote One: The downside to a hill is the way up.
After a few miles I ended up on the road my Dad suggested hours ago. Cycling through Llangefni then onto the A5. The home stretch.
I needed a wee really badly but had to wait til after Gwalchmai and Mona before I found a quiet spot to jump off.
I was really struggling until I saw the familiar sight of Holyhead mountain and got a bust of energy from somewhere.
Cycled through Bryngwran and Caergeiliog fairly swiftly trying out my new lights on the road for the first time
Got home 8hrs after setting off. 63 miles with an hour in breaks. I was quite pleased with myself. So I finally managed to do my first training trek. I'm going to try my best to be at the 150 - 200 mile mark by the time I'm to set off. I'm hoping an actual touring bike will help with that!
Thanks for reading!
Martyn
Had some bad news after getting back. My mam had to have our 17 year old cat put down as she had severe kidney failure and the whole family were waiting for me so they could bury her.
Poor Scamp you will be missed dearly. You got me to sleep with your hypnotic purring every night as a teenager suffering from ulcer pains, and for that I thank you.
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