So the cycle was over, around the M25 (sort of), 180 miles and three days – starting and finishing in Windsor.
As the Sunday was a short day, about 40 miles, we arrived back in Windsor around 13:30 and I left Greg to cycle the 40 miles to Paddington and Dave went back to the hotel to get himself home. I met up with Sian and Kate in the Royal Oak, a pub we had had a brief pint in three days ago just before the first day of peddling, and I was relieved to take my shoes off for the last time. Quick Peroni, and then we walked back to the hotel to collect the car and settle in for the journey to Canterbury. I went to collect the ticket from the reception – expecting a charge, but he just said – Click the button, so thirty quid saved there and safe, secure parking for the bike. Stuck the bike on, and poured myself into the passengers seat for the journey to stop No. 1.
M25 was rubbish, and I found out after than I am a crap passenger, Kate told me that I was grasping the door handle for dear life and muttering and sucking in air all the time – well I never. Couple of hours later and we finally arrived in Canterbury in the rain, they dont have their own car park, so we parked around teh back so I could check in, it was a nightmare – about 20 minutes in the queue of just two people, with one old biddy trying to book some rooms for next Feb – idiot. IN the end the counter girl told her to go and sit down and she would sort her later. Checked in and with knowledge of the car parking we unloaded.
Me and Kate carried the bike and all our bags upstairs to a decent, standard Premier Inn room, and th chauffer arrived shortly. We dossed for a bit, then headed out where we found it was raining again, so we got wet. The start of Canterbury is crapolla, its like a seventies architectural dreamboat, but we found a little street and then a pub – ace. Then we had a little look around and some of the rest of it was okay, and we managed to fins a pub or two as we decided which place to eat – I won.
The Royal Inn was the place of choice, which isnt a pub, and the royals weren’t. It was a chinese with a very odd Chinese woman in, she was like something from a sitcom – who wanted to talk to you but then either didn’t understand or was just not interested in any response – we ordered loads, she even said “That’s enough” as I went through the menu, but it was hot and tasty and the tso went down well. We were the only ones in there and she seemed to make out that they were only opening late for us, so don’t know what was happening – but we left and home to bed – I was shattered.
Next morning and we headed off to Burger King for breakfast which I loved, after finding the car was still there for Whitstable on the East coast – I was expecting Tenby, is was worse, quite a lot worse, but the weather held and we had tea in a tea house and a beer in a beer house – the pub was called the Prince Albert and once Kate found out what a Prince Albert was she could only say “WHAT??”. I needed fish and chips badly, so we went to the only one on trip advisor which was open, and it was okay – big fish and pretty tasty, but nothing to write home about. On the way up there I had a cream cake – but it was synthetic, and all the flour fell off it onto my engorged belly – not great.
They had a sea there too, which they paddled in for a short while and a harbour bit with a fresh fish stall which was expensive – we went back.
Had a better look around Canterbury in the afternoon, and had good intentions to walk the wall – but it poured down, so we went to the pub. After the pub again we had to think about what to eat and we went to a nice little place for supper. I had the pizza which as I am wierd was dry because I dont have sauce, but it was a decent enough place. Then to Tesco for chocolate and water and then bed.