We did it. Full stop.
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Only joking - yes, another 86 miles on the clock, to the most significant stage of the journey.  WE DID IT!
We got an 8 am start in cool cloudy weather up a 2 mile hill in to the lanes to Trevoskelly, where it flattened out a bit. On local advice again we stayed off the A30 until Camelford which meant great lanes. No snakes today, but we did disturb a buzzard and see a variety of roadkill. Our average climbed to 12.5 mph and we made a stop after a big hill outside Nantstallon to break out the chocolate peanuts. Needing a seat, Mat found a convenient wheeltrim to sit on, which cracked the moment he sat on it. Still, it made a brilliant frisbee afterwards!

At this point we decided we were going to reach Lands End as quick as poss. Popped a couple of Nurofen for the knee pain and off we went, passing a sleepy village called Retire.  Once we got on the A30, things got busier but faster - until the Redruth junction. There was a sign saying 'Cyclists please find alternative route' which we thought about for exactly 5 seconds. And carried on. In the single lane section, our 15mph seemed to be annoying folks behind so we pulled over to the right hand lane. This really annoyed the banksman, who threw us out of 'his' lane! He was not a happy chappy which made 3 of us. Then we needed a tea stop with 40 miles to go. And our determination increased as we checked emails for inspiration. For a main road it was pretty hilly but the miles ticked down 17 - 15 - 13 - and it was really hilly after Penzance AND windy.

But we didn't care. And then Mat & I  were at Lands End ! A heroes welcome - bunting, banners and cheers even from non-family members. As with all good soaps, we made an alternative ending for your amusement (see photo 3 to follow). No punctures, no getting off for hills, and thankfully no accidents.
After his gushing comment yesterday I suppose I should thank Mat for putting up with my feet for 10 days and waiting for me to finish meals. Cheers pal.

We left Churchill at 08:00 this morning in a steady drizzle, still smiling after yesterday's lovely surprises and surprise visitors.
It was super mild still so the rain was actually quite refreshing especially given that we were off straight up a big hill.

We made great progress, and covered 36 miles in 2.5 hrs before we stopped for our first tea break at a cider farm/cafe where Mark and Lisa met up with us, prior to them heading down to Lands End ahead of the "grand finish".
Father Mark considered it apt to read us some extracts from the new testament in preparation for our day ahead whilst we troughed our millionaires shortbread and tea.

We then pressed on for a few hours and stopped at the Thorverton Inn for lunch, where we recieved a very warm welcome.

 56 miles done and looking ok so far, although we are both taking pain killers frequently now due to constant knee pain.

After a mile or so up the road, Paul slowed ahead of me and as I caught him I saw he'd slowed for a 4ft Adder making his way across the hot tarmac!

As we worked our way through Devon, the hills became more and more frequent as we'd expected, and as a result the average speed dropped and pain levels increased!
which meant a few more brief but unscheduled breaks

When we eventually crossed the Cornish border, our mileage had gone into triple figures again - and time was getting on.

We arrived at our B&B in Launceston after a total of 105 miles and 9 hours in the saddle, at 7pm.

As you can imagine, we're both pretty fired up and excited about our last day tomorrow.
There's no feeling of sadness as we're pretty chuffed with our achievement so far - and equally we're ready to finish now and start the recovery process!

We're really looking forward to seeing the growing crowd who will be waiting for us whenever we get to Lands End tomorrow. We're expecting the toughest day yet as repuatation leads us to believe.......

Finally, as it's my last blog....
I'd like to pass on my thanks to my best mate, Paul.
Incredibly, we're still great friends after our epic adventure!  (and clearly it's given us a taste for more...)
We've shared laughter, tears, and lots of pain but every bit of it has been thoroughly worthwhile :-)

"Pain is temporary, pride is forever"

"That which does not kill me makes me stronger"

"Pain is only weakness leaving the body"

"Tough times don't last. Tough people do."

"The man who can drive himself further once the effort gets painful is the man who will win"

Knowing we were spending some time at Frenchay this afternoon, we made a 7.45 morning start and enjoyed the cooler air and shady lanes from Tenbury to Bromyard and on to  Newent - 31 miles  by 10am - where we had a great breakfast at 3 Shires Garden Centre on a deck above a pool full of carp. Bliss.
By now the temperature was in the high 20's and we were emptying the drink bottles at an alarming rate.
Newent to Gloucester was pleasant rolling countryside and we soon arrived in Gloucester's road system ready for battle. Thankfully, it didn't come, the streets were strangely quiet. Good news. But the headwind was bad news because we would be heading in the same direction for 22 miles down the A38. This was another epic stretch of high speed traffic coming past and we were struggling to keep the pain at bay. And then we needed more water (and nurofen for Mat's knees.)
Finally we turned off the A38 at Falfield and hit a 1 in 10 hill. More ouch. But the road was quiet and the horizon was flat so no hills for a while. After some great place names like Iron Acton, we were so close to the next memorable stage - our Frenchay stop.
And what a Warm welcome! Balloons, bunting, fruit juice, fruit platter and best surprise of all Mark & Lisa  Lambert, plus Jane and Sophie, Mark's little sisters! Brought a lump to my throat.

We met all the  fantastic people at Frenchay and were blown away by the enthusiasm. We were glad to see the blogs were printed out daily for the patients to read.
We wanted to stay forever. We were even tempted by offers of the hydro-pool but declined reluctantly.
Then another surprise ; Mark was escorting us to Churchill. Fantastic!
That was a hard last 20 miles especially for the jogleboy with vertigo who was made to cross the
Clifton Suspension Bridge, but all worthwhile when we found the Clumber Lodge and the amazing sunken bath.
Off over the hill to Launceston tomorrow, for a Top Gear challenge....

Another hot day in the office, but only 91 miles today!

Mr and Mrs Dibb snr dropped us back at Widnes, at exactly the same point at which we finished yesterday. We were rolling again by  08:30.

First challenge was the Widnes bridge so time to face my vertigo once again.

After that we made steady progress along the A49 for 50 miles or so, stopping only to collect a couple of England flags from the roadside and attach to the bikes in support of our great national team. Some good that did....

Lunch (jacket pots again of course) was at a garden centre where our new Jogle badges on the back of our jerseys sparked a whole bunch of questions from our fellow diners. We ended up coming away with £30 in donations towards our charities!

We had a brief but most enjoyable rendezvous with Peter Hesham (Mark Lambert's father-in-law) who had kindly driven to meet us and pass on his support.

By the afternoon the tarmac was so hot that it was bubbling up beneath our tyres, which gave the impression of riding on bubble-wrap  and we were just about as hot too.

We arrived in Tenbury Wells at about 5:15 and checked into our B+B.
Pretty soon after, we were joined by Jonny (Paul's brother) and Janet, my old buddy Simon Fox and his lovely family, and the delicious Jaynie: Paul's wife.
A much needed meal in a beer garden followed, and a good old catch up with everyone.

Overall another tough, sore day, but with a fantastic and sociable ending.

Thanks once again to Mum and Dad for their tremendous support, and to everyone who made the effort to join us this evening.

Tomorrow: Tenbury to Churchill, via Frenchay visiting Tina and Alison.

I know we make out that each day is more epic than the last but today was just that -  108.5 miles!! And on the hottest day so far.
 
The morning started with the feared climb up Kirkstone Pass and ended with Mat’s parent’s feeding us a fantastic meal as a reward.
The difference today was that we had company – Darren and Pete came up from sunny Bedfordshire to join us as a human shield against the headwinds.
 
The descent from Kirkstone was a blast but we paid for it with 2 steep climbs before stopping for a leg stretch after an hour or so. Once the banter and mickey-taking with and about Darren and Pete had settled into an abusive rhythm we moved through Windermere, Brigsteer and took on the one way system of Lancaster. Managing to miss a major road junction added couple of scenic miles as we got back on track. Once the sun came out the GPS was almost impossible to read (a good excuse and I’m sticking to it).
 
Next came Garstang with 56 miles on the clock. Here we got Darren and Pete into the Jacket Spud diet. The temperature seemed to climb again as we got back on the bikes to ride along the A6 to  Preston, and the navigation on dual carriageways across to minor roads, despite months of careful preparation, didn’t go to plan. But every cloud has a silver lining, which in our case was a pub called the Star Inn in Roby Mill that came after an evil and unexpected climb. We have to mention the landlord who gladly filled 8 water bottles and even added ice! Top bloke.
 
At this point Mat & I were really suffering; knees aching, saddlesoreness, and the effects of the heat. Darren & Pete kept us motivated – even though they were flagging, and we eventually got into St Helens and hit the 100 miles mark. I didn’t trust the battery life in the GPS so instead of following the minor roads we enjoyed(?) a quick direct route along the A58 for the 8 miles into Widnes West Bank.
 
We were greeted by the welcome site of Mat’s mum and Dad, ready to load up the bikes and take us home for food, TLC and defumigating our cycling gear. Thanks Nigel and Heather. Thanks also to Jayne for sending through her artful fabric signs so passing drivers can spot what we are doing. Don’t know why didn’t we think about that earlier.
 
Another 95 miles to go to Tenbury Wells tomorrow – with no mountain passes and the straight A49, maybe we’ll get an early finish…… sauna …. Massage …… jacuzzi. Dream on!

We're halfway!!!!

Crossed the border into England today at around midday, after a hefty 4 1/2 days through beautiful Scotland.

Arrived in Patterdale, Cumbria at 5pm: another 91 miles clocked up, in good shape but very, very sore behinds now!

It was a fairly uneventful day, but still very enjoyable and the familiar and beautiful scenery of the lake district didn't let us down one bit.

We got a bit caught up in the local rush hour at Greystoke:

stumbled across a cyclists cafe which provided the best flapjack I've ever tasted. So I had 2 slabs of it, 'cos I could :-).

Presently sitting outside the Patterdale Hotel, enjoying a drink and a bit of late sunshine. The place is packed with Triumph motorcycles and their riders, as the Durham Rats are in town.
As you can imagine, we're enjoying a bit of mingling...

Our friends Darren and Pete join us later this evening, and are riding with us tomorrow which will be great - and Paul and I are secretly hoping that they've fitted their pannier racks to carry our luggage for us!
Somehow, I doubt it though.......

Tomorrow: Patterdale to Frodsham (Cheshire) where we will stay with the Dibb seniors for the night.

Weather - good, then wet, then dry, then wet etc. Followed by perfect with tailwind after 60 miles. Low point - bumpy uphill road saddlesore and no energy. High point  - 10 miles on a singletrack road from Carsphairn to Moniaive.

Scariest moment - Erskine Bridge if you suffer from vertigo (Mat) Most traffic lights - 12 sets through Paisley - all on red!
Lucky mascot of the day - Midge the lucky  bear, who arrived at the Dumbuck Hotel from Mat's family and now lives on his handlebars .

91 miles covered today.  Tomorrow's destination; Patterdale.

Thanks for all your comments and texts that really motivate us when the going gets tough. We're in a bit of discomfort but CHASE, Headway and Frenchay will all benefit and that is the whole purpose of the ride.

After yesterday's wake up call we decided to press on nice and early today and left the B&B by 08:30.

First passing point was 1 mile down the loch past Mr+Mrs E senior's B&B, where they were stood ready to cheer us on - including the B&B owners!
That was a nice start.

Another very grey morning and in and out of waterproofs until around 18 miles at which point we started to ascend Glencoe. We knew that from here on the next 30 odd miles were going to be mostly climbing.
We found a steady rhythm and reached the summit at over 1,000ft in pretty good shape, even passing a few other cyclists without luggage - unlike us.

As we continued through the glens the headwind increased again and Paul and I had to work closely together to make any progress.
The wind was so strong that we even had to pedal downhill in places!

By midday we reached the pub at Bridge of Orchy, where we had a cup of tea and slice of cake to shelter from the now relentless wind.
Following this we eventually we wound our way down
To Loch Lomond where the wind was much more kind and we followed the bonny A82 beside the loch.

At around 2pm we took the now regulation "Jacket Potato" break at the Tarbet tea rooms.

After a couple more hours of hard slog we arrived in Dumbarton at 5pm and found the Dumbuck Hotel. Total distance today: 91 miles.

Overall we're bearing up ok, and learning how to best cope with the various aches and pains through distraction techniques. As most of you know, thankfully Paul and I share the same atrocious sense of humour so that generally gets us through.

The pink Barbie hooter that I snuck on his bike when he wasn't looking is still on, and is used most frequently by Paul at local school pick up time to scare the kids.

Tomorrow = Dumbarton to Thornhill.

Weather - sunbathing hot ; Scenery - fantastic; High point - seeing seals in Cromarty Firth (try and spot them in the photo). Low point- half way up a monster hill after Loch Ness; Best aroma of the day - the White & Mackay Distillery in Invergordon; Number of near death overtaking incidents - lost count; Least friendly drivers - Fort William; Most welcome meal of the day - huge thanks to  the Evans seniors.

All in all an exhausting day because of the strong headwind for the last 50 miles. A big reality check.

Finally, thanks to the 5 additional sponsors who have donated since yesterday.