DAY 4 HIP HIP NOT HOORAY

After a fantastic nights sleep in a real bed I was up at the crack of Dawn... wps that should be dawn !!Having said my goodbyes to Glenda ( and Dawn !!!!!!)I set off on the A4110 and then B4362 and B4361 to Ludlow. A nice quite ride but I was really struggling with my war wound. My right hip was really playing up and as I was already fully tanked up with painkillers I had to carry on gingerly over hill and dale. I left my mobile phone on and it seemed that it would always ring when I was on a climb. Sods Law I suppose. The ringtone was getting on my nerves ( PC Leslie Wyn)so I switched it off.My mother had the best knack of calling me to tell that the weather was good in Pwllheli and that it should pick up for me during the day!!

Just north of Craven Arms I stopped at a roadside caravan and inside had the best breakfast ever. washed down with 2 large mugs of tea. Highly recommended stop here Its a small vintage caravan about 3 miles north and you can sit inside to eat)

It was then the A49 for most of the day. A fairly decent route apart from the A5 roundabout which was a nightmare.

Having got to Whitchurch I decided to carry on further north and ended up just outside Chester

at a very nice looking campsite . The lady at the site was ex Colditz staff and after some interegation concerning the possibility of Nia being a dog and children smuggler trying to get them on site we were allowed to set up camp for the night. I imagined this fortress of a lady patroling the site at night with a German Shepherd dog guard towers and searchlights blazing.It was rumoured that a family from Ipswich had escaped the week before by digging a tunnel from the laundry room under the perimiter fence and that they were still on the run somewhere on the Denbigh Moors.... GULP !!!! Tony Parry, Lois and Bob Thomas made a suprise visit that night( To bring in the Red Cross Parcels). It was nice to see them an get the latest news about the Rugby Club and Bala.. It was lights out quite early that night at Stalag 16 and I slept like a log dreaming about Steve Mcqueen and the Great Escape.

Stopped at the famous midwaytruck stop fot tea and toasted teacakes. Lydia the tattooed lady delivered them to the camper van

MILAGE 85

RIDE TIME 5 hrs 50 mins

PUNCTURES 0

PROBLEMS Tiredness, BAD BAD hip, Traffic last 20 miles. Sudden urges to go to the toilet( no warning)

Overall milage so far is 365 in 25hrs 16 mins riding time giving me an average of 14.5 MPH ( A good average for a non cycling fat man!!!!!!!!!)