I've noticed that quite a few people are still reading this each week so I thought an update might be of interest.
The 2008 LEJoG was really the start of my long-distance cycling proper (although I'd cycled to from London to Montrose in Scotland a couple of times before). Since then I've successfully completed Auxax UK's flagship London-Edinburgh-London (2009) and Paris-Brest-Paris (2011), both well within the time limits and without any real problem (other than the dreadful weather for LEL!).
I've also started cycle touring with a friend once a year and have so far visited:
2009: Outer Hebrides and Scottish west coast (including Bealach na Ba)
2010: Pyrenees and the Cevennes (including an off-road Pyrenees pass at 2000m)
2011: Southern Spanish sierras (including a failed attempt at the Sierra Nevada - closed because of snow despite temperatures of 45c and an extended heatwave in mid-summer!)
2012: Mainland Greece (including the snow hills of the north-west - Greece is generally very hilly!)
I've also continued cycling up to Montrose from London every year, each time adjusting the route slightly to avoid unpleasant sections or make it more direct. The last 2 years I've managed it in 3 days - 190m on the first two and a final day of around 130m.
I'm now in the final stages of planning my next LEJoG attempt for next year (2013). It will be done over 5 days and I've tweaked the route a bit. Not necessarily more main road - in fact I'm exploring alternatives for bits I didn't particularly enjoy. For example there's apparently an "old" road that runs alongside the A9 from Pitlochry to Inverness (where I had the "dozies" in 2008).
My new route also stays east of the Welsh border this time, allowing for better progress on the second day, though I'll be sorry to miss the delights of the Wye valley. I'll also be incorporating a change to the route from Longtown to Edinburgh. Rather than staying on the A7 I'll be going on minor roads to Moffat via Locherbie (shadowing the course of the motorways) and from there to Edinburgh on the A701. I trialled this bit of the route in July this year for the first time and it is a real delight - great road surfaces but very little traffic, and wonderful scenery.
My proposed stopovers are:
Day 1: Bridgewater (Travelodge)
Day 2: Warrington (Travelodge)
Day 3: Moffat (B&B)
Day 4: Kingussie (B&B)
Day 5: JoG
The daily distances will be 180 miles or thereabouts. From experience this means 14-16 hour days of which 12-14 in the saddle, so still time for a decent night's sleep.
I'm also toying with the idea of avoiding the fraught return rail journey from Wick to Aberdeen (and obtaining a precious cycle reservation) by getting the short ferry ride to the Orkneys and then the overnight ferry from Kirkwall to Aberdeen, the cost of which will be more than offset by saving a night's B&B.
Anyway, that's the plan, and unless anything untoward arises I'll be setting off on the train back down to Penzance next year. I'll update this blog or link to another if I'm successful.
Good luck everyone!
UPDATE: March 2014
The 5-day ride is now happening in June this year. Route planned, accommodation booked and training well underway (including a trip to the Atlas Mountains in May).
Just praying for good weather! If it's really bad then I'll struggle with the daily mileages.
UPDATE: June 2014
I completed the 5-day LEJoG earlier this month in the planned 5 days, again solo and unsupported. All went well including the return trip via the Orkneys.
I'll either start a new blog for the 5-day ride or more likely write a full report here in due course. In the meantime if anyone has any questions or would like help planning their ride then please ask.
