Long hard day. Everything hurts. Sore face, stiff neck and shoulders, backache, knee ache and just lets say that I'm sitting on the most padded chair in the pub.
The main reason for all this discomfort is due to the strong head wind that I had to battle against all day. Perhaps the only reason for the excellent progress in days 1 and 2 was because the wind was behind me and I never realised!
Gisleham ( pronounced Gizlam) was basic but good campsite. Got chatting to my tent neighbour this morning and found that she really was my neighbour - she lives a few streets away from me in Kettering!
Left at 7 am with the sun behind me. Found I had to be a bit more careful with route finding with GPS screen problem but it is still usable. Main problem is that if you manually toggle - necessary now - it ceases to follow automatically. I like to think that the unit gets in a huff that I'm trying to take over.
Went wrong a couple of times, mostly a case of taking the wrong turning. Worst case was at Harleston where went up a 12% hill ( well walking is a good chance to graze on blackberries) only to find myself on wrong road, but in right direction. Kept going as thought I could rejoin my route ahead ... Only to look down and see the B road passing under the road whereat I was... One illegal left turn later ( well it was onto a bike route so I'm sure ' no left turn‘ didn't mean me) a bit of skirting round and I was back.
But it was hard. Managed 11 miles in the first hour, but it dropped off after that to less than ten. The wind was constant and strong; this wasn't a gentle breeze. This was tough and unrelenting.
Used some ' quiet lanes' one of which brought me to the ruined church of Tivertshall St Mary, said to have been founded before the Conquest.
At Banham passed turn off for the zoo and stocked up on snacks in the Post Office, including a cream cake. Rejoined yesterday's route at Qidenham and for first time noticed signpost to the Carmelite Monastery ( used to be the Hall). Back past the pigs ( now awake), the Peddars at Witsend Farm, the MOD base. Passed a cyclist on a break; Team Astana gear, Bianchi bike. He caught me up of course: said he'd just cycled the Alpe d'Heuz in training for a long sportive. We were suitably impressed with each other's challenges, but I couldn't keep up for long and off he went.
The distillery was open and I was tempted to pull into the cafe, but the clouds were black and heavy, so decided to keep trying to out run the rain ( managed too).
Bike route into the forest and actually stopped for a long lunch break. Next bit was harder as cycle track was actually sand, almost impossible to stay upright - so walked, not much easier. Long road through the forest.
Cycled out to Hockwold and on to Feltwell, and then the latest challenge. The GPS route just stopped. I knew I'd planned it to the end, but it must have been too big to handle. So it cut the end off. Still I could use it to find the next village - and this showed how amorphous the border is here, between Cambs, Norfolk and Suffolk. Signposted to Southery along what has to be the longest drove road in England and the most dull - and into that incessant head wind. Seemed never ending but finally made it there and to Ten Mile Bank. There, the River Great Ouse ( picture) is far higher than the surrounding countryside, and the bank keeps it there. Another long stretch to Littleport, and luxury, campsite with endless hot water and best of all, not moving. Dinner at the Swan, just up the road.
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