St Paul's Cathedral, London

Dover - Shetland Day 4
Teddington to Bilericay

Distance cycled today: 82.9km
Total distance: 354.1km
Ascent today: 289m
Total ascent.: 2256m

Highlight: surviving a weekday transit of central London on a bike, making it past the M25 well into Essex, rounded off by a successful late AirBnB booking. I am being hosted by a pleasant and well travelled young couple, who were kind enough to give me a much appreciated large cup of tea, on arrival. Also impressed with the well marked and low, or no, traffic Cycling Superhighway 3, which I followed from The City to Rainham, a long way east.

Lowlight: the fumes and particulates (which you can almost taste) being taken in whilst traveling through the dense traffic of central London. Oh and the traffic! Not a good day to not have sunglasses (see Day 3 lowlight) with grit, insects and debris affecting my eyes at various points.

What else? I've probably insulted anyone from East London or Essex who reads my FB posts by my distinct lack of enthusiasm for Dagenham and adjacent areas. My apologies, if so. Having plenty of time to mull things whilst cycling, it occurred to me as passing through them in the last couple of days that Barking is near the Isle of Dogs, whereas Bray is near Eton. That's probably a few more friends alienated.

Photo: took various shots whilst passing through central London. I particularly like this one of St Paul's cathedral, a major London landmark between the City & West London. Quiz question of the day is to name at least 3 commoners who had state funerals at St Paul's (mostly royalty).