England Expects

Dover - Shetland Day 10
Fakenham - Holbeach

Distance Cycled: today 113.1km, total 751.6km
Ascent: today 507m, total 4059

Highlight: ice-cream stop at Wells, packed with holiday makers in the sunshine, followed by cycling through the grounds of the highly impressive Holkham Hall (where Christine & I watched a great Elton John concert a few years back). Also pleased to set a new distance PB and fastest daily average speed to boot - and arrive weary but not on my knees, so fitness improving.

Lowlight: having to cycle about 300m on the A17 racetrack which wasn't pleasant. Shortly after escaping that and back on country roads with a couple of miles to my destination I encountered my first road rage incident of the trip. The vast majority of motorists have been unfailing considerate but this clown, in his large Volvo 4WD, came careering around a corner at speed in the middle of the road across the centre white line. I waved my arm (no fingers involved) to indicate he should get back on his side of the road. He then decides to turn around and chase me. Nice, and if I hadn't just cycled 110km I might have decided to make something of it. In this case I decided that discretion was the best option, but I wish I'd the presence of mind to note his number plate and report him to the police.

What else? The more observant of you may have noted that I had over 500m of ascent today. The general perception that Norfolk is pancake flat isn't actually true, especially in the NW part of the country where it is hilly and even has sea cliffs. However the Fen country of Lincolnshire really is flat and there were no hills at all after Kings Lynn.

Photo: not the clearest of pictures but best I could do in bright sunlight. Sign which confirms Britain's most famous seaman was born in the little Norfolk village of Burham Thorpe & was one of only 11 commoners to have a state funeral and be buried in St Pauls, London. Other notables to receive same honour include Isaac Newton, Duke of Wellington & Winston Churchill (see my Day 4 Blipfoto entry). By the way Nelson was preserved in brandy to get him back from Trafalgar for the burial.