Abnormal

 Ok. If we'd known then what we know now, we would have delayed this trip.

But we've started and we're doing our best to finish...

We set off from Newark at 5:30 this morning. It was the only way we were likely to survive. 

The 20 miles to Grantham were blissfully cool. And more. As we set off from Costa (the only coffee shop open at 7am) we were hailed. As in hail and thunder. The downpour lasted all of two minutes, and we spent that time under a strategically placed yew tree. 

The weather at this point added to the excitement of our route change. I reckoned that leaving Grantham on the Boston road would reduce the mileage and make a preferable alternative to avoid head winds. Retrospectively, it was the right call but the thundering lorries plus the thundering thunder did make for an interesting twenty minutes. And so we headed for Market Deeping, the only other place of any significance en route. The sun made its presence felt increasingly from this point and stops in the shade became more and more frequent. We cycled through several very pretty villages and as we were cowering under a tree in one, a couple informed us of a community shop with café just up the road. We thanked them but felt strongly that Market Deeping was the place for us. 

We get quite a lot of response as we cycle our heavily loaded tandem past people. Many stop and show interest whereas others seem to see the funny side. We cycled past quite an elderly lady today who was almost bent double with mirth. We have grown accustomed to being a source of merriment. 

As the heat built, Kate’s positive attitude came to the rescue again as she pointed out that she might never have learnt that a banana skin is great for cooling your face down. However, she did reach the stage where she took one of her water bottles and simply poured it over the top of her head. Something which hasn't happened since cycling in Spain. 

After about 50 miles, we reached a huge series of lakes which the road weaved its way between. Dotted around the lakes were upwards of 100 cabins which were probably residences rather than holiday lets. One resident offered to take our photo offering a rare photo of the both of us which isn't a clumsy attempt at a selfie. The sat nav then tried to take us through a high and well locked gate. We had to retrace quite a distance then face a stretch of busy road. By now we were getting tired and very hot. Next obstacle, a closed road. The sort that says "including cyclists" You know the game is up. In the middle of a lengthy diversion, I then realised a terrible thing. Market Deeping wasn't going to happen. Not to us, anyway. Poor map reading on my part meant that we gave Market Deeping quite a wide berth. As we sat on the side of the road wondering what to do, we noticed a museum, celebrating the life of John Clare, a 'peasant poet' just round the corner. Our interest was aroused not so much from learning about the life and works of John Clare, but rather the café which could be found within. We were in a tiny but incredibly picturesque village and our arrival at the café caused great excitement for the two ladies who worked there. They said that the hot weather had kept everyone away. Not us. Sandwiches, cake, coffee and glass after glass of chilled water were soon being consumed. 

We knew that the 10 miles from here to Peterborough would be particularly hard. I suspect that they will be the hardest ten miles of the trip. 

It was 35° now and the heat seemed to suck the oxygen from the air that we breathed. Sometimes, we would just stop and pant for ages. 

Eventually we arrived in Peterborough. We passed a Waitrose and Kate dived in, just to stand by the freezers for a moment. 

If the weather had been less extreme, we would now have perused the streets of Peterborough to find an inviting café. But today, the most inviting café by far, was Costa. Why? Because of their fantastic air conditioning. We went from there to a wonderfully air conditioned Greggs. The guy working there insisted that we bring the tandem in so there sat the three of us. Two eating chicken sandwiches and all three of us enjoying the cool. 

Eventually we arrived at a very comfortable air bnb from where I write this. 

Gardener's World is on later. I think that's just what we need. We could pretend we're normal...

Under the yew as the rain and thunder get going 
⁹
                          Amidst the lakes


                 At the John Clare museum 
                        The geezer himself 
            Pretty. (Kate, flowers, tandem...)

                  The three of us in Greggs 



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