The adventure begins!

On Saturday 12 April, I set off from Land’s End in Cornwall to start my 12-week cycle ride across England for the Farming Futures Cycle Tour! I’ve now completed the first leg of my journey, cycling 333 kilometres from Land’s End to northern Dartmoor over 6 days. While I take a couple days off the bike, I wanted to write up a little overview of that first day of my big adventure.

Just a little note before we get started: I’ve written this whole blog post from my phone (using a very nifty folding keyboard), so apologies in advance if there’s any typos/spelling errors/whole sections that don’t make sense. I’ll edit properly and add more photos when I have access to a laptop!

Background

I’m currently cycling across England for three months for my PhD fieldwork, exploring visions for the future of farming and food production. Along the way, I’m stopping to meet with women in farming communities, to learn about their visions for the future. My ride started at Land’s End in Cornwall, and all going well, will end on the Scottish border near Carlisle in early July. This trip has been in the works for over a year and it still feels a little surreal that it’s actually happening!

Last days in Exeter

“How are you feeling?” my friend, Annabel, asked as we sat down for my farewell dinner on Wednesday night. The sun was shining and we were sat outside in the beer garden at Topsham Brewery, by the Exeter Quay.

“Excited,” I replied. And it was true. With that excitement was also relief. I’d thought by this point, with just a handful of days before I started my trip, I would be a nervous wreck. But while the anxiety that had plagued me earlier in the year was still there, it was outweighed by the excitement I felt for embarking on this adventure. I’d cycled over 3,000 kilometres in training for this ride, I’d done first aid training and bike maintenance training, I’d even taught myself to enjoy drinking British tea – I felt ready.

Tears pricked my eyes as I hugged my friends goodbye after dinner. I’d already said goodbye to one of my PhD supervisors earlier that afternoon and I knew that the goodbyes weren’t going to get any easier.

Thursday was my last full day in Exeter and I spent it getting things ready for the trip. In the afternoon, Brett and I cycled along the Exe Estuary Trail out to the Turf, where we sat behind a hedge to protect us from the biting wind. That night, I slept terribly, my mind spinning with everything I had left to do before my departure.

Heading to Cornwall

On Friday morning, I packed up my bike and we cycled over to Saddles & Paddles, the bike store where I’d bought my bike a few months earlier. The team there had not only helped me choose the right bike for my adventure, but had helped me kit the bike out in preparation for my trip. Heather, the shop owner, gave me a big hug goodbye as the team wished me luck on my adventure.

That afternoon, after saying goodbye to my room, Brett and I cycled over to Wetherspoons. It was a beautifully sunny day, which was all the more bittersweet having seen the forecast for Saturday. As we pushed our bikes up the grassy hill towards the pub, my mum rushed down to meet us, her bicycle earrings swinging cheerfully. My parents had travelled down from London that morning to accompany me to Land’s End. We had a couple of hours until our train to Penzance, so we ordered lunch and caught up, the excitement buzzing between us as we ate under the gazebo.

We headed down to the train station with plenty of time, but I still felt nervous as we made our way to the platform. As anyone who has attempted to take a bike on a train in the UK can tell you, it is rarely a stress-free experience.

When the train pulled in, we were ready at the carriage marked on my bike ticket. My dad got on the train first and, looking back to me as I stood on the platform, he shook his head – there was a pram in the dedicated bike storage. Oh joy. Luckily there was a GWR member of staff just a few metres away and he assured me that the train wouldn’t leave while I was stranded on the platform. My dad rushed to the other end of the train to speak with the conductor. Meanwhile, another member of staff walked past and informed us that there was another spot for bike storage further down the train, conveniently located closer to our seats in first class (which had been just a couple pounds more in the GWR sale). Luckily, this bike storage spot was empty, so I was able to lock my bike up as the train pulled out of Exeter. I’d read horror stories about people’s bikes being nicked while on trains, so I did go check on it a handful of times throughout the journey, always filled with a rush of relief when I could spot it through the sliding doors of the train carriage.

We admired the view as the train sped past the coast, sipping on bubbly that my parents had brought to celebrate this exciting milestone. Eventually, we crossed the Royal Albert Bridge over the Tamar River, leaving Devon and entering Cornwall. The journey from Exeter to Penzance would take around three hours, and my ride from Land’s End back to Devon would take a week. I pointed out the constantly rolling hills to my parents, “that’s what I’m going to be cycling on.”

As we were pulling into Penzance and I was preparing my bike to get off the train, I ended up chatting to another passenger – a young American man with a large backpacking rucksack. He asked me where I was riding to, and for the first time, I was able to say “Scotland.” What a thrill! We wished each other safe travels as we disembarked.

After taking a couple of pictures outside the Penzance train station, we checked into the Premier Inn, conveniently located opposite the station. We’d chosen Premier Inn because it’s one of the few hotel chains that guarantees you can take your bike into your room with you, which gave me peace of mind before my big ride. After a delicious dinner at 45 Queen Street, I worked from bed, frantically trying to get through the list of tasks I needed to complete before leaving.

The adventure begins

On Saturday morning, we had breakfast at The Front Room, a cute cafe on the high street of Penzance. After weeks of sunshine, I was disappointed that the weather had turned and the skies were covered in grey clouds.

Back at the hotel, Brett grabbed his Brompton and I carefully manoeuvred my bike through the corridor and onto the lift. My trip would “officially” start at Land’s End, but we had to get there, first. While my parents caught a bus from Penzance, Brett and I cycled. Although I’m doing most of the trip solo, I was glad to have Brett cycling beside me as we pulled away from the hotel and began making our way south.

We’d agreed to ride a circular route for the day, instead of doing an out-and-back to Land’s End on the same route. Our outbound route was pulled together using our Cornwall cycling map and Komoot, while our return route would follow the National Cycle Network (NCN) route 3.

By the time we left the hotel, the rain had started properly. It felt like a very typical English spring day and my arms were completely soaked in less than five minutes. We started the ride following the coast to Newlyn, where we were soon faced with a cheery 16% grade hill to warm us up. It was a fairly busy road, so as soon as I had to stop to let some cars past, I gave up with cycling and ended up pushing my bike the rest of the way. I felt nervous – this wasn’t even my fully loaded bike, I’d left some things at the hotel – which meant that all the hills starting the following day were going to be even more difficult!

As we left the main road and turned onto a quiet country lane, we saw a fox bounding through the grass in the field to our right. The winding lanes took us through fields, past moss-covered rock walls, and through tunnels of trees, bright with spring growth. Bluebells cheerfully lined the side of the road, likely happy to finally have some rain. The miserable weather added to an almost magical quality to some of the small country lanes we rode along.

On the way out, we stopped off to say “hi” at Bosavern Community Farm, where I had volunteered for three weeks back in 2019 through WWOOF. The yard was buzzing with activity – employees and volunteers were setting up gazebos, getting ready for their Spring Open Day, which was happening on Sunday. Things have definitely changed a bit in the farm shop since I was there, but it was nice to be back and chat to some of the current WWOOFers.

Leaving the farm, we followed the B-road out to the A-30. I never enjoy cycling on A-roads, but it wasn’t too busy, so it never felt too scary. As we approached Sennen, we joined back onto the NCN 3. The road dropped steeply down towards Sennen Cove, and I was already dreading having to climb back up this hill when we left Land’s End, so I was relieved when the NCN didn’t drop down, but instead turned left onto a small road running parallel to the coast. Despite the grey weather, the views over the beach were spectacular.

We continued following the NCN 3, and I was surprised when it left the road and led us onto a gravel path – it felt like we’d stumbled onto the South West Coast Path! The path ended by the edge of the Land’s End attraction. I’d visited once before, so I knew what to expect, whereas Brett was surprised to see so many buildings.

When we arrived into Land’s End, Brett and I got a hot chocolate to warm up and split a bag of crisps we’d bought at Bosavern. Luckily, by now the weather had improved somewhat and it had stopped raining.

When my parents arrived, we joined the queue for the official photo at the Land’s End signpost. We watched as the groups in front of us had their photos taken – they customised the top line of text, with the date on the second line. My dad suggested I ask if we could customise the text on both lines of the signpost and they said “yes,” so the text on the signpost read, “Farming Futures Cycle Tour” – yay!

Because my trip was raising money for charity, the photographer kindly took the photos for free. When I asked him about copyright for the photos, he laughed and made me promise I would be safe on my journey.

When we went into the little shop to buy the photo prints, I almost started crying when I saw the photos pop up on the screen. It was wild to realise this moment had been in the plans for over a year and, now, it was actually happening! We chose the two photos we wanted and as we were waiting for them to be printed, the man working at the desk asked my mum if she was scared about my trip. “Completely terrified,” she replied, “but also excited.” Me too, me too.

After filming a couple videos for social media, we wandered down the path to another coastal viewpoint. We still had over an hour before my parent’s bus back to Penzance, so we got lunch at the Land’s End Hotel (where I had my third hot chocolate of the day, oops). My dad stood on top of a wooden picnic table to film me and Brett “officially” leaving the coast and starting my trip. We also got a couple shots at the front of the Land’s End attraction, as we cycled over the word “START.”

It was official. The Farming Futures Cycle Tour had begun!

Now, Brett and I were following the NCN route 3 back to Penzance. Again, we found ourselves on quiet roads. There were a couple of steep hills and I did walk my bike at one point, but otherwise it was a smooth journey back. We passed Lamorna, a village nestled into a wooded valley, which looked like something out of a fairytale. The roads we followed were mostly lined by hedges, and at one point, a bird of prey flew out of the hedge just a few metres in front of us, before soaring up into the sky above us.

As we descended into the charming village of Mousehole, I mentioned to Brett that I was pleased that my legs no longer shake as I descend hills, something that happened frequently when I was just beginning my training. “Do you think my legs used to shake because of nerves or a lack of strength?” I asked.

“Probably nerves,” he responded.

In that moment, I felt proud of everything I had achieved to get to this milestone – in particular, the confidence I had built in cycling over the last year. We’d walked past Mousehole on a coast path hike in 2023. If you’d told me then that I would be cycling on the roads and hills of Cornwall in a few years, I probably would have laughed at you.

After passing the colourful fishing harbour at Newlyn, we were back on the sea wall, heading towards Penzance. I was amazed at how calm the water was. When the ramp down to the sea was too slippery, I decided to go for a swim in the small harbour instead. Stood barefoot on the cold stone, I took a deep breath and dove into the crystal clear water. It was the first time this year that I’ve put my head under the water, but it’s safe to say that I didn’t last long in the freezing water!

After a hot shower to warm back up, we headed out for a pub dinner. I ended up staying up later than I would have liked to, editing videos for Instagram and ticking off a few more of the seemingly never-ending tasks on my list.

Setting off on my own

The next morning, the reality of what I was doing set in. The exciting part – leaving Land’s End – was over. We’d taken the photos, we’d celebrated completing the first day. Now, though, I had to actually do my fieldwork. I had to cycle across England. By myself.

I couldn’t finish my breakfast, I felt so ill. My stomach was churning. Brett hugged me in the supermarket as I cried into his shoulder.

Later, as we stood by the sea wall looking out towards St Michael’s Mount, I said a tearful goodbye to Brett and my parents. It was time to set off on my own.

As I pointed my bike north and began cycling on the NCN 3, I knew I couldn’t let myself think about the whole 12-week trip, which reached out – seemingly endless – in front of me. Instead, I set my focus on getting to Devon. I’d cycled from Devon to Cornwall last summer, on a much worse bike and with much less training. I could do this.

Postscript

Spoiler alert – I did do it, I made it safely to Devon! I’ll be doing interviews for my PhD around northern Dartmoor for the next week before I continue my ride north. I’m excited and nervous for the ride to London – up to this point, I’ve been riding through Cornwall and Devon, the only counties where I’ve done any substantial cycle training in the UK. From here on, though, everything will be new to me.

Thanks, as always, for your support! I look forward to sharing more stories and more photos from my fieldwork adventure as I continue. For now, if you’ve enjoyed reading this post, I would love if you donated to my fundraising page to support the important work being done by the Farming Community Network. I’m aiming to raise £3,000 over the next three months and any contribution would be very warmly received.