Hadrian's Audax - Day 2 Grindon to Whitley Bay

I was up early on the morning, watching the sunrise over the moors. A lot of low lying fog and lavender skies made for an eerie scene. We had a band of rain pass over us during the night and the forecast was for clear skies with a cool morning. Our host Les set us up for the day with another full breakfast (not losing any weight on this trip!). We setup our bikes for the relatively short ride, hoping to finish by the afternoon.

We set off at 9 a.m. exactly, quite well for us as we are normally about an hour late. The low lying fog was still around but made for some wonderful scenery. Our altitude was such that we didn't have to ride through any fog but could see it all around us in the valleys to the south. Although we were enjoying our warm up I think we were all thinking about crossing the North Tyne River in Chollerford. In order to cross this river, we drop all of the altitude we had gained over the past day down to the river. Once over, we had to gain it all back plus a little more in a very short distance. We all were a little apprehensive about "making it to the top".

We made the descent into the valley at high speed (60+ km/hr). Losing all our gained altitude in mere minutes. We had to throw out the anchors to keep from going too fast and putting ourselves in a position where a fall would be disastrous. A quick stop on the river for pictures and we were on our way up a 14% grade again. This one was tough. Mark and I set off ahead of Steve and Maile (still struggling with a duff derailleur). Within the first few minutes, Mark and I were on our lowest gears and out of the saddle. When it looked like we were beat and ready for a stroll, the slope levelled off just enough to catch our breath. We then marched a slow and steady cadence up to a point where we finally levelled off. Although we both felt knackered (and a little sick) we had made it without too much difficulty. Steve and Maile were not far behind. We stopped for a quick breather before going up and over the last 80 metres.

The only redeeming thing about this climb was that it was mostly downhill to the coast from the top. There would be a few small hills, but there would also be a lot of coasting and fast spinning. By the time we descended the moors, we were desperate for a coffee and cake stop. Fortunately there was a farm shop just in the right place. Nothing like hot coffee and cake to warm the soul and a cool morning!

Not soon after our cake stop, we hit the built up areas of greater Newcastle. This section of the ride was not meant to be much fun, just a means to an end. We had to fight the traffic, lights and roundabouts along the A191 to the coast. Not too many dicey moments, just a lot of stop-start riding. We were all amazed at the huge volume of traffic on the roads, given that it was a Sunday afternoon. It was a continuous stream of traffic the whole way. Quite disheartening to think that this is the way the country is heading, cars tail to tail 24/7. It seemed ages until we finally saw the coast. None of us felt that tired as we rolled to a stop in Whitley Bay (total distance 148 km). The beach was busy as it looked like the last day of sun we might get for awhile. There was nothing else for us to do but get some fish, chips and mushy peas on the seaside!

After some seaside snaps, Mark's wife took him and Maile back to Grindon to collect the car while Steve and I waited. Steve and I decided to pedal north to find a pub and wait for Maile to collect us. We had a couple of pints at a pub in Seaton Sluice before heading to the nearest car park for collection. The drive back south was uneventful and we made it back to Crewe and Nantwich at 9 p.m. We all agreed it was a great and fulfilling weekend. The next trip is in the capable hands of Mark. What will he have waiting for us?

Chuck