Day 16
June 26th - From Ross-on-Wye to Shipham

After yesterday's deluge today's weather was much better. It was drizzling slightly as I left the chalet and walked across to the hotel for breakfast but by the time I returned it had stopped and it stayed dry for the rest of the day.
My plan, as usual, was to head south which would take me to Chepstow from where I could cross the Severn Bridge. My knees do not like mornings so it was a relief to see that the first couple of miles were fairly flat but then the hills started and it became really slow-going. The first town I reached was Coleford where I stocked up on drinks and snickers bars and then headed off to Chepstow. It was hard work all the way there except for the last stretch into the town which was one of the longest, steepest and therefore fastest downhills of the whole trip. As I arrived in Chepstow there was a "Welcome to Wales" sign which was not something I had planned on seeing on this trip but crossing the Severn instead of going via Gloucester must have saved me quite a few miles.
I had lunch at Chepstow and then got on the road towards the bridge. A few miles on I noticed that the gps had died yet again. I managed get it going by stopping and re-starting it but I had lost a couple of miles. When I reached the bridge I was glad to see that it had its own cycle lane and fortunately the wind had dropped so it was a nice ride across with some good views. Half way across I got off the bike to take some photos and I couldn't believe how much the whole bridge was shaking. I couldn't feel it while riding but once I got off the bike it felt like an earthquake. I'm not sure if it was the wind or the movement of the traffic that was causing it but I was very glad to get to the other side. It felt really good to pass the "Welcome to England" sign and to start heading west instead of south. At this point I really felt like I had turned the corner and had the end in sight, even if it was 250 miles away!
I now found myself in Bristol's dockland and every other vehicle was an articulated truck. I made my way through the grid-pattern of roads and eventually saw signs for the city centre. I had hoped to bypass Bristol and head for Weston Super Mare but all roads led into the city and, to make things worse, it was now 4.30 and rush-hour was in full swing. I saw signs for Weston off to the right and those for Taunton to the left and a never-ending stream of lorries made my mind up for me. I was now heading for Taunton on the A38. A few miles further on I saw a sign for Exeter which made me feel like I was getting near home but then I remembered that I had a minor detour to Land's End to negotiate before I could go back to Torquay.
I stopped for dinner at a pub on the main road at which point I had done about 50 miles and was starting to feel like I'd had enough so the search for a b&b began. After about 20 miles of flat stuff the hills had now made a come-back. I tried a farmhouse b&b which was full, followed by a hotel which was extortionate and then, at a village called Churchill, I found two more which were also both full. The lady at the last one gave me some directions to a village called Shipham where, she said, I would find somewhere to stay and I eventually ended up at the Penscot Inn. The good news was that they had a quiz on and I joined up with a couple from Churchill called Steve and Mandy and we won a £15 beer voucher valid for next week so it was no use to me whatsoever. I'm sure Steve and Mandy will make good use of it.
Todays total was 58 which makes 972 in all. I've checked the mileage remaining and that short-cut across the bridge has made a difference. If I take my original route home from here it will make a grand total of 1208 miles which means I have 236 miles left to go with 5 days remaining. Easy !

The Routemap

The Speed (in blue) and the Elevation (in green).