Miles today = 125
Miles so far = 125 (its the first day!)
Countries visited = 1
Yep, we're off again, into the blistering inferno of a European heat wave. But first we have to manage a rendezvous at the glorious Shack Cafe, somewhere just off the M3. Unbelievably for us, nothing goes wrong on the navigational front and a (very) late full English is our reward for negotiating the first 70 miles from Hove/Hertfordshire.
There is a vague plan - first night in Warminster, overnight ferry on Sunday from Plymouth to Santander and then ... hmm, so not much of a plan then. Think we will head to Santiago de Compostela, for some divine inspiration, or perhaps to stay near the coast at least for a while. At some point in about 3 weeks we will need to present ourselves at Calais, Dunkirk or Ostend to get back across the channel. Last time we went biking in Spain & France we voted to leave the EU - wonder what can go wrong this time, that isn’t our fault!
So with the first leg safely negotiated in the blazing sunshine, with a quick stop for the obligatory "4 idiots selfie" at Woodhenge, we are deservedly refreshing ourselves with a cheap pint in the Wetherspoons Inn we have bagged for the night - what are we doing? Isn’t Tim Martin, the chair of the cut price early morning drinkers chain, one of the arch brexiteers, and very probably a friend of the odious Nige. Beds are comfy though - me, a hypocrite?!
In the meantime, I learnt a new word - "feoffees" - trustees, who knew?, and found that our old favourite Egyptian restaurant (Andrew Finch!) has expanded, both geographically and "cuisinologically" .
Warminster - some lovely buildings but like so many provincial towns feels like it has fallen on hard times. Now all we need to do is plan a suitably bizarre route to Plymouth tomorrow... What could possibly go wrong?