I had been thinking of a long distance cycle for a while and the knowledge that I lived at the easterly end of the widest part of England led me to plan a route across England, following a line westwards, avoiding A roads and sticking to cycleways and country lanes. The ride was going to take in Saffron Walden, the Chilterns, Milton Keynes, Chipping Norton and the Cotswolds, Tewkesbury, Ross-on-Wye and end at the Welsh border in Hay-on-Wye. I then planned to cycle on to Hereford to get the train back to Ipswich. The lockdown, because of the COVID pandemic, caused me to postpone my preferred start date in June, but a window opened in September 2020, when restrictions on travel were lifted and the journey became possible. I purchased a lightweight tent and some carriers
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