Liverpool to Leeds canal trip
Cathryn
Posts: 176
A couple of people showed an interest in our canal side bike trip which we've just completed so I thought I'd do a quick post to say how it went.
Well, it went...we did it! And despite HORRIFIC weather forecasts, we were incredibly lucky with the weather - the odd light drizzle for 10 mins and then pretty perfect cycling weather, for which we're eternally grateful!!
However it was a painfully slow trip. The tow path was pretty grotty for a good two thirds of the trip, just mud or grass, meaning that our average speed was about 6 miles per hour yesterday in particular, and it was quite an endurance test at times. Some stretches had proper cycle paths and we flew along (well, relatively) and loved every minute, but the pyschological bashing of miles of mud track and horrid bumping did get us down a bit at times.And Burnley??? The canal disappeared into a tunnel and we got horrifically lost, got directions back to the canal and after three miles of cycling ended up in exactly the same place we came off!! My lowest point.
However there were many lovely things that I'll remember. The gorgeous herons who flew ahead of us out of Liverpool, the beauty of the canal early in the morning as the ducks were waking up, a (luckily) comedy moment when a male swan was blocking the bike path protecting his cygnets, a fabulous farm b&b near Colne...and the sheer joy of a weekend dedicated to pootling along on the bikes!!
Would I do it again? Probably not...but am I glad we did it? Definitely!!!
Well, it went...we did it! And despite HORRIFIC weather forecasts, we were incredibly lucky with the weather - the odd light drizzle for 10 mins and then pretty perfect cycling weather, for which we're eternally grateful!!
However it was a painfully slow trip. The tow path was pretty grotty for a good two thirds of the trip, just mud or grass, meaning that our average speed was about 6 miles per hour yesterday in particular, and it was quite an endurance test at times. Some stretches had proper cycle paths and we flew along (well, relatively) and loved every minute, but the pyschological bashing of miles of mud track and horrid bumping did get us down a bit at times.And Burnley??? The canal disappeared into a tunnel and we got horrifically lost, got directions back to the canal and after three miles of cycling ended up in exactly the same place we came off!! My lowest point.
However there were many lovely things that I'll remember. The gorgeous herons who flew ahead of us out of Liverpool, the beauty of the canal early in the morning as the ducks were waking up, a (luckily) comedy moment when a male swan was blocking the bike path protecting his cygnets, a fabulous farm b&b near Colne...and the sheer joy of a weekend dedicated to pootling along on the bikes!!
Would I do it again? Probably not...but am I glad we did it? Definitely!!!
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Comments
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What a wonderful pr‚cis.
A whole weekend in a few words. Sounds like it was fun really.
Within a few weeks it will be swans, herons and ducks that remain in the memory.
Thanks for the post
george
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Trip
www.pedalpatagonia.co.uk
2 Bikes
http://picasaweb.google.co.uk/imjibi/Bikes0
