The day had a slightly surreal feel to it; it seemed odd riding on such familiar roads but with the knowledge that I was coming to the end of my epic trek. The cycling has become such a routine over the past couple of weeks that it'll feel strange when I finish.
I met up with Claire and Graeme (aunt and uncle) at Blackwater to give them my panniers. We discussed where would be a good place for me to eat lunch, and decided a pasty in Camborne was the best choice .
From Camborne I cycled through Praze-an-Beeble to Marazion, and called in to see Toby at his gallery. After a quick catch-up then a few photos of St Michaels Mount I cycled through Penzance and straight out towards Land's End.
This is a road I know incredibly well and although there are several ups and downs, I knew that Tregonebris Hill would be the only real challenge. Once this was conquered it felt like downhill all the way.
Just the other side of the hill I received a quick flash of headlights from a white 4x4, my uncle Howard on a scouting mission to see where I was. He reappeared following me at Crows-an-Wra, and for a worrying moment I thought he was going to follow me with his hazard lights on!
It was such a great feeling to be cycling along the 'Jolly Eater' straight seeing parents, aunts, uncles, cousins all waiting for me at the St Just turn-off (or Quakers to the locals!). Here I was joined by another cyclist - my Dad!
I was smiling so much as we went through Sennen (single file of course), past my primary school, the turn-off to the Cove, then the First and Last (pub). After rounding the corner before the final straight down to Land's End I was joined by yet another cyclist - my Grandpa! Despite being 86 he was keen to finish the ride off with me! I'd cycled on my own for the whole route until the last couple of miles. To finish the ride flanked by the previous two Eddy generations was a special moment. I even think Grandpa pipped us across the line at Land's End!
The welcome was better than I'd expected - many thanks to the lifeboat crew for turning out and cheering me over line. A photographer from the Cornishman was there too, and even an ex-work colleague, Bob who happened to be down on holiday.
19 days, 919 miles. An awesome experience.

Can't wait

Fixed the puncture. If I have another one, I'd much prefer to have it in the front tyre...
Although everyone says to avoid the A30 at all costs (when cycling!), I simply had to do a short stretch just before Launceston. I knew there would be a Welcome to Cornwall sign and I just had to cycle past it and take the obligatory photos. Dinging the bell as I passed it just isn't quite the same as tooting the horn, now a ritual whenever I drive home.
The odd thing was that I could see the River Tamar beyond the sign. So is the sign in Devon?
I stopped in Launceston for a bargain pub lunch... £2.60 for roast chicken, potatoes and veg! And it was quite good. Try getting that combination in London!
From here I headed west to the A39, then through Camelford and Wadebridge, the original planned destination for today. I was buzzing, thinking how every pedal stroke was taking me closer to finishing, and I wanted to push on.
Finding accommodation was turning out to be a little tricky. The new plan was now to find somewhere in St Columb Major, 8 or so miles further on. Sharon drew a blank online as did I when cycling through. Here I had one of my closest shaves yet - bombing downhill and someone half pulling out of a junction without looking - I left a long black streak on the road! [from my rear tyre...].
I wasn't too bothered, knowing that Newquay wasn't far away with an abundance of B&Bs. I headed in that direction and found a B&B in Quintrell Downs. Another post 7pm finish.
I'm now well within a day's ride of Land's End! Can't believe it. I'd always planned to arrive on Thursday, in order to have a rest day before hopefully playing cricket. But now it looks like I'll arrive a day earlier. Fingers crossed for tomorrow, and recovery and selection for Saturday's game!

You probably won't be able to make out the pub's name... The World's End!

I weighed myself this morning. Sharon and Gail had both commented on how I looked slimmer, but to me any transition has been slow so that I just can't see any difference. I was curious to see how much weight I'd lost... to my surprise the scales showed over 12 stone! I've been told by others that perhaps my scales at home are a little flattering but a stone's difference can mean only one thing - I've PUT ON weight!
After only 30 mins of cycling it suddenly tipped down. The timing was excellent - I was passing a bus shelter and I wanted to stop for my routine banana and stretches. It was a very brief shower and had virtually stopped by the time I set off again.
Progress was good in the morning and upon reaching yesterday's intended destination, my sister's, I stopped for an early lunch.
It was immediately more rewarding to be cycling new territory. But unfortunately the relative flatness of the morning was all too quickly swapped with very hilly conditions. Long and short ups and downs, many steep, again and again and again... To make things even worse, there was quite a strong headwind, so all but the steepest downhills required pedalling to maintain speed.
This all made the afternoon's 37 miles incredibly tough and when I eventually made it to Okehampton, I was knackered.
And then the grand finale... a puncture! As I rolled into town, the bike's handling seemed a little odd - a glance at the rear wheel explained it. Thankfully it wasn't completely flat (just as well as I didn't have the energy to fix it) so I made it to the hotel, by this stage it was a little after 7pm. Still, my first puncture in over 800 miles is very good.