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@el_presidente
So set off from Hastings about 10.30 am once I had bundled the family into the car and bid them a fond farewell. I was pleased with how well everything packed up, given I hadn't done a test run, with the exception of my ridiculous karrimat - light enough but looked a bit foolish hanging out the back like a giant yellow sail. Decent inflatable mat on the shopping list for next time.
I wanted to cover a lot of the distance on day one as I needed to be back home before lunch on day 2 so I bashed the A-roads out of Hastings before finding a nice B-road into Lewes where I scoffed down a mini-pizza, doughnut & flat white for lunch, with a nice riverside spot to sit & watch the world go by.
Back out on the road I was pleased with how fit I felt, 27 miles already under the belt on a loaded bike and I felt fine. The bike didn't seem much heavier or unwieldy when pedalling either. 15 miles or so more of B-roads and I arived at the Downs Link trail. I wasn't entirely sure what to expect of this but my best hopes were realised as what ensued was 25 miles of beautiful quiet, flat #UKGravel that took me past some nice retro train infrastructure before spitting me out on the Wey towpath, which in turn led to the gritty urban heart of Guidlford
70 or so miles in now and I wasn't felling quite so fresh, so back on the A-roads to the woods around Crowthorne and a discreet bivi spot (but not before picking up a couple of cans from the last petrol station). 1 freeze-dried curry and the aforesaid cans and I was tucked up snug in my bivi by 21.30. 91 miles for the day which was my longest ride for about 10 years, very pleased.