Tues 2nd to Sun 7th June - Warrington to Crooklands...

I left the B&B by 6:30 as I really wasn't looking forward to the
thought of the mental patients who ran the place cooking me anything
more complex than toast. as I opened the front door, it made me laugh
to see the notice of how much they charge for breakfast... so really
I'd only paid for a B, not a B&B...

my destination for the day was Burscough Station, from where I'd catch
the train directly west to Southport and take a rest day with Ian &
Lynn. don't worry readers, I'm not cheating... I'll catch the train
back to the exact spot when I return from Southport.

it was a seriously hot day which made each step feel like I was wading
through tar. the sun roasted the back of my neck as within only a few
hours, I'd gone through all my water already.

I could only laugh as the broken down engine of an articulated lorry
exploded thick grey smoke over the entire road. it happened to be the
exact moment I was crossing a dual carriageway, so I and any cars
nearby had no idea which way was up. frozen to the spot I didn't dare
walk anywhere on the off chance some idiot driver thought he/she could
drive through it.

luckily as it cleared, I could see all the drivers around were as
frozen to the spot as me. with a cough and a splitter, everyone
carried on with their journies and so did I.

walking along A-Roads has the downside of becoming boring as hell, but
it has the upside of being laden with tuneful honks from drivers as
they notice my flag flapping in the wind. as I passed a truck stop, a
sudden and bone rattling honk from a giant truck made me leap out of
my boots. to my luck he was simply offering me a coffee, so I kindly
accepted and carried along the footpath with a plastic cup of
something similar to coffee.

I finally got to Burscough station and just before I entered the
gates, I got a cheer and a thumbs up from some lads in a works van. I
felt like I needed to explain I wasn't cheating as I wondered into the
station, but soon laughed it off as my train arrived and headed off to
Southport.

Wed 3rd June - Rest day with Ian & Lynn in Southport...

it was great to have a lie in without the worry of it costing me B&B
rates for once! unfortunately Lynn had to head off to work, so Ian &
I chilled out and chatted over a bacon sarnie and a few coffees whilst
the dogs checked out my bag and more importantly stinky boots.

after lunch, we jumped in the car and headed out to Southport seafront
where ian gave me the guided tour. it was a beautiful place to live,
with some fantastic Victorian buildings lining the center of town. it
reminded me of a cleaner and bigger Old Steine back in Brighton, which
was a really nice taste of home.

it was great to be walking around and enjoying the sites without the
burden of the bag weighing me down. especially on yet another glorious
day!

a few hours later, we hopped back in the car and headed back to
Birkdale and to three lively dogs who were ready for their dinner...
and so was I.
on the way we passed the Royal Birkdale golf course where I saw up
close, the cylinder shaped building that coca-cola offer a blank
cheque to in order to paint it as a coke can each time the open is
on. seeming as the price includes putting it back to how it was, I
think it's mad they've never agreed.

after a spag bol to rival all others and a few beers to wash it down,
I was ready to crash out. I'd had a fantastic day and knew I'd keep
in contact with Ian & Lynn... especially as I'll possibly be heading
back this way too.

Thurs 4th June - Southport to Preston...

today was a calm day to ease the legs back into the pace of things.
the weather had taken pity on me and decided to cool right down, which
made walking a hell of a lot more bearable. so after a sad goodbye to
Ian & Lynn I was back at Burscough station and on my way to Preston.

the journey itself was very indescript apart from a few lovely people
who stopped their cars to donate and or cheer me on with big grind all
round.

once I'd reached Preston, it took nearly 1.5 hours to find a B&B that
didn't cost the earth. one wanted £110 for one night, but luckily I
found one for £20 close by.

after unpacking I headed out to grab a quick dinner and seeing the
army recruiting office still open, I popped my head round the door and
gave them a thumbs up much to their delight.

I wasn't a massive fan of what I'd seen in Preston, so grabbing my
dinner I didn't hang around long before crashing out back at the B&B.

Fri 5th June - Preston to Garstang...

once I'd fuelled myself up with a full English, I was glad to be
heading out into the familiarity of quieter roads and less smog.

in no time I was racking up the donations as people were stopping me
in the street to see what I was doing. it was great to see more
support as I headed further out of Preston, but the oddest thought
popped into my head... I'd only had donations and support from british
white people?! as I walked along the pavements, I was in my own world
wondering as to why this was.

I guessed that it showed how few troops their are in the forces who
are from other ethnic groups, which is mad really!! there is a huge
cultural mix in Preston and I'd have been over the moon if anyone who
wasn't white had come up to me and even had a chat about what I was
doing.

I suppose I could just keep doing what I'm doing and hope for the
best... whilst ripping down every BNP poster and sign I see on my way
that is.

my mind was taken off the political minefield of race relations by a
car pulling up next to me and thed river introducing himself as Kev.
he was from "Skills Force" which to my delight, since I'd left for
Lands End, had become Help For Heroes' sister charity. they helped
troops get into work placements once H4H had medically got them back
in gear, yet another fantastic cause me thinks!!!

as I rolled into Garstang, a couple of guys instantly handed me a few
notes and we had a chat about the town and its history. apparently it
was Europe's first fair trade village - there's your fact for the day
readers... it's up to you to find out if it's twaddle.

although these B&Bs are adding up, I REALLY needed it now and my body
is telling me to slow down. once my left ankle had healed, now my
right knee is agony... go figure. I knew I'd be meeting Dad in
Lancaster tomorrow so strapping my knee up, my head more than happily
hit the pillow.

Sat 6th June - Garstang to Lancaster...

making the most of the comfy pub's restaurant area, I devoured a full
English and waited for the rain to pass.

as I left the pub, I realised it was D-Day as an old man smiled at me
and said "land of hope and glory". I crossed the road to join him and
asked him for directions even though I knew exactly where I was
going. the fact he thought he'd helped me out put a huge grin on his
face as he wished me luck and hobbled away.

the rain had by now headed by my way, so on went the waterproofs and
in-turn, so did my blinkers.

as I rounded the corner to the lancaster aquaduct where the hotel was,
2 TA soldiers came jogging along the towpath. with a big thumbs up,
they wished me luck and carried on with their training adding that
they thought I was mad and should have cycled it.

as I waited for dad to arrive by train, I watched the D-Day parades
and it put my moans, aches and pains into a laughable perspective. I
thought not finding a B&B was a hard life... how pathetic in comparison.

on a lighter note it was great to see dad again, even if he did bring
the remainder of the maps which would make my bag VERY heavy indeed.

after going for dinner and having a few beers, we planned the route to
john o'groats before crashing out ready for tomorrow.

Sun 7th June - Lancaster to Crooklands...

making the most of the hotels all you can eat breakfast, I loaded up
on everything n anything I could eat before waving bye to dad and
getting back on the road.

heading out of Lancaster, I kept switching between canal routes and A
roads to try and prevent boredom setting in... it didn't work.

I was about to cross the road to a big tescos to grab some lunch when
a car screeched up infront of me with its music blaring. the 4 lads
inside looked like they were gonna mug me, so with the look of a bunny
in the headlights I waited for them to move.

luckily I was totally wrong as they asked me how far I was walking and
were totally shocked when I told them. handing me all the change from
their pockets, they were gone in a whirlwind of drum'n'bass and
tuneful horn honks.

breaking away from dull A roads, I wondered into the sleepy village of
Holme as I'd seen a pub on my maps - hoping for a Sunday lunch. alas
I'd missed it by 10mins so I had to put up with the local shop to
refuel my feet.

this must have been a blessing in disguise as I spent the following
half an hour chatting up the gorgeous woman who ran the store. my
charms worked as she gave me lunch for £1, so once I'd finished it, I
used the excuse of returning for a chocolate bar to chat some more.
ahhh good times :)

within 10mins of leaving the gorgeous brunette, I got stopped by 2
cyclists who were also doing the end to end challenge. they (and I in
turn) laughed as they admitted how all their accommodation was pre-
booked and had a support team waiting for them ahead. I would have
loved that, but it was nice enough to hear then admit "you're making
us look like a pair of girls here"...

I finally found a place to pitch my tent in a tiny place called
Crooklands which on my maps boasted 3 campsites all right next to each
other. just my luck two were retirement sites but the 3rd was run by
a deaf old man who let me stay for free - made even sweeter by the
woman who brought me a bowl of hot soup for my tea as I crawled into
my tent... yum!