26th July, 2026
I woke up to rain. Light, but rain nonetheless. It was also quite chilly. It wasn’t until 11:00 when I bit farewell to my hosts. Progress was quite slow. An hour later, I had already stopped at a cafe. I ordered a coffee and sat down to work out my destination would be for the day. It was only the second day and I was already considering hotel accommodation – wet, windy, and chilly. I decided upon Matlock.
I finished my coffee and walked back out into the elements. The rain had thankfully stopped. Hopping on my bike, I set course for Matlock. The surrounding area was quite scenic, though, so I couldn’t complain about that!
Four kilometres down the road, I reached the High Peak Trail, which I would follow for the next hour and a half. Along the way, I stopped for another coffee at the Blueberry Kiosk. I met a group of people that were cycling the trail. After a chat, I bid farewell and carried on. As it was a former railway line, the trail was nice and flat, with a slight downhill.
After leaving the trail, I soon passed through the small village of Winster. One of the advantages of taking the smaller, rural roads is that you get to pass through all sorts of wonderful small villages. Winster certainly fit that description.
Towards the end of the day, I enjoyed some very decent downhills. However, by the time I reached Matlock, I was totally spent. I began to question whether I was ready for this ride after all. I hadn’t done much cycling leading up to it – I’d actually started this ride almost a year earlier than planned. I also began to wonder whether I was just too past it. I certainly wasn’t as young as I used to be. I checked in to my hotel, then had dinner and a pint. After dinner, I decided to abandon the ride. I felt more comfortable with the decision than I thought I would.
As I was already in the UK, I decided I may as well spend a little time travelling around. I decided to buy a month-long Eurail Pass. I’ve always loved travelling by train.
Leave a reply