The Screech and the Fury: Southport to Warrington by bike

Almost one year on from our cycle ride along the Transpennine Trail from Warrington to Chesterfield, last Saturday the three of us (Ronan, Charles and me) were once again tackling the trail with our bikes.

It was all Ronan's idea: to cycle the 40 mile stretch from the western-most point on the Irish Sea at Southport back to Warrington. It's pretty flat and generally well paved (unlike last year's section, which took us two days to travel 90 miles and had the Pennine hills right smack in the middle) so it seemed quite reasonable that we should be able to manage it in one day. My only concerns were the weather (we'd had torrential rain just the day before), my old bike (now squeaking pretty much constantly whenever I pedalled, and screeching whenever I braked), and myself (since I'd cycled relatively few miles since the start of the summer). So, no worries then.

Everything turned out fine. After some initial confusion about meeting up at Southport station we got to the Millenium Marker on the seafront, where the trail begins (it was easily visible due to the gaggle of other cyclists stood around the base), and we were soon on our way. And although the wind never really dropped, the rather omnious grey clouds had by the end of the day turned to blue skies and - miraculously - we were never troubled by rain.

The route itself is pretty gentle with relatively few road sections. Long sections are converted from old railway lines so there are lots of neat bridges and tunnels, and in places we were cycling between sandstone walls now overgrown with thick foliage - like something from a Harry Potter film. Other little highlights on the way included the Leeds-Liverpool Canal and "Wally's Steps" (which have a groove to make it easier to wheel your bike up and down) and the Silver Jubilee Bridge across the Mersey Estuary - a magnificent piece of engineering. (A slightly different highlight was the excellent and very inexpensive food at the Morrisons supermarket cafe in Speke.)

As the evening was very pleasant we decided to stop for a drink at the Ferry Tavern pub on the final stretch about two miles from Warrington. One drink turned into two (and two into three) while we talked about this journey, last year's, and life in general.

It was good to kick back for a couple of hours, but finally we had to complete the last section. I'm not sure whether the drinks helped or hindered us on this part (they may have been partially responsible for a sudden outbreak of racing at this point) but we soon got back to Warrington, and Charles and I continued up to the Millenium Marker on Knutsford Road, where we had started from last year. It seemed a fitting place to stop (at least for now).

You can see the pictures from the trip on Flickr: http://www.flickr.com/photos/oblong_dog/sets/72157621743836736/

Alternatively check out the slide show:



After all that I'm ready for a bit of a rest. But I still need to catch up with my trips to Ilkley and the Williamson Tunnels in Liverpool, so stay posted!