Day three: Camelford to Crediton

Thank God for this disused railway line.

It’s been an extremely hard morning. It wasn’t too bad to start with – 20 miles across the moor, undulating rather than hilly, atmospherically misty but not actually raining – and we stopped for breakfast in high spirits having achieved some good, fast miles. 

But after breakfast the rain started, and we hit the hills. This was already going to be the most challenging day so far, with just under 60 miles to ride between our camp sites, and now we’re brushing Dartmoor so it was never going to be flat. Usually the route is broken into 50 mile days, but we’re a bit at the mercy of where we can find accommodation, so sometimes it’s a bit higher, sometimes a bit lower. It’s our bad luck that the long day is also a rainy one.

The rain gets particularly heavy as we’re grizzling up a long drag, and I spot a bus shelter so we aim for that to get out of the rain. That’s when we check the map and see the telltale curve of an old railway line, which will lead us the final few miles into Okehampton and lunch. It’s well-paved, reasonably sheltered, and best of all it’s downhill: the gentle gradient draws us down into Okehampton with barely any need to pedal. 

Once in Okehampton we sit in the Wetherspoons for a long time drying off, a bit dazed from the ride so far. This is not far off the distance we’d covered on day one and two, but today we’ve still got 20 miles to go. 

So it’s a huge relief to find that the rain has stopped by the time we’ve finished our extra-long break. And once we hit the road, the sun even comes out. We’ve chosen the A road as the most direct and fastest route to make it a bit easier on the legs, even though A roads are busy and boring. It turns out this one isn’t busy or boring: there’s not too much traffic, and the gradients are much more gentle than we anticipated, and there are incredible views across the valley. We feel extra grateful after the morning we’ve had! 

Our campsite could not be more perfect, a mill and an orchard tucked away in the valley next to the river Yeo. We dry out our tents (still soaking wet from the night and morning) then walk into Crediton for supper as the moon rises over the hills. 

Looking forward to an easier day tomorrow. 

Stats for the day: 92km riding, 1178m climbing

Accommodation review: Beare’s Mill. Absolutely delightful: great facilities, beautiful orchard to pitch in, nice level ground with short grass so things don’t get too wet. Lots of people queueing for the one shower! Walking into town was a fun adventure, up and over the hill on a track across the fields.

Special mention: The Three Little Pigs in Crediton where we had dinner. We were still raving about it the next day.