START TRAINING FOR CYCLE 7/70

Now that I am back from my holiday, I have no excuses for not training. I have been out on my mountain bike several times in the last three weeks. Mountain biking is great fun and Devon gives you lots of opportunities. Here is a green lane near my house that I tried to get through yesterday. I was ok until my daughter, Jo, rugby tackled me and I came off.

AUSTRALIA - WILDLIFE WHILE ON HOLIDAY

With my wife, Sylvia, I have taken one month off to visit Australia. Wildlife thrives here and some of the best can be seen where we travelled. We visited the Kimberley Outback, the Ningaloo Reef and the North West coast starting from Darwin and going to Perth.

This is some of the remotest parts where travel is often on dirt roads and fuel stops are 150km apart. The Australians value their wildlife and have extensive national parks. I also met a cyclist who started his ride in Adelaide and had achieved half way in cycling around the continent. Hats off to him.

I am back home now and will shortly starting my preparation in earnest for my charity cycle ride http://www.mycharitypage.com/GrahamWilson.

VIVE LA BELLE PROVENCE

What a pleasant surprise. My friend, Bill, had organised a week's cycling based in Avignon. It seemed a long way to go, especially when pondering putting the bikes on a plane or driving. Bill, however, had a good plan. We simply caught a Eurostar train at St Pancras and 5.5 hours later we were in the centre of Avignon.

We quickly discovered that Provence is a cyclist's delight. Within 20 minutes of leaving Avignon, we found our first unspoilt French village. Life here seems timeless. There are markets everywhere, older people play boules, younger check out their motor bikes and, out in the country while we were there, the grapes were being gathered in for wine making.

Cycling enables you to see life more closely than in a car. The advantage of Provence is that there are lots of quiet roads with minimal hills or you can pretend to be a Tour de France rider by climbing Mont Ventoux. What is more, the sun just kept shining. We covered 235 miles in 5 days, mainly siteseeing and using Avignon as our base.

SOME PREVIOUS RIDES

Since 2005, I have done some spectacular rides. My cycling is achieving recognition in the Press, including BBC TV and Local Radio. The latest is page 122 online magazine International Mountain Bike



Mongolia: I cycled from the North side of the Gobi Desert, through the Khangai Mountains to Karakorum as part of a team raising funds for the National Deaf Children’s Society in 2005.

Chepstow to Holyhead: In 2007 I cycled this route on the National Cycle Network. It is a spectacular 5 day ride through the Brecon Beacons, Black Mountains and Snowdonia

Balti Bike Club: For three years I have joined the Balti Bike Club of Stafford for 100 mile day rides raising funds for charity from Stafford to the Welsh coast. http://www.baltibikeclub.info/2009

Lands End to John O Groats (The Shamrock Route): Last year, I cycled this 1,053 mile route via Ireland to get my pint of Magners.

Western Scotland: In May, I cycled 8 days from Oban to Ullapool through Mull, Skye and the Hebrides.

I try to cycle 60 miles per week at least to maintain fitness and prepare me for my journey up to and beyond the hills of Norway

MY RIDE - ABOUT CYCLE 7/70

My plan is to cycle 3,600 miles around the coastline of the North Sea and visit 7 countries in 70 days. I intend to start from Felixstowe at the end of April 2010. I will cycle up the East coast of England and Scotland to John O Groats where I will take ferries to the Orkney and Shetland Isles. The next stage starts in Bergen in Norway where it follows the coastline to Varberg in Sweden. I will continue along the North Sea coastline in Denmark, Germany and the Netherlands to The Hook of Holland where a final ferry takes me back to Felixstowe. The route will follow minor roads and can be viewed on http://www.northsea-cycle.com/







I have named the journey, Cycle 7/70, because the name North Sea Cycle Route does not describe the journey as exciting as it will be. I am raising money for Devon Wildlife Trust because they do such a fantastic job for the countryside and wildlife locally. The beautiful coutryside, wildlife and conservation in Devon exists because of Devon Wildlife Trust and other like minded people and organisations. Please see my website for more information.