Next Up, its LEJOG, with a twist

Next up in the Compagnons world is a Lands End to John O Groats cycle tour. Over nine days we will guide and support a group of experienced and talented cyclists along a route that will show off some of the best countryside in Great Britain.

The twist is that along the way we will also be taking on the highest road passes in Wales, England and Scotland.

Day one is from Lands’ End to Okehampton, following the glorious, if lumpy, North Cornish coast before heading across the top of Bodmin Moor towards Dartmoor where we will rest for the night.

Day two takes us to Bristol via Quantock and Mendip Hills, with our finale being an ascent of Cheddar Gorge.

Day three heads into Wales via the old Severn Bridge. From Chepstow we head to Abergavenny to line ourselves up for a run at the Gospel Pass, the highest road pass in Wales @ 549m. From here we drop into Hay on Wye before arriving in Ludlow.

Day four is the longest (210km), but definitely the flattest stage as we head north through the old Marcher kingdoms that formed the ancient border between Wales and England. Later in the day we cross the Mersey and pick a quiet route through the urban North West to reach Preston for the night.

Day five is our queen stage, a 207km and 3000m+ epic through Lancs and Yorkshire. We sample Forest of Bowland, skirt around Yorkshire dales and even dip our front wheels into County Durham to reach Killhope Cross, at 627m the joint highest road pass in England. From here it’s a 50km descent to our hotel just outside Carlisle.

Day six takes us into Scotland at Gretna Green and we soon pick up B709 that takes us almost 100km across Southern Uplands towards Edinburgh for the night.

Stage seven, heads north to Perth where the river Tay guides us towards the highlands and our final national peak. Cairnwell Pass is our highest point of the whole adventure at 682m and it sits at the head of Glenshee. From here its downhill into Royal Deeside and Ballater for the night.

Day eight has a very tough and spectacular start as we continue north through the Highlands, dropping into Speyside before reaching Inverness. From here we head into Sutherland for our penultimate rest.

Day nine takes us deeper into the barren and beautiful landscape of Sutherland before popping out onto the North Coast road for our final rollercoaster ride past the dramatic golden beaches to our finish line.

It’s going to be awesome.