After yesterday’s rest day spent seeing the sights of Potters Bar, (Sainsbury’s and Tesco’s), we’re on the road again and – I’m afraid – to get to Harwich, ‘the only way is Essex’. Fortunately, being a Monday, the roads have been quieter than the last time we cycled this way (it was Sunday – driver hell then). Alas it’s not all going smoothly though, Mike’s bike has developed an intermittent small ‘clank’ coming from the wheels somewhere. So we’ve stopped in Epping to get it looked at in Spokes’ bike shop. Fingers crossed it isn’t anything serious as I’d hate a spanner to get in the way of my THIRD attempt to visit the Beth Chatto Gardens – our pre-ferry rest stop. The first time we tried to get there it was closed and the second time we took a wrong turn in Ongar and ended up in Brentford and Billericay!

Fingers crossed this will be third time lucky!