Cycling the ENTIRE River Thames from Source to Sea – PART TWO

I attempt to cycle from the source of The River Thames (in The Cotswolds) all the way to where it meets the Sea at Southend in Essex. 330km (205 miles) in total.
This video is part two and I cycle 106km from Henley-on-Thames, through central London, in time to catch the Woolwich Ferry over to Beckton.

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Hi guys, this video is part two of my cycling the entire length of the river tempames without leaving it. Now this became a real battle against the clock because of my ability not to follow satnavs. I left you in part one on a rather dramatic cliffhanger. If you recall I was on the phone to Tracy with the light fading fast trying really hard to muster the self-belief that I can actually finish this massive bike ride and reach our hotel before nightfall. I’ve crossed the temp twice when I didn’t have to. So, a quick recap. I started out at Temp’s head in Glousters, the source of the river Tames, half a day earlier. Let’s think out of Blair Witch. I fuffed around far too long before setting off. And when I did eventually get going, I kept getting distracted having a lovely day. It turned into a lovely day until both my two satnavs screamed at me. Okay, I went the wrong way. Because I’d missed a turning or two, and I had to track back more times than I care to admit in a video. I attempted to stay as close as possible to the river’s meandering path. I’m not sure how long this lasts for. Even if it did mean I might end up needing a hit replacement. I’m regretting this. I finished a whole bag of wine gum. Time for a wine gum or four before eventually meeting Tracy the 84k mark just outside of Oxford where we had a lovely picnic on the banks of the river temps. I then cracked on, got lost a few more times. Mistakes were made and that’s where we pick up the action from. 50 km into this ride with only 20k left until I reach the hotel. I’m going to All right, I’m going to go. I’m going to if I keep talking to you, I’m going to ask you. I’ll keep you updated. Okay. However, distance isn’t the issue. I have to reach the warm glow of our luxury Weather Spoons Hotel, Weather Spoons. I’m going to go on the cycle before it’s too dark to cycle as I don’t actually have lights and I really don’t want to be taking my life into my own hands any more than I have to in the pitch black. I then have to cross some sketchy bits on foot, which is less than ideal, especially with time fading. And it’s at this point that it starts raining. I need this, don’t I? Bloody need this. Luckily, it was only a small shower. I powered on, and I mean powered. I really worked hard. And I eventually arrived at Henley significantly later than hoped or planned for, but I arrived and I didn’t have to call for a lift. Okay, I’m here, guys. I’ve made it. Henley on temps just in time just before he gets pitch black. Where’s he gone? I’m sorry. Maybe he is. I made it under my own steam and more importantly I did so without leaving the route of the temps. Look at you with the camera. I look like a right wally standing there on street corners. Right. Where’s the pub? It’s just up there. Just hotel. I mean hotel. Luxury fivestar hotel. Where is it? Just up there. I think it’s the one at the end. Is it me or you’re getting smaller? It’s like Alice in Wonderland. It is like Alice in Wonderland, isn’t it? This feels like the end of the journey now. Feels like it. Not pressing stop being able to get rid of this. Shut the door. So, day one over. Day one done. 6870. 170. It must be 170 with all the mistakes I made. I was right, guys. With all the errors in navigation, I’d actually covered 170 km or 169.9 for any of my Straa followers watching. I had added 5K to my 165K adventure. How was your little thingy? What map do? Oh, this is really good. This is really good. I got a bit frustrated with it at the beginning because I misunderstood how to use it. Oh, but and a bit at the end cuz you wasn’t pay. Yeah, but that wasn’t the satna. That was me. And for something, this is about 70 80 quid and it it got me here. Yeah, camera’s fine. The 360 still got battery. I was trying to I was trying to conserve it, so I I would have recorded more, but that’s still got a bit of battery and I’m on the second battery of that. So, camera’s worked. I’m done. I’m going to get in the shower. I’m going to have dinner with you and I’m going to go to bed. Yeah. Is that allowed? Yeah. All right. Turn the camera off. I was really, really happy to have finally arrived. Day one was now complete. That was 170K done and dusted. As I dumped the bike in the room, had a shower, we went downstairs to enjoy our hard-earned burger and chips. Weather Spoons do the best vegan burgers, guys. Not sponsored. I’m just saying this. They do awesome burgers. Oh, this is so heavy. Yeah, it is heavy. As I get ready for the next day and with Tracy complaining about my camera being really heavy, I prepare for day two’s adventure. Feel a bit tired like I’ve done a bit, but I put just put bomb cream on. It feels like I’m sitting down in a bowl of mering. E no bowl of Wait, mering’s hard. I was going to say it feels like I’m sitting down in a bowl of blanche. That joke didn’t work, did it? I can edit that joke, but other than that, I feel fine. I’ve got 107k I’ve got to do today. 107k south. I got to go south of the river through southeast London and then get to Woolage and then that’s where you’re going to meet me hopefully on the other side of the Woolitch ferry. Hopefully, fingers crossed if I get there cuz we got work tonight, haven’t we? Yeah. So, that’s the plan. That’s today’s plan. Ask me how I feel. How do you feel? All right. I We had a good what 7 hours uh about midnight. We went to sleep. Yeah. Woke up at 7:00. We’ve had a good 7 hours. We’ve had breakfast. Yeah. Let me ask you that. How was your Weather Spoon stay in the hotel? Um it was okay. Nothing but the best for you, Tracy. You get cold then. We need to get going. Enough of this chitchat. The plan for today, as I’ve already alluded to, is to cycle the 100 plus km pre-planned route from here in Henley on temps to Woolage in Southeast London. Go, go, go. I have to get to the Woodage Ferry over the temps before Tracy will collect me from the north side of the river. If I miss that deadline, then we’ll be late for work that evening. to the park, which is hardly a cliffhanger, but it is a deadline. I needed this to start with, didn’t I? Today, guys, today, because I’m sticking to the meandering route of the river, I get to cycle through central London with its rush hour traffic in cleat. This is going to be one exciting adventure. This is a long old hill. The roads leading me away from Henley were really, really busy, and it were also really hilly. It also starts raining quite a bit. I’m not bothered by getting wet. I mean, I prefer not to get wet, but as a novice road cyclist, I’d prefer not to have slippery surfaces to ride on. Okay, guys. I’m going to stop up here and put my rain back on. I’m getting pretty wet. It’s not that heavy, but when you’re doing crazy speeds like 25 kph, it’s getting me wet. I’m starting to get quite damp. So, I’m going to stop up here and put my rain back on. Then because I was cold and it was raining, I made the outrageously poor decision to stop and put on my rain jacket. It of course immediately stopped raining as soon as I put it on. And I immediately started sweating. There we go, guys. Waterproof on. I’m a tad more. It stopped raining now. I put it on. Classic. Right. I’m on my way to Maiden Head. I got to go through Maiden Head, Windsor. I get to go past Hampton Court as well, which I’m particularly looking forward to. Oh my goodness. Look at this hill, man. Just going to spin up it. A bit slow, man. This is steep. Need this with the rain back on. Sweaty now. Then just to keep the not paying attention theme going through this video from last video, I went the wrong way again. This time I was even getting annoyed with myself. It wasn’t fun. Okay, sit rep guys. I’ve gone the wrong way. Oh man, I need to concentrate. Right, let me check the map. I’ve massively gone the wrong way. Um I now have to either backtrack the road I came quite a fair distance or the same distance up towards Maiden Head. So, I’m going to do that. So, as I remove this sweat bag, please let me explain to you what actually happened. I missed my turn in that took me off this busy main A- road out of Henley and I carried on for a 3 km until I eventually realized. But because I was already on this main a- road, I didn’t want to leave and have to turn around and ride back on it again. So, I plowed on. And I will say this RainMac will not make another appearance in this video. You’ll be pleased to hear. With all this going on, my attention was diverted away from the satnav. Okay, rain max off. I was absolutely sweating. Stop raining the moment I put it on. And then I had two gnarly hills to climb. So, that was a mistake in a maker, but never mind. So, I’m going to just carry on up this road and then rejoin the route I made at Maiden Head. I’m doing the same distance. I’ve probably added probably a couple of kilometers on, which is really annoying. I need to pay attention to the satnav. I then arrived in Maiden Headtown Center and I was fairly quickly able to rejoin the original route as planned. I hadn’t diverted that far and the next part of this adventure actually turned out to be a lot of fun. Okay guys, back on track. It’s okay. That never happened. And I will say for the hundth time, as you can hear by my watch bleeping away at me, it is not the fault of the satnav. I’ve got it on both my watch and on my screen in front of me. They’re all flashing at me. They’re all bleeping. I just chose to ignore it. It’s down there. I think this is part of the temp’s path now. So, I’m laughing. No more a-ros for a while. Hopefully, I’ got to walk over a bridge. This is where I messed my cleats up. I’m on the temps, guys. I’m on the river temps, but I’ve got to traverse this nonsense. Uh, right. Where am I going now? Right. We’re on the temps path, guys. This is the temps here. Let me do a quick whip. There we go. Tim’s there. These cycle paths and trails alongside Dawn Lakes near Maiden Head were particularly enjoyable. They felt like miles and miles of empty green trails. And I had them all to myself except for this cow. Cow by the side of the uh path. Random. I didn’t see another cyclist, dog walker, or car for the next 10 km until I hit Windsor. We’ve just gone through old Windsor and uh yeah, I’m in Runny Me now. There’s a gravel path here which I could be cycling on, but I’ve chosen to stay on the main road. It’s a tad faster. The extra 5 km an hour makes a difference. Yeah, I’m in Runny Made. This is where the Magna Carta was signed. I was quite excited on Sunday when I planned this and then I realized that I ran this part of the route when I did the 10th path challenge. However, we’re on our way to Slow, which I don’t think is going to be a particularly exciting part of the route. But then we should be getting into London proper where I get to go past Hampton Court and I’m looking forward to that. So I’ve stopped oh by the side of the temps. Temps is just there. So sit rep sit rep. I am uh how much have I completed? So 44k complete and we’ve got 60k left. Almost exactly just over 60k. And then at 40k I stopped on this bench right on the banks of the temps just to take on some water, enjoy the view for a couple of minutes and eat some sorine bars. Uh, but I’m going to eat I’m going to eat this now and then and crack on. I feel all right actually for someone that did 170k yesterday. My bum’s a bit sore. So, we’re back on an a- road. So, that’s the temp’s behind me. We got to go through churchy and then we pick the temp’s path back up I think on the other side. Then in between churchy and Walton on temps, I reached this small section of the river at the 53k mark. This crossing was quite a few kilometers off the main road where I assumed would be a bridge. I mean, I think that’s a fair assumption. I’m crossing the temps. Sit rep. This is telling me I’ll show you quickly though. I cycled back and forth trying to find this imaginary bridge until I eventually realized there was no bridge. Kimoot had decided that I’m going to cross on what looked like a rowboat. I’m supposed to go over the ferry. I’m not going over on the ferry. A because I don’t know how long it is until the ferry actually leaves this point. and B, I don’t know if they allow bikes, and I’m too tired to have that conversation. Now, I don’t know about you guys, but I’m not Indiana Jones. I’m not getting in a tiny boat with my bike in cleat, and I’m pleased I didn’t. As spoilers, I was able to find another way to cross further up the river. No harm, no fail, guys. Let’s pretend that never happened. Let’s pretend that Ryan on Sunday saw that that was a foot ferry and uh decided against it, which would have been a wise decision. And we’re back on. Back on, baby. Right. Let’s do this. Let’s do this. I’m motivated. I’m infused. I’m going to say anything with positive affirmations. Okay, I’m not on the foot path. I’m on a driveway into Water Marina. Hang on one sec, guys. Okay, now I’m on the foot path, guys. I’m infused and I’m motivated and everything else that goes with positive affirmation. The annoying thing was I lost about 30 minutes looking for this mythical bridge and then eventually I had to backtrack. Something I really really hate doing. However, the good news I now had fun and adventurous riverside trails and gravel paths to enjoy for quite a long way until I hit Richmond Park about 20 km from now. Sunglasses have gone on. Sun’s actually made an appearance. Sun’s out, bins out. Right. Okay. We’re about to cross the temps for the 100th millionth time. We’re going to take a right right down onto the Temp’s path past what is going to be the highlight the highlight of today’s ride. Hampton Court Palace. [Music] [Music] Hampton Court Palace, guys. Right, let’s crack on. I got time for sightseeing. This is This is one of my favorite stretches of the rivers. This is what I was looking forward to. This and then going through Westminster. It’s a bit bumpy here. It’s probably not great to film. Going past Hampton Court is just probably the most prettiest part of the temps. And then Westminster, especially on the north side on the north embankment from pretty much from Baty Park down to Parliament cuz I used to walk that with my granddad. So my nan and granddad used to live in Westminster Pumniko. It sounds posh. It really isn’t. They lived on a housing estate literally on the banks of the temps. You could see the river from their flat. We go through southeast London. I used to live in southeast London. I was born near London Bridge and that’s where my parents still live. So the temps I mentioned it yesterday, the temps played a huge part in my childhood. It was the backdrop to a lot of adventures I used to have, cycling and fishing adventures. Not intentional, you know, as a kid growing up in inner London, you find fun where there is fun to be had. And the temps was one of those places. Right, I need to crack on. And then I made my way towards Richmond Park as a learner in a car next to me. As you can see, increased her speed to pass me as the instructor was obviously laughing and making gestures in a fun way that she was going slower than me and I was on a bike. So, I decided to then race her. It’s the small things that make me smile that breaks this ride up. There was a learner there. The instructor was laughing because I was going faster than them. So, she overtook me. So, I thought I’d do a little burst of speed. situational report, guys. We have just hit Richmond Park, which is great news. Also, I will quickly say we haven’t reached Richmond Park just yet. I saw a sign pointing me towards Richmond Park and I assumed that this was it. I had no concept of distance at this point. I was just looking and enjoying the scenery. I then reached a really steep section of road. Now, there’s one thing climbing a small hill, but then to have to climb a small hill on the main road with a constant stream of cars behind you is another level. Or at least it is for me. The pressure to keep the pace up felt really immense. Also, having 245 km already in the legs made this hill seem like hard not in my defense that it averaged 6% and it peaked at 11% and lasted for just under 2 km. But in reality, it was a small bump. I mean, it is a small bump. I’m just being dramatic by calling it hard not pass, which is unlike me. [Music] What was that hill? That hill had no right to be that steep. I also said I’ve been through Richmond Park. No, I haven’t. This is Richmond Park. Okay, this is this is quite a famous cycling route. Yeah, I’m excited to be cycling through Richmond Park. This was the main road through the park. I will say for my own sanity, I know London very well, but it’s weird being on the bike cuz it’s a different perspective. I can see some of the landmarks I’m going to be cycling past very shortly, but for now, I’m going to try and enjoy Richmond Park and they’re dear. Happy, happy, happy, happy, happy. Feeling so happy to talk. Happy, happy, happy, happy, happy. Feeling so free. Sappy, sappy, sappy, sappy, sappy. Feeling so sappy. [Music] I then powered through Rohampton and Putney, eventually arriving in Batisy Park. Okay, we’re in Baty Park now, guys. And the start of my central London adventure. And we now have 22k left to go. 22k it strange because from here to woolage feels like an absolute mission but 22k doesn’t sound that bad. Can I survive the London traffic in cleats? Yes is the answer really mainly because the cycle paths in London are very good but there is a lot of stop starting. So, can I survive the cycle paths and traffic in London without falling over in cleat? Bassy power station over there. You can’t see it, but that’s Bassie Power Station on the other side of the river. I’m on the north side again. Yes, because I got really good at using cleat. However, for a dramatic cliffhanger, I am going to stop here and ask. Please don’t forget to like this video, guys. I just want to say a big thank you to everyone that liked my last video. It made a huge difference. I got significantly more likes than I do on my normal video. So, thank you very much. If I can ask that you do the same for this video, I’ll really really appreciate it. Thanks, guys. These blocks of flats is where my grandparents used to live. So, I used to spend a lot of my childhood cycling and walking up and down this bank here. I’ve only got 20k left. And woolage feels a lot further than 20k. But London’s distorted cuz it takes you so long to get anywhere in London. Constant stop starting at traffic lights, cars pulling out, etc. etc. It just takes so much longer to get anywhere. So, it feels longer. Feels further. Yeah. Look, there he is. Houses of the Parliament. Pretty cool. I’m also being an outrageous tourist at this point. I haven’t looked at my distance or my maps for ages. I literally couldn’t care less how far I’d already come as all I’ve done for the past 10k is power along through London enjoying all the sites with a huge smile on my face. This guys is why I’m doing this. just enjoying the scenery, the different roads, the hills, the parks, and especially the landmarks. It also didn’t rain, which was a miracle as the forecast for today was 90% chance of rain. I completely dodged the bullet there. We’re going down there and then that’s the London Eye. This is the super highway. Goes all the way to the tower and that’s where we cross over on Tower Bridge and go south of the river. I was very lucky and very pleased I didn’t need my rain mac. That was never going back on again. It could have absolutely hammered down. and I wasn’t putting that back on. I then absolutely bombed it down the cycle superighway and yes it is called the cycle superighway. I passed the London Eye Black Friars St. Paul’s Cathedral and then eventually the Tower of London on my right hand side. I now I now guys got to cycle over Tower Bridge. This is the Tower on the right guys. Can’t see it behind trees. I can see it. This is the worst tour of London on video. But I’m going to go over Tower Bridge now. So it should be fun. Now, I will say cycling over Tower Bridge was a real privilege, but it was also really, really slow. The road is small and was designed when it was originally built for horse and carts in mind. So, I could only really go as fast as the cars or Boris bike riders in front of me. Choosing another crossing point probably would have been quicker, but I couldn’t not cross over Tower Bridge. If you do a challenge titled Source to Sea along the rivers, then you have to cross over Tower Bridge. [Music] So that’s Tower Bridge and now all that’s left to do is get on the temp’s path and make it to Woolage. 12K left. I just want to say on the camera, this is where I was born. Just over there is the hospital I was born in. My mom and dad live about a mile from here. It’s crazy. If someone said to me when I was 18, you got to cycle from home to Woolage. I’d be like, okay. Someone said to me, cycle from the source of the temps to the sea. I like first off, where’s the source and where’s the sea? And once I realized that, I’d be like, not on your Nelly. That sounds like a lot of effort. And you know what, guys? It is. It is an awful lot of effort, but it feels rewarding. I feel good. Impowered through Burmany, Debford, and Greenwich, streets I know that the back of my hands. I even got to cycle along the road that I was born on in the 80s where I lived and where I grew up and where I eventually left when I turned 18. Okay, I’m in Greenwich, guys. It’s the Cuty Sark there behind me as we go around the corner. You might be able to see it over my left shoulder right as you look at it. That’s the Cuty Sark. We’re about to turn left with Greenwich Park on my right and then straight up to Woolage. I only have 6.6k left to go. I eventually arrived in Woolage, my destination, and this marks the end of day two’s 106 km bike ride. Okay, I’ve arrived at the old Wool Witch Ferry. Just need to cross the river now. Get to the north side where Tracy is waiting for me. I’ve just missed this one. I have to wait for the next one, but I’m just happy to sit down if I’m honest. So, the woods ferry literally takes you from here where this ferry is coming in now. has two crossing and it takes you over there. So, literally just that far, which is where my journey for today ends. I’m struggling to find a dramatic cliffhanger to add in here. There really isn’t one. I loved every every second of this ride except the bit where I overheated because I thought a rain mack was a good idea, but let’s forget about that one, guys. Day two through London was by far the most enjoyable ride I’ve had on my bike. And as someone who used to be nervous of cycling in cleat, my newfound confidence levels and I genuinely genuinely feel really confident in them now. My newfound confidence has meant I’m eager to do bigger and more technically challenging rides. All that was left to do was enjoy the cruise across the temps from Wage to Becka, meet Tracy on the other side, and go to work. That’s it. Day two done. Group complete. Done and dusted. I’ve actually no idea the distance I’ve covered. So yeah, I’m finished. All done. All done. Just all we got to do now is put the bike in the car and go to work. Yeah. And have something to eat. Yeah. Not necessarily in that order. No. And of course, complete day three tomorrow from here in Beckton through Essex all the way to South End. That will be next week’s video, guys. Enter clip of dramatic cliffhanger from tomorrow. [Music] 2 1 2 3 go. [Music]