Day 4: Watchet to Bath

The day's cycling does start off more easily - we skirt the foothills of the Quantocks, watching the coast to our left, and the Welsh coast in the distance. This will be the last sight we have of the sea until Scotland.

Al's wife Helen and little boy Thomas are meeting us in Bath, so we're in good spirits at the prospect of this and a shorter day. We're making good time as we progress through Cannington, Bridgwater, Wells, and the Radstock.

The Youth Hostel we're staying at for the night is on the outskirts of Bath, so we head towards Norton St. Philip before dropping down into Bath. We're 7 miles from Bath when I hear a 'ping' come from my back wheel, and pull over to find I've broken a spoke, and my wheel is no longer true. We know there are some steep descents into Bath, so letting the brakes off is no longer an option. While I'm a reasonable bike mechanic, truing a wheel is not one of my skills, and I haven't brought any spare spokes.

We need to find a bike shop, and we need the wheel fixed quickly, as all our accommodation is booked in advance, so we have to be in Wales the next night. Luckily, Helen has arrived in Bath, and by 4.15 she's found us, put my bike in the back of the car, and is driving me into Bath, while Al completes the ride.

A frantic half an hour sees us try two Bikes shops that don't have the right spoke, before we find one that does, only to be there five minutes' after closing. We manage to speak to someone who assures us that they'll do it first thing tomorrow morning.

I'm pretty down after all this - rather than a fun, relaxed evening, I'm worrying about whether I was unlucky or if this is a symptom of something more serious. It also means it's eight o'clock by the time we're cleaned up and sitting down to eat, and the day has been stressful. This isn't much fun.