Keswick and the North

With, y'know, places to go and people to see, we actually managed an earlier start, giving us time to make packed lunches, pack clothes, tidy up and whizz round with the hoover...and drink cups of tea.

All loaded up, lovely bestie and I said goodbye to our wee cottage and rumbled along the road back to Keswick for a coffee.  I don't normally drink it if it isn't decaf, but it works for me when I'm doing a lot of miles.  Keswick was sunny and warm again, maybe the warmest day yet.  BB had the foresight not to put on all her armour – and I was melting!  After buying some little souvenirs from a shop that wasn't the shop we were looking for but was nonetheless an Aladdin's Cave of the right kind, we found a corner table in a cool cafe and charged ourselves with some excellent Cornish pasties and cups of coffee.

Fidra got to say hello to a silver ST1300 parked alongside, while on returning, her intrepid rider waved hello to the owners (and was completely ignored for her trouble!).

The A66 to Penrith sounded like a nice way to round out Holz and reach the M6, so with goodbye hugs we mounted up, worked our way through the melee of Keswickian traffic jams and sped east, chatting away as usual.

At the motorway, BB turned right and I turned left.  The motorway north was heavy with trucks but light on cars and I trundled up the road to Annandale Water.  I almost carried on to Abington but an early rest was called for, and I like to look out over the lake.

After a huge drink of water, the final push up the A74M was quiet but by the time I was on the A702 I was very warm and low on spoons, so kept my speed down and my visor open.  But ticking off each village in turn makes the trip that bit shorter too. Coulter, Biggar, Dolphinton, West Linton, Carlops...nearly home.

Thank you BikerBabe, for another super little two wheeled holiday!