After my arrival in London, I will have two days to reassemble my bike and prepare for the first leg of the trip. A bit of testing of the bike around London will be necessary.
I will need to buy some provisions, plus a number of items that I have been unable to procure or take on the flights from South Africa.
These includes a good breathable rain jacket and trousers plus a small gas bottle for my camping stove, CO2 bombs to inflate my tires etc.
I am hoping for a major early morning pigeon and poop send-off from Trafalgar Square to commence the trip.
The first leg is a a relatively short one navigating south from London and then heading towards Newhaven from Brighton. The climb is relatively minor as you will note with the 200m along the vertical axis.
Looking further at the waytype/surfaces that I expect to ride along, it is gong to be a rather pleasant start to the ride - if I can be left alone by motorists.
Safety throughout this ride is top of mind and I have chosen to take as many bicycle tracks and minor roads as possible to ensure I have the least exposure possible to motor vehicles.
I have chosen Newhaven as my port of departure thanks to the input from many cyclists in the UK. I have been led to understand that it is one of the most 'bicycle friendly' ports for transit to France. Lets hope that they are right.