Poppy Cottage was spot on and another decent breakfast to fuel up for first 25 miles or so to Shrewsbury. Profile did show a fairly long climb out of the village and after a slightly later start, this felt the severest so far. It was worth the graft not only for the scenery as the height increased but also the descent.
The descent was also more enjoyable once I got a grip and let go of the brake levers too. The descent quickly took me to Shrewsbury and time to locate a cafe for sausage roll and drink top ups.
The morning was definitely the highlight of the day. Thereafter from Shrewsbury, it was largely flat which limited scope enjoying surrounding areas and adding some photos to the collection.
The final section towards Pickmere brought more off-road paths alongside the rivers and canals around Nantwich.
Splitting the journey into 10 or 20 mile chunks does help plan the food and drink stops but today's absence of scenery and high temperatures reminded that this is a challenge and not a jolly. Less singing today too but sure as the route continues further north into more familiar territory, it'll return even with some dodgy 70s and 80s summer eurohits.
Today saw plenty of drink stops and it was good to eventually roll in before 6 and start planning for tomorrow......
