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The United Kingdom


It's time for another holiday. Don't expect anything too spectacular this year though. I don't have ... Laneshawbridge. Lancashire scenery. Some sheep on their way somewhere. For the first couple of hours today, I'll be repeating part of my 2015 route but in the opposite dir... Some allotments, a cricket pitch and a big house. Some terraced streets in Keighley. This is where I join the canal. The bridge is a swing bridge but it also slopes because the road is ... A goose. I came up here because I thought it might be a sneaky way to get round a group of pedestrians but it... Canals always look a bit strange when they are higher than their surroundings. The canal. Bingley Five Rise Locks, the steepest flight of locks in Britain. This year, I'm going down. Each lock goes down quite a long way. I'm going to Leeds. Next to the canal. This is where the cows were. I was surprised to see two dogs going for a swim in the canal without any peaople nearby but by the ... What you couldn't see in ... Shipley. This is where I joined the canal in 2015 so from here on we'll be seeing new scenery. Three horses, which I watched walk here from another field along a shady path by the canal. A place called Greengates, near Bradford. I've bought a new helmet for this trip but I'm slightly concerned as to why it has a small circuit b... A pub on the canal. The approach to Leeds station. Leeds seems to be booming at the moment. Here's a new building going up. This part of central Leeds is really swanky. Well, that is the time in Hawaii. I'm not sure what this building is but it's round so I like it. After I've messed around taking photographs, my route will take me through the gap under the big bui... Leeds. Leeds. The very beginning of the 205 km Leeds-Liverpool Canal. It helps reduce emissions in London by being in Leeds. A rainbow bridge, near a couple of gay pubs. I would have taken a better picture of the big mural but when I was near it, my camera went weird an... There were some on it anyway. Another bit of central Leeds. It's quite a nice place. Leeds. A large number of swords on display at the Leeds branch of the Roayal Armouries museum. The other br... There's a small cannon, or possibly a mortar, in this picture. The route which I'm following at the moment is part of the Trans Pennine Trail, which is designed fo... There must be some good birds to be watched around here. I've just seen some people carrying binocul... A little robot under a bridge... ... and a sign that there were once telegraph wires along the canal. It looks like these people are constructing a wide spillway to let excess water out of the canal and... This sign confused me. If bikes aren't allowed then who has to go slow? Pedestrians? In the end I we... A horse tethered on the towpath. This place, Allerton Bywater, has a long history of coal mining but from what I briefly read, I got ... These things are annoying. I can skip the next two by using the road instead of this path. A village called Fairburn. I was riding alongside coal trains for about a week last year. I think there might be one coming thr... According to a sign, there used to be a quarry on the high ground near here. A railway line ran thro... The old A1. The ground has got distinctly flatter since Leeds. My hotel for tonight. Today has been surprisingly exhausting given that it was only 53 miles, mainly... Inside the Owl Hotel. I didn't hear any owls but from my room on the top floor, I would hear a pigeo... It took my a long time yesterday to decide between this hotel and two in the previoous village. I ch... The bar is cosy. This mainly-abandoned bit of road is now just for bikes. A very weathered milestone. Selby. Selby. Selby. The River Ouse at Selby. It's unusual that the sign for the town says which day of the week is market day. Alongside the River Ouse. This is the Trans Pennine Trail but it doesn't look very inviting. The bridge on the ring road must lift of swing or something similar but I can't really see how. It's... My route. Somebody looking at my pictures yesterday said that it looked like I was heading for Drax. There it ... The white rose flag of Yorkshire. This is the Trans Pennine Trail, and a national cycle route, and Google's recommended cycling route. It doesn't feel much like North Yorkshire. Ah yes, lovely cool refreshing bamboo. On the right are what look to be a load of pig sties stacked three-high. Outside a village hall which was providing refreshments. I see that cycle tourist has packed just th... Some contradictory signs. My first view of the Humber Bridge. A handy little bench where I could rest while waiting for a level crossing to open. You're not going to need a bigger boat. Hull! Tomorrow, the term for this manoeuvre will be "oversteken". A wide load on the move. Ooh, I could have some fun here! On the way into Hull. This road has a good cycle lane, although I'm not sure what it's doing just here. Hull. Hull. A big antenna. In front of the station. The offices of KCOM, the company which provides all the telephone services in Hull, including the wh... Hull. Hull. Hull. Hull. It looks like they are preparing for some kind of event here, using a lorry load of hay. Part of a lifting bridge. The River Hull, which gives the city its name. Blades for offshore wind turbines. I'm be boarding this ship soon. It's the first time I've used the port of Hull. On the ship. On the ship. My cabin. A view from my window. I thought it was safe to have a shower with the curtains open but while I was getting dressed, I saw... On the ship. This terminal is unusual. Cars and bikes have to drive up onto the roof of the building and then boa... People queueing for the other ferry, the one to Zeebrugge. The small sun deck. Considering hotels for Saturday night. "Quirky" is a word which always gets my interest, s... There goes the Zeebrugge ferry. Two more boats. Sailing down the Humber. The view back towards Hull. It's not as pretty at night as the old Severn Bridge. The back of the boat. A couple having a romantic photograph in front og the heavy industry of Immingham. The lights of the Lincolnshire coast sliding past the restaurant. I've finished dinner and we're still in the Humber. I don't know what this ferry is that's following us. I thought the only other ferry from Hull was th... It's hard to tell in the dark but I think this is a cargo ship being led up the river by a pilot boa... Some entertainment.