Friday June 15th 2007

Now for Abbotsbury hill!!

Well, Abbotsbury hill is conquered! It was tough but the ice cream on the top was the best
I have ever tasted. The woman was rather grumpy moaning about Neale leaning his £2000 worth of bike
against her £90 worth of van. There were some more steep climbs for the rest of the day but we
arrived in Uploders full of beans.

It was a great night working with Glenn and Justin from Smith and Moore (check them out) and the groom's
band Red Dirt who were excellent. Jack (the singer)"did the gallon" and we decided to
camp next to what could only be described as the Glastonbury party tent.

That evening we reached Pilsdon community, a group of people who give time, space and support to help people after any life trauma. Their warmth and welcome is a lesson to us all in how we should give more time to each other. Fred was one 'guest' living in a van and getting support from the Pilsdon community. In one touching moment Fred, the sort of man you might hurry past on the street, and a man whose few remaining teeth were all black, gave us a stack of 5p coins for our collection. This amounted to all of 40 pence, and was probably all the money he had in the world. It was a lovely gig in the common room at the manor and we had a great night sleep in their converted stables.

Tomorrow is the Hilfield Friary so stay tuned.

Flying down the hill we suddenly realise we took a wrong turn and have to go all the way back up a hill to get back on track. We finally arrive and are met by Brother Jay. There is an eco project going on down here and we can stay in one of the houses for visitors. We have dinner with the Brothers and guests (25 people roughly) and are warmly welcomed by the guardian brother who announces we will do an impromptu concert in the reading room. A small crowd gathers there and we have a very relaxed, informal gig before they have their evening prayers. This is such a peaceful and relaxing place you feel you could be somewhere in the Austrian Alps, surrounded by trees. The only sound you can hear is birdsong. Its feels like a million miles from anywhere yet here we are in the middle of Dorset. In the morning we have a silent breakfast (something I would enjoy in most hotels and B and Bs) and we are on our way. Off to the Cerne Abbas giant and a gig at the Giant Inn.

On the way back to Cerne I phone The Greyhound Inn in Corfe to find the lady I previously spoke to about playing, is away. Thankfully she hasn't "done a runner", not that we know of yet (see previous section on Landlords), although the person in charge seems to know nothing about our arrangement. Initially hostile, after tense negotiations she mellows 'slightly ' and we arrange to go there tommorrow. I'll let you know how that pans out on Friday.

Meanwhile back in Cerne. Another fine night was had with a great atmosphere. Chris, a youthful looking 35ish year old, did his first public performance on guitar. He has only been playing for 6 months. For the record we played Teenage Kicks by the Undertones and Hurry up Harry which started more like Chas and Dave and ended up like The Wurzels. Thanks to everyone who attended and gave money, Sarah and Mark who are truly great friends and Ben for letting us sleep next to his toys.

We wake up in Cerne and it is pouring down! This was going to be the worst days weather we have had. Not that we were bothered. It's funny, but being in the rain is not as bad as you would imagine it is when you are ...erm…not in it. If you know what I mean. Anyway, off we head to Corfe Castle, a journey of about 30 miles stopping at the Morton tea rooms on the way. And if you think that's rock and roll, we had tea and carrot cake while we were there!! As we head towards Corfe Castle, I am slightly nervous of what reception we will receive when we arrive. At 3:15 we arrive in Corfe where Zoe, who is thankfully very friendly, tells us there should be no problem with using the shower and we are welcome to camp in the garden, although we have to wait until 6 when Sue will be there. The tension mounts...

Sue turns out to be a real star. She says we couldn't possibly sleep in the garden and gives us a room above the pub. She shows us the bathroom, give us towels and organises our food. It is meeting people of such generous spirit that has made this trip so enjoyable. The gig is fun and played in a smoke free atmosphere. They banned smoking in The Greyhound on March the first and it hasn't seemed to spoil the ambiance. Off up the stars to bed and tomorrow home and the final gig in The old ship.

I must mention Neale at this point. I cannot imagine doing this with anybody else. He has a very bright, logical mind and a warm , carefree spirit. His positive attitude and enthusiasm are a lesson to us all. At sixty, when many people are ravaged by apathy and cynicism, he has an energy and openness that would put people in their 20s to shame. And he would, in his modest way, put that down to the fact that he rides a bike...

At the gig. I am joined by Julie Lewis who is an amazing piano player and all round talent, and a great songwriter too. We have a great night and I stagger off about 1 ish..

I would just like to say thank you to a few people:

A special thanks to Riff for the trailers. Thanks Katie for the B and B in Abbotsbury and the finest cooked breakfast a veggie could ever make. Ruth , Adam and everyone at Pilsdon Manor. Roger, Minnie and Steve at The Hazelbury Mill. All the Brothers and Martin at the friary. Also, Malte for the pineapple liquer. Mark and Sarah Annalise at The Gaint in Cerne Abbas, Sue and Zoe in Corfe Pat. Kevin and Katie at the Old Ship Upwey. Katy for the Blog and Jack and Simon for the support. And of course Neale who apart from raising the charity money became a great mate.

Another star of this ride was Dorset itself. I cannot imagine a more beautiful county in this country, and to see it by bicycle heightens the pleasure. I implore anyone reading this to try it. In June 1988 I got off a bus on Weymouth sea front and fell instantly in love with Dorset. Now, 19 years later almost to the day, I have done so all over again