Leg 2 Oakhampton to Chepstow

After a hearty breakfast, courtesy of the Head Chef at Okehampton Camp, we set off down the hill & rode for a good first 20 miles through the beautiful Devon Countryside.  The sun was shining, birds singing, no cars on the road being a Sunday morning; a perfect start. At the top of one hill, Phil mentioned to Pete that "there is a very sharp bend at the bottom of this hill. Unfortunately the other two had already started to descend.  Oh' how we laughed. When we all eventually reached the bottom, Alex had a dirty stain in his shorts. At the bottom of another hill we looked up to see three bikers half way up the hill.  The red mist descended on Pete who made up his mind to beat them to the top.  Imagine his disappointment to find that the three bikers were all rather older than him (and he is no spring chicken), and unsupported, with panniers on there bikes.We then stopped for a break at Fishermans Cottage near Bickley Mill where the three other bikers joined us for refreshments. Also riding end to end for the MacMillan Cancer Trust, Colin Brett, Kevin Darcy & Chris West. We wish them every success. We then rode up & over two Cat 4 & two Cat 5 hills (for those of you who don't know or understand the Cat category of hills, like Pete - blxxdy steep), traveling though Devon, Somerset & Gloucestershire. Just east of Tiverton we came across the roundabout where we were to take the A361 to Junction 27 of the M5, approximately 6 miles. Unfortunately the road was closed!  Quick thinking by Alex who asked the workmen if it was safe to ride on.  A thumbs up from them meant we had the full dual carriageway to ourselves for 6 miles; life in the fast lane! At Bristol we had our first incident with the bikes - Pete got a puncture, before riding over both Clifton and the Severn Suspension bridges, to Chepstow.  We could see the camp and home for the night from the bridge, but Phil and his GPS thought the rest of us might be interested in the sights of Chepstow.  Unfortunately it did not meet the write up in the tourist information guide. 'Shameless' springs to mind. We arrived at Beachley Barracks Cheptow in good spirits, if a little tired and with the Regt serving abroad, nothing open. Our first night on 'Compo', but the food outstanding. Once again, a huge thank you to Chris & Mark our fabulous support crew.
FOOTNOTE.
Pete finally realised that Phil's name was actually Neal, Kneel, Neil, or Niel.