Day 17: West Dean to Romsey, UK: It's a Washout

June 5, 2012

The night was dry, and when we first woke up, around 5:30, it looked like a nice day could be coming. Had we set off then, we would have had some hours of fine cycling. But, we all make and live with choices, and we chose to hang out with Nick and Sally and the rest of our new family.

It was worth it, but by almost noon when we set off rain had set in. In theory rain does not bother us. This year we even have a tent that can go up in the rain. Plus, we have waterproof pants and gloves and even socks. We have rain parkas and a full set of waterproof Ortlieb bags.

Only thing, after two weeks of tropical luxury we had lost our fear of rain. So off we went with the pants and socks and gloves and etc. safely stashed away. After 10 km, with the rain bucketing down, we were starting to notice that we were sopping wet. Not too swift, us.

At this point Dodie did one of her classic sharp turns into shelter. There is usually no warning when the potent combination of her having had enough and the appearance of some kind of shelter coincide. This time it happened in front of the Malthouse Inn. They have a gazebo in the back!

Inside the inn there was a great contrast to what was going on outside. Many families were here, enjoying the last day of the four day weekend. The Inn has a "carvery", featuring beef, turkey, lamb, and pork roasts and a selection of vegetable dishes.

The carvery table - almost all you can eat

A classic English roast meal is sure to drive out the cold and wet. (And if not, there is always the tumble dryer).

It all looked very warm and comforting. On the other hand, we had only 10 km covered and had only recently shared a full English breakfast in East Dean. Decision? Hah! No contest.

Inside the Malthouse Inn, all is warm and dry.

The lovely people of the Inn said they did not mind if we put our tent in the gazebo. They also tossed some of our stuff into the tumble drier!

So after a Thanksgiving-like dinner that couldn't be beat, we are sitting in a booth catching up on internet.

The weather forecast for the next four days for this region is summarized as rain, rain, rain, and ...rain. The story is the same for Portsmouth, Calais, and even Paris. That is, no place to run to (well, there is Barcelona!).

So our plan is to chill out (literally) under the gazebo and very early tomorrow actually put on our rain gear and just carry on. The word for now, though, is washout. Grrr.

It's hard to see but this is pelting rain outside

Today's ride: 11 km (7 miles)
Total: 404 km (251 miles)

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