All across Canada, wherever I camped, I took a photo of my tent at each campsite. So I realize this morning there has been no UK equivalent since I ditched the tent when I left Canada. So here is the UK equivalent this morning.

I usually pedal into a town or village around sunset and look for a bed and breakfast with a vacancies sign. This time of year this is working well.

I leave the village of Moffatt with the aim of reaching the edge of the Lake District by sunset.

Outside the village, I come across a sculpture on the side of the bike path. Not sure what it means.

The morning is a mixture of sun and rain with a nice tailwind pushing me south.

I like uncovered bales of hay better than black plastic dotting the landscape

I take a little detour to the town of Lockerbie, well known for the spot where the plane debris landed in December 1988 after it was blown up by a terrorist. I remember the day well as my sister in law was flying from the UK to the USA at that time, fortunately on another plane. I end up spending a few hours in a sunny modern library in the town centre catching up on things that require lots of Internet research.

The remainder of the ride into Carlisle is rural countryside at its best. The trail follows paths not even shown on most maps and now that the sun is lower in the sky, it dips below the remaining rain clouds and shines brightly. These are the moments I dream about when I think of bike touring.

You can get a better sense in this video of the ride through the fields and farms.

I am sad to leave Scotland behind as I cross the border into England.

I like the graphics used to warn about crosswinds ahead.

Carlisle castle greets me as I enter the city, located along Hadrian’s Wall, the farthest reach of the Roman Empire. For those interested in a great walk, there is a walking trail along the entire length of the wall, from the east to west coast.

Stats – for Wednesday 12 September 2012

Start: Moffatt
Finish: Carlisle
Distance: 78 km
Time on Bike: 4 hours 3 min
Average Speed: 19.2 km/hr
Distance to Date: 8,821 km