“Avoid running over dogs, Hoopdriver, whatever you do. It’s one of the worst things you can do to run over a dog.”
- From: The Wheels of Chance: A Bicycling Idyll by H.C. Wells
I mentioned it briefly in newsletter 3: the many walkers with as many dogs on the route. English people seem to love dogs. It seems like we always see dogs everywhere, no matter which way we look. Many pubs have a sign at the door saying ‘Dogs welcome’ and ‘Treats and water for dogs’ or even ice creams for dogs! So the chances are extremely high that one will come before your wheels....
The dog owners do have their dogs well under control. This is something we notice. We share cycling routes together along the towpaths (narrow paths along the canals) and former railway tracks that have been transformed into cycling and walking paths. As soon as we make ourselves known with the bike bell (‘cyclist use your bell’, it says on the signs), the boss commands the dog to make room. When we have passed, the dog in question is praised to heaven for listening excellently. However, there was one dog who refused to listen to ‘Come here, Willow!’ (I really understood Willow). He was on one side of the path and the owner on the other. Remy drove past very carefully and said something nice to Willow. So far, so good. But then Willow decided to listen anyway. Just at the moment when I was cycling between dog and owner. Luckily, I was riding at walking pace, otherwise things would have ended differently for Willow and me. ‘You should have said something nice,’ Remy said. Yes, I might have done that, but Willow should just have been on a leash, because the signs say that too. And no dog follows it.
I wrote above earlier this week. The towpaths and former railway tracks have now been replaced by quiet, winding roads through the hills of Devon and Cornwall. We cycle through Exmoor national park and past beautiful coastal towns at the bays of the Atlantic Ocean. We see far fewer dogs now, but there are now other challenges. Those beautiful coastal towns are only accessible by extremely steep roads, going up and down through the surrounding high hills. Gradients of 15-20% are frequent, and we even had one of 30%.
Befitting the dramatic landscape of hilly moors (a heath / meadow area) and a jagged coastline, there are also threatening dark clouds and the occasional splash of rain. We arrived in Tintagel this afternoon with sunshine. Here is Tintagel Castle, associated with the myths of King Arthur. Right now it is pouring rain and we have taken refuge in a hostel. Thunderstorms are on the way, we heard. Hopefully, we will be able to visit the castle later or tomorrow morning.
Passage from: The Wheels of Chance: A Bicycling Idyll door H.C. Wells. Before starting his cycling holiday, Mr Hoopdriver received this warning from a colleague who had never been on a bicycle before:
“Avoid running over dogs, Hoopdriver, whatever you do. It’s one of the worst things you can do to run over a dog. Never let the machine buckle — there was a man killed only the other day through his wheel buckling — don’t scorch, don’t ride on the foot-path, keep your own side of the road, and if you see a tramline, go round the corner at once, and hurry off into the next county—and always light up before dark. You mind just a few little things like that, Hoopdriver, and nothing much can’t happen to you — you take my word.”
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