After a late night packing and household jobs, we were up at six for breakfast and the ride to Bangor station for the Avanti train to London. It reached Chester on time but left seven minutes late and gradually lost time, arriving 25 minutes in arrears. We now had only an hour before our connection at Liverpool Street but luckily the other cyclist on board was heading in that direction and guided us there. We changed trains at Manningtree but I took the opportunity to revisit the station buffet, visited with student friends when we we all at Essex University. I can remember stepping out after a few pints and being startled by a class 47 hauled express hammering past.
It was colder in London than Bangor but very cold in Harwich with wind whipping in off the sea. We ate well at The Pier and made our way to the port, where we were told check in wouldn’t begin until after 21:00 and directed to the waiting are overlooking the lines of stationery cars. At least it was warm in there and better than sitting in a vehicle. Lots of other cyclists and a couple of motorbikes were there.
We eventually embarked at 11:20, twenty minutes after the scheduled sailing time. From observation, the contents of every car were being checked, thanks again brexit voters. Towards the end they simply waved everyone on board after the passport check so my advice to smugglers is to arrive late.