Touring - End-to-End: Logistical Advice

Has anyone biked the End-to-End? I'm a novice tourer and am planning to embark on this 1,000 mile journey from the bottom of England to the tip of Scotland in less than three weeks. Apparently, I'm also a novice when it comes to planning ahead, as I still have a few questions: mainly, does anyone have any advice on bike rentals in southern England? Renting a touring bike abroad seems to be a hassle-free way to cross the Atlantic; however, other options that have been suggested include making a few changes to my road bike or even purchasing a touring bike and then selling it when I'm done. Suggestions?

Any of those options will work but which one would you enjoy more? Where will you hire a touring bike from? How will you transport it to/from each end? A road bike might be difficult to go camping with. Buying and selling a touring bike will take time.

Personally, I wouldn't hire a bike for a long ride but people have ridden everything from unicycles and folding bikes to penny farthings, so you may have no problems. Have a look at http://www.users.waitrose.com/~ianclare/links.htm for some E2E stories.

Some general advice: Low gears are helpful (1 in 4 isn't unusual in Cornwall and Devon), navigation may be challenging (try to avoid A-roads) and expect midges in Scotland at this time of year. I did E2E in 8 days in 2002 (lived in England then). If I were doing it again, I'd go slower.

It isnt too difficult to fly a bike into the UK. Gatwick and Stanstead have the best rail connections. Heathrow does have a rail connection a couple of miles ride away on marked bike routes. Getting a bike to the SW is fairly easy but getting it backl from NW scotland poses more problems. You may have to cycle down to the nearest station.
If you are going to rent consider taking your own saddle and pedals. How are you going to return the rental bike unless you rent in Lonon at London rates. You can't rent tourers here, only MTBs and hybrids.
Suggest you ask in the forum of Cycling Plus magazine
http://www.cyclingplus.co.uk/forum/default.asp
for more local info.
People do the LEGOG on road bikes. If you use YHA youth hostels and Bed & Breakfast accomodation you can travel light using a saddlebag/barbag or some small panniers on a clamp-on rack. A triple chainset is pretty useful at times as are fenders.

Renting a decent tourer for a 1,000 mile ride is not going to be easy, if for no other reason than you have to get it back to it's home. However it might be possible. check out bridge bike hire in Wadebridge in Cornwall
http://www.bridgebikehire.co.uk/
They have a few nice bikes, but I'm not sure anything of the standard you will need.

Wadebridge is end of day one up from Lands End - ensure you include the camel trail from padstow on your route
http://www.cornishlight.co.uk/camel-trail.htm

Remember you will also need the panniers, the bar bag, bottle cages and ll the rest of the gear that rented bikes don't have as standard

How about this as a suggestion:

Either bring the bike with you, or buy one of the best touring bikes available in Europe, one of the Thorn range from SJSC wo are based in Bridgewater in Somerset (bottom left of England, so only about 2 hrs by train from the start,) 3 days later you could be riding past their front door on your way up for any small modification and adjustments
http://www.sjscycles.co.uk/

They also sell (and Buy, back ??) Touring bikes, and they do world wide shipping.

I tried to rent a bike to tour on in 2004 and couldn't find anything. I borrowed a bike from a brother-in-law instead (and really beat it up).

You might try borrowing a bike from someone using something like Craig's List. Maybe offer some money for the rental. Lots of people have extra bikes, maybe one of them will lead you one. Who knows, maybe they will even go with you!

Ray