Spennymoor cyclist completes 2,000 miles to Spain for charity

Andrew Gaskins, pictured in Leon, said he got told off by French police for cycling too close to a forest fire

A cyclist who ran out of water and narrowly missed a forest fire during an epic ride to Spain has completed the journey.

Andrew Gaskins spent four weeks pedalling 2,000 miles to Santiago de Compostela in north west Spain.

The 50-year-old of Byers Green, near Spennymoor, said it was worth enduring extreme heat and a bad fall to raise £4,600 for charity.

He added nappy rash cream from a French chemists helped with saddle soreness.

Andrew Gaskins said he did not feel alone as he spoke on the phone to his wife of just over a year, Dawn, three times a day

Mr Gaskins raised money for the Marie Curie charity which cared for his mother Doreen in her final days.

Half of the total will also go to the Niemann Pick UK charity which helps people like his brother-in-law Jonathan Wright, 38, who has a rare inherited disease which can affect the brain, nerves and bone marrow.

Mr Gaskins, who has been married to wife Dawn for just over a year, said: "Although I was on my own I felt that Dawn was with me as we spoke on the phone three times a day.

"When I was having a meltdown when I found no shops were open to buy food and water in France, she talked me round my low points until I had the confidence to keep going."

Staying in bed and breakfast accommodations during his journey down to Dover and through France and Spain, he said it was difficult cycling for up to 13 hours a day through thunderstorms and torrential rain.

Previously, he had only ever done a few coast-to-coast cycles over a few days.

Andrew Gaskins arriving at the Spanish border

Cycling alone, Mr Gaskins followed bike routes and back roads through France to the Spanish border.

He said he kept going despite, at one point, falling over his handlebars and straining his wrist when his wheel got stuck in a gully.

The cyclist, director of a Peterlee-based steel fabricator, said: "At one point I was in a rural part of France where it was very quiet and I was riding past burned-out buildings and could smell burning.

"The police stopped me and although I can't speak French, I knew they were telling me off for being near a forest fire. I had to quickly change route."

The highlight of the trip, he said, was following the Camino de Santiago (The way of St James), an ancient Pilgrim route across the north of Spain.

Wife Dawn said: "To say I'm proud of my husband is an understatement."

The solo cyclist said buying nappy rash cream at a French chemists helped him cope with "saddle soreness"