It was a journey that took one week, six hours and ten minutes, cost nothing, involved getting on and off nearly 40 different buses and evoked a particularly British form of heroism.

A determined pensioner called Richard Elloway, 61, has become the first person to travel free from Land’s End to John o’ Groats on local buses – a record that became possible with the introduction of the national bus pass scheme on April 1.

His record-breaking trip, which started at 10.35 on the morning of April 1, ended last Tuesday evening at 4.45pm, when an obliging bus driver drove him down to the lonely signpost on the northernmost tip of Britain and took a picture of him.

The terms of his adventure were simple: he had to get from one end of the country to the other using his free pass on local buses and not express coaches. Where possible he had to stay in local youth hostels.

He carried with him large bundles of bus timetables, a toothbrush and asense of optimism about the unknown. Mr Elloway, a member of the Land’s End to John o’ Groats Association, is a veteran enthusiast, having already set two previous records for cycling the famous route.

“I was the only passenger when the first bus set out from Land’s End,” he said yesterday. “I had planned ahead as much as I could, but in many cases it was impossible to work the route out very far in advance.”

His darkest hour came when he found himself stranded late in the evening in Lincoln, without any hostel to go to, any accommodation booked, or any buses going anywhere.

“It was Day 4 and I was supposed to have reached Scarborough, but it just wasn’t possible to get there by bus. I had lost a day. I arrived in Lincoln at 8.45pm with nowhere to stay, and I walked around the streets, where there were lots of noisy students drifting around.

“I sought help at some student accommodation, and the janitor was terrific: he found me a guesthouse called Jaymar, owned by Margaret and Jim Ward.

“That was the most euphoric part of the trip, finding that B&B. They came and got me, and fed me, and even took me to the bus station the next morning. It does restore your faith in human nature – that’s why I do these trips.”

Mr Elloway’s route up England was extremely circuitous. It was not intended to be. “Even on the first day, I discovered that the timetables meant it was quicker to cut across Cornwall to New-quay than to go the way I had planned. But even that was a pretty horrendous day. I found myself stranded in Tiver-ton at 7pm when my intention was to get to Wellington to spend the night at home. But the bus had already left.”

Mr Elloway reckons that the entire trip has cost him less than £100 in food and acccommodation – the national free bus-pass scheme has cost taxpayers £1 billion. He stayed the first night at home, in Somerset, and the third – quite unexpectedly, when he ended up in Cambridge – with his sister. Often he went hungry, as he missed out on food while rushing to change buses.

Mr Elloway, a retired primary school head teacher, was fundraising for the charity Breaks4Kids, the charity of the Youth Hostel Association, which helps to provide holidays for disabled and disadvantaged children.

Day 3 of the trip presented big problems and a complete change of plan. His desired route, up the West of England, taking in Worcester and the Peak District, was impractical, and he headed east toward Cambridge. However, the next day he found himself zigzagging towards Lincoln and making little progress north. He lost time.

“One major problem,” he said yesterday, “is there is no unified national helpline. Even people who worked for the bus companies spent ages on the phone to try and sort out the best route for me.”

Eventually he made it to Scotland, where he had arranged free travel. Mr Elloway’s record may never be repeated, because he had to gain special dispensation from Scottish bus companies for a free pass – a privilege reserved for those living in the country.

“Generally it was a wonderful trip,” he said. “I liked getting off the bus and finding people’s accent had changed. Was I ever bored? Never. Reading timetables, planning the route, counting the donations, and all the rest of it filled my time.”

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