Courtesy of the unexpected and unexplained death of a Suffolk Buddhist, Gerald is detained longer than he would have liked in Aldeburgh. When the police are finally satisfied that his hands are clean, he heads (or rather 'is headed') north to continue his circumambulation of Britain. In Great Yarmouth he is surprised to see his boy John scouring the teashops in search of his father. Guessing John has been sent there to direct him back to the sanity of the Hampshire fold, he prepares himself for the battle. John is a devout Christian and he and Gerald lock horns as they follow the coastal path to Yorkshire, John doing his best to talk some sense into his dad, and Gerald doing all he can to annoy his son. Finally in Whitby, they concoct a plan to test the resilience of one another's beliefs.