Wales again, by motorcycle

Just me and GB, spending four days riding in Wales. 

The plan

No real plan. We had some GPS routes of some interesting roads we wanted to do, but that was it. No campsites booked either, not even looked at any.

Gear loading

A new set up for me, the possibility of off-roading meant I wanted to leave the topbox behind. Just two panniers and a small pack strapped to the rack. 

GB's smaller bike with tall suspension and tall luggage made getting on and off really difficult for him. I could throw my leg over, no problem. These difference were highlighted later when we got muddy...

Arriving 

We arrived at the campsite and pulled up at our chosen spot. We're chatting as I lean the bike over onto its sidestand only to topple over and fall to the ground. GB has to take a picture, in between wetting himself. Sidestand wasn't down :-P

New tent set-up 

The Hi Gear Soloista, a cheap solo tent (referred to as the coffin) and a cheap tarp was my home for three nights. The idea was it would be quick to put up and down and take up less space on the bike. The tarp would provide a place to cook and shelter from the inevitable Welsh rain. I wanted it to be quick as we weren't planning on staying in the same place each night.

Coffin and tarp, with micro-fiber towel drying on one of the lines.

The set-up worked in as much as it kept me warm and dry but it was more of a faff than my regular tent. The tarp was secured with paracord guy-lines tied with taut-line hitches for easy tensioning. It was small and lightweight but the extra hassle in setting it up and the possibility of having to move it if the wind changed direction means I won't be using it again. I tried it but it's not for me; no real benefits for how I like to camp.

Shouldn't take photos while riding.

Stove expires

After a fair service life, my cheap Chinese multi-fuel stove gave up the ghost, on the first night. I learned a few things over the time and don't regret buying it. I could have still bought a gas canister to get me through the weekend, but I didn't. Not sure why. 

Deep ruts & panniers don't mix

We headed off-road for part of the Strata Florida; through one of a thousand gates and down a fairly steep stony track. At the bottom there was a shallow water crossing, only about 6" deep but had a concrete slab bottom (notoriously slippery). We had to open another gate first and getting the GSA on and off the side-stand on odd slopes and cambers is a challenge in itself. GB went through and straight up the steep, muddy, eroding track on the other side. I had to cross, come back to get the gate and then start from a standstill. I was very impressed with how the GSA handled that hill.

Too many gates and GB couldn't get on or off very easily because of his tall luggage on an already tall bike, so it was up to me to get most of the gates. Too many gates. Being tall and narrow he did have the advantage of not snagging his luggage on tree roots and rocks, like I did, when the track side came up high. Twice I caught my panniers enough to stop me. Once on a tree stump and once on a rock, both times I was in a deep rut with high sided banks so it was impossible to manoeuvre around them or get the stand down. If I'd been narrower (without panniers) I don't think I would have had any issues. GB got through fine with his narrow set-up, as long as he didn't want to get on and off too often he was happy. Snagging my panniers was killing my momentum and I was getting stuck. I could smell my clutch and enough was enough. GB said he would've continued further if he had more fuel, but then he'd have to get his own damn gates. Did I mention there were a lot of gates?

Snowdon - Fail!

Morning

It's been raining all night and the wind kept waking me up. I thought the tent might break at one point. I stuck my head out and tried to capture the blowing rain. Didn't quite catch it.

I was hoping it would be gone by morning.

It's really not pleasant out there!

 

The already sodden ground was now a series of puddles. My tent was surrounded by them and I assume they're underneath too, though there's no sign. My tent is doing it's job of keeping me warm and dry.

The site showers were nice enough; hot, wet and free. Just how I like them. I just realised I have a slight headache (probably dehydrated from yesterday, I didn't drink much) and the tip of my right-hand index finger is numb. Hmm, maybe my bars need a tweak.

Many had had enough and were packing up.

I'm back in the tent. The rain is relentless! How am I supposed to cook anything? Not safe to do it inside.

OK, tea made. I put the stove in the lid of my pannier to protect the ground sheet and used the wind-shield to protect from the draft under the door. Still seemed to take forever. Not used these mess tins before.

The stove doesn't actually send much heat downwards but better safe...

The rain finally stopped but the wind is worse. It comes in waves, every few minutes there's another blast. It eases a bit so I make my escape again.

A lot of people had packed and left. Those tents that remain seem empty and many had collapsed. One had blown down and was half in the river that feeds the lake, only being held by a couple of pegs still hanging on in the saturated ground. I was lucky, I'd deliberately pitched behind a group of trees to break the wind. I couldn't have moved further across (out of the wind) because there were puddles already forming there. 

Some tents were collapsing in the wind.

Duck weather.

Some showed no signs of life.

I wandered over to the windswept stand where I had bought the pizza from the night before. The owners (mum and dad to the young guy and his girlfriend) were friendly and we chatted about the weather and travelling, their son and girlfriend had spent a year in India. The conversation then turned to horses and motorbikes and their obvious interaction. She said that trail riding (on a big bike) sounded very similar to event riding on a horse, where you have to use momentum to help carry you over obstacles. We also talked about horses having a mind of their own, unlike bikes. I thought you pretty much point them in the right direction and just control their speed, but there's more to it than that; riders have to build a rapport with the horse. Some might say it's the same for bikes.

I bought a couple of flapjacks, one for breakfast, as I'd failed to sort anything for myself. In the rush down I'd forgotten to stop and get supplies. It wasn't helped by not having my top-box and having nowhere to put anything. Take top-box next time! The bad conditions meant I didn't go back out after pitching either. Tiredness doesn't help. Ordinarily I wouldn't have the extra luggage of walking boots, jacket, rucksack etc, but having the extra stuff made it harder to pack/unpack and meant less space on the bike and in the tent. I digress.

With the promise of the worst of the storm blowing through by mid-day, I planned to get ready, to see how far I could walk. Everyone I'd spoken to said conditions were too dangerous and it's probably too late to attempt Snowdon anyway, but I had to do something.

I walked down to the bridge and stood for a while, thinking. The lack of provisions was a concern, as well as the high winds. Hard to believe this bridge was used in Tomb Raider!

Tomb Raider: The Cradle of Life (2003).

Narrow and little run off. How did they stop?

I returned to my tent to get my rucksack then headed back along the footpath. It was very wet and rocky at the bottom but became more muddy as it climbed.

The rain is back.

A group of teens with massive packs, along with one adult, were hiking along the same trail. I assumed they were doing DofE. I stopped at a scenic view to let them pass me and watched them descend the almost vertical trail ahead, it looked like; on their bums.

I walked to the same section (walking were you have to consider every step - it's narrow, wet and steep). It was a 4-5' drop with barely discernible footholds. If I slipped; I'm on my own. I only have my day-pack with already limited supplies. I was only about a third of the way down the path (if that) before even reaching the start of the Watkin Path. Even if it took me an hour to get on to Snowdon (quite likely), I'd still have 5-6hrs of walking and then have to come back this way, in the dark. I did have plenty of lights with me...

4-5' step drop. Steep, wet and out of time anyway. Worth the risk?

I returned to the scenic view over the lake, considering my options. Another group of teens slowly made their way up. The lead girl asked about the trail ahead, I explained and she went to assess it. They also had a supervising adult with them. I chatted with him while the group went ahead. They were from a Gloucestershire school doing DofE Gold. They had been wild camping the night before and had to pull out to a youth hostel because of the storm. Their supervisor whispered to me, with a smile, that they were on the wrong path. The group returned, deciding against the descent as I did. They were better equipped than I was. While the group took a selfie with the lake as a backdrop, their supervisor explained how he'd got involved; volunteering because there wasn't enough supervisors when his own daughter wanted to do it. Simple enough, but then there's CRB checks, first aid training, mini-bus driving... things he hadn't considered, but it was all good. They all looked like they were enjoying themselves.

By now I  had decided to return to camp. I wasn't equipped for a long day on the mountain in bad weather. I had seen both groups pausing, what seemed like every few steps, to eat a handful of dried fruit and nuts and it made me think about my lack of provisions again.

Re-tracing steps.

I followed the group back down to a stile where we wished one another a good day and they turned to climb straight up a path I hadn't even seen (they had their maps in waterproof cases, mine was keeping dry in my rucksack).

Back at camp, it's a pretty desolate.

I'm considering my options; pack up or stay for the second night and get some more riding in instead.

To ride or not to ride?

Rain is holding off, but still have low cloud and strong winds.

I was tidying up some gear when the winds really kicked in again, the worst so far. I was holding on to the tent from the inside. I honestly thought I was going to lose it. That's it! I'm getting the hell out of Dodge! I packed as much as I could inside the tent as the wind battered everything. The noise of the wind through the trees roared like a jet engine.

Shit! Where's my wallet?!? Don't tell me I dropped it on the trail, not now, it could be anywhere! The next blast triggered the alarm on the bike! I didn't hear it fall over. I had moved it slightly to put the side-stand on firmer ground and luckily it was facing more into the wind making it harder to blow over. Panic over, I found my wallet in a different pocket, duh! I continue packing and the alarm goes off again. That's over 250kg being moved about out there.

Listen to that wind!

A lot of the site was like this.

Packing between wind blasts.

I manage to pack the tent and load the bike between blasts. With everything secure, I walk over to the site's payphone but it says "barred" on my number. One of the staff is passing, he's says it does that sometimes when the weather is bad, something to do with the lines. The office phone is still working and he fetches it for me to call home.

By this time it's late afternoon. I set satnav to fastest route and apart from the roads out of Wales (which were actually quite enjoyable) the ride home was pretty dull with more wind and rain. I did remember to use my earplugs this time and they worked a treat. I've never used them much before as I didn't like not being able to hear the bike, but once I got used to them I actually like it. I can still hear music and nav instructions. They even made the music sound better, somehow. I must look at piping music through plugs...

So what did I learn?

1. Don't rush the journey - don't plan too much and break up the route into smaller sections that can be swapped about a lot easier.
2. You will be tired - washing up and laundry aren't fun.
3. Take the top-box - keep it largely empty.
4. Putting the tent inside a pannier just isn't worth the hassle - use the space for food and clothes.
5. Take some thick bin bags - for emergency waterproofing. Thankfully I didn't have an issue but they're cheap and take up little space.
6. The only really important things are:
• Being warm and dry.
• Getting food and water.
• Sleeping well.

Probably in that order.

Gear

Travelling by motorcycle can mean carrying a lot of stuff, often more than necessary, so I'm trying to fine-tune my gear to reduce it while at the back of my mind planning for a bike trip into the interior of Iceland.

I've already downsized that enormous 100mm self-inflating mattress for a Multimat Superlite Air, so that bulk that I took to Austria has gone. The Superlite is working out really well.

Multimat Superlite Air - highly recommended.

I'm kind of using the 3-Peaks trips to test new kit and discover what I can do without. First changes are to leave a few things behind:

No top-box

Too convenient not to take for most trips but they say you shouldn't use them when off-roading as they can impact your back when you go down. I've lost count how many times I've had to pick my bike up and think you'd have to be unlucky to have it hit you. That said, I don't use my top-box off-road as there would be a lot of leverage with a fair weight behind it if it were to hit something on the way down. I've also seen a top-box launch into the air when it ripped from its mounts while riding green lanes.

No chair

I own this low chair - pretty good.

I briefly considered this. ££!

Simple one this. Don't really need one. My hard panniers serve as both a seat and a table. I find I only use a chair if I'm in a group and we're sitting around the camp fire. I have a general purpose foam pad that I use when sitting on the floor or pannier for longer periods and sometimes when changing footwear and pulling on bike trousers when the ground is wet and muddy. It saves my knees around camp too. Travelling light; I don't need a separate chair.


Next, figure out what I can improve upon or what I might need that I don't already have:

Compressed tent

I took the poles out of the tent bag and put the tent into a compression sack to shorten it. It now fits in the pannier. Poles strap along the rack of the bike.

North Ridge Torre XL - perfect tent for my needs.

Folding trowel

Got this sorted. My parents had an unused folding trowel in their caravan that they bought on a whim. They donated it to the cause. Just the job for the job when wild camping.

Got it. Not yet used it.

Better pillow

I want a bigger pillow that packs smaller but is soft and light. A Sea To Summit Aeros pillow will do nicely.

On my Wish List

Folding spade

Riding solo on big bike across sand I could end up burying the back wheel; a spade could be useful. And I like the look of it. OK, I just want one.

I need one!

To be fair, I have ridden in some pretty deep sand and it's true; you do have to stay on the throttle. I've been lucky so far and not got stuck. Though I did once in boggy mud. I didn't have as much experience then and had buddies at hand to help me out. I would be able to ditch the rubber mallet from the luggage as this Gerber spade comes with a built-in whacker. I like multi-purpose kit.

Puncture repair kit

Stop & Go tyre plugger - don't leave home without it.

I really should have placed a higher priority on this before, but they're not cheap for something I've never needed; I've never carried a puncture repair kit and I've never had a puncture. I run Heidenau K60s, tubeless on the GS, and have never had a problem on or off road. Parents being parents bought me a kit when I told them of my Iceland plans. They still worry over me and I'm 41!

Comfortable gentleman's bits

I know. Not the usual subject of polite conversation but it is a very import subject. One has to be comfortable. There is nothing worse than having to (ahem) adjust one's self because of bunching, pinching or that feeling of being cut-in-half. I have a ten hour ride planned and travelling light means I'm taking just two pairs: wear one, wash one. I bought two pairs of 6" Under Armour BoxerJocks and they're supposed to dry quickly. They do pack small (you can almost hide them in your hand). Worn to work for a day, I can confirm they are the most comfortable underwear I've ever owned. About £10 each isn't bad either.

Under Armour BoxerJocks - perfect for riding.

Cameras, charging, SD cards and backups

Hmm, big subject. Maybe it should have its own post...