Cat Suicide Attempt

My cat has threatened to throw himself in front of my bike if nice treats and tuna chunks aren't forthcoming before my departure!

NO CATS WERE HARMED IN THE MAKING OF THIS BLOG!

Weight loss Trangia mod

In a mission to cut down the weight of my touring kit some drastic action was required!

Rather than go without cooking kit I decided to use the burner from my Trangia and adapt an Ikea cutlery pot to create a new base. The lot packs together nicely and is far lighter than the full Trangia rig.




This is the ideal size for cooking up a brew or a can of beans and it works great. The small trangia pot sits on top of the cut down Ikea pot.

You can just make out the flame in this shot;

Test pack 1

A self supporting ride at the cool end of summer does require a fare bit of luggage, but I feel a bit over loaded.

Just trying to work out what can be ditched, maybe i,ll leave the cooking gear behind and have pub grub. Shouldn,t be to far from a pub or cafe, but what about a morning brew? Decisions decisions....

Devon C2C Flickr pics

A few nice Devon C2C shots by Niquinho on this Flickr set especially like this one. I just need to imagine it with grey clouds and rain!!!

Route re think...!

Assuming I survived the Devon C2C my plan was then to head on down into the South Hams in a Yealmpton, Modbury, Kingsbridge direction.

Scouring the trusty Bikehike site I spotted their OSMCycle overlay button, wazat do then, sprung to mind!

A click revealed a map showing all the Sustrans routes. I spotted  route 2 that heads east from Plymouth to Ivybridge and the on to Dartington, Totnes and due south to Slapton; before finishing up in Dartmouth (and a cooked breakfast at Al Fresco's) if it still exists!

So that is now the revised plan, yes a bit convoluted but it looks like a great route, no doubt following lay lines through Totnes.

Now how do I attach dowsing rods to my bike!!

Worst Fate Western

Fearing a jobsworth train conductor (is conductor a bus only term or cross transport applicable?), I thought I'd check the First Great Western web site to see what their policy on bicycles was.

This is what they had to say on their FAQ's page.......

Can I take my bicycle on your trains and can I reserve a space?


It is possible to take your cycle on our trains, however there are some restrictions to services arriving and departing from London Paddington. Please contact Customer Services on 08457 000125, option 4, with you travel plans and they will be happy to advice you of any restrictions. You can also book a space for your bicycle at any manned station. This must be done at least 2 hours before the train will leave its origin station.

I popped into Exmouth station this morning to pick up a time table for the Tarka Line. In passing I thought I'd double check with the cheery ticket lady regarding booking my bike on a train next week. 
 
She informed me, "We don't take bookings for bikes on this line, it's first come first serve with a maximum of two bikes per train". I of course referred her to FGW's FAQ's page, she referred me to her booking system screen with no tick box for booking a bicycle. 
 
Mmmm, Arse \ Elbow... Piss Up \ Brewery comes to mind! 
 
My plan now is to get the 6.15 am train to Barnstaple, but rather than get on at Lympstone, my nearest station, I will cycle to Exmouth and get there 30 minutes before departure in a vain hope that there will not be two cyclists waiting at the station to scupper my holiday plans.
 
It amazes me in our modern green thinking society that trying to get on a train with a bike could be such a nightmare. It seems the only guaranteed way to get your bike on a train track is to shut down the operating company remove the trains and turn it into a cycle path. It looks like Dr Beeching and Sustrans are far more cycle friendly than First Great Western.
 
And the government wonder why the roads are jammed and we don't regularly use public transport.... I rest my case!

Othe C2Cer's write ups.

Just reading articles about other peoples Coast to Coast antics:

BBC Devon

The Guardian

Looks like First Great Western can be a bit hit and miss when it comes to letting bikes on trains.... that could put a dampner on things!! Don't really fancy cycling to Barnstaple to start the C2C.

Elevation Consternation !

Just created an elevation graph using the wonderful http://www.bikehike.co.uk/ . I can see the climb up onto the west of Dartmoor is a killer, better pack some leg straps and deep heat!

But check out the free wheel into Plymouth......

Weather forecast isn't great!

Devon Coast To Coast

I'm shortly off on a trans Devon jaunt following the Devon Coast to Coast Sustrans route. I then plan to head off down into the South Hams, this will depend on the weather, my legs and my bike holding out!

This will be my first bike tour in 20 years and I'll be cycling on my trusty Specialized Tricross Sport 08. Probably not the most ideal touring bike, but I commute 80+ miles a week on it and it's all I've got!!!

The trip will start with a train journey from Exmouth to Barnstaple, assuming I can take my bike on board!

I'll be camping most nights but maybe I'll treat myself to a mid trip B&B.

I'll be blogging via my Nokia E71, so sign up and find out how I get on.

Stu