The initial route planning has taken ages (I've joked that it's taken as long to plan it as it will to cycle it) but finally the first draft is complete as set out below: -
Route: From - To and Estimated Daily Mileage
Land's End - Indian Queens - 55.03
Indian Queens - Lydford - 57.52
Lydford - nr Tiverton - 55.39
Tiverton - Wookey Hole - 56.54
Wookey Hole - Monmouth - 62.53
Monmouth - nr Bridgnorth - 66.45
Bridgnorth - Hixon - 56.17
Hixon - Hayfield (High Peak) - 58.03
Hayfield - Cowling (Yorks) - 62.60
Cowling - Keld - 52.96
Keld - Brampton (Cumbria) - 61.96
Brampton - Melrose - 59.63
Melrose - Inverkeithing (Forth Bridge) - 64.89
Inverkeithing - Pitlochry - 68.48
Pitlochry - Boat of Garten (Nr Aviemore) - 66.67
Boat of Garten - Evanton - 58.54
Evanton - Altnaharra - 64.76
Altnaharra - Cape Wrath - 59.20
Cape Wrath - Bettyhill - 56.08
Bettyhill - John O'Groats via Dunnet Head - 57.42
I strongly suspect that anyone that has done it will be scratching their head and saying 'Why that way?' ... to save time; I'm avoiding 'A' roads wherever possible, using cycle routes wherever possible and 'B' roads where not and also visting places of interest, such as Keld which I've passed through on both the Pennine Way and Coast to Coast path (so it seems appropriate to visit it again on the longest tour I've ever attempted. Plus it looks as if there's a nice bunkhouse there now, which wasn't there last time).
I do want to go to Cape Wrath but if it doesn't work out, then I won't - that will save a lot of mileage. Same for visiting Dunnet Head - by that stage I might well have had quite enough!
All that remains are the unanswerable questions of fitness, whether my tricky knee will hold up, what the weather will do, whether I have enough / too much / right / wrong gear and the question Can I really do this? will not be answered until about 20 September, or thereabouts...
Well, that's the first draft and it could all change. If I could just get rid of 60 miles of that, it would give me a day in hand for emergencies, sightseeing, or simply having a rest. Tomorrow then, back to the drawing board.
Showing posts with label route planning. Show all posts
Showing posts with label route planning. Show all posts
Friday, 6 August 2010
Friday, 30 July 2010
One month to go!
The summer has gone so fast and yesterday - 29 July - meant that there's just one month to go until I start cycling away from Land's End on 29 August. Despite being fitter than I've ever been, I don't feel ready. I wonder if one ever does?
The packing has been done and now the tweaking and sorting of gear has begun. The panniers weigh about 6 kgs each, the tent 2.5 kgs in its waterproof bag and the front bag another 2 kgs. 17-odd kgs plus the weight of the bike plus two water bottles... it's a lot. I've gone through my washbag, first aid kit and clothes bag and taken out luxuries like soap and spares. I cannot carry heavy food and will have to buy it on route - or eat out. Even things like the sunglasses case, the case for my headtorch and the stuffsack for my sleeping bag have been left out.
The route planning is still a work in progress; I've made it as far as Derbyshire so far. The tricky bit is aiming for 60 miles and finding a campsite nearby at the end of the day, leading to some days which are a lot shorter and some a lot longer. One day's ride is a proposed 72 miles ... I'll have to see about that! The training is in full swing and I'm doing well over 100 miles per week with full gear as well as the run and swim plus the usual daily life stuff that is necessary. At least if I cycle to work it only takes an hour longer than normal (there and back) so doesn't significantly add to my day. But I am getting rather bored of the same roads.
I think all the technical gear is in place - this includes a new Cateye bike computer, as my current one, which I will admit was very cheap, has a distressing habit of resetting itself on long journeys, which is a bit bad if you want to add up the week's mileage. Thirty days to go now, so much still to do... but come 29 August, ready or not, I need to start cycling!
The packing has been done and now the tweaking and sorting of gear has begun. The panniers weigh about 6 kgs each, the tent 2.5 kgs in its waterproof bag and the front bag another 2 kgs. 17-odd kgs plus the weight of the bike plus two water bottles... it's a lot. I've gone through my washbag, first aid kit and clothes bag and taken out luxuries like soap and spares. I cannot carry heavy food and will have to buy it on route - or eat out. Even things like the sunglasses case, the case for my headtorch and the stuffsack for my sleeping bag have been left out.
The route planning is still a work in progress; I've made it as far as Derbyshire so far. The tricky bit is aiming for 60 miles and finding a campsite nearby at the end of the day, leading to some days which are a lot shorter and some a lot longer. One day's ride is a proposed 72 miles ... I'll have to see about that! The training is in full swing and I'm doing well over 100 miles per week with full gear as well as the run and swim plus the usual daily life stuff that is necessary. At least if I cycle to work it only takes an hour longer than normal (there and back) so doesn't significantly add to my day. But I am getting rather bored of the same roads.
I think all the technical gear is in place - this includes a new Cateye bike computer, as my current one, which I will admit was very cheap, has a distressing habit of resetting itself on long journeys, which is a bit bad if you want to add up the week's mileage. Thirty days to go now, so much still to do... but come 29 August, ready or not, I need to start cycling!
Saturday, 17 July 2010
Progress
It's the half-marathon tomorrow. How quickly these challenges are coming up. I've done two half-marathon length runs, neither comfortably, but at least I can cover the distances in reasonably good time so should be OK tomorrow. I'm glad the weather has cooled down since my practice runs as running in heat is not something I enjoy.
It's actually been raining quite hard these past few days and since it rained on July 15th - St Swithin's Day - it could continue for some time if the old folk rhyme holds true.
St Swithin's Day, if thou be wet
for 40 days it raineth yet.
On the upside, it makes things cooler and life easier generally, and means I get to test my gear for waterproofness.
The bike has been in for a service - a proper service from a proper bike shop, and as a result the gears and brakes are a lot better. I've also got an extension for the handlebars to make them higher (why they sell a bike for people of a certain height and allow you to adjust everything but handlebar height I don't know. Grumble over.) I've also changed the pedals from the lovely elegant single-sided ones to plain pedals with toe-clips and feel much safer due to being able to release my feet instantly. I've given the cleats a good trial but I'm not happy with them. Last and most important, I've changed my saddle from the one supplied (too soft) to a harder and much more supportive saddle. As a result of all these changes I'm getting a lot less discomfort in all areas though still a bit sore around the shoulders after a long ride.
The route planning is underway and I've got it as far as Gloucestershire. I'm using the improbably-named bikeroutetoaster.com which is ideal and even gives the elevation for the day. I had a few problems with it to start with, which involved doing the route for my first day four times, but seem to have the hang of it now. I think this will be a work in progress for some time yet though.
Last but not least, it's Tour de France time and watching the truly elite cyclists struggling up the French Alps is truly inspirational. I've also learnt about power to weight ratio, which means I need to lose another 10 lbs to be the ideal weight for climbing mountains! But then I don't have to go up the French Alps.
It's actually been raining quite hard these past few days and since it rained on July 15th - St Swithin's Day - it could continue for some time if the old folk rhyme holds true.
St Swithin's Day, if thou be wet
for 40 days it raineth yet.
On the upside, it makes things cooler and life easier generally, and means I get to test my gear for waterproofness.
The bike has been in for a service - a proper service from a proper bike shop, and as a result the gears and brakes are a lot better. I've also got an extension for the handlebars to make them higher (why they sell a bike for people of a certain height and allow you to adjust everything but handlebar height I don't know. Grumble over.) I've also changed the pedals from the lovely elegant single-sided ones to plain pedals with toe-clips and feel much safer due to being able to release my feet instantly. I've given the cleats a good trial but I'm not happy with them. Last and most important, I've changed my saddle from the one supplied (too soft) to a harder and much more supportive saddle. As a result of all these changes I'm getting a lot less discomfort in all areas though still a bit sore around the shoulders after a long ride.
The route planning is underway and I've got it as far as Gloucestershire. I'm using the improbably-named bikeroutetoaster.com which is ideal and even gives the elevation for the day. I had a few problems with it to start with, which involved doing the route for my first day four times, but seem to have the hang of it now. I think this will be a work in progress for some time yet though.
Last but not least, it's Tour de France time and watching the truly elite cyclists struggling up the French Alps is truly inspirational. I've also learnt about power to weight ratio, which means I need to lose another 10 lbs to be the ideal weight for climbing mountains! But then I don't have to go up the French Alps.
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