The Final Day

It was another long one! We had rested well on Tuesday night in the comfy B&B and after a good breakfast, we set off in much more variable weather conditions; a mix of hail showers with the odd patch of sun and, thankfully, a lot less wind! The first leg was to cross the hills between Denholm and Melrose, which turned out to be a significant climb and about 15 miles in length. I couldn't help but think about how much harder Tuesday would have been if we had stayed at our original venue in Melrose and had to do the extra distance and climbing!

Arriving in the quaint town of Melrose, we stopped in a cafe where I was served a rather ridiculous contraption which is apparently traditional; a three tier tower with a cake on the top, a scone in the middle and sandwiches at the bottom. While the (rather diminutive) contents were nice, there were practical issues as I couldn't see past the thing to find my tea.

Departing Melrose, there was a pleasantly undulating road to Galashiels before turning up the A7, where we had 'just one more big climb'. The enthusiasm was then damped by a sign kindly informing us it was 30 miles to Edinburgh. Hmmm. The weather also decided to do a Scottish uplands version of an April shower; hard wet snow and strong winds, but fortunately this was short-lived.

A fair amount of toiling later we arrived at the highest point and began the rather gradual descent towards Edinburgh. Our destination was still 16 miles away but the frequent signs showed how quickly we were descending. All was going smoothly until I hit a large depression in the road and managed to liberate the load from the back of the bike. Fortunately I realised this had happened and having strapped it all back on again, we resumed.

As we entered Edinburgh my knees were getting somewhat painful, no doubt exacerbated by the long climb, but we steadily rolled into the city and to the hostel. That night we enjoyed a feast at a superb Indian restaurant, tired but happy the challenge had been completed.

Macclesfield to Edinburgh on a folding bike...who'd have thought it?!

Finished!

We finally made it to Edinburgh this evening! It was another long day so the full blog entry is to follow tomorrow.

The adventure was hard work....but worth it!

Well, that was hard! It had been looking like today would be rough but we didn't quite anticipate just how demanding it would be. For both of us it was the worst conditions we had ever cycled in.

We departed Carlisle with the rain apparently clearing away but with the air noticeably cooler than of late. The wind was strong from the start and was a direct headwind (as it would be for the entire day). The climb was gradual through rolling countryside, but our pace was reigned back to bottom gear territory due to the wind. After a brief feed, it started snowing....little were we to know this would be with us relentlessly for the next 7 hours!

Toiling along avoiding an ever increasing number of logging lorries piloted by lunatics, we happened across the only cafe for miles where we decided to thaw out. It was important to get some calories in as we were working hard and combined with the freezing temperatures, we were burning a lot of energy. We also had a big climb ahead of us and needed to be ready for this.

Stepping outside the cafe, our hopes it had stopped snowing and the temperatures had risen were quickly quashed. It felt colder than ever, so we gritted our teeth and set off.

Soon we were on the long climb over the border hills, with the next habitation 15 miles away....this is properly remote country. As we climbed, it snowed harder and the temperature dropped steadily. Soon I had ice plastered on my helmet and both of our bikes were having mechanical issues from the components freezing up. As we reached the summit, the road itself was snowy too making it even more 'interesting'.

The descent started well but turned out to be a false start, but after one more climb we were finally picking up a little speed. Fortunately at this stage we tested our brakes, which turned out to he completely frozen! Some hard yanking on the brake levers eventually melted the ice from the rims and we continued our descent to Hawick.

The final leg of the day saw us trudging along the main road before reaching the very welcome sight of our B&B at 7:30pm.

What a day! Although the distance wasn't immense, the climbs, weather and headwind made this easily the hardest day of the trip so far.

Let's hope the weather is kinder tomorrow!

After fueling up on a colossal Weatherspoons breakfast (and after managing to escape Kendal's chaotic one way system), we were soon on the long climb to Shap fell on the old A6.

Despite the weather deteriorating as we climbed, we made good time with just a little bit of a twinge from my knees. Our 'northern nemesis', the ongoing headwind, was in fine form so our descent to Shap village was somewhat slower than expected. My knees were starting to get a touch painful, so I dosed up on ibuprofen, tubigrips and jaffa cakes.

At Penrith a cafe stop was in order, partly for refuelling reasons, but also as we reckoned we now had cracked the halfway mark!

The final 18 miles were on a delightfully straight and easy going lane, seeing us arrive in Carlisle just after 6pm.

Tomorrow should prove to be interesting with the snow forecast.....

Today was a pretty tough day.....not especially hilly or especially long, but a combination of factors made it quite hard!

We set out in lovely sunshine towards the Yorkshire Dales (so much so in fact, I managed to find a novel way to dry my just washed cycling trousers on the bike! Photo attached....).

We had set out on a light breakfast intending to eat something more substantial at Settle. We arrived at The Singing Kettle just before midday and enjoyed a much needed second breakfast. Copious amounts of tea to wash it down and it was time to swim through the sea of motorcycles between the cafe and our bikes.

We had noticed a slight headwind en route to Settle but having left after food, it seemed to be strengthening. The next few hours were very tough, like cycling through treacle, but a energy boost liberated by some coconut macaroons kept us rolling. Leaving Bentham behind, the weather changed for the better with a noticeable increase in temperature and the wind also became a little less northerly, allowing a pleasant speed across to Kirkby Lonsdale. Yet more feeding here before the final monster climb of the day, followed by a series if excellent descents eventually landing us in Kendal.

Tomorrow is looking likely to see the dry weather deteriorate, but we are very much heading in the right direction again then.

Our friend Jenny is making a surprise visit for dinner, so now it is time to go and find some food!

The first day of the adventure is now complete. After picking our way out of Manchester (and picking the glass out of our tyres from the street warfare of Friday night), we had a well earned breakfast in Bury.

Restocked and ready for the next section, we headed onwards to Accrington where one of the trademark characteristics of cycle touring once again made itself known; encountering random situations and becoming involved in them! This particular occasion saw me on a temporary climbing wall in the town centre hosted by a Lancashire army regiment who were there on some sort of recruitment drive. I was more than happy to have a play then gave them a donation in return.

Leaving the town saw us start the proper hills and soon we were joined by a road cyclist for a short while, who before parting also made a donation to the cause. He was trying to encourage us to tackle the infamous 'Pendle Nick', but as we could see it, and how ridiculously steep it was, we politely declined and carried on with our planned route.

Up until now, the day had been cool and dull and while not unpleasant, it was a stark contrast to the recent balmy sunshine we have been enjoying. Upon our approach to Barnoldswick the clouds parted, the skies turned blue and smiles were aplenty as the sun warmed our backs for the final part of the day.

Having settled into the quaint hostel, I am now composing thus from an equally quaint pub with a steaming bowl of soup planted in front of me. So, with that in mind, I'm signing off until tomorrow....

After setting out at some unearthly hour this morning, the first 20 miles or so have saw us reach Manchester city centre by 7am. Currently refueling on a much needed coffee before setting off. Next stop - Bury for breakfast!

Fundraising target met & last minute adjustments underway!

Well my original target had been £150 to raise . . . it quickly became apparent this could easily be met so I upped it . . . then upped it again to £750. I am very pleased to announce so far a grand total of £1003 has been raised! Thank you very much to all those who have donated. I will, of course, continue to rally for further donations during the challenge.

Speaking of which, today is the packing / last minute adjustments day. It seems a few bits on the bike have worn a little more than expected, so some last minute tinkering has been going on. Hopefully everything is now in working order . . . they at least appear to be. I will be taking plenty of gaffer tape and WD40 . . . apparently anything can be fixed with these two items.

I'm going to attempt a 'mobile update' shortly via my phone, but I haven't got a clue what I'm doing with that really. Fingers crossed for that! I am also looking at perhaps 'Glympsing' each day, where an app on my phone allows people to monitor my progress and speed. I doubt my battery can sustain this all day, so I'll probably just 'come online' for an hour or so a day, provisionally I'll pencil in 2pm as I'm likely to be moving at that time.

Right, off to progress with yet more packing and prep work!

Mechanical tweaks and fundraising update

Well after I was alarmed to discover I'd completely knackered the chain on the bike the other day, it now has a new chain, sprockets and a chainring, meanwhile I now have oily hands which also smell of petrol. Nice. In the process, I've tweaked the gear ratios slightly to give me a marginally lower climbing gear (every little helps) without sacrificing too much of the top end gearing.

The fundraising is going very well too; I've collared a fair number of colleagues on top of the friends and family who have already donated. A big thank you to everyone who has! I'm now over halfway to my £750 target, with £410 raised so far!

I've also discovered an interesting app, courtesy of a colleague, called 'Glympse' (the app is called this, not the colleague). This enables me to send out a signal on my mobile 'phone, allowing people to track my progress in real time (including my speed . . . so unless you enjoy watching paint dry, you might want to look at something else when I'm climbing up towards Shap). I've not yet worked out how I'll manage this, but probably set out a time each day when I'll be 'viewable' for an hour or so. I suspect the battery drain is immense so I doubt I'll get much time before the mobile dies, not to mention a lot of the places I'll be in will be fairly remote and this app will require a reasonable internet connection. More to come on that later anyway . . . .

The charity has been selected!

After much thought, I have decided to raise money for the Mountain Rescue Organisation of England and Wales. I think the MRO are so frequently taken for granted . . . if you've ever walked in the hills, climbed a crag, even stepped off the train on Snowdon, if you had an accident then it would be the Mountain Rescue teams which would step in to help. The Police frequently rely on them in times of extreme weather too, as they are equipped to deal with some of the harshest environments. Yet despite this, they are an entirely voluntary organisation. Everyone involved volunteers in their spare time, it doesn't matter if it's a warm Sunday afternoon in July or a wet Christmas Day - they are on standby every hour of the day, every day of the year.

We are very fortunate to have these highly experienced teams on hand to help and unlike many other countries, their services are not charged to the patient. Please do your bit by sponsoring me on my mad adventure, by visiting www.justgiving.com/foldingadventure

Any donations, however small, are greatly appreciated!

Thank you.

Route Details (at last!)

OK, so this has been a long time coming . . . but I've finally got around to producing a route map. The ride will last 5 days with approximately 300 miles to cover. The 5 legs of the journey can be briefly summarised;

Day 1 - Macclesfield to Earby . This is via the city centre, but departing at about 5am to avoid the chaos. I have kevlar tyres fitted ready . . . this isn't intended to make the tyres bulletproof for the journey through the suburbs, but rather to hopefully fend off the 'Friday night fallout' which will inevitably be strewn everywhere.

Day 2 - Earby to Kendal. No doubt the promise of Lakeland ales at the terminus of this day will keep progress swift, despite the inevitable headwind.

Day 3 - Kendal to Carlisle. This will be the first (of several) big climb days, of course this means there should be some fun downhills too. Still roughly in the Lake District area so hopefully suitable liquid replenishment will be available in the evening.

Day 4 - Carlisle to Denholme. Today will be the day we sail over the border into Scotland. Of course, I say sail, but that would only be applicable if it was flat and with a tailwind . . . but it isn't, it's uphill and I expect we'll have a headwind too. I will try to appease the weather gods by sacrificing a few bottle caps from the night before, but I'm keeping my hopes fairly restrained just in case my efforts are ignored.

Day 5 - Denholme to Edinburgh. The last day will see some pretty big climbs, but what I am rather hoping will be a spectacular descent into the city. I am conscious that if my brakes fail on this descent I'll have two options; a sea estuary or take my chances with the trains by freewheeling across the Forth Rail Bridge. Let's hope the brakes work . . .

Anyway, here's the route map showing the above days:

Initial route planning completed

After an intense meeting involving multiple beers, a 5-day route has been established with an estimated overall mileage of 280 miles. This will involve traversing Manchester, heading up past Pendle and onto Kirby Lonsdale, Kendal, over the steep pass between the Howgills and the southern fells before dropping down into Carlisle. The final few legs will take place over the Scottish lowlands, with a particularly hard day planned for day 4 - not  by design I might add; the landscape is pretty wild and the opportunities for sleeping limited when utilising hostels and the like!

I will generate a route map soon and post it up on here.

Chapter 1 - Trial Time!

An ideal opportunity arose this week to actually try out the idea of loading a Brompton up (or at least trying to) and then pedal it somewhere. This would be an educational experience as I've never ridden it further than 10 miles and never carried anything more than a pizza.

So my plan was simple - carry what I need for an overnight camp (this is winter though, so a bulky winter sleeping bag needed rather than my tiny summer one) then cycle to a campsite in the Peak District, eat/drink in a pub and have breakfast in a cafe, the result would be no need to carry any cooking clutter.

I awoke yesterday to a gloriously crisp and sunny winter morning. Excellent start, the bike was carried outside and unfolded.

Then the thinking began. I am used to loading up a conventional touring bike; they're easy as you can strap stuff anywhere and everywhere. On a Brompton it's a little trickier - no front rack and the rear rack is so close to the ground, only panniers the size of a small loaf of bread would fit. Fortunately, a colleague had allowed me to borrow his wife's Brompton bag. This rather nifty luggage holder attaches to the front of the bike and is about 30L, so I reckoned on getting most of my stuff in there.

Hmm, but I still had a tent and my Thermarest to fit on. Five minutes of bungee cord lateral thinking later, I had everything on the bike.

I was quite surprised how light the bike felt and owing to the fact the front 'pannier' is attached to the frame, rather than the forks as on my conventional touring bike, the Brompton actually handled remarkably normally. One thing I did discover when trying to pilot it down the road was the bag did clash with the handlebars, limiting my steering somewhat . . . mental note to not attempt any sharp turns.

Wardlow Mires - Here I come!

My destination was the camping field behind an excellent pub, the Three Stags' Heads, at a place called Wardlow Mires in the Peak District. This is only about 25 miles cycle from Macclesfield, but as a first attempt I thought it wise to start slowly in case I encounter any major issues. My journey there would take me past the Cat & Fiddle pub on the A537 (a pretty lofty location) and across some very nice scenery to reach my destination.

Here the bike is on the long climb out of Macclesfield, with a snow capped Shining Tor in the background;

This sort of climb is not a great challenge on my 27-geared touring bike, but with just 6 speeds to play with (and bottom gear not really that low either), it was a bit of a different story this time! Let's just say even though the temperatures were sub-zero and I just had a single layer on, I was quite toasty when I arrived at the highest point of my journey.

Leaving behind many confused on-lookers, I at last had a very welcome downhill section where normally I would expect to be hitting 30mph . . . it was more like 20mph on this bike, but that's fast enough on a loaded folder! As I approached the junction where there is the option to travel over Axe Edge (a minor road and not on the gritting routes), the lane looked to be snow free so I decided to proceed with what is undoubtedly a more scenic route. Hmmm, well the bit I could see was snow free, but this wasn't the case for the whole section . . .

First lesson of the day - 16" wheels and deep snow do not mix. Not at all. Fortunately nobody was around to see my antics as I attempted to push my precariously loaded bicycle along the snowy road! I feel I should point out the above photo was taken on one of the easier sections. In the midst of a particularly snowy section, a rather nice view did open out though.

After yet another hair-raising icy descent, I rejoined the A53 having almost forgotten what it was like to cycle upright for more than 10 seconds at a time. My journey continued across Harpur Hill and then onwards through Millers Dale via a superb descent, which of course meant a gruelling climb out of the other side. After reaching the top of the hill, my home for the night was visible as I then descended the final stretch of road.

After, perhaps unsurprisingly, being listed as a lunatic by the campsite owner, I pitched my tent on the frozen ground.

Some of you may have noticed a small bear seems to be accompanying me - this has been my cycle touring mascot since last May so he was entitled to grace the Brompton on this trip.

I unpacked everything and amazingly managed to fit it into the tiny porch in my tent. Don't worry, the bear didn't sleep outside in the end.

So off it was to the pub, and following a hearty meal I managed to bag the perfect seat by a roaring fire, complete with the obligatory dog and a pint of house beer, 'Lurcher' at 8.0% abv!

And here I am enjoying said pint (rather merry by this point):

Today I returned home by a combination of train and cycling, but I'm afraid as I was suffering the after effects of the 'Lurcher' and the weather had deteriorated, I didn't take any more photos.

The trip was certainly interesting and despite a few shortcomings, I was pleasantly surprised by the Brompton in a touring capacity. There was something just that bit more entertaining riding this rather than my normal touring bike . . . so the Edinburgh tour is now very much on . . .

The Folding Adventure - Inception

OK, so plenty of people have heard of folding bicycles (especially those of you in London). Many of you have probably seen them and the chances are if you have, you've seen a Brompton. These eccentric machines are typically used to travel short urban distances and this is the use mine has seen until now (apart from one frenzied ride in a storm to get to another train line as my local one was blocked . . .).

As I do annually, I am due to spend a long weekend in the Scottish Highlands at Easter and had been toying with the idea of cycling part (or all) of the outward journey. No issues, I have a touring bike and the cycle would be pleasant. However, the travel logistics cause problems for the return journey so I was a little stumped, at least until I spotted my Brompton winking at me from the corner of the room. The idea was born: Macclesfield to Edinburgh by folding bicycle! Furthermore, I reckon it is a quirky enough idea to be able to raise a few quid for charity along the way too - more on this later.

Before any of this though, there is a slight question mark hanging over this; can I actually get everything I need for a cycle tour onto a little folding bike?! There's only one way to find out . . .