Setting off, take two,..

So after a few uneventful days in Fujisawa the weather had improved and I was able to leave my bathroom for intervals longer than four hours, I was a little bored of the city and it was time to be moving on.

More than a little nervous I set of out of the city at about 8 am, my Garmin seemingly taking me down every back road available. Soon I was riding along the Sakai river on a lovely little set of cycle paths towards Sagamihara.

Now I had no real plan to follow this particular day, only to head north towards route 413 which follows the Doshi river to my eventual goal of Mt Fuji. After ten okay miles I left the river and was riding either on small roads or cycle paths running through housing areas.

This got pretty complicated to follow for a while and I was starting to get tired as I hadn’t fully recovered from my illness, thankfully I got into the centre of Sagamihara and was following route 16 which has some of the best cycle paths I have had the pleasure of riding on.

I was coming up to the twenty mile mark when I stopped at a Lawsons convenience store for a bite to eat and to search for somewhere to crash for the night, it was early, I was very tired by this point and didn’t want to wait for dark so I could wild camp somewhere.

Luckily I found a campsite about 2 miles away and after attempting to phone them, where I simply managed to confuse both myself and the site staff, I decided to take a gamble and turn up to see if I could stay there.

After a lovely descent (which I would regret the next day going back up) I was at the site and chatting to the lovely staff, between us both we managed to work things out and I was given a spot for the night in the pine trees overlooking the river.

I hadn’t thought about food for the night but the lovely people running the site gave me a lift to a nearby shop for provisions for the evening, the kindness of people in Japan will always amaze me.

Home for the night

Some plum blossom (ume) along the Sagami River

It was a beautiful sunset but a chilly night.

After a pretty good nights sleep I packed up and, a little later than planned, I headed out at 10 am into the first of many hills. I was expecting some climbs but nothing quite prepared me for this.

Within 5 Miles I had gone up 700ft and the weight of my bike was really making me suffer, pushing where I couldn’t ride and gradients hitting over 13%. Thankfully it started to level a little to a slow steady climb which meant I could make some progress finally.

The stunning views made the suffering a little easier!

Soon I was back in the mountains, pushing up the steep stuff and descending down the other side in the cold mountain air, at one point reaching over 33 mph which felt a bit silly even I’ll admit!

After nearly 15 miles I was starting to look for a place to stay for the night, I had checked on Google maps and the area was covered in campsites so I was certain I wouldn’t have any trouble finding one.

Sadly every site seems to be closed at this time of year so after multiple attempts and failing I was thrilled when I reached a small riverside site that was closed, but would still let me camp the night. The young boy working there acted as a translator between myself and his mother who very kindly let me camp for free, with the use of their toilets and plenty of hot water boiled over a log fire. It was perfect after a long hard day pushing everything I own up mountains. Again the kindness people have shown to me stands out on this day.

The next day I woke to a cold morning with ice on my tent, it was a beautiful spot and I let my tent dry in the sun as I packed away my things and got ready for another long day. I had eaten the night before but wasn’t massively hungry so set off with no food and expecting to be able to find something along the way.

This day proved harder than the last, with even steeper gradients and much more pushing the bike, to make things worse there was nowhere along the route selling food, I had set off too early for the restaurants and there were no convenience stores within sight. The only morale boost was the occasional glimpse of the very top of Mt Fuji capped with snow in the distance.

Beautiful scenery but no food…

After ten hard miles I was suffering and not feeling at all well, I had managed to find a vending machine selling strawberry milk which kept me going a little until I finally reached a rest stop at Kaminakayama where I ate a bag of donuts like my very life depended on it. At this point I still had ten miles to go and was in no mood for camping so quickly dove on Expedia and booked the cheapest hotel I could find after the summit of the mountains, not wanting to stretch the suffering over another day yet.

I worked out from that point that I still had 5 miles and another 1000ft left of climbing to do, with nothing else to do I kept pushing and riding, stopping to rest then pushing the bike again until finally I reached the tunnel at the top, at 3529 ft elevation.

I was thrilled but apprehensive that somehow there was another mountain behind this one lurking to jump up in front of me, I prepared for what I hoped would be a long descent down the remaining 5 miles to my hotel.

Seeing Mt Fuji for the first time is difficult to put into words, I have seen the work of Katsushika Hokusai and his 36 views of Mt Fuji, I have seen countless stunning photos of the mountain, I even have a very good documentary on the mountain, none of this does it justice. To see Mt Fuji for the first time is indescribable.

I got my first full glimpse of Mt Fuji between trees, the sun glaring off the snow, and at a scale beyond my comprehension. I forgot my pain, I simply stopped and stared, after five minutes I started riding again and soon reached Lake Yamanaka, with more stunning views and one of possibly the most scenic bike paths that I think exists in the world.

I was soon forgetting my plan and rode an extra couple of miles along the lakeside, enjoying the flat, smooth path and drinking in the scenery as a mist swept around the base of the mountain.

The initial euphoria wore off soon enough when I realised that my hotel was at the top of yet another, if not smaller, hill. A long soak in a Japanese bath helped my soreness immensely and I went to bed a little lonely, but smitten with a mountain.

Setting off, sort of..

After a lovely few days with my good friend Koichi, catching up on racing in Japan, visiting the Honda museum and the Motegi circuit, then finally a lovely meal together at his friends restaurant, it was time to say good bye and set off on my own.

Koichi had very kindly put me up in a lovely hotel for the night in Kamakura overlooking the sea and Enoshima Island so I decided to spend a couple of days exploring the area.  I first visited a couple of local shrines including Hokokuji which had been recommended by Koichi, it was a beautiful place with a lovely bamboo forest and I could have spent hours there however I needed to get back to my hotel to grab my bags and move to a different hotel I had booked.

Tsurugaoka Hachiman-gū

Hokokuji

After grabbing my bags I was still a little early to check in at my new accommodation so headed over to Enoshima island to have a little explore, the weather was lovely and had brought people out for the day so I wandered through the crowds taking it in before grabbing a quick dinner. After dinner I headed back to Kamakura and checked into my new room for the night.

Enoshima Island

A bit different from the seagulls back home, Kites seem to be the main problem here

I was up early the next day and headed over to Enoshima again, today was a little chilly with a strong wind but that did mean it was much quieter so I could explore the island at my leisure without the crowds. I headed from the bridge towards the hill on the centre of the island, climbing the steps up through the shrines towards the Sea Candle tower and gardens at the top.

The views from the top of the hill and tower are amazing and I would imagine on a clearer day would give spectacular views of Mt Fuji in the distance. Sadly being very early spring I think I missed the gardens at their best but would certainly recommend a visit as the pictures I have seen of them in full bloom look spectacular.

From here I headed down to the shore towards the Enoshima Iwaya Caves which were sadly closed due to Typhoon damage to the walkway, it was still a beautiful place and it was nice to see a quieter side of the island.

After that it was time for a spot of food and to head into Fujisawa city for a couple of days rest. I wasn’t terribly well at this point so had decided to wait out a couple of days while bad weather (and hopefully my illness) passed through.

I got to my hotel and rested for the next two nights, exploring Fujisawa a little between the rain storms and stomach upsets.

Finally in Japan – The first few days

Well I am now finally in Japan, sorry for the late post as I have been over here a few days now but a combination of being really busy and Jet lag has kept me away from the laptop and keeping you updated. So where to start, I guess the flight and my journey into Tokyo, I’ll post more about the days after at a later date to try and keep this short.

I left the house pretty early in the middle of the cold snap hitting the UK at the time, -2c and snow meant I was more than a little nervous about getting to the airport on time as Britain doesn’t have a great track record of things working once it gets a bit chilly. Despite the weather we made good time to Manchester airport (thanks again Dad, another favour among thousands owed), and I was soon checked in with Cathay Pacific who very kindly looked the other way from my heavy bags and the inevitable charges, I’m a big fan of Cathay’s customer service now and didn’t have a single negative experience with their staff for my entire journey.

By this time my luck with the weather had run out so we were delayed leaving Manchester by one and a half hours due to Ice on the place, once they had been to Halfords for the antifreeze we were finally underway.

Drawing straws to see who pours the boiled kettle over the plane windows…

Now, my only issue with flying is always the food, only on very rare occasions has it been edible and sadly this was not one of them. Forgetting my distaste for airline food I hadn’t had any breakfast so endured the long flight to Hong Kong with a few mouthfull’s of something that once swam and resembled a fish, doing back flips in my intestines.

We arrived in Hong Kong with only an hour to wait until my transfer to Narita, this is normally a good thing but Hong Kong was especially scenic and I was glad of the opportunity to be on solid ground and to rid myself of the remnants of my meal. Feeling much more human I boarded my flight to Narita and could finally sleep a little.

Hong Kong to Narita is a relatively short hop so after three and a bit hours we landed and were ushered through customs like jet lagged bipedal livestock. Thankfully they let me in the country and I soon found my bike waiting for me in its box already on a trolley, again a nice touch from Cathay making the whole trip much simpler.

To leave Narita Airport with a bike box is like playing Tetris on expert difficulty, the doors open roughly 5mm wider than the box and I very nearly got myself and four very confused Chinese tourists trapped for the duration. Thankfully we escaped with minimal casualties and the very nice man from the hotel shuttle bus let me take my bike with me to the hotel for a well earned rest.

I was up early the next day after building the bike in my hotel room the previous night, it had all gone pretty well with no damage to the bike and it being simple enough to pop it all back together. After much confusion I managed to explain to the very lovely hotel staff that I wouldn’t be taking the massive cardboard box with me and they very kindly threw it away for me. I still fell a bit bad about that one!

Now, with a fully loaded bike I set off on my first few miles cycling in Japan, things were not as simple as I would have liked. Sadly my satnav, terrified at the thought of the countless options of navigating the 40 or so miles into the centre of Tokyo had decided that it didn’t want to play thank you very much and was reduced to being a very elaborate speedometer.

This meant I was reduced to using Google maps walking directions. With the phone in my pocket, shouting directions, and startling passers by as I went down the road trying to find my way as it screamed ‘Head East’ at random intervals, as though I had the faintest idea where exactly east was meant to be, ‘Surely Japan is east enough?’.

Somehow this wasn’t my downfall, that arrived at 2.93 miles from the hotel. A rather strange and loud noise was coming from the back wheel, on close inspection the bolt holding the left side of my luggage rack was missing and was forcing my mudguard onto my wheel. Looking closely I could see that the thread in the frame had stripped leaving me with no choice but to abandon my rear mudguard and cable tie the rack to the frame in the hope it holds.

More than a little concerned that I had landed on my face at the first hurdle I set off again, still using the shouting trouser method of navigation. I slowly worked my way clear of Narita city and headed out into the countryside to follow route 464 and the Hokuso train line straight into Tokyo. The ride after that was relatively simple, stopping at a bike shop for some chain lube, and a family mart for some food, I was soon in the outskirts of Tokyo and could finally see Sky Tree looming in the distance.

My first view of Tokyo on the ride in

Actually riding into Tokyo is simpler than you imagine, for one of the biggest cities on earth it is relatively bike friendly with lots of people out riding. I knew I was getting close to my hotel in Ueno when I was suddenly cycling away from one of the many sets of traffic lights surrounded by rickshaws past the gates of Sensō-ji temple.

After arriving I had a nice hot shower and hit the streets of Ueno for a wander and some much deserved hot food.

Final preparations

A year after committing to this trip I am coming down to the final few days wait, notice has been gladly handed into work and the last few days of the job are dragging slowly by.

Sailing by faster than anything is what would have in the past been my free time, my last few weekends are booked up visiting friends and family and at the very last helping out the 1000cc Historic F3 organisation at the Race Retro show on the stand.

With the final days wait comes final days preparation, the bike has undergone a few minor changes since my last update.

I was struggling for traction on the pedals in the wet so a pair or DMR V8 flat pedals combined with a pair of the cheapest FiveTen stiff soled trainers I could find were purchased. I have ridden a few miles with this setup and have been very impressed, it reminds me to a certain extent of riding in clipless pedals and it really helps keep my feet on the bike in even the worst conditions, fingers crossed it wont be so bad that I really need all this grip.

On a slightly more delicate note is the issue of the saddle, the original saddle seemed comfy enough but I found that on long distances I was getting pressure spots in delicate places I’d rather not have them. After reading way too much about saddles than I wanted to I went for the Fabric Cell Elite Radius, it’s an air cell type saddle that manages to spread my not insignificant mass evenly and so far has fixed the issue of pressure spots I was suffering from.

With regards to navigation and data logging I’ll be using a Garmin Edge Explore 1000 head unit with OpenStreetMap elevation maps of Japan. For some reason Garmin can’t provide English maps and even suggested using OpenStreetMap themselves! I cant fault their honesty but do feel they are missing a trick. There is a fantastic website (here) that lets you download an easy to install map pack for Japan that even includes things like convenience stores, something I’m certain will be very useful!

I have speed and cadence sensors on the bike and will be wearing a chest strap heart rate monitor, so I can see just how much I’ll have been suffering in the Japanese mountains. All of this data will be synced via Garmin connect to Strava and I will hopefully be posting videos of the route maps using the nifty little ReLive app.

The final update to the bike is currently being sorted by my local bike shop while it undergoes it’s last service before I leave. I have asked for a new pair of handlebar grips with bar ends to be fitted that will give me a couple of different riding positions and hopefully will help me stay comfortable on the long rides to come.

I have a rough idea of how I will pack the bike for the flight and have a couple of very large bags to put the bike in before it goes into it’s box. The bags should hopefully be useful in Japan should I ever need to hop on a train as bicycles are not allowed on public transport in one piece.

I am currently debating routes and depending on the weather may head inland on my trip south, skirting north of Nagoya and up to lake Biwa before seeing Kyoto and Osaka, then possibly popping over on the ferry from Wakayama to Tokushima.

Very kindly my family have got me a Japanese sim card with a 7gb a month data allowance. This will be a big help for the trip, letting me keep in touch with everyone and hopefully post a few more updates on here as I get about the country.

I’m certain there will be things I have forgotten about and I’m sure that when I get on the road there will be things I didn’t prepare for, but for the most part I am happy with my efforts and feel ready to deal with whatever I come across. Let’s hope I did my job right!

2018 – Two months to go

So after finally committing myself to this trip last February the departure date is steadily looming larger and larger in the future. I’ve gone from having the base of an idea, to having the bike, the luggage, and all the equipment ready with the flights and my first few nights booked and paid for.

Honestly this year has just flown by and the preparation has been great fun with lots of riding in various conditions and my fitness level is finally starting to get close to where I need to be for the trip. There is still a long way to go but hopefully over the next month or so I will get there and if not the remaining fitness levels will come with actually riding daily in Japan.

Whats left to do then? Well, I still need to raise funds for the trip and bills so ebay will be getting a hammering. And my Japanese language skills have gotten seriously rusty so I’ll be hitting the books to finally get my Kana down properly and hopefully increase the vocabulary past the ‘Hello My name is’ base level of conversation!

As quick as the last year has been I expect the next two months to drag, with a mixture of excitement and sheer terror as the scale of what I have signed myself up for sinks in past the dreams of waking up to the sun rising over glorious Japanese scenery.

Hopefully the blog will be a little more active as the trip gets closer and I can write some actual updates for you. Wishing you all a very happy 2018.

R.

Taking pictures, my other obsession

So first of all sorry it has been a little while since my last post, as it does sometimes life has gotten in the way of the fun stuff recently and sitting down to the keyboard had been put on the shelf a while, however, back to it now..

I figured seeing as it will be taking a rather prominent part in the trip I should probably mention photography. Those who know me will know of this fixation, and if you ever visit my house and look in my fridge you will be more than aware due to the stacks of roll film, 35mm film and developing chemicals taking up the place food should be living.

When I first thought of the trip I had hoped to get over to Japan with at least one of my film cameras, ideally my 120mm roll film Bronica that I love for the sheer insanity of the size of it along with the stunning image quality it’s capable of.

The best excuse for stopping for a rest on hikes – Bronica ETRS

And the reason I take it on hikes – Bronica ETRS on Kodak Portra 160

However once I started to get serious, buy luggage, and start weighing my stuff I quickly realised that I needed to be realistic, even though the Bronica can be used as a weapon in self defence should the opportunity arise it just isn’t practical to strap it to a bike and haul around the rolls and rolls of film I would want to take, reluctantly this meant I would have to stay using Digital for my trip.

Don’t get me wrong I love my digital setup and the Nikon D7000 that has been my workhorse for so long (including two Japan trips, one when the Bronica broke), but film has a special place in my heart and digital just never quite hits that same mark I can get with emulsion.

So I started to weigh my Nikon kit, debating each lens, the shots I wanted to take, what I could compromise on, what I couldn’t, and pretty soon I was back in the same boat as my Bronica, great images but needing a team of Sherpa’s to follow me around and hand me lenses. Sadly this option was a little out of my budget.

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9 months before I leave for Japan and I'm weighing everything I'm taking to help decide what cameras are going with me,.. This is becoming an obsession #planning #ocd #cycletouring #japantrip #itweighshowmuch

A post shared by Robb (@nunsofanarchy) on Jul 9, 2017 at 3:12am PDT

Yes I know its sad, yes there is a spreadsheet, no I don’t care, would a man who knows how much his socks weigh care?

This is where the really tough call had to be made, I needed to downsize my gear and I needed raise cash to do it. My Nikon was the sensible choice to be sold as it was the most valuable, but it is also my main camera for Motorsport photography meaning that I wouldn’t be able to shoot the Historic Formula 3 championship I have been involved with for a long time. They are good people and have been very kind to me over the years but this is something I may only get the chance to do once so I took the plunge and listed my Nikon gear on eBay, I can always rent a camera and lens for a race I guess.

Visit http://www.1000ccf3historicracingassociation.org.uk and http://www.f3historic.com/ to find out about some great racing and some lovely people, Also you can see some of my photos..

So what to replace it with? I started looking at mirrorless cameras with an eye on the Olympus micro four thirds system and their OM-D bodies, but the cost of the Zuiko glass I wanted to put on it was a little prohibitive even used. So I started to look at Fujifilm. Now I had heard great things about the X-Trans sensor they use in certain bodies and the sample images I found looked great, plus the styling is pure film camera, Manual dials, metal bodies, and on the X100S I was eyeing up there is a nifty hybrid rangefinder viewfinder giving the best of old and new.

I soon tracked down a lovely little X100S in the Ltd edition black finish and have been very pleased with the results. It’s small, inconspicuous, has amazing Jpeg processing and filters that are actually usable (a rarity for me), plus it will sit in a bag on the bike without causing any issues. The Images speak for themselves I think.

Now to just get it to Japan and take some photos…

There and not quite back again..

I have been slowly increasing the distance on my training rides over that last few months, so when a friend suggested I try cycling to visit them in Llanrwst in North Wales it seemed like a good way to get some miles under my belt.

So, the plan was to set out early on Saturday morning getting the busy coast road between Deeside and Prestatyn out of the way before heading along the coastal path to Colwyn Bay, then head inland over the hills before dropping down into Llanrwst, staying overnight, then simply reversing the route on Sunday morning and pedalling home.

The first part was simple enough, a quick ride across the Wirral and along the coast happily enough until arriving at Prestatyn, this sadly is where things got harder. As soon as I got onto the coastal path I was stuck with a strong headwind and intermittent rain,  unpleasant normally but 30 miles into a 60 mile ride it soon became downright miserable.

Hard miles ahead

I plodded along at a much slower pace, stopping occasionally to shelter from the worst of the rain, eventually going back onto the coast road to hide from the wind while I dodged holiday makers through the caravan parks. Once I arrived at Abergele I was back on the coastal path but thankfully the weather had lifted a little and there were blue sky’s ahead which made the head wind that bit more tolerable.

From one extreme..

To the other..

The section of coastal path from here is especially scenic with boats racing off the shore, cormorant’s stretching and drying their wings on the breaks, and the hills ahead slowly growing larger.

I soon rolled into Colwyn Bay at around mile 48 and took a nice break to get more fluids and food on board before heading through the town and into the countryside to Llanrwst.

The climb started easily enough but within two miles was up to a 9% incline and kicking up to 15% in places,  at this point I was really struggling and the next few miles became a tortuous mix of pushing the bike up the extremest parts of the climb then riding where the going got a little easier.

The going was pretty slow at this point but it did give me plenty of time to admire the stunning views from the top overlooking Llandudno and the Conwy valley and estuary.

I just stopped to admire the view, honestly.

What had looked to be a simple ‘Up and Over’ turned into seven miles of climbing up and descending down small steep slopes until finally I was on the descent into Llanrwst ready for a cold drink and a hot shower.  Sadly during the ride I started to have some pretty bad knee pain so had to call off the return journey and was very kindly given a lift home by my Dad (bailing me out yet again).

It was a great ride and bloody hard work, but totally worth it and hopefully is a taster for what I will be experiencing on the road In Japan.

A few stats:

Distance: 61.4 Miles

Moving time : 6 hours 12 minutes

Total climbed : 2,106ft

 

 

Fine tuning

Disclaimer – this is another post about the bike and the gear I am using so possibly not very interesting to most people, read on at the risk of your own boredom.

So, after 700 miles on the new bike the setup has slowly evolved into what I think is pretty much perfect for what I need. On the first overnight trip with the camping gear a few issues popped up.

First of all the balance of the bike fully loaded. While it was unruly but manageable in the dry it became marginal once the roads got wet, with the tail of the bike feeling very loose and coming around on down hill sections under braking. Secondly it showed that the original rear wheel sadly wasn’t strong enough to deal with the load, eventually loosening the spokes and creating play in the rim.

So, first of all the most important job was to replace the rear wheel. I got in touch with my local bike shop ( K Cycles ) who sorted me out with a new wheel from the Raleigh Pro build series, Its a Mavic A119 on a Shimano Deore hub. After a bit of a mix up with the price the shop also threw in a pair of low mount pannier racks which helped sort out my other issue.

With luggage I seem to be like a goldfish, whatever space I have I grow to fill up. So with that in mind and the thought of the luggage weight limit (and a potential fee for excess baggage), I opted for a pair of small Ortlieb roller city front panniers. These will be used for the smaller lighter items like clothing, and any items I may need to had in a hurry like my wallet, camera lock etc.

Now I am aware that Ortlieb have a reputation for being very good, but the most expensive out there. So I was amazed to find that not only was there a limited choice of small panniers from all suppliers but that the Ortlieb were the cheapest! Some manufacturers small bags were actually more expensive than the larger ones which I still don’t understand.

One other thing I have discovered over the past months riding is that sadly my Handlebar bag isn’t waterproof. This is a deal breaker unfortunately as I wont have many chances on the road to dry my gear out if there is periods of continued rain.

I have taken a chance on an Altura Vortex waterproof front roll. Now this is pretty much just a dry bag with attachments for the handlebar and stem, and nowhere near as useful as my previous bar bag but it is lighter, guaranteed water proof, and, as I got it in a sale it is much, much cheaper than a fully waterproof bar bag with pockets and a mount it can unclip from.

So fingers crossed that’s all that is needed, other than new cables and brake pads just before I leave pretty much everything else is how I want it to be. Just a case of riding loads with the new gear to get used to it and find any potential issues.

The final setup,… hopefully

The point of no return

So after months of saving I finally have my flights booked! I had initially tried booking back in April without realising that flights are only released 11 Months prior to the date of departure, so after a tense couple of months waiting watching the prices of flights rising slowly I headed back to Trailfinders in Liverpool to see what was available.

After a bit of back and forth between my options (and deciding I didn’t want to fly via Qatar due to current political issues ),  I decided to go with Cathay via Hong Kong. Its a little over my budget at £609.00 return but after going through all the luggage allowance details with the very helpful staff at Trailfinders (Charlotte was a great help, calling up airlines for confirmations on allowances) it seemed to be the best bet for travelling with the bike.

Had to stop for a quick pint and dinner at a local to calm my nerves haha

So after years of dreaming about doing something like this I’m finally committed to it, I wont lie it’s very scary but exciting at the same time. Its all starting to feel very real and very near in the future.

Trailfinders have been excellent (no I’m not on commission sadly) and the mobile App they have for keeping a track of your booking details is excellent, lots of information there with flight numbers, confirmation numbers and everything being available offline as well (excluding live flight data obviously).

Very impressed by the Trailfinders app

Hopefully I will have more interesting news over the coming few months with more overnight training rides planned soon.

Robb

The first trial run, On the hottest day of the year….

So the plan for this year before I go away is to get as many miles under my belt as possible, with a few overnight trips on the bike to get used to riding with a full load and see what works and what doesn’t with my kit.

In the past few months I have been slowly increasing the distance I ride, all building up to a 30 mile ride to a campsite in North Wales. I’m very lucky where I live to have a great network of cycle paths and routes that can get me around with the minimum of playing in traffic.

Wales is only a short 11 mile ride away and with a path around the coast of the entire country, sadly I discovered that this is mostly only really suitable for walkers and mountain bikes for the first twenty miles or so (On an earlier ride I chased the path along the coast where it varied from pristine tarmac perfect for my bike, to sandy dirt that would have had me off the moment I looked at it). From what I can see the cycle route starts properly at Prestatyn but can still get a little sandy with it being right alongside the beach.

I had booked an overnight stay at a small site called Ynyshir farm a while in advance with no real expectations of weather, purely to have a goal to aim for. So setting off with the forecast predicting temperatures up to 30°c I was enjoying the sun but with one eye on my water supply.

Within the first five miles I was out of the towns and enjoying the dedicated off road paths leading me across the Wirral via Hooton, then Burton, before heading towards the river crossing to North Wales. Allot of these paths are either fine gravel or compacted dirt and are good to ride even on a road bike (with less potholes and bumps than most roads) making it a pleasure to roll along them even fully loaded with gear as I was.

The Weight,.. My lovely light bike laden to the point I struggle to lift it..

I soon arrived at Burton marshes with my first sight of Wales and the place I would be camping looking very far away, the downside of living on a peninsula means a lot of back and forth getting to bridges.

So, just ride to the end of that hill over there eh? again seemed like a good idea at the time

From Burton you join a series of paths that can either take you on to Chester, or over to Connah’s Quay via the crossing at Hawarden Bridge. I headed over the bridge and after navigating what felt like a never ending amount of cattle grids, headed into Wales towards my goal.

The Hawarden bridge crossing, useful but noisy!

Words cannot describe my loathing for these damn grids

Now foolishly I decided to keep following Cycle route 5 here which (unknown to me) takes you on a roundabout route through various housing estates, a park, and then finally past a school up what feels to be a constant hill. Not a problem on a nice light bike but carrying my house with me I felt every stroke of the pedals on the way up, a new route had to be found for the route home.

For the majority of the remaining miles I simply followed the coast road (A458) taking cuts through the small towns along the way to avoid the dual carriageway sections, on the whole traffic wasn’t too bad with only the occasional caravan towing lunatic trying to move me out of the way.

A quick breather to take on fluids near Holywell

With the coast road finished and most of my water gone it was time to head up the hill to my campsite for the night. Now I had looked at the route on Google street view and knew I was expecting a bit of a climb but the pictures didn’t do it justice, I would have struggled without any load on the bike but with all the gear on it became a real slog.

Sure enough after about a quarter of a mile I had to get off and push, after about half a mile the gradient eased off enough to the extent I could get back on and ride the last couple of miles to the campsite for a well earned rest and, for the sake of everyone around me, a nice long shower.

The site itself is fairly new and is nicely low key, with good clean facilities, very friendly owners and a great view out over the coast making the ride up that hill more than worthwhile.

I pitched the tent under the shade of an oak tree and settled down for some food and a nice quiet night watching the sun go down, with the possibility of storms and rain forecast for the next day

I woke up early to no rain but with the clouds looming overhead looking ready to do their worst. With the highest chance for storms forecast for midday I started to pack up everything into my panniers for an early start, and sure enough the rain began. Thankfully I had saved my tent for last so waited out the downpour watching the rabbits play in the field oblivious to to the weather.

It wouldn’t be camping in the UK without at least a little rain

Thankfully the rain didn’t last too long so I was packed up and on my way home through the remaining drizzle along the coast road. After a quick stop at a newsagent for a breakfast meal of a Twix and a Peperami the sun started to come out so the waterproof went back into the bag and the sunglasses came back out.

The roads were much quieter in this direction so I decided to head into the centre of Connah’s Quay rather than follow the path back up the hill, thankfully (especially as my legs were starting to hate me by this point) there was a relatively short ride before finding the road down to the coastal path taking me back over the river and back onto the Wirral.

Once back on home turf I instantly took a wrong turn (I’m blaming exhaustion rather than stupidity) which much though it avoided a hill, took me an extra couple of miles out of my way and undid all my effort finding the shorter route in Wales.

I was very glad to be back on the cycle paths I know well, especially after nearly 20 miles of road riding, and my legs had a little bit more energy for those last couple of very familiar miles before getting home to a cold drink and a grumpy cat.

I think the load on the bike was manageable but I will probably need to get some front panniers to spread the load evenly, it started to fishtail a little on descents over 20 mph and wasn’t too happy over consistently bumpy surfaces. No mechanical issues really other than some minor front derailleur adjustment needed before my next ride, only failure was my GoPro mount coming loose within the first mile so another solution needed for that.

All in all a success really, now if anyone needs me I’ll be having a lie down.