Search found 141 matches

by captain offensive
4 Nov 2020, 7:17am
Forum: Touring & Expedition
Topic: Towns and Villages in Wiltshire
Replies: 85
Views: 19396

Re: Towns and Villages in Wiltshire

Are you saving Zeals for last? A good combination of alphabet and distance from Devizes.

Say hello to Kingston Deverill for me. That's where I grew up

I'm a trendy consumer. Just look at my Pixel 5 using hovercraft full of eels.
by captain offensive
9 Jul 2019, 7:14am
Forum: Touring & Expedition
Topic: All 4 Coast to coasts in one trip
Replies: 13
Views: 896

Re: All 4 Coast to coasts in one trip

Can't say about all 4 but I did 2 of them a few years ago.... Hadrians and C2C: http://www.richmay.co.uk/c2c/
by captain offensive
17 May 2019, 9:39pm
Forum: On the road
Topic: how to hand signal 'straight ahead'?
Replies: 26
Views: 2121

Re: how to hand signal 'straight ahead'?

Total nonsense. As others have said, if the turning you are taking is after the first exit but 'before 12 o'clock' you just indicate to the left after you pass the exit prior to the one you are taking. Sadly indicating on roundabouts is something that a large number of road users seem to get wrong
by captain offensive
8 May 2019, 9:52pm
Forum: Touring & Expedition
Topic: Booking Dover - Dunkirk ferry with child and bikes
Replies: 13
Views: 1105

Re: Booking Dover - Dunkirk ferry with child and bikes

I've taken a look at 'say no to 0870' website and you should be able to avoid the premium rate number by trying 020 8127 8303
by captain offensive
8 May 2019, 1:03pm
Forum: Touring & Expedition
Topic: Booking Dover - Dunkirk ferry with child and bikes
Replies: 13
Views: 1105

Re: Booking Dover - Dunkirk ferry with child and bikes

mjr wrote:DFDS Dover-Dunkirk do have a limited number of proper bike racks near the doors (visible in a pic described as "a small corner with railings" on this travelogue), but they do also let people just strap the bikes onto rails around the deck if they're busy.


Interesting. The ferry I was on there were three of us with bikes and no sign of that rack; they did just direct us to strap onto the deck [emoji3]
by captain offensive
8 May 2019, 12:49pm
Forum: Touring & Expedition
Topic: Visiting Orkney, which ferry, best place to leave a car
Replies: 18
Views: 1643

Re: Visiting Orkney, which ferry, best place to leave a car

I'd agree with asking the JoG ferry people about parking. If you can do so it's a great little sailing across and you get to start the ride at the southern most tip of the islands. Let the tourist buses set off and then the road towards Kirkwall should be pretty quiet and nice riding.

As for leaving the car in JoG goes, as the landlord of the b&b I stayed in told me whilst explaining that the front door wasn't locked: "We have no crime here. Not like Inverness"
by captain offensive
8 May 2019, 12:28pm
Forum: Touring & Expedition
Topic: Booking Dover - Dunkirk ferry with child and bikes
Replies: 13
Views: 1105

Re: Booking Dover - Dunkirk ferry with child and bikes

Might be worth trying them on Twitter or email but I suspect you'll be good with just one bike booking. Used the ferry (from Dunkirk) in the summer and they just strap the bikes onto the deck. They don't have limited number of proper bike racks or anything that could limit numbers
by captain offensive
5 Mar 2019, 9:50pm
Forum: Touring & Expedition
Topic: Collecting Bikes from Eurostar
Replies: 9
Views: 1850

Re: Collecting Bikes from Eurostar

No tips on how to do it but both times I've been on Eurostar (Paris to London and London to Brussels: a few years apart) I did get lucky and found the crew unloading the luggage can as I went past. They were happy to see my documents and hand the bike over both times (in fact they seemed happy to do so. One less item for them to have to shift!)
by captain offensive
4 Mar 2019, 9:51pm
Forum: Touring & Expedition
Topic: Coast to Coast (west to east)
Replies: 13
Views: 3550

Re: Coast to Coast (west to east)

Wrote up my c2c West to east here [emoji3]

http://www.richmay.co.uk/c2c/
by captain offensive
6 Feb 2019, 10:02pm
Forum: Lands End to John O'Groats
Topic: Inverness to JoG on NCN1?
Replies: 9
Views: 5798

Re: Inverness to JoG on NCN1?

Paulatic wrote:A good read thank you.
Air conditioning vans would be fitting Air Source Heat Pumps
Fixings on cars... for fishing rods?


Thanks Paulatic. That would make sense for the Aircon, and yes to the fishing rods [emoji3]
by captain offensive
5 Feb 2019, 10:48pm
Forum: Lands End to John O'Groats
Topic: Inverness to JoG on NCN1?
Replies: 9
Views: 5798

Re: Inverness to JoG on NCN1?

Agreed that crossing the railway bridge was pretty hairy and once I was across I wished I'd stayed on the 'main' road and crossed at Bonar Bridge.

If you're going in season and you like ferries taking the black isle route and getting the tiny Cromarty ferry is fun.

And another vote for strathnaver. When you get to Altnaharra hang a right on the north side of Loch Naver and follow the quiet and beautiful road to Bettyhill.

I've written about much of this on my 'All Points North' ride I did in 2017

http://www.richmay.co.uk/allpointsnorth/

Day 1 includes Inverness to Lairg and the second part of Day 3 includes the Strathnaver trail. Day 4 then describes the final section to JoG

(I wasn't doing LeJog btw. i started in Inverness [emoji3])
by captain offensive
5 Feb 2019, 10:33pm
Forum: Touring & Expedition
Topic: Avoiding Kessock Bridge
Replies: 12
Views: 2551

Re: Avoiding Kessock Bridge

Don't know about alternatives but agreed that there is no particular need to avoid the bridge. It has a segregated cycle/foot path, thus...Image
by captain offensive
5 Feb 2019, 10:30pm
Forum: Touring & Expedition
Topic: Advice on Food and Snacks
Replies: 25
Views: 3708

Re: Advice on Food and Snacks

I always get by on things like flapjack, jelly babies and baby Bel.

However do just be wary of the advice here about Boulangeries. Generally yes, but as someone else pointed out, I found the area around The Vexin to be very sparsely populated and went a long way on a very hot day without passing a single shop/cafe etc of any description so make sure you stock up when you can!

But do enjoy it. Should be a great trip. It was my introduction to touring and I loved it.
by captain offensive
28 Jan 2019, 9:09pm
Forum: On the road
Topic: Salisbury plain
Replies: 18
Views: 10794

Re: Salisbury plain

And a follow up having had a play on cycle.travel...

If you manage to find a time when the plain is open I've taken the liberty of suggesting a possible two dayer (based on your c50 mile a day comment) starting and finishing at Westbury (well it has a station). Head around the north edge (starting with a ride up onto the White Horse) and then into Devizes (lovely market town) and then back to cut across the plain (I dont know what the off road bit south of Upavon is like - you might be better on the road through Upavon - which is also quite pretty) then dropping down the Avon valley through Amesbury (diversion to Stonehenge if you fancy) and into Salisbury going past Old Sarum. Then day two has you following the Wylye valley up to Sutton Veny (where I went to school) and then cut across to Heytesbury, Knook, and along the open roads to Chitterne and Tilshead before following the main road (though don't think it would be too busy) up to Gore Cross. From there, if you can you can follow the old road across the Plain proper, into Imber (which is one of the most beatiful and eerie places in the UK), across to Warminster and then back to Westbury.

https://cycle.travel/map/journey/88064

Well its a starter anyway! :-)

Looking forward to hearing how you get on. CO
by captain offensive
28 Jan 2019, 8:40pm
Forum: On the road
Topic: Salisbury plain
Replies: 18
Views: 10794

Re: Salisbury plain

I grew up around the plain though not lived there for many years. If you can get a weekend when the ranges are open (they normally open at Easter and a few days in August) then you're in for a treat.

The Western plain (Warminster side) is the infantry ranges and if you can get up to Imber across the range roads it will be great riding (I've ridden across the plains as a teenager, but always whilst hiding as they weren't open at the time!).

The eastern plain (Larkhill) side is the artillery ranges. It doesn't have the old closed roads in the same way as the Western ranges and I don't think it therefore gets opened in the same way. As such you can ride the roads any time of year but you don't get such a good feel for the plain. Saying that there are a bunch of newer tank roads built in the 90s (I worked on the archaeological mitigation for a lot of them which was great). If you ever can get on them you'd be out in the wild.

If you can get onto the plain then heading across from Gore Cross through Imber and then to either Warminster or Heytesbury will show you the best of the plain.

If you go when it's closed the road between Knook, Chitterne, and Tilshead gives you the next best flavour.

As above, just to the south of the plain but the Wylye valley is beautiful. Also around the upper Wylye valley (the Deverills) is also great (that's where I'm actually from) and the northern extent between Westbury (you follow the valley but could climb up to the horse and drop back down into Bratton if you're after a climb) across the Devizes is good also.