Cycling UK Forum

Hello, All.
I'm planning a trip from Calais to Santander for this summer. I'm hoping to have 6-8 weeks and wondered what people's favourite roads/towns/campsites/ cafes etc. were. I'm planning about 80km+ a day until the Pyrenees, with camping gear on a traditional tourer (lots of low gears, 32c tyres). I don't mind some off-road so long as it's not too rough. I like quiet campsites with views, historic towns and all forms of art. I attach the link to my route so far, but I haven't yet planned any rest days. I did Paris to Madrid last summer, which was fantastic. Thanks in advance!
https://cycle.travel/map/journey/138737

I've never found it easy to buy maps while touring in the UK, and more so on the continent: actual bookshops are a very rare breed, petrol stations with a shop big enough to stock maps are few and far between (especially if you're avoiding major roads), and small newsagents rarely have maps unless the are in popular tourist areas. Do others share that experience?

But if you're not in a rush, it can lead to finding nooks of towns where you might otherwise not go. A funny little newsagent in Sicily had just what I needed....
Thank you mjr and andrew_s for your thoughts about powerbanks. I am considering a solar charged powerbank.

Everyone has their own preffered system, don't they? What has worked fro me is using Osmand on a (cheap) waterproof Samsung phone which I keep plugged into a charger run from a hub dynamo. If I start with a full charge, I'm seldom left with less than 80% at the end of the day, even after long hauls up mountain passes (and I'm not fast). I've never had anything stolen when leaving it in the campsite shower block to top up. This year power is a bit more crucial because I have an insulin pump controller to keep topped up and I've also started using a widget which sends blood glucose readings to my phone every few minutes, requiring Bluetooth to be left on (but which should avoid some of the unpleasant hypos). So I'm going to get back-up in the form of a powerbank charged with AA or AAA batteries (any recommendations welcome). Or I might keep a power bank charged from the hub. I also carry a maph-holder so that I can revert to paper. Whatever you do about power and navigation I hope you have a great trip. I'm sure you will.

I have used a Samsung Xcover (3 and then 4) and it works well - the 4 better than the 3 as it has more memory for the GPS. I attach it via a Tigra mount. This has a waterproof cover but I found it too frustrating to see. I too charge from the dinamo with occasional top-ups at campsites, pubs, etc. I went to Wales this summer and got soaked on multiple occasions, keeping the charger plugged in. Usually finished the day with at least 80% charge left. Only problem was once it told me I had water in the port, but put it in my shorts pocket for an hour and then everything was fine. I imagine touch-screens are always going to be dodgy in the rain. I always carry 2 spare cables as I'm ham-fisted with them . My daughter has a less waterproof phone which she mounts in a Tigra waterproof box thingy as she lives in Copenhagen where it rains a lot. She finds that works fine and there is a charging port built into the box. I'm planning Paris-Madrid for next summer and will use the Sasmsung again. The camera's not up to much.

Update:
A ten-day tour in Wales went really well using the Vittorias. They were reasonably fast and gave me confidence on the rougher and wetter stuff. Wear and tear doesn't seem excessive. Will stick with them for the foreseeable future. France and Spain next...
Thanks again for the advice.

Know that feeling! One thing that encourages me to go out for day rides after a tour is that without all the camping gear, familiar hills feel a lot easier and I enjoy them more.

I've come late to this thread and haven't gone all the way back, so apologies if I'm repeating what others have said more eloquently.
What a fantastic tool cycle.travel is! I am more or less sure that any difficulties are down to either my incompetence or the accuracy of the OSM. Or both. I used CT to create a route from Geneva to Sicily last year and it was a fantastic, varied and mostly beautiful route. Italian roads were, however, somewhat tricky in that a supposedly paved route would suddenly disintergrate beneath my wheels, with just occasional strips of tarmac to show that it was once a road. Paths were sometimes impossible with a loaded tourer - or almost any bike except for the most hard-bitten of off-roaders. Is more information about road surface available? Some sort of algorithm to allow for differing regional standards?
I do miss the clarity of OS countour lines - I have found myself surprised by the number of ascents and descents in a short space (in Wales) and the route profile graphic I find misleading because the vertical scale is so inconsistent between different journeys. Could the contours be made a little darker? Chevrons put on the steepest inclines?
More specifically, coming out of Hebden Bridge going north on NCN 68, a wimp like me would rather avoid the cobbles and incline of Heptonstall but CT doesn't let me plot the route around it to the east. It took me three goes to believe it was viable, such was my faith in cycle.travel.
But really, hats off to Richard for this magnificent achievement - it's added hugely to my enjoyment of cycling over both short and long distances.

Update:

Any diabetics going to Italy, here is how I managed:

Check your insulin is available. I don't normally use the disposable pens, but penfills were not available for Levemir.
I kept insulin cool using Frio bags even through the heatwave and little or no access to a fridge, but I had been advised to replace insulin after 1 month.
Allow time to do this. I was in Lecce and it took nearly 36 hours, but it should be do-able in 24.
You need UK prescriptions for each separate medication. I took several prescriptions for minimum amounts to cover emergencies.
You cannot go directly to the chemist, where you might be charged €200. You have to see a doctor at the Guardia Medica, which is only open 8pm to 8am - it's like an after-hours drop-in service.The doctors I saw were unfamiliar with this process and one had to phone a colleague. Make sure the Guardia Medica gives you separtate (Italian) prescriptions for each type of insulin as the chemist won't accept two types of insulin on one prescription ( as I found to my cost and stress ).
You then go to the chemist (which must be in the same region as the issuing Guradia Medica) who might well have to order the insulin in. I went to a late-night chemist at about 11pm. the insulin arrived at 5pm the following day. It cost €4 per item, which is a regional charge.
You will need to check that the reciprocal healthcare agreement is still in place after Brexit.

Hope this is helpful to someone!

Thank you all very much for your helpful comments. I think I'll give both tyres a try - if I don't use them then someone in the family will, as they don't obsess about bcicycle tyres like I can The Revolutions I'll put on in the autumn when I do mostly day trips.

BTW just had two glorious day trips cycling in Derbyshire and Staffordshire - so glad those hills are easily reached from Sheffield.

Hello all
Don't often post so please forgive any social gaffs.
Has anyone had any experience of these tyres? They're both on offer at Planet X. Use is loaded touring, sometimes on gravel tracks but mostly paved surfaces. I liked Marathon Supremes but wrecked the sidewalls on tracks way beyond their intened use. Clements were goodish but haven't lasted.

Vittoria revolution g+
https://www.planetx.co.uk/i/q/TYVITREVG ... wired-tyre

Vittoria Randonneur Pro II Folding
https://www.planetx.co.uk/i/q/TYVTRANPI ... lding-tyre

Thank you!

Thanks, Cunobelin, my next step was to search the diabetic fora. I posted here because people will be aware of the realities of cycle camping. I have travelled lots without any problems but never attempted to pre-arrange insulin supplies. It's quite pricey stuff and I don't pay prescription charges here, I'm not sure what is likely to be covered by the EHIC (or E111 as it is now I think). My consultant tells me that most insulin is now at the same concentration across Europe, but as you point out, I will need to find the local brand names for my particular insulin. I always carry a doctor's letter but have only once been asked to produce it by security and never by customs. Better safe than sorry.

Hello all
Making one of my rare forays into cyberspace...
I am planning a 2 month camping tour of Italy over August & September and have to maintain my insulin supply. I have been advised that I should noy rely on keeping insulin for more than a month in cool-bags so should try and get fresh supplies en route. I am wondering if there are any reciprocal arrangements or will I have to arrange to buy some.

Anyone any experience of this or similar?

Thanks for any suggestions.

gjkathome wrote:

aflook wrote:Many thanks for all the advice. I've finally set up the bike and this is what I've ended up with:

Shfiters: Campag Athena 11speed
Chainset: Spa Touring 26-38-48
Cassette: Sram 11-34
Chain: Sram
Rear mech: Shimano XT Shadow 9speed
Front mech: Campag Centaur triple 10speed

Can you confirm a couple of details please?
Are the shifters Athena double or triple?
Is that a 9-speed cassette?

Many thanks.

Graham

Sorry, Graham - I haven't checked this thread for a while. Yes to both questions - triple levers and a 9 speed cassette (Sram). It's still all running very smoothly and I'm finally getting used to the bike.

gjkathome wrote:I am considering a triple set-up with 11-speed Campag shifters, an 11-34 10-speed Shimano cassette and Shimano RD. I gather from the Shimergo table that this should work OK with the Hubbub modification and a 10-speed RD.
My question concerns the RD. I presume the Shimergo table refers to a road 10-speed RD and not the "Dyna-Sys" MTB one as these have a very different pull ratio.
To get the capacity I assume I should use a MTB RD. Am I right that my proposed set-up should be OK with a 9-speed MTB RD? I think the pull ratio should be correct but I would like to be sure it would have enough movement to track across all 10 sprockets.

Many thanks.

Graham

I think someone with more technical knowledge needs to answer this one. The last time I had STIs they worked well with an MTB rear mech(can't remember which one) so the pull must have been the same then. A mate has Tiagra STIs running an XT mech. Maybe 10 sp is different? Will a 9sp rear mech work with a 10sp chain?
In perplexity...

Adrian

531colin wrote:buying the wrong bike is costly all right.....which is why its preferable to get the position sorted on an existing bike, with a steerer extender, etc.
Why is a sloping top tube counter-intuitive? If you have a short torso for your height, (the other way of saying long legs for your height) you are liable to want the bars high....which is why sloping tubes are popular anyway.
Sitting on top of the pedals with a long stem....OK if you can manage it...I could, 30 years ago.
Do you have any dimensions of your custom frame? Just off the cuff i would guess short, sloping top tube, from the frame sizes you mention toe overlap shouldn't be a problem.
I don't have a problem with "variations" in riding style, but if somebody is uncomfortable on their existing bike, a conventional riding position is the first thing to try, isn't it? Nobody can guarantee to find an off-the-peg bike which will give instant comfort for a rider who insists on a position way outside the normal range.

Sloping top tube is counter-intuitive (counter to my intuition anyway ) as I would expect a fame to have a longer seat-tube to fit longer legs - but I take your point. I always thought sloping top-tubes were to increase standover height which is not an issue for me. As for riding position - why is "sitting on top of te pedals with a long stem" likely to be problematic? I am averagley fit and 57 and it seems to suit me that way. Maybe I should start worrying?! Could life be easier if I changed position?!! The custom bike was traditional touring geometry but with slightly longer seat- and head-tubes. Haven't got the exact measurements.

Good question - this was not so easy on the other leavers. The button (must have a more tech name - cable release? Downshift activation thumb device? Thing wot you press going uphill?) will go one click to trim or three clicks at a time to change ring. The centaurs just went one click or youcould trim by holding the upshift lever across as you clicked down. The Athenas are much easier and more positive. And I got them cheap at JE James. Still haven't got out for more than a few miles at a time - a day or two riding might bring other problems.