Tenting/Camping LEJOG

[Freelander]

Can you delete a post reply?

[Freelander]

How are you thinking of getting back from the far north of Scotland? It is somewhat remote up there. Public transport can be a bit hit and miss. Trains will do their best to be unhelpful. You are a long way from any major connurbation.

Give some thought to your return.

I’ll be flying out of Edinburgh. But I’ll definitely need to plan that well.

[Paulatic]

Out of those two options I’d plump for the 1st 3 in August.
July is often wet IME with heavy downpours. Both periods are during school holidays so no difference there.

Thank you. Very helpful. Now I can start looking at flights. Is August generally warmer (and drier) or just drier? Just so I can start thinking about was type of clothing to bring.

I was giving you my impression from living in SW Scotland we find July can be very disappointing. So many fetes, galas and shows end up cancelled or in mud. Just took a look at figures https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Climate_o ... ed_Kingdom and there’s not a lot in it statistically. By the end of August you can be guaranteed a heavy dew on your tent by then.

[RickH]

Last Monday in August is last Bank Holiday of the year and the world and his friend take their little princes and princesses on a grocklefest. Traffic can be heavy, and cyclists are sometimes seen as an nuisance, especially bikes full of panniers etc.

Give some thought to your return.

In Scotland the August Bank Holiday is the first Monday in August (3rd August in 2020).

[Freelander]

Thank you. That link was helpful. Sounds like typical Nova Scotia weather!

[Tigerbiten]

If your flying out of Edinburgh then ........

Ferry to the Orkneys -> cycle across -> ferry to Aberdeen -> Train onwards.
It may take a little longer but it will probably be less hassle than trying to get a train back from the far north.
Especially if there's mores than one of you in the party.

Luck ..........

[Freelander]

As I plan my route using some of the more available and popular guides, I find myself needing to decide on what GPS and Apps I want to use to find my way. I like simple, minimalist but reliable technology. I don’t need HR or cadence it’s such things. I’m leaning toward just using my iPhone 8 running google maps and/or Strava/RidewithGPS. The battery life throughout the day may be the biggest issue, but if it only means auxiliary power cell, that’s ok.

Just wondering what GPS devices are most recommended for touring (from experience) and
What apps do most people run and if there are better ones or preferences for riding in the UK.

Thanks, Daryl

[Freelander]

Ferry to the Orkneys -> cycle across -> ferry to Aberdeen -> Train onwards.'

Thanks for the suggestion. I wasn’t planning on riding the Orkneys, but if I think I will have time I may consider it.

Thanks!

[rareposter]

As I plan my route using some of the more available and popular guides, I find myself needing to decide on what GPS and Apps I want to use to find my way. I like simple, minimalist but reliable technology. I don’t need HR or cadence it’s such things. I’m leaning toward just using my iPhone 8 running google maps and/or Strava/RidewithGPS. The battery life throughout the day may be the biggest issue, but if it only means auxiliary power cell, that’s ok.

Just wondering what GPS devices are most recommended for touring (from experience) and
What apps do most people run and if there are better ones or preferences for riding in the UK.

Thanks, Daryl

I like nice simple GPS without the power and Strava and HR rubbish that clutters up the so-called "performance" models. Garmin do something called the Edge Explore which is an updated version of the old Edge Touring (which I have). As maps and routing have become more memory intensive though, most manufacturers have realised that the best way to use the limited space inside a GPS is to pair it with a smartphone and allow the phone's far superior computing power to do the majority of the work.

Most GPS use their own proprietary apps and connections though. Garmin use the frankly woeful Garmin Connect, Wahoo is all done through an app (which is quite good). Sigma have something called the Sigma Data Centre which is an absolute maze to navigate until you've figured it out. See if you can trial a couple of models - sometimes demo days or Sportives will allow you to hire a model with a pre-programmed route and you can see what the basic user interface looks like. Try and read some reviews of them as well; the models change quite frequently and you might find the model options and permutations quite confusing, especially when online shops are selling old stock but [GPS manufacturer] has just announced a new model with a very similar name or number so make sure you know what you're getting. You dont want to order what you think is the new model but what arrives is something 2 years old which doesn't have the functionality that you want.

Certianly recommend a dedicated GPS unit though. Phones aren't designed to be strapped to handlebars with the screen on for 8+ hrs. Pop a nice waterproof GPS on the bars, leave the phone in a pocket and let the proper mapping do the job.

[Tigerbiten]

It's a question of power .......

Do you want your GP to run off an internal battery or AA's ??
A GPS running off an internal battery tends to be more sophisticated but is useless if it runs out of power.
Running off AA batteries tends to more basic setup but you do have more options if you run low on power.
I run my Garmin GPS off a couple of rechargeable AA's but keep a set of Duracell handy just in case.

How are you recharging stuff ??
Hub dynamos are great if your doing long days in the saddle, but you may struggle if you have a lot of power hungry devices and are only doing short days.
Solar is just about useful if you do short days in good weather but I wouldn't count on it.
Mains power is doable as you can recharge a cache battery at a campsite/cafe but it does add another variable into the mix.
I do a mix of all three of the above as needed.
If you don't use a lot of power and travel quickly then one big cache battery with maybe one recharge may do you the whole route.

Luck .........

[andrew_s]

Ferry to the Orkneys -> cycle across -> ferry to Aberdeen -> Train onwards.'

Thanks for the suggestion. I wasn’t planning on riding the Orkneys, but if I think I will have time I may consider it.

Thanks!

It may not take any extra time.

From memory, the ferry calls at Kirkwall around 10 pm, and arrives in Aberdeen around 7 am, and the ride up to Kirkwall doesn't take all that long, so you could probably make the Kirkwall ferry having taken the last JoG or Gills Bay ferry.
(Kirkwall is an intermediate stop on the Aberdeen to Shetland ferry).


For GPS, I use an AA-powered Garmin (Etrex, GPSMap64, Oregon), and save the phone battery for thing you can only do on a phone, which cuts down considerably on the need for electric power.
Navigation is at least as good as the specific cycling GPSs; there's no fitness/cadence type stuff, or simple Strava uploads, and if you plan a route the evening before it can be harder to load it on to the GPS.
I'm mostly a map based person - I plan roughly where I'm going on relatively small scale maps (1:250,000), then just use the on-screen maps without bothering to load any route at all (unless I want to go into or through a large town/city). I get about 3 days out of a pair of AA Eneloop Pro or disposable lithium. I wouldn't expect as much out of alkalines, but haven't tried them.

Whether a phone is satisfactory for navigation will depend very much on how you use it. Following a predefined route on (bluetooth?) voice prompts, with the screen off, and the phone in a handlebar bag may not use very much over half a charge, but on the handlebars with a map showing a lot of the time, and you may not get more than half a day's ride, which will mean a USB power pack whilst riding (with the hazard to the phone of a non-waterproof USB port and the vibration of the cable on the port).

Either way, charging on a camping trip can be awkward. At cafe stops, you're only there for 45 min, say, and there may not be an available power socket anyway. Getting things charged at the campsite reception means the phone or power bank isn't available whilst reception is closed (19:00 to 08:00, typically). The shower block often doesn't have any power other than lights, shaver sockets in the light over the washbasin etc, and it will depend on how happy you are about leaving your equipment unattended in a public place. Pitches with electric hookup cost more, and using one would mean carrying a fairly bulky plug/socket
I use a 10 Ah powerbank, charged from a mains adapter or the hub dynamo.

[andrew_s]

Can you delete a post reply?

Only if your post is the last post in the topic.
There'll be an X button to the left of the ! "report this post" button.

[Paulatic]

[
Either way, charging on a camping trip can be awkward. At cafe stops, you're only there for 45 min, say, and there may not be an available power socket anyway. Getting things charged at the campsite reception means the phone or power bank isn't available whilst reception is closed (19:00 to 08:00, typically). The shower block often doesn't have any power other than lights, shaver sockets in the light over the washbasin etc, and it will depend on how happy you are about leaving your equipment unattended in a public place. Pitches with electric hookup cost more, and using one would mean carrying a [url=https://www.toolstation.com/fly-lead-socket-convertor/p91715]fairly bulky plug/socket[/.

You’ve forgotten an option I’ve used to great success.
Be friendly to the people who have a pitch with Electric Hookup Ask them nicely would they mind charging x&y up for you. I’ve yet to have been refused.

[Cyril Haearn]

Plus One for ferry travel, shame it does not continue to Hull
Is the boat comfortable, what facilities does it have, what about weather/storm?

[graham bowers]

I'm late to this thread and see lots of good advice has been forthcoming. I would recommend going across to the Orkneys for both the ferry to Aberdeen and there are some fantastic archaeological sites if you have time. Skara Brae for one.

Something that hasn't been mentioned thus far, and is very relevant to camping in Scotland, is the Scottish midge. Do not underestimate the potential for these creatures to make life miserable, if you are unprepared. I'm doing lejog for the second time in June this year, and can assure you 'll be taking a midge hood and repellant. Try to camp where there is a breeze, if you have choice. West coast is generally worse than east.

Do you have a route yet?

https://www.smidgeup.com/