Full moon +1 day.🌕
Corsica, the day before.
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Author Archives: essiep
Andraxt loop.
Trek Domain, 34°C, no wind, full sun.
Although this was only 25 miles, I still really struggled on the hills. Ok, it was 34°C in the shade and climbs had not a breath of air. Further, I think I still suffered from that cold I had a few days ago.
The bike was pretty good (Trek Domain 105 disc) They didn’t supply enough tools to get all the adjustments I needed. The seat was slightly too high . Oh, and the reach a little short. I made do with lowering the bars.
Danger loosenings.
Ridley 12sp,Di2, Ultegra, 34°C, no wind, full sun.
That is a rather swish bike. All carbon, Ultegra Di2 electric gear shift, hydraulic disc brakes; a real delight. It was amazing to ride, spritely and brisk acceleration. It’s ideal for multiple harpin descents.
GR221: Mallorca.
33°C, still in strong sunshine.
7am start and back in Deiá at 4. Limestone makes for hard slow surfaces to walk on. There are broken areas of Kärst topography often in classic forms but usually quite broken. We were on approach shoes which meant we felt every pebble through the soles. Beefier walking shoes would be better. I didn’t miss the boots though.
This part of the island is mainly limestone and I was surprised to pass a layer of chalk on the way up. On top were the Clints and grykes of limestone pavements. (Grykes are the cuts between those slabs).
The descent was long slow and awkward. We had troubles routefinding in the woods. There were waymarkers but they were in the habit of running out. Surfaces were slippery on layers of olive leaves. They remain quite waxy when dead and dried. This is not a desperately popular route. The biggest problem was water. We both packed 4 litres each but that was nowhere near enough in full sun (at 33°C).
- Summits gained:
- Puig de Pou, 945m
- Puig de Vent, 1005m
- Puig de Vendell, 932m,
- Sa Galera 908m where we overlooked Deiá.
Mallorca: day 1, Deia.
36°C, sill, sunny with no cloud.
A remarkable flight, especially the thunderstorms over the Pyrenees. I have videos of this too.
Summer
Anglezarke moor
Kona Jake, 17°C, light cloud, light NW breeze.
After work ride. I headed up the moor towards Winter Hill. The total distance is not great but many of the inclines are. The Jake is a good climber with the right gears, weight and stiffness. I gave the path across Spitlers Edge but stopped at the 2nd gate (No Bikes).
Warm summer rain.
21°C, some sun, but mostly drizzle with heavy pulses. Moderate S.
A nice warm start, but drizzle set in. From the south. There were pulses heavy enough to make bubbles in puddles. I was tired at the end but after the last week, that’s not surprising.
Backache.
I wake absurdly early lately. Anyway, I felt the need for a nap at 11 this morning after getting up at 5am. My bedside reading is a guidebook for the GR20. Reading that fired me up too much for sleep so the rucksack got repacked instead.
We soon travel to Mallorca and I will take my boots and get some hill training.
I’ve stopped running this week. After a couple of weeks with tightness around the lower back and pelvis, I pulled something on the last run. Since then, it’s been extremely tight, or at times, painful.
Ride between summer drizzle showers. Cycling doesn’t trouble this backache until I get off.nswinging my leg to dismount is harder than riding at a decent pace for a few hours. On the bike is actually a relief.
Busy day and an airshow.
Up early, as I do in high summer. This was the fastest yet, helped by using proper running shoes. Ideally, I’d like a.oair that are a big less squishy and more springy. I don’t need to build stamina this way, it’s all about building resilience in my legs.
Watched the airshow for a while. From the back garden, Hawker Hurricane, then at the seawall: Mig 15. Then ride through the brown and stopped to see a P51 Mustang. That was great, I loved the sound. It makes a whirring as well as the clattering rumble from the 27 litre engine. It looked fine in silver and red livery.
Sounds ideal this; spent the afternoon killing around on the grass in the garden. The deep cerulean blue sky was perfect and unblemished. Occasionally, it was cut by a vapour trail or a pair of buzzards. Eventually, I rode back home. This time, the route was mostly towpaths and then gravel. Near the end, I grew tired of the vibrations, especially the last 5 miles. I shall sleep deeply.
Micycle 