Long walk on the shortest day.

Posted on 22nd Dec 2015 by essiep

8°C, clear sky with building light cloud. The usual SW breeze,
I hiked with MapMyRide+! Distance: 4.64mi, time: 01:14:11, pace: 15:59min/mi, speed: 3.75mi/h.
http://mapmyride.com/workout/1284668245
Thick, slippery mud was impossible to escape.

Both Ford crossings were impassible too, the water was just too deep. Since I’m ultra smart, I prepared an alternative route that crossed footbridges instead.

Night walk selfie

Carl took this nighttime selfie while we did the Blair Witch lights thing.
I was out-shone by their lights. By myself, the headtorch I have is plenty. It’s a Petzl Tikka 2 which was great the time I was benighted near Glen Coe in 2014. When the others had 200 lumin lamps, mine couldn’t compete. However, bright lights frequently spoiled our night vision especially after holding up the map. No strong reason to upgrade then, but perhaps a stronger hand torch would work well.
Next time, I will take a bike light.

Winter warm ride

Posted on 20th Dec 2015 by essiep

12°C, brisk SW, and mostly dry, bar the last 8 miles.
I rode Arrow with MapMyRide+! Distance: 61.18mi, time: 04:30:42, pace: 4:25min/mi, speed: 13.56mi/h.
http://mapmyride.com/workout/1283493073
Mostly dry and not at all cold. There were heavy showers, but only in the last 40 minutes.
The only problem was a tricky puncture repair. The thorn in the tyre was really difficult to get out. Another cyclist in Ashby helped out with some effective tools

Before the rain.

Again my spare tube failed. I will have to look at the patch. I want to check that the patch is centred on the previous hole.
Lung ache, on drawing a deep breath, my lungs ache. Is that the Saharan dust that our weather forecasters warned of? It’s like the feeling after cycling past a freshly harvested wheat field in august. Not nice.

Unseasonable.

Posted on 19th Dec 2015 by essiep

14°C, brisk SW and more rain to come.
Warm! Too warm to wear a winter coat. The garden is confused too.

Passiflora

This plant doesn’t seem to suffer from the morning coffee grounds, the pot doesn’t receive rainwater naturally.

Cyclocross: NCN62

Posted on 13th Dec 2015 by essiep

3°C, moderate SE breeze that brought rain on the return leg. Waterlogged with deep puddles everywhere.
I rode The Jake with MapMyRide+! Distance: 36.81mi, time: 03:08:31, pace: 5:07min/mi, speed: 11.71mi/h.
http://mapmyride.com/workout/1277411311
Cold wet and squelchy on the tracks. Yesterday’s rain has not drained away yet, but it’s still fun.

Type Two fun, the kind that is good to look back on because it was grim at the time. It’s taking hours to warm up again. I wasn’t wearing my warmest winter clothes. One day it’s 11°C and next, it drops ten degrees. I blame that; it’s in no way my fault. Really.

Month’s deluge.

Posted on 12th Dec 2015 by essiep

6°C, and heavy rain to come.
End of term nears. As usual, we’re all exhausted at work. Mostly Year 11 kids who’ve had weeks of exams. The rest of us are battling with colds, on and off. Perhaps viruses are thriving in this yet weather.

Met office app.

Like a string of massive beads, the storms keep coming. One after another, carried by the dominant south westerly winds that have blown hard for over a month.

In the south, you can see fronts running nearly parallel to the wind direction. Those rain bearing fronts spill their load for long periods, days at a time sometimes.
Daytime temperatures have been good, up to 12°C. Nevertheless, lodger A is running her electric radiator again. She’ll have to chip in a supplement for the bill.

Notice the ancient temperature is 15 in my utility room. I don’t understand the need for additional heating in mild weather.

Storm Desmond, Lancashire.

Posted on 5th Dec 2015 by essiep

11°C, storm force wind, SW.
Heavy but not torrential rain here. It’s warm and roads are lined with puddles not floods.

Sefton, I like this place more in bad weather. I could see twenty odd statues by Antony Gormley. When misty, the furthest fade to invisible. Today, sand whips along the wet, flat beach. I didn’t think it would do that on yet sand. Such is the wind strength.

True nighttime.

Posted on 3rd Dec 2015 by essiep

11°C, SW wind, brisk, rain.
We sampled true darkness last night.
BBC
A long power cut just before bed-time. All power was lost, including phone signals. Only the sound of house alarms filled the darkness. To the north was an orange glow with regular flickering red under the clouds.
My clever comment? “It’s the mother ship”
Most people have a light on their mobile, I used mine to find the camping lights.

Head-torch and lamp ready. Be prepared.

It was bed time anyway, but I thought about how cities would be without so much artificial light; we would cope.

It’s turned to mud now.

Posted on 28th Nov 2015 by essiep

4°C, W wind, clear sunny to start.
I rode Kona Jake with MapMyRide+! Distance: 17.67mi, time: 01:49:37, pace: 6:12min/mi, speed: 9.67mi/h.
http://mapmyride.com/workout/1263120421

The familiar canal route is never too familiar. Last time on this same circuit, the grass was verdant and long. Now decaying leaves cover soft muddy ground. Hardly saw anybody this time. Even on earlier rides, people were out walking dogs in fine weather.
Over the summer, care was needed over hard lumpy soil. Now it’s so soft that the gears need clearing sometimes to keep them working.

The mud will be deeper over the next two months, but I am happier keeping upright as my skill has built up compared to last January.
The return leg was on rough muddy lanes. Here, the front tyre picked up a puncture, probably hawthorn. Re-inflation held at about 35psi. I’ll check it again in the morning. Washing the bike took long enough.

Found ‘Fourth’

Posted on 28th Nov 2015 by essiep

Icy start, 3°C, wind building.
Found: Soft Machine ‘Fourth’ album. It has no cover but the disc is in excellent condition. It’s the 1971 CBS pressing. There are hand-written notes on the cardboard sleeve; not my hand. It only cost £2.60 whenever I bought it, probably 20 years ago.

Soft Machine 4

In a ditch

Posted on 26th Nov 2015 by essiep

10°C, light SW, clearing sky but yet muddy roads.
I rode with MapMyRide+! Distance: 23.80mi, time: 01:40:35, pace: 4:14min/mi, speed: 14.20mi/h.
http://mapmyride.com/workout/1261941013
New tyres make the bike feel much more secure on poor surfaces. Rain has washed debris and mud onto the road. All good then, I started slightly grotty, it’s been a tiring day at work. Once warned up though, it became worthwhile extending the route a bit.
A mile north of Whittington, I stopped for a pee. Somewhere dark and quiet, I laid the bike in a gateway and went into a field. Aiming for a hedge, I walked into the blackness. The muddy ground gave way to a ditch. In I fell. On the positive side, there was no water in the ditch, or anything sharp. A metre down, I landed in soft mud. Safe.
I laughed in my own schadenfreude, even before I climbed out. The only effect was some nettle rash, and that doesn’t count.

Micycle

Mike thinks b/hikes

Author Archives: essiep