cycle touring

feck sake lads

Canis Lupus wrote: »

It takes time. It took me a week or so before I got proper nights sleep, now I sleep like a baby. One thing that helped was using the sleeping bag as a blanket as I like to sprawl when asleep and a 'mummy' bag is far too restrictive unless it's really cold out.

But basically, just bear with it.

(regarding pillows I got a thermarest one, it's not too bad and it packs up small enough once you compress it)

yes i bought one of those pillows from a lad in the fell club very good but i would rather have my own home pillow , i also use my sleeping bag as a blanket as i said guess i will have to do a lot more touring to get used to sleeping under the stars.;)

feck sake lads

Canis Lupus wrote: »

It takes time. It took me a week or so before I got proper nights sleep, now I sleep like a baby. One thing that helped was using the sleeping bag as a blanket as I like to sprawl when asleep and a 'mummy' bag is far too restrictive unless it's really cold out.

But basically, just bear with it.

(regarding pillows I got a thermarest one, it's not too bad and it packs up small enough once you compress it)

yes i bought one of those pillows from a lad in the fell club very good but i would rather have my own home pillow , i also use my sleeping bag as a blanket , as i said guess i will have to do a lot more touring to get used to sleeping under the stars.;)

Vélo

I packed up all my gear last night for the trip to Wales tomorrow. Foolishly I didn't get to do a test run to see how I got on. I've evenly distributed the gear as in the two front panniers weigh the same and same with the rear panniers. I'm just wondering what would be the norm (if there is such a thing) for the gear to weigh including the tent, panniers, stove, clothes etc etc.

All my gear weighs 30-32lbs and even at that the other person I'm going with will take some of the gear but not as much as he doesn't have front panniers.

We decided the other day that we'll decide on the route as we're going along. The plan all along was to stick to route 8 on the national cycle network and get the train back up at the end of the week but now we might go form Holyhead to Fishguard and cycle back up from Rosslare.

I'll let you know how I got on when I get back...that's if I come back:)

thebouldwhacker

You'll be fine with that weight. Have a great time and post up a,route and report . Wales is such a great cycling destination!

feck sake lads

i think 60/40 is the norm but you will soon find out
anyway enjoy the trip hope you get some good weather please post some photos of the tour especially your camping set up.;)

thebouldwhacker

60/40 or 40/60 ?

Planet X

@Velo.
Hope you get the weather.

TinyExplosions

Planet X wrote: »

@Velo.
Hope you get the weather.

@Velo.
Hope you get the weather you deserve.

Vélo

TinyExplosions wrote: »

@Velo.
Hope you get the weather you deserve.

Cheers:mad:

TinyExplosions

Vélo wrote: »

Cheers:mad:

No need to be mad, maybe you deserve fabulous weather, with sunshine all day long?

blorg

Canis Lupus wrote: »

Double post for for expeditions how often should one give their chain a proper clean and how many kms should you give before switching to a new one?

Clean/relube whenever it needs it- this will depend on the conditions. I haven't been too diligent on the cleaning (maybe every 3-4 months) but have been relubing whenever it feels/sounds like it needs it. I don't use a lot of chain lube at all- around 30ml over the first 10,000km. Put a small drop into each roller, don't just splash it all over the place. I prefer the wet lube, even in dry conditions- I started on wax lube in India and it just disappeared continually, went through a 60ml bottle in the 2,600km to Kathmandu.

I have been changing the chain to an extent when I get the opportunity. So far:

Istanbul +3,222km
Tehran +3,655km
Kathmandu +5,440km

Still on the original cassette with no problems skipping, etc.

I see some people rotate chains every 1000 to 2000km and wondered if that's a reasonable course of action? (weight isn't a problem).

Do you mean take off a chain and keep it to be put back on later? Utterly pointless in my opinion. Just measure and make sure to replace the chain before it does damage. Then throw the old one out. You can measure with a standard inch ruler.

Is a powerlink a good investment as well for long term expeditions?

I have one for possible emergency use (it weighs nothing) but haven't had to use it. I have been putting on the new chains (Shimano) using the joining pins, which I am used to at home. I also have a load of spare joining pins but again haven't had to use them. I use a Topeak Super Chain Tool which works extraordinarily well for something so compact. I left the allen key that comes with it at home as I have a full set of ball ended ones and use them instead.

tomasrojo

blorg wrote: »

I use a Topeak Super Chain Tool which works extraordinarily well for something so compact.

That's great design. I really like the chain hook. I must make one.

Harrybelafonte

I've been told the Kaffenbach frames from Planet X will be on sale again this month. They've been recommended for touring elsewhere, but I'm beginning to wonder how important the frame is, i.e. would an older touring frame be just as good?

feck sake lads

emm hard to know, if the old frame was a good one to start with then maybe yeah it would be better than a cheap new one;).

petethedrummer

What about the rear dropout spacing for modern groupsets?

Harrybelafonte

petethedrummer wrote: »

What about the rear dropout spacing for modern groupsets?

I always thought there was some leeway with the spacing, but that the brakes were more than likely a bigger issue?

Tonyandthewhale

I built up a 20year old 531 british eagle touristique last year for a friend of mine. Put a deore groupset on it and a new set of wheels with 135mm spacing deore hubs and mavic rims and it's much nicer than my modern raleigh royal with budget groupset and wheels despite the fact that the rebuild was cheaper (I got the frameset for 40e off adverts). So yes I would say that an older tourer frame can be just as good if not better than a cheap modern frame (that's not to say the frame isn't important, just that the design was pretty much perfected quite a while ago).
However you will probably be stuck with a 1 inch steerer column and thus a crappy threaded headset. You'd want to look out for something with canti-mounts as older long-reach calipher brakes are springy as fuck.
A lot of older bikes are also 126mm rear spacing whereas modern touring bikes us 135mm mountain bike hubs or sometimes 130mm road hubs. I'd have no problem using a 130mm hub in a 126mm steel frame as steel can bend a bit without causing problems. 126mm to 135mm spacing is probably doable but it wouldn't be ideal and frankly I wouldn't bother unless I had no other options.

Tonyandthewhale

Getting on the plane to Barcelona tomorrow. I don't suppose you're allowed bring those campig gaz canisters on a plane (even in the hold)? Anyone know for sure?

feck sake lads

Tonyandthewhale wrote: »

Getting on the plane to Barcelona tomorrow. I don't suppose you're allowed bring those campig gaz canisters on a plane (even in the hold)? Anyone know for sure?

i would say definitely a big no they took a few air canisters off me one time.but just but a gas stove over there should pick one up easy enough.

Tonyandthewhale

Thanks feck sake lads, thought it might be a no no. Ah well, I'm sure there's a camping shop or something similar somewhere in Barca.

Harrybelafonte

Tonyandthewhale wrote: »

Thanks feck sake lads, thought it might be a no no. Ah well, I'm sure there's a camping shop or something similar somewhere in Barca.

I'm bored, so:

"Some good places to look for a tent include El Corte Ingles (take advantage of the sales!), Carrefour (some of the cheapest on the market,) xxxx on Ronda San Antoni no. Xxx, as well as the army surplus shops in the Gothic and Raval areas, and the Balmat shops in Comte de Urgell 72 and Gran Via 527. "

http://www.barcelonaconnect.com/showlevel1.asp?pid=45

keenan110

Just back from a short 4 day cycle from Dublin to Limerick. I cycled the tow paths of the Grand Canal to the Shannon and then just followed the Shannon into Limerick and got a train back to Dublin.
Had pretty mixed weather but majority of the time it was cloudy and rainy, but this didn't really dampen our spirits.

The first day: Dublin to Edenderry. 67km

The tow paths heading out of town were paved all the way to the 13th Lock, but there was loads of gates along this section which made it very slow. After this section there was a very bumpy section with large rocks all over the tow path, but it only lasted for a few kms. There were quite a few sections of firm grass which was fine for cycling.
We camped about 5km outside Edenderry on the tow path which was deserted, didn't see a single person when we were camped there, a really nice spot.



The Second day: Edenderry to Shannon Harbour. 74km

The tow paths were much the same as the first day, some paved, some light gravel but mainly grass. Again there were some very bumpy sections but mostly it was fine. We camped by the 36th Lock in Shannon Harbour which was a perfect place, very quiet and a there was a nice little pub for pints that evening.


The third day: Shannon Harbour to Mount Shannon. 64km.

After the two previous days on the tow paths this day was entirely on road which was a a really nice change, even the bumpy roads seemed super smooth compared to the tow paths. I camped in Lake Side Campsite on Lough Derg. It was a brilliant campsite with really good facilities and there was nothing better than a swim in the lake after the days cycling.



The Fourth Day: Mount Shannon to Limerick. 57km

I rushed the last day so i could be in Limerick for 12 so i could get train back to Dublin but to be honest there wasn't any great scenery along the way after passing Scarriff (apart from Killaloe which is a nice town), so this suited fine.

feck sake lads

keenan fantastic report thanks for that.
it's a pity that route is not paved it would make a great tour.
what kinda weight had you on the rear rack .
I'm curious because thats how i tour 2 rear panniers but i reckon i could go lighter. how i don't know but every tip helps.

keenan110

feck sake lads wrote: »

what kinda weight had you on the rear rack .
I'm curious because thats how i tour 2 rear panniers but i reckon i could go lighter. how i don't know but every tip helps.

My rack was pretty heavy, 14kg. The tent i have is just under 4kgs and in the dry bag it brings it to over 4kgs. My sleeping bag and mat are heavy enough too, cause i kept everything else down to bare minimum!

feck sake lads

keenan110 wrote: »

My rack was pretty heavy, 14kg. The tent i have is just under 4kgs and in the dry bag it brings it to over 4kgs. My sleeping bag and mat are heavy enough too, cause i kept everything else down to bare minimum!

all the gear i have is lightweight ,i have two tents hilleberg akto brilliant tent a doddle to pitch very light but i find it a bit cramped but thats just me.i bought a tent from a lad on this forum, mountain hardware spear gt brilliant tent loads of room which suits me but yeah it's a bit on the heavy side.
i'm still trying to find the perfect packing list:rolleyes:

Vélo

Had a great time in Wales even with the amount of hills I had to climb.

Day 1.

Holyhead to Llandwrog.

Easy enough with a few hills, there were a few with the gradient around 14%. Caernarfon looked fantastic but didn't stop as we needed to crack on. We had a bad end to the day as there was nowhere to camp, so had to get a B&B. We ended up cycling just over 100km (including the spin to Dublin Port). The weather was fantastic, very warm and sunny.







Day 2.

Llandwrog - Barmouth

Legs tired as we set off (not used to 100km and carrying 32lbs of gear). The 1st 10km or so was flat with a strong enough headwind. Had a problem with the bike on the 1st climb, for some reason the rear wheel popped out of position and it just jammed, I suppose I was lucky I was barely moving. Undulating hills again for most of the day. We stopped and bought our breakfast for the next day which ended up being a life saver. We had spotted a lovely little town (Tremadog) but didn't stop there for lunch. We had decided we'd stop in Portmadog but this was a kip and said we'd get something just outside of the town. There was nowhere, so I got out the Trangia and cooked the sausages and rashers, washed down with a coffee. The Trangia stoves are brilliant and would highly recommend them. Somehow we managed to lose our route and to get back on track we had a climb with over a 20% gradient. At one stage we had our "Walk of Shame" I just couldn't get the bike up the hill and to make things worse I had accidentally stopped my Garmin and missed out on 9km of that days cycle. Found a great campsite. The weather was ok at 1st that evening but after we got the tent up and cooked dinner it lashed rain for the whole evening and night.





Day 3.

Barmouth - Aberystwyth

When we got up it was very wet out. So packed away the tent and put on all the rain gear. By the time we got to the town of Barmouth it had completely cleared up. On leaving Barmouth we had to pay a £1.50 toll to cross the wodden bridge to join the Mawddoch Trail. This was a beautiful cycle, completely flat and cycling beside water with mountains to the left. After this the real hills started, which didn't stop for the rest of the day, we even hit 425m at one stage. The route was tough but probably the most enjoyable on the whole trip. We did over 80km but there was nowhere to camp again, so ended up staying in a hotel. This actually turned out OK as we got clothes/gear washed and had a good sleep.





Day 4.

Aberystwyth - Newport

Legs were tired and dead again this day but still managed 85km. By this stage we had made our minds up to go to Fishguard and get the ferry accross. We didn't want to risk going to Cardiff and not getting the bikes on a train to Holyhead. This day was the longest day in the saddle, it was relentless cycling, up and down hills all day and I did manage to get up to 62kmph at one stage. At around 7.30pm we found a campsite. For £4 each we weren't expecting much and didn't get much either. It was just a field with a dodgy shower and toilet in the corner but I did manage a shower (with my socks on). It was a beautiful evening and we cooked Pasta and sauce and had this with breadrolls and beer. It was a very dry night but was surprised to find the tent was very damp inside the outersheet. When the inner part of the tent touched off it it got wet, I doubt this is normal so I'll have to look into it. I'll give a full review of the tent when I upload the photos tomorrow. We woke up very early and had an easy enough cycle into Fishguard (still some hills though).

Harrybelafonte

Was in Donegal at the weekend and saw tourers each day. A pair in Creeslough on Thursday, a group of three very lightweight packed bikes in Dungloe on Saturday along with someone carry front and rear panniers at Gweebara. All of which I take to be a positive uptake of this type of holiday again. There was somebody out on a bike everyday I was there including a sportive around Glenties on Saturday which I think is amazing progress. As a kid I used to be out on my own all the time, now there's a chance of bumping into someone.

feck sake lads

i'm heading up to dunbrody park in rostrevor in two weeks taking a lad from the fellclub (england) up to see his northern cousins:D
has anyone camped in dunbrody park whats it like.

thebouldwhacker

I thought I'd post this up here rather than the main forum. I have a bit of a confession to make. I dont like wearing Lycra while touring. I prefer to go with more casual clothing than the 'racer' look I am familiar with on the road bike. I have donned the odd jersey now and again bit dont think the skin tight Lycra bib shorts & jersey combo is suitable for a sluggish loaded tourer.
Don't get me wrong, I fully realise that touring is long hard work but I just thought I'd share and see what others think.....

tomasrojo

Ken Kifer did a lot of touring, and I rather like his site
http://kenkifer.com/

I think he was pretty old-school. This seems to be his set-up, including some visual clues of what he wore:



(Note the solar panel on the rear rack.)