Slowlycatchymonkey Posted October 11, 2021 Share Posted October 11, 2021 Hoping to kick off in the next 10 days. Having to leave arrangements until the very last minute as commitments mean the date in mind next week could get pushed back but rough ideas are starting to come together and even if there are delays this will be executed soon. Thinking to catch the ferry from Plymouth (Portsmouth is also an option) to Santander. According to Google the most direct route is then 8hrs 45mins to the Andalucian coast. I’m not in any rush so I’m going to allow 3 days riding for that, meaning we can meander via the most enjoyable roads n soak it up. Taking the Himalayan (awesome friggin bike so that’s a given also the RE Continental… ouch ). Have committed to recording some of it for my boys so I should hopefully have some stuff to post… although as someone who doesn’t even like having their photo taken that’ll be ‘a challenge’ There’s definitely more of a winging it feel to this than usual! Don’t want to miss the opportunity to ask for ideas or opinions though so let’s hear ‘em 6 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
XTreme Posted October 11, 2021 Share Posted October 11, 2021 Great stuff! What time of the day do you get to Santander? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Slowlycatchymonkey Posted October 11, 2021 Author Share Posted October 11, 2021 Oops meant to stick this map on See I’m good at this stuff 2 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Slowlycatchymonkey Posted October 11, 2021 Author Share Posted October 11, 2021 2 minutes ago, XTreme said: Great stuff! What time of the day do you get to Santander? Hang on I’ll have a look Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Slowlycatchymonkey Posted October 11, 2021 Author Share Posted October 11, 2021 My maths is shocking so ummmm we leave at 15.45 and it’s 20hrs 30mins… so 12.15pm.. ish? 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
XTreme Posted October 11, 2021 Share Posted October 11, 2021 2 minutes ago, Slowlycatchymonkey said: My maths is shocking so ummmm we leave at 15.45 and it’s 20hrs 30mins… so 12.15pm.. ish? Around midday then? It's getting dark earlier here now and I'd recommend you do your run in daylight. So work your way down and stay overnight somewhere en-route towards Madrid. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
boboneleg Posted October 12, 2021 Share Posted October 12, 2021 Sounds like a proper adventure to me, take lots of photos so we can all be jealous 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Catteeclan Posted October 12, 2021 Share Posted October 12, 2021 Enjoy. Hope you have more luck with food than we did. Seemed to pick days where no one wanted to cook. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Slowlycatchymonkey Posted October 12, 2021 Author Share Posted October 12, 2021 19 minutes ago, Catteeclan said: Enjoy. Hope you have more luck with food than we did. Seemed to pick days where no one wanted to cook. Im a coeliac which is such a pain in the arse I wont even start to bore you with it but the upside is I always have food on me. A comprehensive store of calorie dense ambient foods that can also easily be added to at any garage or supermarket so getting fed isnt something I worry about too much 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
yen_powell Posted October 12, 2021 Share Posted October 12, 2021 1 hour ago, Slowlycatchymonkey said: Im a coeliac That's some sort of squid isn't it. You must have terrible trouble getting bike gear to fit. Put everything you will want on the ferry in one place so you can grab it easily as soon as you have secured your bikes because we weren't allowed back to the bikes after we left port. This meant me paying through the nose for sea sickness tablets and wishing I had my book and more snacks with me. Having said that I just watched this bloke do a trip to Spain and eventually Tenerife and he was allowed back to his vehicle (UK/France though). Worth watching for places to stay in Spain, they had some good results, especially as it was only a few weeks ago so still current. 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Slowlycatchymonkey Posted October 12, 2021 Author Share Posted October 12, 2021 5 hours ago, yen_powell said: That's some sort of squid isn't it. You must have terrible trouble getting bike gear to fit. Put everything you will want on the ferry in one place so you can grab it easily as soon as you have secured your bikes because we weren't allowed back to the bikes after we left port. This meant me paying through the nose for sea sickness tablets and wishing I had my book and more snacks with me. Having said that I just watched this bloke do a trip to Spain and eventually Tenerife and he was allowed back to his vehicle (UK/France though). Worth watching for places to stay in Spain, they had some good results, especially as it was only a few weeks ago so still current. Cheers for that, if someone said oh that’s Rik Mayalls son you’d believe them wouldn’t you, shame he’s not funny The clothes aren’t too bad I just have to buy multiple pairs of things but getting a helmet or goggles is a bitch. 1 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
XTreme Posted October 14, 2021 Share Posted October 14, 2021 Got a date planned yet @Slowlycatchymonkey? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Slowlycatchymonkey Posted October 14, 2021 Author Share Posted October 14, 2021 27 minutes ago, XTreme said: Got a date planned yet @Slowlycatchymonkey? I’ll let you know tomorrow after Mark the Mechanic has finished on the bikes, if it all goes smoothly I’ll be looking at ticket prices and getting it booked up then Theres a ferry Sunday and one Wednesday. Sundays pretty much out cos the women I rode to Everest with are meeting up for a curry on Saturday and Id like to see them before I go but if Wednesday is an expensive ticket Ill drop ‘em like a hot rock Apart from ordering PCR tests and collecting a few bits n bobs (Amazon firestick tv and a slow cooker ) Im wholly unprepared and pretty excited to enter the world of winging it again after the decades of the meticulous research based decisions you are compelled to make when your in charge of a family, patients or a business. Yeefuckingha 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
XTreme Posted October 14, 2021 Share Posted October 14, 2021 7 minutes ago, Slowlycatchymonkey said: I’ll let you know tomorrow after Mark the Mechanic has finished on the bikes, if it all goes smoothly I’ll be looking at ticket prices and getting it booked up then Theres a ferry Sunday and one Wednesday. Sundays pretty much out cos the women I rode to Everest with are meeting up for a curry on Saturday and Id like to see them before I go but if Wednesday is an expensive ticket Ill drop ‘em like a hot rock Apart from ordering PCR tests and collecting a few bits n bobs (Amazon firestick tv and a slow cooker ) Im wholly unprepared and pretty excited to enter the world of winging it again after the decades of the meticulous research based decisions you are compelled to make when your in charge of a family, patients or a business. Yeefuckingha Great! Hope the weather holds out for you......mid 20's here now so ideal conditions. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Slowlycatchymonkey Posted October 14, 2021 Author Share Posted October 14, 2021 7 minutes ago, XTreme said: Great! Hope the weather holds out for you......mid 20's here now so ideal conditions. Spain currently looks dandy from top to bottom, the weather temp here has dropped but not horribly and theres rain forecast so Ill have to find my waterproofs. Fortunately on a good day the Ferry port is only 1hr 40mins from here 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
XTreme Posted October 14, 2021 Share Posted October 14, 2021 14 minutes ago, Slowlycatchymonkey said: Spain currently looks dandy from top to bottom, the weather temp here has dropped but not horribly and theres rain forecast so Ill have to find my waterproofs. Fortunately on a good day the Ferry port is only 1hr 40mins from here The UK part will be the worst bit! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Slowlycatchymonkey Posted October 20, 2021 Author Share Posted October 20, 2021 The Gods wondered how this person didn’t get the message, they wondered how they could send a disastrous flight experience down to earth and the little people still refused to understand so they sent Zeus who threatened thunder and lightning until the shipping forecast creaked with warnings of doom and everyone ran away Yep they cancelled the ferry due to forecast gale force winds Heyho at least the inner tube I ordered will turn up in time now 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
yen_powell Posted October 20, 2021 Share Posted October 20, 2021 1 hour ago, Slowlycatchymonkey said: Heyho at least the inner tube I ordered will turn up in time now You can leave it on the bike, the ferry has plenty of life jackets available. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Slowlycatchymonkey Posted October 26, 2021 Author Share Posted October 26, 2021 Afternoon guys n gals Quick update cos its on my mind Ive not updated you mingers losers proper write up later. Made it to Santander yesterday afternoon to lovely sunshine. Stripped off everything possible to discover dimbo here didnt think about altitude.. ffffreezing On our way to Valdepeñas now and sod the scenic route, the fastest route to the warmth is in order Stopped for a coffee to warm my hands (my first coffee for years, it smells so nice and tastes so gross!) cos they dont serve tea, honestly wot weirdos! The roads are clear n smooth, couldnt be happier… cud b warmer tho 9 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Six30 Posted October 26, 2021 Share Posted October 26, 2021 21 minutes ago, Slowlycatchymonkey said: Afternoon guys n gals Quick update cos its on my mind Ive not updated you mingers losers proper write up later. Made it to Santander yesterday afternoon to lovely sunshine. Stripped off everything possible to discover dimbo here didnt think about altitude.. ffffreezing On our way to Valdepeñas now and sod the scenic route, the fastest route to the warmth is in order Stopped for a coffee to warm my hands (my first coffee for years, it smells so nice and tastes so gross!) cos they dont serve tea, honestly wot weirdos! The roads are clear n smooth, couldnt be happier… cud b warmer tho Crossing was ok then ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
XTreme Posted October 26, 2021 Share Posted October 26, 2021 57 minutes ago, Slowlycatchymonkey said: Afternoon guys n gals Quick update cos its on my mind Ive not updated you mingers losers proper write up later. Made it to Santander yesterday afternoon to lovely sunshine. Stripped off everything possible to discover dimbo here didnt think about altitude.. ffffreezing On our way to Valdepeñas now and sod the scenic route, the fastest route to the warmth is in order Stopped for a coffee to warm my hands (my first coffee for years, it smells so nice and tastes so gross!) cos they dont serve tea, honestly wot weirdos! The roads are clear n smooth, couldnt be happier… cud b warmer tho Excellent Caroline! Now you see that Spain isn't all tropical weather and T shirts......it gets bloody cold. But the further south you get the warmer it is. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tango Posted October 26, 2021 Share Posted October 26, 2021 1 hour ago, Slowlycatchymonkey said: Afternoon guys n gals Quick update cos its on my mind Ive not updated you mingers losers proper write up later. Made it to Santander yesterday afternoon to lovely sunshine. Stripped off everything possible to discover dimbo here didnt think about altitude.. ffffreezing On our way to Valdepeñas now and sod the scenic route, the fastest route to the warmth is in order Stopped for a coffee to warm my hands (my first coffee for years, it smells so nice and tastes so gross!) cos they dont serve tea, honestly wot weirdos! The roads are clear n smooth, couldnt be happier… cud b warmer tho Excellent that you got across OK. Any border issues? Yeah, just because the sun is shining doesn't mean that it's warm. Hopefully your run down south will go well. The bikes are running OK? I bet you'll be glad of having the bikes when you get there. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
XTreme Posted October 26, 2021 Share Posted October 26, 2021 4 minutes ago, Tango said: I bet you'll be glad of having the bikes when you get there. She can't wait to get up here and meet me! Understandable really! 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tango Posted October 26, 2021 Share Posted October 26, 2021 3 hours ago, XTreme said: She can't wait to get up here and meet me! Understandable really! Caroline says that she's washing her hair that day, sorry. 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
boboneleg Posted October 26, 2021 Share Posted October 26, 2021 5 hours ago, Slowlycatchymonkey said: cud b warmer tho No heated grips ? 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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