New Wheels and Old Stones

After a few weeks of looking at bike ads and calling insurance companies to find any who were willing to insure a non UK resident at a reasonable price I was finally able to collect my new bike. The insurance was more difficult than I had expected. A few more days with some online shopping for the extra kit I would need and I was ready to travel.

For my friends and family who worry about me as I travel on a motorbike, please note the expensive body armour I am wearing under my jacket, which also has protective padding and armour. I am a careful rider, and have also taken all reasonable precautions for my safety, other than not actually riding, and that option is just not acceptable to me.

My first destination was to visit the Ace Cafe on the outskirts of London, as by pure coincidence on the day my journey commenced, they were hosting an Adventure and Travel Bike day. Basically just a gathering of bike travellers, and though it was a bit out of my way, I felt it a worthy way to start this adventure. Of particular interest was how other people set up a bike for touring, as we all have our different ways, but I'm always keen to see the innovative ways others have found to set up their bike and what can be carried with such little space to work with. 

Whilst there were many adventure bikes there, not so many were on a trip, and the number of bikes carrying kit were few. I did glean a few ideas that I would like to use in the event my travels take me to more challenging and remote locations, such as fixing small fuel cans to the back of my pannier boxes. I am however pretty happy with my own set up at this point, especially for the fairly tame and civilized roads of Europe (i.e. bitumen roads and regular fuel stations).

From the Ace Cafe I was heading west to meet a new aquaintance at Avebury. A good friend of mine of 16 years had put me in contact with another friend she'd known for more than 8 years. Fortunately my soon to be new friend wasn't in a hurry, because I missed the turn off I needed on the motorway, and the next one was another 19 miles. I decided to go directly from the next exit rather than return on the motorway as there was a big stretch of roadworks. This soon turned out to be a bad plan, as the only map I had was using my phone, and I was now in a place with no signal. I got there eventually, but was an hour late, and my friend did have plans and could only stay another half hour.

Avebury has the remnants of 3 small groups of stones, within a large circle of standing stones, surrounded by a large ditch, and beyond this there was an avenue of standing stones leading towards the rest. Much of the village of Avebury fits within a portion of the large circle of stones.

I spent the next two nights camping behind the Barge Inn, a place known for celebrating all things alien and crop circles. The name comes from being located on the Avon and Kennet Canal. It seemed almost a little strange to be camping below the water, but I figured the canal system wouldn't work very well if it leaked too seriously. They hold a big folk music festival here every June, but by then I would be on the Isle of Man for the TT.

I wasn't done with the standing stones, and my next stop was for a smaller but much more famous collection of rocks.

Much debate exists as to why so much effort went in to moving these stones all the way from Wales to this location, and the exceptional talent and serious effort of the neolithic stone masons to dress (trim) the stones, including making bumps and hollows for the post and lintel construction method.

I did find this answer, posted randomly on facebook only a couple of weeks after my visit, rather amusing.

I then headed further south to Dorset to visit a couple of friends of mine who have done much, much more two wheeled travelling than I have done. And whilst they have had a couple more years in the saddle, it would take a lot of effort over many adventurous journeys to come close to their efforts.

Evidence of this was the collection of bikes in the shed, which with mine tucked away for the night came to a tally of 6.

 

I had by this stage realised I needed a better way of navigating than relying on my phone to resuce me after I had gotten lost, plus I would need some waterproof over pants for the inevitable riding in the rain I was bound to experience. So I had also aquired a tank bag, but had yet to get any maps, and whilst taking a not so direct scenic route from Stonehenge, I ended up again deviating from my planned path. My friends Pat and Sheonagh then furnished me with an old map book of the UK and Ireland, including some hand written notes I would later make use of. I was now much more comfortable with exploring the countryside, and if at times I wasn't entirely sure where I was, I could now keep going and the next time they decided to show the road numbers I'd be able to figured it out again.

I would still frequently misplace the roads I was trying to follow, with a new village every couple of miles, each one connected to every other nearby village, and three times the number of roads as signs telling you where they go. As I generally have no set time frame, or often even a set destination for the night as I go, getting lost and finding my way again is part of the fun.