Microadventuring, mini tours etc

A bit of both really....no plans as such, but I want to get to france, turn left to the hook of Holland, then turn right towards Arnhem.....sort of follow my nose!

That way. If you want to go from France to the Netherlands than it's pretty logic passing through Belgium. ;-)

I'll work a route out....it's something I want to do though!

It's a fantastic region to cycle, especially when you like the "Classics"(Tour of Flanders, Paris-Roubaix, Liège-Bastogne-Liège). If you need inspiration, I'll be glad to help. I grew up on one of the bumps they climb in ToF and my brother lives in the middle of the L-B-L "finale". ;-)

Thanks bud, I might shout you up when it's nearer the time :0)

Looking at a mini tour over the Easter weekend for me and my girlfriend, I think it's going to be cold so nothing too taxing in terms of distance.

London (or Dorking) to Bristol over 3 days, route is a modified Pannier.cc London to Taunton ride. Aiming to get to Bristol on Sunday afternoon then get the train home on Monday.

Day 1: London (or train out to Dorking) - New Alresford
https://www.strava.com/routes/4212328

Day2: New Alresford - Tilshead
https://www.strava.com/routes/4239716

Day 3: Tilshead - Bristol
https://www.strava.com/routes/4239929

Anyone been to Alpkit Big Shakeout festival? Would there be owt to keep a 3yr old entertained as well as parents?

Know a few people that went/presented last year - will ask next time I see them...

Appreciated, cheers.

FWIW, in your Tilshead - Bristol route, I would reroute from South Wraxall - head up towards Monkton Farleigh and then strike north east on Link Lane. That drag out of South Wraxall is one of the most surprisingly unpleasant bits of road in the area. It's a short diversion but it's overwhelmingly nicer, a smoother gradient and much less grim.

Thanks for the heads up, I'll tweak the route later today.

If you want a nice B&B, or just a good farm shop for a stop en-route, The Three Daggers is on the B3098, just before Bratton. They've got their own brewery, and lovely cakes.

Over the May weekend I'm riding down to Lyme Regis in Dorset.
This is the third time I've done it - I'll be working at the Fossil Festival, so if you are in the area, drop in. It's cool.
However, the route I take hops out of London by using the train to Windsor and then heading out towards Woking, Swallowfield, skirting Basingstoke and then a night in the YHA at Cholderton before heading southwest again. Last year I stayed in Salisbury which was lovely, but the YHA there has closed.
From there I go through Wilton, Tisbury, Gillingham, Sherborne, skirt Beaminster and then into Lyme Regis. It's a gloriaous route with some amazing lanes and views. The traffic was pretty kind to me once I got clear of the Windsor area and there's an amazing pub in Swallowfield for lunch. Once you get out around and beyond Salisbury, every succeeding village seems to be competing to be more scenic than the next.
A couple of 80 mile days means that you're not too shagged at the end of the day and it's easy to get somewhere nice pretty quickly.

I did the whole thing with a pair of 8l Alpkit drybags strapped to a Tortec Ultralite rack carrying a pair of trousers, lightweight wool jumper and Converse trainers (for the evening), spare pair of shorts, baselayer and socks (for day 2) and a washkit. Carried a waterproof strapped to Carradice Barley and some food and tools. All up the set up was pretty light, easy to ride and I'd really not need anything else for a four or five day tour if I was hostelling.
A trip like this is a really good way to clear your head and if you go mid-week it's usually pretty easy to get accommodation.

Hey,
I'll be taking my son to the Fossil Festival, so I'll say 'hello'. Which section are you on?

I'll be with the Natural History Museum, behind the Marine Theatre.

Had 23 hours off work between 3pm Saturday and 2pm Sunday, rode to Brighton off road with @Smeear and camped on the way. I was 44x17 fixed on my cross check with marathon plus/ribmo (poor tyre and gear choice), he was on his SS singular cycles Gryphon with 29+ front and normal 29 rear.
A farmer who had had 50 sheep stolen told us it was the wettest he'd seen the downs link path in 20 years, was quite hard work all loaded up on my slightly inappropriate set up. Only had to push up 2 of the bits of the south downs way.
Good ride though, felt more like I'd had a day off without having one than I do when I have a day off and don't do much.

(Accidental double post)

Dear mini-tourers, I'm after some route suggestions to get from Brocklehurst in the New Forest to Cobham in Surrey. Keeping off dual carriageways appears to involve a helluva lot of twists and turns and I'm concerned I'll spend half the day stopping to look at Google Maps on my phone. Preferably avoiding hills but I'm open to ideas.

Try using the route planner here: http://cycle.travel/
It's specifically set up to avoid main roads and to route you via cycle paths or cycle friendly roads.
It can be a little over-cautious at times, but I've used it with great success a number of times.There's a reason why the dual carriageways are so straight! The wiggly roads are the quietest and most picturesque. If you have a decent second battery you can use Navfree or similar to navigate, it uses open street maps uploaded to the phone so doesn't need a data connection. It works very well and you can upload a gps route to it - but it will eat your battery!
Otherwise, the cheapest Garmin etrex is only about £130.

Grayte thread. Inspiring matee

Anyone here going to Bear Bones 'bearstock' in July?

Yep, looking forward to it!

Cool, we're thinking of getting tickets for a family overnight mini-break, hope it's not mega rowdy...

I doubt it'll be rowdy, but I suspect it won't be the quietest affair in the world. I'm sure there'll be plenty of alchohol in flow, but it's a big field (if it's the one I'm thinking of) and you can park yourself in the corner.

You have to ride in, rather than drive in, so there'll be plenty of space

Cheers, plan to get train then it's about 13 miles on bike to field. Will chat to partner to confirm but probably will come along.