Bivvy a month 2022

[Raggedstone]

It was such a beautiful day yesterday i decided that a solstice bivvy was in order and as I can see the top of Midsummer Hill from home it seemed like the obvious place to go even though Midsummer isn't until Friday .
PXL_20220621_023537371.NIGHT by Kevin Hawker, on Flickr
I rode up in time for the sunset and came across a young lady brewing up close to the spot I intended to bivvy at . I wasn't sure what to do if she was planning on stopping I didn't want her to feel uncomfortable so I sat down and enjoyed the close of the day eventually she walked past and headed off so back to the original plan .
PXL_20220621_024440425.NIGHT by Kevin Hawker, on Flickr
I had just got into the bivvy bag when I saw the silhouette of a bloke with a big pack a stick and beard walk along the ridge I spent ages trying to remember where the image he conjured up came from I think it was one of Led Zeppelin's album covers .I set the alarm for 4 but the trail came alive about 3.30 lots of noise so I got up I think only two people spotted me they were couple of ladies with quite small backpacks within 10 minutes they were drinking something hot followed rapidly by plates full of what looked like scrambled eggs all done on a little gas stove a fine demonstration of taking only what you need .
By the time the sun rose there were loads there to see it and what a fantastic site it was .
PXL_20220621_034557626 by Kevin Hawker, on Flickr
I left the crowds after the main event and found a sunsoaked bench for some breakfast when I arrived I was shivering that soon passed .
PXL_20220621_045144053 by Kevin Hawker, on Flickr
I said to Shaf I would have a ride around the hills and the northern part of his provisional Malvern 100 route to check some of the tracks out I got home 12 hours after i got up feeling a bit jaded .

6/6 for this year 42 consecutive bivvys

[RIP]

'Midsummer Hill' - nice move Kev. As today/tonight is the solstice, am hoping to head out with MuddyPete later for June's BaM. I've been brushing up on my Pagan rituals so we should be ok.

[RIP]

A short ride to the country park and MuddyPete and I hid ourselves away in the trees





Bit pointless erecting the tarp but she's not been out for a while and I was feeling guilty. Unfortunately Bedfordshire is not well known for stone circles so we had to improvise...



I spent a bit of time reading up about pagan rituals and it seems you need quite a few artefacts and other items to do things properly, so more improvisation was in order... you have to drink lots of mead apparently, dried fruits are eaten, and mystical herbs have to be thrown around...







I'm not sure the various gods would have been completely impressed with our efforts but we had to do the best we could with what was available. I expect the sun will still rise in the morning despite our feeble offerings.

Sadly Pete drew the line at all the nude dancing at midnight. I was well up for it but he'd gone to sleep .

6/6, 6/12, 78/78

[benp1]

What was the result of the ritual, Reg? Did you have any visions or visitors?

I bagged my June bivvy last night too. Realised quite late is was the solstice and don't have a lot of opportunities to get out between now and the end of the month, plus the weather was lovely. Lobbed the essentials into a rucksack and headed to one of my local downs, had a lovely view down to the coast. Very mild evening, no tarp needed, slept very well. Also managed to get away without using a headtorch (even though I had one with me) as it was so light. Was home just after 7am

[RIP]

Nice one Ben, just shows you don't need much to get out and have a bit of fun.

Rituals - we were trying to make sure the sun still came up this morning and thank it for its efforts.

I noticed it earlier, so I think we must have done OK. Goodness knows what would have happened if we hadn't gone out and enacted them.

[Rob S]

bunch of nutters!

Are you sure you weren't using these mystical herbs..

Screenshot_20220622-105923_Samsung Internet.jpg (77.41 KiB) Viewed 14727 times

[Rob S]

Can't get the vision of Reg doing a Britt Ekland dance at midnight out of my head now

[RIP]

bunch of nutters!

Damn, our cover is blown!

Can't get the vision of Reg doing a Britt Ekland dance out of my head now

Britt? I suspect this would be more Reg's style

[summittoppler]

June done! And they don't get much better than this!

I rode home from work at 5pm yesterday, got home 20 minutes later, had tea, faffed, drove for an hour, rode my bike up a hill close to Arenig Fawr.

20220621_195504 by Jeff Price, on Flickr

20220621_212533 by Jeff Price, on Flickr

20220621_212658 by Jeff Price, on Flickr

The sun was dipping below Carnedd Ugain with Snowdon just to the left of sun
20220621_213737 by Jeff Price, on Flickr

A bit grainy zoomed in but what a sight!
20220621_213752 by Jeff Price, on Flickr

Drying out my top as it was a sweat fest to get there
20220621_215731 by Jeff Price, on Flickr

The view from the bag takes some beating
20220621_231053 by Jeff Price, on Flickr

20220621_234246 by Jeff Price, on Flickr

4am view
20220622_035742 by Jeff Price, on Flickr

20220622_045216 by Jeff Price, on Flickr

20220622_050420 by Jeff Price, on Flickr

20220622_051131 by Jeff Price, on Flickr

20220622_052333 by Jeff Price, on Flickr

20220622_055906 by Jeff Price, on Flickr

Then it was drive back home, change bikes, ride to work for 7:30 (shower) and soak in the buzz of a great solstice bivvy

[Cheeky Monkey]

Some really cracking images there

[Cheeky Monkey]

I came back from a game of squash and marked the solstice with some rum (expensive, old but sadly unremarkable) in the diet coke. Living the dream

[Bearlegged]

Snuck another bivvy into June in celebration of the solstice. A gorgeous evening of golden light, set to a soundtrack of Meadow Pipits, Hen Harriers, Barn Owls, Wrens and SBJs.
New bivvy mate Agent N and I arranged to meet at the pub. 9n arrival, it turned out to be closed due to "unforseen circumstances". Fucksake. Still, at least they had an outdoor tap, so water topped up, we winched our way tor-wards. Trep joined us too, and we saw her (lights) coming round the mountain* as she came. This was however round about our bedtime, so we sent news.of how to find us, and rustled our way into bed.

After the shortest night, morning broke with golden light spilling across the moors like am explosion in a golden syrup factory. Grudgingly embracing the new dawn, I found Trep perched on a rock eating breakfast. We hugged, nattered, and had a brew. Hares gambolled** on the heather clad flanks of the tor before us.

Bloomin' marvellous.

Pics here:
https://www.instagram.com/p/CfHb1_uMvsW/
https://www.instagram.com/p/CfHcJB2MBZ9/
And a "Reel"***:
https://www.instagram.com/reel/CfHsbmVghed/

*Hill
**Can only lambs gambol? I dunno.
***Like one.of those nice films Allen does, but without any of the well-considered camera angles, engaging commentary, or decent editing.

[RIP]

**Can only lambs gambol? I dunno.

Just so long as they stop when the fun stops....

[Verena]

A short ride to the country park and MuddyPete and I hid ourselves away in the trees





Bit pointless erecting the tarp but she's not been out for a while and I was feeling guilty. Unfortunately Bedfordshire is not well known for stone circles so we had to improvise...



I spent a bit of time reading up about pagan rituals and it seems you need quite a few artefacts and other items to do things properly, so more improvisation was in order... you have to drink lots of mead apparently, dried fruits are eaten, and mystical herbs have to be thrown around...







I'm not sure the various gods would have been completely impressed with our efforts but we had to do the best we could with what was available. I expect the sun will still rise in the morning despite our feeble offerings.

Sadly Pete drew the line at all the nude dancing at midnight. I was well up for it but he'd gone to sleep .

6/6, 6/12, 78/78

Stonehenge it is not

[Verena]

Some really cracking images there

I'll second that

[Verena]

Snuck another bivvy into June in celebration of the solstice. A gorgeous evening of golden light, set to a soundtrack of Meadow Pipits, Hen Harriers, Barn Owls, Wrens and SBJs.
New bivvy mate Agent N and I arranged to meet at the pub. 9n arrival, it turned out to be closed due to "unforseen circumstances". Fucksake. Still, at least they had an outdoor tap, so water topped up, we winched our way tor-wards. Trep joined us too, and we saw her (lights) coming round the mountain* as she came. This was however round about our bedtime, so we sent news.of how to find us, and rustled our way into bed.

After the shortest night, morning broke with golden light spilling across the moors like am explosion in a golden syrup factory. Grudgingly embracing the new dawn, I found Trep perched on a rock eating breakfast. We hugged, nattered, and had a brew. Hares gambolled** on the heather clad flanks of the tor before us.

Bloomin' marvellous.

Pics here:
https://www.instagram.com/p/CfHb1_uMvsW/
https://www.instagram.com/p/CfHcJB2MBZ9/
And a "Reel"***:
https://www.instagram.com/reel/CfHsbmVghed/

*Hill
**Can only lambs gambol? I dunno.
***Like one.of those nice films Allen does, but without any of the well-considered camera angles, engaging commentary, or decent editing.

Gorgeous!

Closest I've come to a solstice bivvy is a lovely play out on Llangorse Lake last night followed by sleeping in my hammock in the garden....

[Blackhound]

I got out on a variation of the FU R T H E R East this last week and spent two nights out, one in a bivvy bag and one under a tarp. I will write more later but just marking my #bam for June.

https://www.instagram.com/p/CfOYJP2s85F ... MyMTA2M2Y=

6/6
7 nights out.

[frogatthefarriers]

June BaM Done. 6/12 for 2022.

Time was running out for a June BaM so this one had to be a local ride-to-bivvy. To make it more of a "thing", (no, not an adventure, definitely not an adventure), I hatched a plan to bivvy in a cave not too far from home that my son (the caver) had mentioned, near Bwlchgwyn. His caving club had used it for a Christmas gathering and I resolved to find it. He tried to tell me where it was - couldn't make me understand, but I found a gridref on t' internet. Not very accurate, as it turned out, but after a lot of trundling on forestry tracks and pushing through undergrowth, there it was. I did, at one point, think I'd found a clue when, up a path I came across a pile of pop bottles and beer cans and thought they'd probably been chucked out of the cave mouth (as yobboes do) but after climbing up through heavy undergrowth and rhododendrons it was a false alarm.

Found it..
Cue, the Wedding Cave.....after a lot of wandering around in the valley


To get there, I had pedalled from home, calling at the Black Lion in Bersham ('cause I had to find a toilet, sharpish) before climbing up to Bwlchgwyn for a delicious meal of liver, bacon and onions at the Kings Head. I mention this only because I don't get liver at home because Mrs Frog won't touch it. Anyway, onward.. Beside the road in the village was this..


A local free bookshop in a re-purposed red phone box.

So, back to the cave. A pretty roomy affair this, apparently an ancient mine cut into the side of a valley. Lots and lots of empty tea-lights on every available ledge. Unexpectedly, I found two that were still burning - double depth ones, probably burning since the previous night. Happily I'd chosen this night for a bivvy and not the previous one. A cave full of partygoers wouldn't have made for a good bivvy. Given that there's so much room, it was quite hard to find somewhere to kip that was even, level, free of stones and bits of broken bottle and dry - it's a cave after all and there's lots of dripping water.

I made a cuppa, had a slurp of whisky and retired for the night for a not-very-good sleep. There was the sound of dripping water of course, but also an occasional sound like someone banging two pebbles together that made me a little uneasy. P'raps it was a knocker, like they say live in Cornish tin mines - I should have left, if not my pasty crust, then half a finger of the Kit-kat that I had with my tea. Aaand, in the morning I could see a greyish white shape on the rock face above my bed. Creepy, until I fully awoke and could see that it was reflected daylight from the cave opening.





It had been a bit of a scramble to reach the cave and I was afraid I'd not be able to get back out with the bike..
This is a flat bit. There was a lot of steep slippery stuff too..


Rather than going back home the same way I'd come I opted to follow some tracks down through the valley.

A pretty river crossing..


Cue the vanishing river...

Now you see me....


Now you don't..


It disappeared into a hole at the bottom of a steep rock face.

Eventually, I was back on tarmac and in Wrexham, stopped at a bacon butty van for a breakfast burger...

before pedalling home.

[TrepidExplorer]

I feel a bit of a fraud posting on here since I've done Jan, March, May and 2 in June but I miss you guys.

My HT write up (incase you only ride on planet BAM) is here https://trepidexplorer.blogspot.com/20 ... 2.html?m=1
Bonus BAM here for June https://trepidexplorer.blogspot.com/202 ... 2.html?m=1

From Tuesday... yes if you squint through the glare of the sun you can just see my bivi on the right.


Best (only) HT Camp pic. Does it count if its taken from INSIDE the pitch?

[ScotRoutes]

White Marigolds?




I'm out BTW. Not "out" as in out bivvying, "out" as in "no longer part of BAM this year".

I've been increasingly less motivated this year. Not just BAM, a lot of things. I was struggling to make it for May. June has been a bit of a shitshow all round. Weather has been just wrong, concentrating on the triathlon, my experience there, a holiday in Uist where I took my bivvy kit but managed to slash my foot climbing out of a rock pool, then returning home to fall to something which feels like Covid but tests negative so is probably just a cold (or shows how crap the tests are). I'll look back at this decision and kick myself but maybe it's just time for a break from trying to keep up a streak for the sake of it.

[fatbikephil]

There is always next year Colin - no point in making yourself go out if you don't feel like it. Stay tuned for more BAM madness though

To all Bammers, the second quarter tally is coming!

[NeilA]

BAM 30 June...58 days was my last bivi on WRT. At the very death of June I surface again, taking procrastination to new levels! The evening is passing, kit readied and number 5 bike, the '15 quid Raleigh' checked over for it's first mission. And complete with panniers fitted for emergency journeys, work, shopping or such like. Why number 5? Cos my three other off-road capable bikes are all in varying degrees of repair. All my hard learnt progressions towards lighter loading disappeared that eve. Off we go at 2145, my beast of a bike stuffed to the gunnels, the heavy rain passed away and all is calm as the world winds down. However I haven't cycled for a while, no probs, but the panniers and my heels are rubbing big style. I couldve turned backed and used a rucksack but no I soldiered on with feet to pedal positions not oft seen in the cycling fraternity. And it's uphill all the way to my destination somewhere on North Hill or Table Hill on the Malverns. The push to the top is tough, made worse with more rain. No choice but to dive under a tree and make camp. Took me a while fitting bedding inside my Alpit Kloke, and even longer to get body inside and everything where it should be. Sleep did come eventually and woke early. I was closer to the top than realised, the view a guaranteed reward. Cycling home I felt good, that feeling when the night was poor show but the adventure uplifting. No laptop, can't get a pic on here from my phone, will send a pic at later date! Laptop back and running again, pic now here.

[fatbikephil]

'Tis the end of the second quarter! Therefore it's time for another BAM summary of who is still in.
January onwards:
Sean_iow
Verena
jimmy G
RIP
Blackhound
Frog
Bearlegged
Summit toppler
Raggedstone
FBPhil
Benp1
Whitestone
Cath
Gone Caving
Edwellz
JohnAllan
NeilA
LinkPin
SLarge

Late starters:-
SR (April onwards)
Boab (April onwards)
Rob S (April onwards)
Redefined cycles (May onwards)
Trep (May onwards - you posted so your in until next May Trep!)

A fair few exotic locations have featured in the last 3 months as befits spring. As predicted the weather has been generally good (apart from on my bivvies) with lots of sunny pics. Bivvy awards as follows:-

Daftest behaviour is Reg and Muddypete (predictably) with their solstice druidic celebration
Jeff nearly blew his altitude award by doing two at sea level but is back on track to the point where I'd say he has an unassailable lead unless he does the rest below sea level and we all get up mountains for the rest of the year.... I'm slightly suspicious that all his Welsh bivvies seem to be in the Sunshine, leading me to believe he's done them all in the costa del sol and used photoshop.
No winners of the culinary skills award this quarter - must try harder!
Dodgy coastal path / near death award goes to gone caving on his May bivvy
Machine shop skills - Sean
Providing valuable food for Scotlands ecosystem on a bivvy - me (my blood to lots of mosquitoes)
Bivvy furthest away from Wales (spiritual home of bikepacking) award inevitably goes to Steve large who went all the way to that America to get away from the bogs and tussocks. Looks like America provided something almost as bad though...
Best socks - Verena

Summer is here! So look forward to more insects, bracken, thunderstorms, drunken neds at key bivvy spots, sweltering heat (!) ice cream and wasps.

PS I'm awaiting a couple of June bivvies from Chrisps and Wotsits - I'll add 'em in when you post 'em.
PPS - once again may I remind you all (in a cat herding teachery kind of way) to get some pics up so the adjudicating panel can score your tarp erection technique, site choice and slug herding skills.
See you in October

[RIP]

Top summary there Phil .

Onwards and sideways we go. I must admit I sympathise with 'Routes - got a lot of brain-filling family and other stuff going on at the moment too. Still love BaM to bits but having to push myself this year, unlike last year which was ace. If it's hard to motivate in areas with lovely landscapes like wot some of you lot live in, imagine what it's like for us urban warriors. Still, it could also be said that we try harder to amuse ourselves.... Four Compass Points tour, Bonkers Back Garden Bivvies, Solstice Madness etc.

[slarge]

I had a few bivvies on the Tour Divide. No pics and they varied in quality of location from forest trackside to derelict shack porch to gas station porch to campground pit toilets. I think I got June ticked.....