Bivvy a month 2018.

[RIP]

Nice one gents. Curry and rhubarb crumble makes for an interesting gourmet experience! Custard or ice-cream? (*) Only a couple of regulars left now I reckon. You planning on the NYE cliffhanger then Bob?

(*) or both obviously! (**)
(**) with the crumble not the curry. Oh I dunno though...

[ScotRoutes]

I managed to sneak in a 2nd for December. Headed to Carrbridge then up the Dulnain to the Red Bothy. Fabulous cold evening and really bright in the almost full moon.

P1050388 by Colin Cadden, on Flickr

P1050395 by Colin Cadden, on Flickr




Back over the Burma Road to Aviemore for brunch at Tisos.

[metalheart]

Did a solstice bivvy.

The bivvy spot (am) by metalheart-UK, on Flickr

Headed out to Carrbridge then up the Dalnain to the red Bothy...

Ride up the Dalnain was cold but the perfect antidote to the last fortnight at work.

Shunned the Bothy for a proper bivvy. It was bloody bright at 3am, almost daylight! Must find the mini crabs for guylines...

The Burma Road in reverse first thing wasn't as bad I thought it would be (but I did walk a couple of bits).

First time in Tisos for breakfast....

Cheers SR, apologies for the stinking brakes....

Didn’t manage the full quota (only 9 months ticked this year). Hopefully next year though...

Editted to add photo...

[javatime]

12/12 done early in December (see above).... Now catching up on the others here (Retrospective !)
5/5 The Quantocks

Friday afternoon took the train from Parkway - and was pleased to meet Mr Pickers wedged in the limited bike hanging facilities. He was on his way to France, I was on my way to Taunton to tick another "Lost Lanes West" route. Generally north from Taunton then through Over Stowey for a big climb up onto the Quantocks. Took some off road drove road variations until spreading my ground sheet with a great view west. Had hoped for a beer at the Blue Ball just down the hill but it was closed. Early start to complete the loop via Fyne Court and across the flatlands back to Taunton station. Met some young lads getting on the train who were heading to Bristol to ride the trails in Ashton Court, Bristol...? Now't as strange as folk !



6/6 Wild Swim and Bivvy
A bit local. As the heatwave started to take its toll, a blast down the Festival Way then onto Yatton to meet a mate and cool off with a dip in the Yeo. Then to Clevedon to try the newish Fallen Tree Brewery Micropub in Clevedon. Took the coast road towards Clevedon on a sultry night and found a great grass clifftop just beyond Charlcombe Bay. Awoken by a big rumble at night - a huge car transporter thundering up the channel to Portbury. A bit of a shock. Home via Portishead, Avonmouth and the Portway for a late breakfast.



7/7 Mid Wales Trip
The heatwave holds and took the train to Gloucester to ultimately meet a friend at Llanwrytd Wells. Found a nice wood near Newent for the first night, then followed the Wye through Bredwardine. Sheltered under the big road bridge at Hay on Wye possibly during the only rainfall of the summer. Great to rendezvous in the evening sun outside the Neuadd Arms Hotel. A great few days catching up, pushing up the Devils Staircase, whizzing around Llynn Brianne and down Abergwesyn and splashing in the Irfon. Came back home on Sunday afternoon over the Epynnt Ranges, and pleased to find a lot of the small lanes open. Last night safely hidden by Talybont reservoir in my usual spot (but levels were very low - it was a long walk in for the morning dip). Last day on the Celtic Trail back to Merthyr and trains home.

[RIP]

"Neuadd Arms Hotel" - last concert of the late great Lord Sutch. Still trying to pluck up courage to enter the MTB Bog Snorkelling Championships. Anybody had a go?!

[fatbikephil]

Nice one gents. Curry and rhubarb crumble makes for an interesting gourmet experience! Custard or ice-cream? (*)

Cream obviously, but not all in the same bowl (only 'cos I was in public)
A fair few last minute equalisers coming in, howay Bob get it done

[BigdummySteve]

So how many winners did we have this year....come on reg I know you’re keeping score.

[javatime]

Final retrospective wrap up - not too inspiring as they were all mid week / after work end of the month last gasp fill-ins...

8/8 Leigh Woods Local
Over the bridge after fish and chips in the village. Thought I had found a quiet spot by the big wall and way off the main paths, but later realised I had edged very close to the Gurt Lush Trail. So a few bright lights later from late night runners who were surprised to find me.

9/9 Leigh Woods Local (again)
Got wise - so found a more remote spot this time.

10/10 Leigh Court
Nice pitch in the woods nearby - but those dog walkers head out early !!

That's me done 11/11 and 12/12 got posted on time. I really enjoyed the bigger trip up to Wales, but also found some interesting local places too - Charlcombe Bay was a surprise !

[RIP]

6 days to go yet Steve old bean - someone's holding out for a spectacular grand finale .

[jBay]

Final retrospective wrap up - not too inspiring as they were all mid week / after work end of the month last gasp fill-ins...

8/8 Leigh Woods Local
Over the bridge after fish and chips in the village. Thought I had found a quiet spot by the big wall and way off the main paths, but later realised I had edged very close to the Gurt Lush Trail. So a few bright lights later from late night runners who were surprised to find me.

9/9 Leigh Woods Local (again)
Got wise - so found a more remote spot this time.

10/10 Leigh Court
Nice pitch in the woods nearby - but those dog walkers head out early !!

That's me done 11/11 and 12/12 got posted on time. I really enjoyed the bigger trip up to Wales, but also found some interesting local places too - Charlcombe Bay was a surprise !

Brave man, Leigh Woods is like a motorway with MTB.

[psling]

"Neuadd Arms Hotel" - last concert of the late great Lord Sutch. Still trying to pluck up courage to enter the MTB Bog Snorkelling Championships. Anybody had a go?!

Never done the bog snorkelling but am the veteran of many a Real Ale Wobble back in the days when I used to imbibe - blurred memories of stair surfing in the Neaudd, busting ribs in the mosh-pit at the Stoney, throwing up at the top of most of the climbs out of Llanwrtyd...

[javatime]

"Brave man, Leigh Woods is like a motorway with MTB"

Agree, best avoided at the weekends, especially for a ride during daylight hours, but now found a quiet corner to pitch when needed.

[Bearbonesnorm]

Congratulations to all those that have just completed BaM 2018 or are just about to ... as ever, a big thank you to Blackhound for the original idea and inspiration.

[whitestone]

Well a double header to complete the year and make it 14 months in a row.

I'd asked about routes in Craik forest north of Newcastleton but in the end we decided to head back to Kielder. We set off from Stonehaugh late afternoon basically following the last bit of Philip Addyman's Northumbrian in reverse to avoid the ford of the Padda burn. After this point it a) got dark and b) it got foggy, very, very foggy. Foggy to the point if you couldn't see across the width of a forest track I'd plotted the route on Strava route plotter but it seems that some of the bridleways don't meet up so there was a bit of hike-a-bike to get on to something more rideable.

We eventually ended up at Kershopehead bothy where there we a couple of well oiled* Carlisle lads who'd taken over two hours to get the wood stove going and were therefore able to cook their tea!

*They'd had a few cans of beer, a bottle of wine and by the end of the night had finished a full bottle of whisky



The following morning was a bit dreich so it was down to the bridge over the burn and in to Scotland.



Then it was up and over to Kielder Castle for some late breakfast/early lunch where someone managed to leave his water bottle behind



It's a long drag up the Forest Drive, a good ten km, mostly uphill. Still at least the sun came out so cue arty shadow shot ...





At the summit of Blakehope Nick there's a new art installation - I'd hesitate to call it a shelter as there's a few holes in the sides and roof.



Our target for the night was Flittingford bothy so it was down to Blakehopeburnhaugh then a long drag back up towards Blackburnhead (a restricted MOD property) and then down to Comb, this was mostly the Dirty Reiver route. The last climb of the day was up on to Pope's Hill. Then on the descent we had to look out for the track leading to the bothy. I'd put a track on my GPS as various on-line comments had indicated that the bothy was hard to find. Someone else must have read them:



This time we had the bothy to ourselves. There was no coal left and what wood there was was pretty damp but I found a couple of boy scouts to rub together and before long we had a reasonable fire.



The early part of the night was clear so here's an attempted star shot.





There's a cafe at Falstone but it's 1000 opening so we had a late start only to find that it wasn't open anyway

On the way back to Stonehaugh we made a slight diversion from our usual route to visit Green bothy. It's huge and could probably sleep twenty!



Somewhere around Kielder Castle I clocked up 10,000km for the year and by the time we got to Flittingford I'd completed this month's Strava climbing challenge to get a full set of those for the year as well.

Here's to 2019

[Pickers]

That might've been the first BBB E-Bike BaM..... I'm sure I'll be corrected if someone else beat me to it.

December done, just in before the deadline. A short ride out via local lanes and bridleways, 25 flat slow miles so no range anxiety. A lovely evening for a ride, roads absolutely empty, temperature fine. A bit cloudy but dry... at least until this morning.

The only real downer was on the Stratford Greenway. There had been a helicopter slowly flying about over the south side of the town for a while, Easily seen and heard, but I couldn't tell why it was there. As I rode into Stratford I was stopped by a couple of firemen. They were looking for an old chap, around 80 or so, gone missing, heavy touch of Alzheimers. That was around 10 ish. Obviously very dark, getting chilly. I'd not seen anyone but kept looking for the rest of the ride even though I was off their search area.

Anyways, a pretty good night's sleep. There's a patch of ground in the local woods where a local scout group build makeshift shelters, certainly plenty of trace left, lots of logs and branches making a lean-to arrangement. All looks natural windfall stuff though so I've no issues. It worked well enough, used my bag and liner but not the small tent I'd brought along. Quick to set up and quick to pack away as well.

10/12 for 2018. August and Sept missed, otherwise a bloody good year with some bloody good trips.

[Borderer]

Well a double header to complete the year and make it 14 months in a row.

We eventually ended up at Kershopehead bothy where there we a couple of well oiled* Carlisle lads who'd taken over two hours to get the wood stove going and were therefore able to cook their tea!

We were there a few days before you

https://www.weirdosonbikes.com/2018/12/ ... ead-bothy/

[TheBrownDog]

With the controversy about whether driving to your bivvy spot could count towards BAM still raging I took the opportunity last night to get another night out before someone takes it up with the European Court of Justice.

Actually, I had nothing else to do with the kids at their mum's and TWICRTAMG out with her mates. A while ago I spotted a disused shed at the top of a field at a horse yard we were visiting north of Chesham. I asked the owners if I could camp there, and they were fine with it, even said I could have a fire as long as I didn't burn it all down. Happy days then.

I set out around 4pm and lobbed at the yard just before 7 after a very slow and circuitous 20mile route via Penn Street, Amersham and Hyde Heath. I had packed a lot of gear - loads of food, tools, clothes, a grill, a big pot and Trangia and about 5kg of firewood in a backpack. Yep, this was definitely not a TLS experience. The owner was still at the yard when I got there, so I helped with hay nets, feed and water buckets, mucking out, picked out 24 hooves and rugged up six horses. By the time I pushed my bike up the hill it was nearly 9pm and I was filthy, exhausted and starving.

First up I got the fire going with the wood I'd brought in, then hunted out some windfall branches from the woods behind the shed. I had a hatchet and a folding saw, and soon had a really nice pile of firewood. Once the coals were glowing on went chorizo, beans and rice. Luverly. I sat out for a few hours watching the fire and spotlighting wildlife, finally hitting the mat around midnight.

Not surprisingly I slept like the dead, waking around 7am and got the Trangia on to make tea and porridge. While it was cooking, the yard manager turned up to do the horses and I offered to help again - more hay nets, water buckets and sweeping up till she invited me into the office for breakfast. Let's see - cold porridge and Nescafe 3-in-1 or a bacon sandwich and decent coffee. No choice really.

Now I'm home, showered and all the kit is washed and drying. So glad I went out rather than porpoising on my sofa. I have never regretted getting out for an overnight camp. Ever. Much of 2018 was a bit shi! for me with some personal, professional and health issues that I won't bang on about. One of the things that got me through it all was the monthly camp out, particularly when mates came along.

So, BAM 2018 properly done and dusted and that makes 24/24. Roll on 2019.


Way too much stuff. I don't care.


Fire. On a concrete slab on private land with the owner's consent. No other way.


Nom nom nom.

[ScotRoutes]

I have never regretted getting out for an overnight camp. Ever.

That should be our new strapline.

March last year I was very ill with a horrid cold/flu that made me think I was drowning The final night I felt a teensy bit better and made it up to a wee hut in the forest. It was -5C outside and about 0C inside. I had the best nights sleep in weeks and felt completely invigorated in the morning. I/we need to remember that feeling when we have doubts.

[RIP]

Rich - brilliant to hear that the first Ebike-BaM-of-the-rest-of-your-life was successful

Tim ya big loon! Loving the men-in-sheds experience there . Only one question mate: given that you were already carrying most of a tree on your machine where the hell did you manage to stash the concrete slab??? Frame bag? (just spotted the full sized grill, what are you like )

[restlessshawn]

Bob, Do you have a gpx or a strava route I could look at for flittingford location please? I can see where it is on the os map but not sure where the final track goes in from ? Cheers

[whitestone]

Bob, Do you have a gpx or a strava route I could look at for flittingford location please? I can see where it is on the os map but not sure where the final track goes in from ? Cheers

I'll post a link when I get back tonight. It's not that difficult TBH once you've turned off the main track from Falstone

[restlessshawn]

Bob, Do you have a gpx or a strava route I could look at for flittingford location please? I can see where it is on the os map but not sure where the final track goes in from ? Cheers

I'll post a link when I get back tonight. It's not that difficult TBH once you've turned off the main track from Falstone

ta, just likely to arrive in dark so the more clues the better :)

[whitestone]

As promised - https://www.strava.com/routes/16554647

[restlessshawn]

Perfect thanks

[fatbikephil]

This time we had the bothy to ourselves. There was no coal left and what wood there was was pretty damp but I found a couple of boy scouts to rub together and before long we had a reasonable fire.

Sorry Bob I used the few bits of dry stuff on the 23rd.... I left a few bits in a lattice stack next to the fire to help them dry, not sure if they were still there when you visited....

I vote for a meet up in Kielder at some point this year to allow a bit of cross border action. I'll post up dates in the '19 bam thread, all welcome