The Dolomites part 1 - Champagne and in to the Vosges

The Dolomite mountain range in Northern Italy has featured on my bucket list of rides for many years and looking again at the road routes, wonderful mountainous scenery in my tour books and the possibility of another adventure with Rob, we agreed to start to plan a ride through the region in the summer. We both selected a time when the mountain passes are warm enough to be fully open, yet before school holidays to give us best chance of good weather with quieter roads, and fits in with both family and work commitments. 

I'm usually happy to plot a route through Europe and research hotels to include safe bike parking, but this year I have been way too busy with work so didn't feel I could do it justice in my spare time. Clearly, with more miles to cover we would need more days than last years ride, this would mean more research and planning. Rob sent me details of organised tour options and one tour company had an interesting alternative. Ride With Us offer a 'self-guided' option providing routes and arranging channel tunnel crossings with GPX route files, pre-planned door to door between good quality hotels.

I contacted Slavica at Ride With Us who reassured me the hotels they use offer secure bike parking, however, with a long ride to Folkestone and then on to the Champagne region via Germany this might mean a tiring three days of 200-250 miles early on in the trip so I asked Slavica to add in an extra day and change the route a little to take us out through the Vosges in Eastern France. Considering the cost of past tours, the readjusted 12 night tour would be a very competitive option, and neither of us would have to sit in front of a computer plotting routes and searching hotels. All hotels included breakfast 8 of them with evening meals too, so both agreed the tour and routes were ideal. A week or so later we were downloading the itinerary and loading GPX files on to our GPS's. It was so good to have routes, itinerary and hotels sorted weeks in advance with minimum fuss leaving us to simply look forward to riding off to Folkestone on the 21st of June. 

This latest adventure started with a hot but pleasant ride through the Cotswolds, our preferred route south stopping for a great breakfast and chat at 'Pat's Baps' just outside Moreton-in-Marsh, amusing ourselves with the antics of the Barber Shop owner next door who had taped off his front car park and regularly came out to stop bikers from parking near his shop. It’s a shame most bikers nowadays are old and bald and not needing his services. The M25 was blocked as usual near Heathrow so splitting up for 30 minutes or so while filtering through stationary traffic up to Clackett Lane services and then rejoining up again to refuel and grab a drink. So, a night stay in Folkestone at the Holiday Inn and we were ready to cross into France in the morning. 

While eating breakfast the sky went dark with a storm brewing and a huge downpour just as we left for the terminal but thankfully our crossing was on time and before long we were riding a sunny but cool A26 peage motorway in Northern France. As far as motorways go this is a pleasant experience with a quick stop for coffee at one of the services and a chat to a guy on an African Twin DCT who was off to ride the Stelvio we then continued on for a short time and paid our toll North of Saint Quentin around lunchtime. While riding through the city I noticed this railway carriage set out as a dining car so I quickly turned in parked up and found an amazing buffet spread as we entered. It was a perfect lunch, sitting in the carriage eating quality food with a variety of salad options and the luggage rack serving as a helmet store. If you are out this way I can highly recommend a stop at the Crocodile Restaurant in Saint Quentin.

Later afternoon on the Route de Epirnay we came across the Military Cemetry 'Allemands' near Marfau with row upon row of black crosses overlooking the valley. Well worth a stop, quite poignant really, being used to seeing British, French and Canadian cemetery's on past tours, never stopping to take a look at one of the thousands of German cemeteries. It was getting quite hot now, so I swapped jackets for my lightweight cooler mesh and we both grabbed a drink and soon after continued through the Champagne region passing through some pretty well-kept villages linked by twisty country roads. A nice change from the straight roads further north, only stopping briefly down a 'chalky' limestone lane between the vines for a look across the valley and the Marne river. 

It was an evening arrival at the four star Hotel Renard in Chalons en Champagne having covered around 215 miles from Calais. We checked in, unloaded panniers and my room seemed to include access to another via the interconnecting door too and I did worry I'd find some stranger wandering around in his underwear in the middle of the night. I kept the door shut just in case! Good quality hotel and interesting to see the pictures of the hotel dating back to the 19th century, ideally situated in the centre of town with easy access to the underground car park for the bikes too, accessible via key card. Sitting outside with a few beers at a very nice restaurant next door and later enjoying a meal of fish and chips, it was good to discuss the days ride and look forward to the next leg down into the Vosges.

Over breakfast we discussed todays route aiming for a 9.30 depart, it's good to get the bikes packed and ready before sitting down to breakfast and having both pre-loaded all of the routes files all we had to do was select todays route and check both of our GPS units were showing similar mileage before checking out of the hotel and riding off, remembering to drop the garage key card off too of course! I do prefer to work in miles on the GPS, since I can relate it easily to a 70 mile staged rest stop. For some reason I can't convert to kilometres that easily while riding so it's useful to at least check the distances are similar and we are following the same route in case we get split up so we are at least on a similar path with a chance to regroup en-route. 

Our morning ride took us through ‘big sky’ French countryside with ripening wheat fields and later passing through towns and villages on the N4 to Saint Dizier where I seem to recall both running a little low on fuel before finding a petrol station on the outskirts of the town. Soon after revealed an amazing river plateau and then a long climb up through a forested area (Foret Domaniale Du Vau) commenting over the intercom how incredibly pretty and diverse this part of France is, before dropping down for even more of a fantastic view of countryside ahead of us near a series of wind turbines. Most of the roads were great too, good quality surface and those long sweeper bends you could just hold the throttle open and lean in nice but then it changed to a real bumpy surface through the valley, so I did change my GS settings to Enduro mode to soften the suspension for a while. 

By chance I spotted a small a cafe by the side of the road near a town called Vaudeville le Haut so both stopped and pulled up right outside hoping for some lunch. Neither translating very well with the owner, a lady stepped in and suggested we should try the 'tart'. It turned out to be some kind of plum tart and for me was a little too 'tart', but Rob seemed to be enjoying it along with his americano. While trying to escape the sun and find shade both of us left soon after on to the D3 north of Neufchateau getting some relief of airflow after changing into my mesh jacket, and then along the Route de Epinal before joining on to the Route de Colmar. Very pretty twisty country roads, with very few vehicles on the road, both in agreement the ride couldn't have been any better not knowing it would continue for the rest of the afternoon.

By early afternoon we were now in the Vosges mountain region in Grand Est. The area once part of Germany consists of gentle peaks draped in fir and beech trees. I was really looking forward to riding the Col du Sclucht pass with Rob this time, having travelled through here on a few occasions the last in 2018 with our friend Steve, but alas we came across  a road block .. the first of our trip so far! This meant our GPS's started to encounter a bit of confusion after following the diversion and I was fearful it may re-route us and miss the pass entirely. Pulling off the road somewhere between Route de Houx and Route de Laveline I checked where the diversion was heading and thankfully discovered it would rejoin the route just after Geradmer. The Schluct was fun, winding up and over and then through some dense forest, I did mistakenly lead us along a few of sections twice, yet both of us were enjoying the ride it didn't really matter with plenty of other bikers out enjoying the afternoon too.  It was great to encounter the first pass of our trip eventually coasting down the mountain into Munster to locate the Hotel Verte Vallee on the outskirts of the town. 

180 rewarding miles and our first impression of the hotel didn't disappoint, a nice private parking spot round the back out of the way too. On entering my room I discovered a pair of spa slippers and gown on the bed and as I unpacked the bike realised there is a nice indoor pool and sauna. Perfect to cool down after the afternoon ride, a really nice hotel and after a quick swim it was getting quite late so we walked in to town for a good meal and drinks at a nearby restaurant. With todays ride through some great countryside across our first mountain pass and staying in Munster with it's very German architecture, we both agreed an excellent day and both of us were well on the way to the Dolomites now, heading across the border in to Germany and Switzerland tomorrow. 

Part 2 - Black Forest, Rhine and into Austria

Ride outs and cafe stops

I haven’t posted an update in a while due to work and other activities, however I have been on some fun weekend rides on these warmer Spring days. I lost track of the amount of times I’ve been out on KAB free rides down into Wales to Crossgates Cafe following a variety of enjoyable routes that include Dolfor and out to the Elan valley, and on other Sundays in to Shropshire to Church Stretton and our other favourite, the Honey Cafe in Bronllys on the edge of the Black Mountains. 

Out with Tim on a fun days ride, we took a big bank holiday loop ride out around the Cotswolds stopping off for a nice breakfast at the Priory in Burford before Tim headed over the road to a shop to get some twine in order to fix his loose tail tidy on the Kawasaki Ninja HS2! Later in the day we had a quick stop at Toddington for a nice latte and cake at the GWR railway cafe.

Then, while on a Sunday KAB ride in Leominster I lost the group in traffic and arrived too late to order food but never mind we had an amazing return ride in glorious sunshine before I couldn’t ignore the rumblings of my tummy any more so peeled off on my own into Knighton to visit JD’s cafe. 

I like the owner he was in his usual form, always putting the world to rights in a ‘sweary’ hilarious way and I do love his home made chips cooked in a good old fashioned fryer. A rare treat for me and well worth the visit followed by more weekends of mixed up weather, so my GS needed a good deep clean on more than one occasion.

A recent weekend saw Tim out camping with his Royal Enfield on a green lane rally event up in Shropshire where he had to make it to various way markers of interest to score points, so we arranged to meet up on the Sunday at the Shobdon Aviator Cafe. Sadly, too late for the full English as they stop serving at 11, but we did get them to rustle up a couple of sausage sandwiches consumed while watching the planes take off with gliders in tow. While there, a Moto Guzzi club turned up. I do like the Guzzi’s and good to see various revisions of the V7 Stone (my favourite model) with some classic California tourers thrown in. I would love to own one of these classics. 

I recently organised a big loop ride around Worcestershire and parts of Herefordshire for Rob who was practising for his IAM test through Kidderminster Advanced Bikers (KAB). We had a fun afternoon with some added ride time set to surprise him with changes of direction to test his rear observation skills. He only missed two of my indications and to be fair one of those during the approach to a very busy crossroads. It’s always good to partake in regular observed rides as much for me to self critique and avoid being complacent too. Nice coffee donut stop in Ledbury before looping back past Eastnor castle. I have to say Rob is definitely riding to the ‘system’ now for sure, so no surprise to hear he gained the pass soon after. The Advanced Riding course is definitely a challenge worth taking on and comes with many benefits. Congratulations Rob .. his smile says it all!

Well done Rob!

Another breakfast ride last Sunday with some of the lads from KAB on an interesting route to Hope under Dinmore in Herefordshire to visit the Queenswood cafe on the top of the hill. Good fun and banter before riding back home to at least start the prepping for the upcoming European tour. As always can’t wait to set off on this next one with Rob, so in the meantime really good to be riding again in some warmer weather and sampling local biker cafe ‘scran’ too!

A Spring ride around the Brecons

A fun ride out on a cool Sunday with Rob in March, we agreed to ride one of the ABR routes around the Brecons and on to the Sennybridge firing range. I had never ridden there before and a chance to experiment mounting the Insta360 camera in a ‘pillion’ ride view although probably needs a bit more work in getting the angle right if I’m honest, and Rob has a new Helmet/Intercom coupled with his new Garmin Zumo XT2 setup it gave us both chance to try out the tech’ before our tour later this year. A few interesting stops, including the Maen Lilia standing stone that was raised in position about 4000 years ago. Unfortunately we didn’t complete the entire ABR route, so we decided to save the remaining part we missed for a warmer day!

The Recent rain meant our bikes ended up covered in this silty sand from the Sennybridge area and my GS required three washes after! The middle pic showing the clip on mount for the magic selfie stick for the Insta 360, Ideally, I think I might need a different mount to pull the stick out wider. All good with Rob’s new GPS though, he followed the route mostly as planned and getting used to its features now. Roll on warmer weather and clean roads.

Ticket to Ride - Madeira!

With Christmas over now and only that long slog through the cold weather of January to look forward to we planned a late booking family trip for winter sun on the Portuguese Island of Madeira. I had been suffering with a bad dose of the flu and still feeling quite ill so didn’t think I’d be hiking any Levada trails this time or even out riding motorcycles, but as the week progressed in the milder climate I started to feel a little better and while out walking with Hayley I came across a few bike rental shops and the thought of escaping for the day started to cross my mind. A few years ago while on the island, I hooked up with a guy named Steve who runs Madeira Motorcycle Tours and had a lot of fun back then but this time didn’t really fancy a guided tour as such, preferring to do my own thing with a solo ride instead.   

By Saturday morning I was soon chatting to Diogo of Vive Madeira Vive Madeira Motorcycle Rental based opposite our hotel and had my eye on a couple of his bikes. I did think of taking the Tenere 700 out for the day but found it quite top heavy. Another option was the Suzuki VStrom 800 DE in bright yellow that looked quite nice but I really did fancy a go on the new F800 GS, and did the deal for 85 euro days rental including insurance and extras with a full tank of fuel (to be brimmed on return). The rental included top box, smart phone holder, helmet gloves and jacket, so that was that, I was soon off out for a ride a quick visit to the hotel to grab a jumper, some water and download the MRA route planning software on to my phone I had soon plotted a few waypoints to take me up in to the mountains over ‘Monte’ and beyond. 

It took me a while to navigate my way out of the capital Funchal but after a while recognised those famous tobogganists ahead and took care to avoid colliding with them as I pointed the GS along that extremely steep and straight road up the mountain on the outskirts of the city before taking a left at the top across the switchbacks up higher in to the forested section. Some excellent twisties up there and my congested ears started popping with altitude and almost immediately I started to feel a little better with the warm sun on my back as I started to get used to the smooth F800 engine. Quite a bit different to the boxer this in line twin having a nice growl about it, but the biggest shock to me was suspension and regular telescopic forks. I’d been so used to the telelever suspension it took a while to get used to fork dive again, especially as I braked hard to take some of the snake like bends. The roads around the island are mostly smooth tarmac with very few pot holes but in many parts steep gradients and tight bends that had me shifting my hips to flick the smaller GS through those chicane like sections.   

After Monte my route took me up the R103 towards the small village of Ribeiro Frio and kept winding through some amazing forested scenery with wonderful views down and across the valley. I stopped for a short break at the viewpoint Miradouro do Cabouca and decided to head on toward Santana overlooking the North East coastline and gradually descended down to the town after a long straight section. There are some of the traditional ‘A’ framed straw roofed houses painted bright red and blue as you pass through, but I just kept on going and decided to ride on along the coastal road R211 to Sao Vicente. Here I got a little lost and headed back up the mountain again in a kind of loop around, but didn’t mind because the roads and scenery were amazing.

At one point I came across an old single track tunnel and had to wait at lights for oncoming vehicles to come past. Madeira has a network of many tunnels some as old as the Levada irrigation system, and some quite long to serve a modern road system. Eventually I found my way riding into the pretty fishing village of Seixal then turned around to head along the coastal road again with a huge cliff edge on one side and the sea on the other. This part of the island is ideal for surfers and the sea was crashing over the road forcing me to anticipate the surf as I passed the narrowest stretch to avoid getting drenched. 

After Sao Vicente I stopped briefly to plot some waypoints to avoid the main VE4 road across the interior. I wanted to ride the mountain section inland from Sao Vicente but ended up riding along the long 3km tunnel before realising my error so turned off up toward the mountain near Gingas. I spotted signs for a restaurant / cafe and eventually found it halfway up a long mountain road. The owner and his wife welcomed me in and served me a nice coffee with cream as I listened to the sound of dogs barking at each other across the valley. 

While riding I came across a few dogs that shot out of side entrances or farm tracks to chase me as I passed by, quite alarming at times so I had to take care and get ready to avoid them taking a chunk out of my trouser leg! By now I was feeling quite cool, riding the mountains the temperature gauge showing around 14 degrees up high. I took the R228 as it climbed up then started a descent down through along the Estrada Regional 228 and passed the Valley View Hotel situated in a great  location as its name suggests a stunning view. I stopped at a Miradour for  a few minutes to take in the view of the lush green mountainside and terraced farmland. Madeira really is a pretty island, crammed with vegetation growing on the fertile volcanic soil. 

By now it was past 5pm so I took a nice steady ride back toward Sao Martinho to drop the GS off as agreed after a brief fuel stop. Great days ride and Diogo and his colleague Pedro were waiting to check the bike back in was keen to find out where I had ridden. I signed my name on the ‘testimonial’ wall and said farewell. Highly recommend Vive Madeira motorcycle rental, great service and good advice. Hopefully I’ll rent a bike from them again some day soon!

A Himalayan in Snowdonia

As previously mentioned, Tim has recently taken delivery of a brand-new Royal Enfield Himalayan 410 and was keen to test the new bike on 'green lanes' in and around Snowdonia. Over a lunchtime chat the idea of a weekend camping trip came up as an option but I haven't put camping gear on a bike since 2017 and never with my current GS. To be honest I did think those days were over for me now, but the more I thought about it the more I liked the idea of freedom of adventure again, as long as we could find a camp site near a town with access to a pub for a good meal and a few beers within short staggering distance back. I once stayed at the very good Cae Du camp site just outside Beddgelert so despite the expensive tariff £35.00 a night for a tent pitch seemed normal for these parts these days we both booked the two nights - Friday/Saturday. The weather forecast looked favourable prior to booking so I planned and shared a few suitable routes with Tim, leaving me to gather together and find all of my camping gear, check tent/tent pegs, gas canisters for my mini-cooker, sleeping bag etc so by Thursday night had the bike packed and ready to go. 

 Fridays ride into North Wales

I met up with Tim in Craven Arms after a misty ride over Clee Hill, then on for a brew and sandwich stop at Tuffins Cafe in Churchstoke. Eventually we managed to pair our intercom units with a little bit of patience, mine being Sena and Tim has the Cardo system yet pleasantly surprised by the excellent audio quality btetween the two. The planned route took us through the lanes toward Oswestry and then on to Lake Vyrnwy. Tim had never ridden around the reservoir before, famed for feeding water to Liverpool so we went off route across the top of the dam to the cafe. By now the temperature was rising with glorious sunshine so we sat inside in the shade to enjoy a scone with jam and cream. Afterwards a bit more tech' tinkering, I'd recently had a new action camera; Insta 360 and early birthday present from Helen so now had the chance to mount the 'selfie stick' to the bike and make a few experimental recordings around the lake. 

I had ridden the mountain road between Vyrnwy and Bala quite a few times over the years, ideal to test the Enfield and us both to record our journey along the narrow road. We stopped at the usual cattle grid to enjoy the scenery and met a fellow biker who also owns a Himalayan a nice chap who was running in his new Triumph 400. I really enjoyed following Tim, the sound of that single cylinder engine quite unusual these days a real sound of yesteryear. The bike was coping well loaded with all of that camp gear despite being 25bhp. The chosen route into Snowdonia meant more twisty narrow lanes yet I found myself enjoying the slower pace than I'm used to these days, never more than 55mph plodding along nicely around 40-45mph admiring the scenery all around, it really was quite relaxing. 

From Vyrnwy to Bala across the mountain

After a bit of confusion on entry to the camp site our tent pitch was quite a challenge for me since I couldn't remember exactly how to assemble the tent, mistakenly unclipping the inner tent from the waterproof outer. Thankfully Tim the camping pro' came to my rescue but the next challenge was stuffing the camp bed 'cot' inside the tent since its seemed a little too large with this tent and was a struggle at first despite opening both doors. 

Trying to keep my lightweight Helinox chair stable in soft earth was a challenge too, having me fall backwards like a right clown as soon as I tried to sit down, leaving me to dig the legs out of the turf. Hmm, what an ordeal, a sweaty start made me wonder if this camping lark really suited me now. Never mind at least it wasn't raining, and nothing a few beers and a fine meal at the Prince Llewelyn pub wouldn't fix. A really good day riding on some fine roads. I'm used to riding in Mid-Wales but forget how amazingly different the scenery of Snowdonia is in comparison. We hadn't ridden far today, yet it seemed to me like another part of Europe altogether.  

Saturday and the Llanberis Pass

Not the best nights sleep I have to say rolling around in my constrictive sleeping bag like some demented cocooned caterpillar, making me feel as if I was suspended in some failed cryogenic state on board that space ship 'Nostromo' from the Alien film. I think Tim had a better night sleep than I in his posher tent, and roused me by promising to saddle up and ride in to town to obtain supplies. He soon arrived back with the most essential of camping items; a big block of lard, eggs and bread rolls and soon we fired up our camping stoves each frying up bacon, eggs, sausage, black pudding and mushrooms all washed down with a brew of tea and coffee.  

Eventually, we managed to ride away in the direction of Llanberis after rigging up our cameras, obviously leaving the luggage behind we were soon winding our way through the valleys and villages with quite a  misty start this morning.

It seemed we'd picked a bad day to ride the Llanberis Pass though, we were passing slow moving MAMIL's cycling up the pass during the local Triathlon event. Never mind I thought I'll put the wind up 'em with my super long selfie stick and almost 'skewered' one poor chap as I rounded a bend. I found it quite amusing and sensed Tim did too while chatting over the comms. The slower pace was ideal while still 'running in' the Himalayan helping me keep control of my stick thus avoiding later retrieval from within some lycra clad body part. 

The Llanberis pass was great with a short stop near the top we turned south back toward Llyn Cwellyn lake then east along the B4418 toward Pen-y-Groes. A fantastic ride some of which I caught on film (below), I thoroughly enjoyed this section passing by a huge quarry before joining the A487 South and then on to the B4411 to the seaside town of Cricieth. Another quieter narrow road and by now the temperature had risen we decided to stop at a cafe for a brew and spotted another superb cream tea option, this time a gloriously cherry filled scone to take my fancy.  

While snacking on cream teas I found Tim's t-shirt quite ironic. A quote from the Micheal Caine movie 'Get Carter'. The hard man about town, yet us a couple of 'rufty tufty' bikers camping and eating scones with cream and jam like a couple of grannies on a coach trip! After our stop we soon snaked our way back toward Beddgelert and to the campsite and it seemed Tim was now on a mission having hit a 'running in threshold' mileage on the 'Himalayan' he was now chasing me down through the twisties. Great fun!

At 60 odd miles in total we arrived back quite early ready for a wash and brush up, change of clothes (Note. the shower at this site was really good and hot) we were ready to head into town for ice-cream and beers but not before hearing tales told by the camp site groundsman of his recent motorcycling trip in India, also on a Royal Enfield it seems. It sounded fantastic apart from the bit about how he'd fell off a few times in busy Delhi traffic. He left me wondering if he really did handle that bike better than he did his petrol strimmer because I was now concerned our bikes would  receive a good 'peppering' of stones and grass and had visions of Tim touching up chipped tank paint on his new bike. Our evening was spent in the pub sat outside drinking beer with a good curry rice and chips before taking the dark road back to our tents. By now I'd sussed a few things out in the tent, re-arranged my bed and found somewhere convenient to stash my torch, but why-oh-why do tent and sleeping bag zippers always seem to jam up in the dark? Agghh, FFS! 

Sunday - a wet but fun ride home

So there I am lay there with alcohol still dulling my senses and I hear the gentle sound of rain drops on my tent, how nice I thought .. until the deluge came midway through the night. One starts to wonder if this tent really is as waterproof as it claims but I figured it was best to leave that thought until the morning. By then the rain was starting and stopping periodically and quite a downpour each time so there was only one option to figure out how to dismantle the bed and break camp while remaining under covers. No chance of us cooking breakfast this morning so I strategically packed the gear away all without getting too wet leaving the final act of packing the wet tent on the bike just after changing into bike gear before pulling it down. Not too bad I thought, maybe listening to round the world travellers explain how they do this kind of stuff on past episodes of the Adventure Rider Radio podcast really has paid off. I must say I was quite pleased with myself, but not quite ready to tackle the Mongolian Steppe just yet!

We discussed route options over the intercom. The route home was out West toward the seaside town of Tywyn after paying 50p each to cross the Penmaenpool wooden toll bridge near Dolgellau (when I finally found it after several turnarounds) before cutting back East along the Aberdovey estuary toward Machynlleth. I have to say I was pleased with our choice to stick to the planned route despite the constant rain. We were both wearing laminate Rukka gear and other Gore Tex kit so pressing on meant we were riding through some interesting lanes on the way to Tywyn and having a lot of fun before stopping at the cafe along the seafront for a full breakfast with hot mugs of tea. At this point we were both still quite dry, the cafe perfect for a warm up before heading off again and pulling over a mile or so down the road to grab a photo looking out across that bleak bay.   

Our ride back home took us up to the fantastic Llyn Clywedog reservoir near Llanidloes after climbing up and over the mighty B4518 the Bryn Y Fan road. The rain hitting us quite hard by now as we topped out and stopped at the reservoir to grab our selfie and a picture of the Himalayan (above). By now I was constantly fighting to keep my glasses from steaming up but eventually we came down into Rhayader and had a brief coffee stop at Crossgates before heading back home via a slightly drier Leominster. 

A fun weekend I must say, and I'm pleased I finally got to go camping on the bike again. Riding with Tim and the Himalayan gave me chance to slow down a bit on this one, and really enjoy the scenery even in the rain!

Into the New Forest and The Sammy Miller Museum

With a Friday off work in lieu of the previous bank-holiday, I plotted a route for a ride down into Hampshire. Our family had a cottage booked for the week near Mitton in the new Forest so ideal for me to take a scenic country ride down through Malmesbury and Devizes and across Salisbury Plain. I'm not so familiar with Wiltshire, and realise I must come down here and explore some more in the future but with this sunny day I just kept on rolling on through the wonderful countryside and along those military roads across the plain. I didn't see any tanks today, and probably glad I didn't really I reckon they would seem quite intimidating as that turret rotates tracking my GS as target practice!

 

I stopped in a quiet village I found on the outskirts but no phone signal so I had no idea where I was so decided to park up on the village hall car park enjoying this peaceful setting while eating my packed lunch before moving on to take a look at Old Sarum Castle that overlooks Salisbury with a great view of the cathedral spire in the distance. The castle itself is interesting, mostly ruins with the remains of the fortified mound and castle moat and later superb riding through the forest avoiding cattle and ponies and enjoying the view. The cottage wasn't an easy find since the given postcode isn't really GPS accurate, but luckily Helen guided me in over the phone passing through the nearby ford to park the GS up near the ponies. Really great to meet the neighbours too; Gloucester 'Old Spot' pigs in the field behind were quite amusing and inquisitive, and really do like to eat just any scraps of food. In the evening we all went out for a meal in Lyndhurst and took a wander around Ferrari garage forecourt, each selecting the car of our choice should those elusive lottery numbers come up.

 

For Saturday I had a loose plan and route for a circular ride through the forest to visit the Sammy Miller Motorcycle Museum in New Milton. I mentioned my plans to Helen, Gordon and Hayley and was surprised to discover they were interested in coming along too, so we all took the short car ride down to what turned out to be a great morning enjoyed by us all. I'd known about the legendary Sammy Miller MBE for a long time and always wished to visit the museum but had no idea it would be so good. There are 500 classic machines restored by Sammy and his associates to an impeccable standard. There are so many machines to marvel at, not withstanding the Norton race machines, Rickman trials bikes and some real oddities I'd never heard of before like the three cylinder 248cc Radial Redrup. If you are ever near New Milton area and haven't been here before you must pay a visit .. it's superb!

While walking around the museum I heard the roar of a machine startup up and looking out of the glass atrium window saw two elderly engineers revving a classic racing machine. We headed outside and realised one of the chaps was the man himself 'Sammy' actually test riding the 1939 A.J.S. V four super charged 500cc. The first bike to lap at over 100mph during the Ulster GP 1939. Amazing to see him taking turns lapping the car park with everyone watching on open-mouthed.  

A short video ‘walk around’ the museum.

Sammy riding the AJS

Hayley (my daughter) found it hysterical to see Sammy 'hooning' around at 91 years of age, as she commented 'he's older than my Grandad!' Afterwards Helen coaxed him out of his workshop for a chat and a picture, and what a nice guy he is too, very proud to tell us a few facts about the bike and how the AJS's technology came 45 years before the Japanese bikes! So pleased to have met Sammy, and I'll definitely come back down for another look. Gordon (my father-in-law) really enjoyed it here too, and I must say thanks to him for my very smart Sammy Miller Museum polo shirt. Afterwards we headed out to visit Milford on Sea and then on to Lymington before returning to the cottage with a Fish and Chip tea for all, a few drinks and a fun evening playing our latest addiction: Monopoly Deal!

An early start on Sunday since I'd have to head off back home for work on Monday we all decided to visit the Portsmouth Historical dockyard. I'd been here before with my two kids but missed out on visiting HMS Warrior and the Mary Rose last time. Today we got aboard the Warrior - the first iron hulled warship, a real game changer at that time. Fascinating to discover they built it from drawing board to launch in less than two years. It was good to get close to the Mary Rose at last too, the King Henry VIII warship I'd seen raised while televised back on the 1980's, with a later harbour tour allowing us to get close to the HMS Elizabeth (air-craft carrier) and HMS Prince of Wales currently docked. Looking out across the deck Helen did notice a couple who were past competitors on the TV show 'Race across the World' too!  

I set off for my reverse ride home around 5.30 pm and once I realised Sunday evenings are perfect to pass directly through quiet towns at this time e.g. Marlborough instead of using the congested motorways and A34 around them I arrived back about 9pm after a pleasant cool but dry ride back. What an excellent weekend trip with Sammy Millers Motorcycle Museum and meeting Sammy the real highlight for me! 

A Summer for Riding!

 I've enjoyed quite a few rides this summer, mostly with the Kidderminster Advanced Bikers on regular free ride Sunday's into Herefordshire (the Honey Cafe) and across the border into Wales to the bikers cafe at Crossgates. One night after work myself and Tim had a pleasant ride to one of the Cotswold bike meets at the Lower Lode Inn, Tewkesbury. A great charity event in aid of Air Ambulance and some real classics on display. Tim had just taken delivery of his new Royal Enfield Himalayan and was enjoying running in keen to seek out as many lanes between work and the pub, we must have crossed the M5 half a dozen times as we snaked down narrow lanes on the way.

Later in the month myself and Rob arranged a fun Sunday run around the lanes in Herefordshire skirting around the Brecons and on to Abergavenny before returning back near Hay on Wye. An enjoyable route I'd ridden many times before, but not for a few years stopping at Skenfrith Castle, then on through Pontrilas to ride some of those narrow lanes looping back around via the A479 and Bronllys. Unfortunately I didn't take many pics on this one, we were both happy to keep riding along some memorable roads on the B4521 (the Old Ross Road). Great scenery to look at on the way, so look forward to the next ride as we must try and fit in another one as Autumn approaches. Always good to ride these parts when the leaves turn a golden brown.