March 2017 Update

March has been a fun and busy month, with a fun evening out with the family. I’ve bought a video editing suite. Julie had a week’s holiday and I’ve managed to get away camping!

The month started with a family night out at the local bowling alley. And despite the fact that I’ve not bowled for years and having a bad back I still managed to win both games. Much to the annoyance of everybody else! But let’s face it, there really wasn’t much competition. I was just too good for them!

I also decided to buy a video editing suite and have been having fun trying to make some videos, although I’m bored with that now! But the ones that I have made are on my YouTube channel.

Days Out

Julie had a week’s holiday, so I took a couple of days off as well (any excuse!) We cycled to Brighton on one of the days and had fish, chips and beer on the beach. On Wednesday we decided to go to London and went to the “Sky Garden”, which is on top of the walkie-talkie building in Fenchurch Street.

It’s only 35 storeys up, but the views across London were brilliant and we were lucky enough to have a nice clear day. On Thursday we drove to Winchester a cathedral city about 50 miles away, purely just to have a wander around somewhere different.

It was a good week and one thing that both Julie and I noticed was how much further and easier I can walk now compared to this time last year! It’s only when I look back over a long period of time that I notice any improvement in my back! Long may it continue!

I decided to go away camping on the Isle of Wight again this month. But I left it too late in the day, leaving home! By the time I’d cycled the 22 miles to Portsmouth, it was dark and had become rather foggy! Knowing that I still had a 45-minute ferry crossing plus another hour or 2’s cycle ride on the island. I decided to just go home and jumped on a train!

Let’s Try Again

However the following weekend, I did manage to get over to the Isle of Wight. The main reason for going to the Isle of Wight was to try out my new MSR tent again. But with a forecast of strong winds, I thought that it was a better idea to take my Hilleberg instead as it is a bit more robust.

It was a hard ride across the island as the wind had got up (as forecast) and I was cycling straight into it!

Once at the campsite, I found a sheltered or as sheltered a spot as possible. Grange Farm campsite is on the cliff edge, so there’s not really any shelter anywhere when the winds blow off the sea!

After struggling to put the tent up in the wind, I was going to go down to the local pub for a pint and a bite to eat. But by now, the wind had really got up, blowing at a steady 30mph and gusting at about 40mph! Fearing that the tent would be blown away without my fat arse in it to anchor it down, I decided to stay put and cooked supper in the tent.

After finishing supper and clearing up, I settled down for the night, listening to the wind battering the tent. After an hour or so, I heard a voice outside. It was David, the owner of the campsite, asking me if I was okay. They were a little concerned about me being out in the wind and offered me one of their pods to sleep in as they thought it would be safer! After reassuring David that I would be okay in my tent, he left but said he’d leave pod no 1. The one nearest to me open, just in case!

I Made It Through The Night

Thankfully, I never needed that pod as my tent withstood the battering from the wind! Although once again, I had little or no sleep and left the campsite worn out, even before I’d turned a pedal! I was thinking of cycling somewhere else for the night, but with the wind still very blustery and feeling pretty knackered, I thought it best to come home. Although I did come home via the New Forest, a reverse of the trip I did last month (it was windy then!) total miles covered 114.