Anglesey, short bike trip

This is a cautionary tale. It is intended as a warning to those who, like me, are new to bike touring. An experienced rider might chuckle at my newbie naivety. My hope is that fellow newbies could be forewarned and learn from my mistakes. Looking back, much worse things could have gone wrong and they didn’t. I was lucky.

Day One.

After a month of rain, three days of sunshine beckoned. I decided on that Tuesday lunchtime that I would set off on a little cycling trip the next day. It had been in my mind for a while. So, I downloaded a route off Komoot onto my brand new Karoo 2 cycling computer, bought a train ticket to Bangor, booked two campsites, and packed my gear. I set off utterly unaware of my lack of detailed planning. The route was labelled ‘expert’. Why? I wondered. I would be cycling about 45 miles each day, a fair challenge, but hardly ‘expert’. Perhaps it could be because of hills, but when I checked on the map, there are only a couple of big hills on Anglesey. My route did not include them.

However, within two miles of leaving the station in Bangor that Wednesday evening, I was already unhappy with the Komoot route. How did it find so many climbs if Newborough is on the coast? It didn’t really help that I kind of knew where my destination was. My route kept going in counter intuitive directions, which wound me up. This eroded my confidence in the first hour of cycling. This feeling was going to worsen. The real reason I was moaning was because I didn’t feel in control. I didn’t trust the map system, and I hadn’t practised sufficiently with the Karoo 2. In fact, I barely knew how to use it.

I hadn’t inputted the first campsite into my route, as I assumed I’d be okay since it was in the little village of Newborough. However, there was some confused toing and froing to find the site. When I eventually got there, I set up my cramped little two-man tent. It was a chilly evening, and I had nowhere to sit and get comfortable. Doing the Bear Grylls gig isn’t as good as I had romanticised it to be. Or, maybe there is a flaw in my character… I’m a whiner.

Anyway, I set off into town. Newborough is potentially a one-horse town, it just needs a horse. I got to the only pub at one minute past eight. The cook had just finished, and I was advised to seek fish and chips over the road. That had also closed at eight. I wandered back to the pub to the good news that the cook had decided to stay on so I ordered a beer, and a sausage bap n chips. Oven chips, Iceland value sausages. I’m concerned for their Michelin star, but the food did me a power of good and God Bless the kitchen for staying open for me. There was an interesting display of electric guitars on the walls.

There was barely anyone to talk to, which opens another question for me; bike touring alone or with friends? It helps to have someone to talk to on the ride and in the evenings. Even on day one, I definitely saw the need for company. When I did the Rebellion Way in Norfolk last June, there was a group of us, and we had a laugh. We encouraged each other.

Day Two.

I had a bad night’s sleep as I frequently woke up cold. At about 8.00 am I hit the road, ready for adventure. Initially, I cycled through Newborough forest, which was quite splendid, although pushing the heavily laden bike on the sandy beach was a pain. I decided to trust the route and my Karoo 2 and persevere. As with yesterday’s ride, however, I couldn’t escape the feeling that the route was illogical. It wasn’t going anywhere, or it wasn’t going where I expected. Twice I had to double back on myself, adding about an hour and ten miles to the journey. It was becoming obvious that I would be late to my next camp at this rate.

I kept checking my journey against Google maps on my phone. There were clearly quicker more direct options available. I didn’t want to get to the site late, only to spend another cold, sleepless night. By lunchtime, I decided I had had enough. I was not enjoying myself at all. In fact, it had become a depressing experience. Physically I was shattered, I lacked sleep, decent food, and I discovered why the route was labelled ‘expert’. There are no big hills on Anglesey, but there’s very little flat ground either. It’s a constant grind of up and down, with no respite.

At 1.00pm, after five hours cycling, I decided to switch off the Karoo 2 and turn to Google maps. There is a cycling option, and it found me a very good route to the campsite to arrive about 2.30 pm. Still quite undulating, but much more direct. The countryside was pleasant enough and it was nice and sunny.

Despite this, I was still angry and dispirited, but it helped to know where I was going. I was of the view that my trip was a complete failure and I was hating it. But this was my fault. Every day is a school day, so let’s look at the lessons I learned.

1. My preparation was dismally poor. I was in a rush, so I simply downloaded somebody else’s route map onto my cycling computer without studying it closely. I never really knew where I was going in any detail. I should have had printed version. Or bought a map, because phone screens are too small; zoom out and you lose detail, zoom in and you can’t see the big picture.
2. The map I was following had two sections on beaches. That was gruesome with a heavily loaded bike. It might have been okay otherwise.
3. Twice I had to retrace my ‘steps’ as the route was impassable or seemingly irrelevant. Twice I circled round villages as the correct road was not clear to me. Street signs were largely absent and that didn’t help. This really slowed me down and made me angry, as my efforts seemed pointless.
4. My route was pretty hilly, and I didn’t spot this because I didn’t research properly. It was a really tiring ride for me. About six years ago, I cycled coast to coast in the UK. Up at 4.00am, we drove up to the Lake District, and cycled 106 miles one day, into a headwind, and in the rain. Today’s ride was harder than that. Perhaps because I’m older. The guide stressed this was for expert riders, and I never explored why that was so. It was the number of climbs, not their height, and they didn’t show on a map. I think it did explain this on Komoot, but I didn’t take the information in – rookie.
5. I did not eat properly. The route didn’t send me past places that sold good food. I was eating rubbish and not the slow burning carbs I needed. I had some bars of stuff, but I was stressed out by my slow pace and didn’t pause to take the fuel on board.
6. A cramped little tent is no good for an old codger with a bad back. I was uncomfortable, cold and slept badly the first night. This did little to enthuse me for the challenging ride that lay ahead.
7. The tent, airbed, and sleeping bag accounted for more than 50% of the weight I was carrying. If you are going to travel this way, fine. But you have to practise.
8. It felt like a romantic, nomadic ideal to go off on my own. Now, I think it’s potentially unwise. Firstly, I missed the camaraderie of fellow travellers. Secondly, if something had gone wrong, I would have help at hand. Serious mechanical problems, getting injuries, are more problematic when you’re alone.

So pretty negative here from me. I realise that other people do demanding rides, alone, and with loads of gear. Some people cycle round the world. I take my hat off to you. My argument is that if you want to do something like that, make sure you know what you are letting yourself in for. If you aren’t certain of your route then expect to deal with it going wrong. I’m not blaming my Karoo 2 or Komoot for my confusion, that was my fault. But having fancy technology won’t help you if you don’t know how to use it properly.

Things got better.

As I approached my final campsite, I accidentally pulled up outside a highly rated B&B, The Sportsmans Lodge, to check my Google map. They had a vacancy. A mere £77 for a room and breakfast. I checked in, had a shower, changed my clothes, and had a couple of beers. The Sportsmans Lodge offers excellent accommodation, with all the home comforts and a few extras. The range of hot drinks and free little snacks in the room is a nice touch. There are all the toiletries you could need in the bathroom cabinet. There were plenty of towels, and extras, cushions, blankets… better than many 4* hotels I’ve stayed in.

They were very welcoming and Bob brought me a cup of tea with biscuits while I filled in the guest form etc. Bob also gave me useful advice and tips about cycling on Anglesey. The not cycling alone idea was his. Many of the little country lanes on the island are very remote. You could be waiting hours for a passerby to help in case of an accident. That said, quite a few locals did assist with directions when they saw me staring quizzically at my phone. One chap was quite helpful, even though he undoubtedly overheard me swearing obscenely at an impassable rocky beach.

After a rest, I went to a bistro pub down the road called The Ring, where I ate heartily (greedily) and slaked my thirst (got pissed). Good food, a tad pricey perhaps, but you get what you pay for. For the final day, I checked Google maps again for a shorter route to the station and sacked off the ‘planned’ Komoot/Karoo 2 route. Next, I got on Trainline and booked a new, earlier, return ticket home.

That evening I felt very emotional, but not sorrowful. I was rightly proud of my efforts. Okay, so the ride had me beat. For the first time in years, I got off my bike and pushed it up the worst hills. I gave up. I lost my will to fight. The terrain, the road, the hills, won, I had a bum like a baboon in heat, and I was so angry with my useless route. However, I won’t repeat these mistakes. I think one can learn more from a difficult failure than from an easy success.

Day Three.

After ten hours of blissful sleep and a large breakfast (the selection and options were extensive) I set off. I selected the ‘less hills’ route to Bangor railway station. One of these hills was so steep I still had to get off and push the bike up. It was an uneventful journey and my spirits were lifted because I was going home.

In conclusion, I have to ask myself, would I ever do this again? In summary, I cycled 83 miles in 48 hours this trip. Not shabby by my standards. Additionally, I climbed 4,900 feet. To put that in context, Britain’s highest mountain is Ben Nevis at 4,300 feet. Ahem! Hence the label ‘expert’. Effectively, I had cycled higher than Ben Nevis, with full panniers and a tent on the back, with little sleep and poor food. Some cyclists might read that and think ‘that’s nothing’, others might respond ‘wow’. I was knackered but, to answer my earlier question, yes, I would try bike touring again. But with several qualifications; careful planning, only one route on the cycling computer per day, no camping, and I would not cycle long distances alone.

Should you go?

I hope I haven’t put anyone off!

If you liked my blog, there’s every possibility that you’ll like the comic novel I’ve recently published. As much as I enjoyed teaching, and respect those who do the job, there’s plenty to laugh at. I spent 30 years giggling 😊. It’s a bargain at £2.21 for the Kindle! Click on the image for the Amazon link.