The damp, if well sheltered camp at Melgarve

MAY bank holiday. Weather forecast was good so ideal for a little run-out to test drive the bike with all the camping gear I’ll be taking to France next week for our La Manche to the Med tip.

Last year on our LEJOG trip Hamish and I stayed in B&B’s. It worked well. The B&B’s were invariably excellent, we ate out every night and we didn’t have to carry much gear. How much does a credit card weigh? But for the French trip we thought we’d camp most of the time, and perhaps stay in a gite or something similar every third night or so to charge up batteries, take a shower etc. I don’t know about Hamish but I enjoy camping and even after 40-odd years backpacking I still get a kick out of putting the tent up and crawling in to cook a meal and falling asleep to the sound of birdsong. Other than that I’ve just been voted in for another term as President of the Backpackers Club and since the club caters for bikepackers as well as backpackers it’s only right that I should camp on any trip like like.

But bikepacking isn’t quite like backpacking. Over the past few years I’ve managed to pare the weight of my backpacking gear down to very acceptable standard. On normal weekend trip the base pack weight of my gear – that’s everything other than food and water, is in the region of 7-8 lbs/3-4kg but when bikepacking there’s a temptation to carry more gear in the false hope that it’s the bike that’s carrying the weight, and not me. It’s easy to conveniently forget the fact that no matter how good the bike is my feeble, ageing body is the engine that propels it!

That’s not helped by the fact that the makers of bike touring panniers appear to  have been bypassed by the ultralight fashion that has taken the outdoor industry by storm. My two Ortlieb Bike Packer Classic rear panniers weigh 2.08kg, and that’s each. Almost 9 pounds before I put any gear into them! And that’s before I consider the weight of my front panniers which are another 1.4kg each. If someone was to suggest I use a backpack that weighs 9 lbs empty I’d laugh in his face.

Now, to be fair, I haven’t carried out an exhaustive search to see if there are lighter panniers on the market. I suspect there are, although my old Karrimor panniers are just as heavy as the Ortliebs, so what I have to do now is make sure I’m not tempted into carrying too much of everything else. In that mode, I’ve carefully chosen my camping gear for a balance between weight and practicality and that’s what I wanted to discover on my little shakedown trip over the May Bank holiday.

May Bank holiday. Huh. You’d expect decent weather wouldn’t you? After all it’s been a long cold winter and the spring has been non-existent. You’d the think the weather gods would feel sorry for us and give us some sunshine over the holiday weekend. Well the gods that look after Badenoch and Strathspey must have a mean streak because it’s been lousy. No sooner than I had set my wheels in motion that the rain started. Not just a little spring shower but that wet, drizzly stuff that soaks you through, especially when it’s propelled by what feels like a gale force wind.

The Ridgeback Panorama almost fully laden. Front panniers still to go on

Of course the wind was in my face. Usually is, and by the time I had gone 10 miles I felt as though I was soaked through. I’ve been using a Montane Velocity jacket, made from Pertex Shield, and to date it’s worked beautifully but today I felt damp and chilled inside it. I was wearing a pair of Altura full length trousers (I think they’re made for mountain biking) as I’ve been searching for decent cycling leg wear other than lycra, but they were soaked through in no time at all and my gloves felt squishy and slippery on the handlebars. It wasn’t a day for cycling.

Fortunately I wasn’t going far. About 20 miles up to Melgarve at the start of the Corrieyairack Pass. When I arrived there were about 50 red deer stags milling around, looking as wet and miserable as me. A band of trees gave me some shelter from the wind and a bit of a view and I had the tent up in minutes, my new MSR Carbon Reflex1. I had been a little worried because this is an inner erecting first tent and I was scared it would get soaked through before I got the flysheet over it but I guess the experience I have from my old MSR Hubba helped. The inner stayed dry.

My new NeoAir Xlite was blown up pretty quickly and the accompanying Thermrest Antares sleeping bag was unstuffed for its stuff sack. Although I won’t be taking it to France I was using my beloved titanium Caldera Cone meths stove and in no time at all I have water boiling for a brew.

Despite the patter of rain I had a good night and everything worked as it should. I suspect the Antares sleeping bag might be a bit on the warm side and I found it to be slightly voluminous and a bit bulky when packed. Might need a re-think on the sleeping bag. The problem is my other lightweight bag, a Rab Neutrino 200, only has a half length zipper and if the nights are warm in France I think I’d prefer something that allowed me to unzip the whole thing and use it as a quilt. I wish I knew what the weather was going to be like over the next few weeks!

I think we’ll be cooking by gas so I’ll take my Whisperlite gas stove. It’s not the lightest on the market but I do prefer a ground hugging stove as opposed to something you screw into a cartridge and then have to balance a pot on. A titanium MSR Kettle, a couple of water bladders and my usual knife/fork/spoon will complete the kitchen. Not to forget my 35 years old Sierra Cup which doubles as a plate and whisky sipper!

As regards clothing them simplicity will be the key. Although it looks silly on me I can’t find a practical alternative to lycra cycling shorts. I’ve tried some Altura padded boxer shorts to wear under ordinary shorts but they are not as comfortable as regular cycling shorts. I might take one pair of bib tights in case it’s chilly and I have a very nice Scotland/Lion Rampant cycling jersey from Impsport to wear. I’ve been told that if the French think I’m from Scotland and not England then the positive feelings from the Auld Alliance will kick in – it’s worth a try!

As well as my Shimano touring shoes I’ll take a pair of sandals for evening wear, or perhaps even a pair of Crocs. Although they do look hellish and are not particularly comfortable they are extremely lightweight. Evening dress will be further enhanced by a pair of Rab trousers, a couple of tee shirts and a lightweight Mammut soft-shell.

I’ve no ideal what the final weight will be but I’ll also need to carry my bigstrawberry8 juicer (to recharge iPhone, camera battery etc), and my iPad so I can write up my daily blog. I’ll also take my little Leica d-Lux6 compact camera, a little camera with an amazing lens quality. A couple of water bottles and that, as they say, will be that!

If anyone has a good alternative to lycra pants please let me know…

This spring I’ve been working with VisitScotland to develop Scotland’s Natural Trail as part of the Year of Natural Scotland.

My interest is simple - I want to get as many people as possible to visit some of the natural treasures we have in Scotland whether they be fabulous landscapes, sites of historical significance, or places where folk can try some of Scotland’s great produce. In short, we have a huge amount to offer visitors in Scotland and not just great mountains!

VisitScotland is also organising a competition, the prize of which is a 5-day tour of Scotland’s Natural Trail with Rabbie’s. I’ll be on hand some of the time to talk about Natural Scotland and offer advice.

You can enter the competition here: http://www.visitscotland.com/win/dailymail/?utm_medium=banner&utm_campaign=surprise&utm_source=Explore+Scotland’s+National+Trail+Cameron+McNeish&utm_content=Explore+Scotland’s+National+Trail+Cameron+McNeish

And if you want to discover more about Scotland’s Natural Trail you’ll find it here: http://www.visitscotland.com/e-brochures/natural-trail

IT has felt like a really long haul but I suspect that’s just because winter has been so drawn out. Here in Newtonmore the forecasters are predicting snow before the weekend and with the cold winds, long spells of bitter weather and so much snow on the ground since January it’s been difficult to get in a good sustained stretch of cycling training.

Interesting to look back at this time last year when Hamish and I cycled LEJOG. The weather was awful then too! Day after day of north winds, cold and a lot of rain. We even had snow on our last day. Part of the reason for choosing to go to France this year, and a month later, is in the hope the weather might be a bit more summery. And the wine too, of course…

Essentially the kind of cycle touring I enjoy calls for a lot of long slow rides but with one or two exceptions most of my rides have been around the 30-40 mile mark. Hamish and I did go out last week and cycled from Glen Coe to Oban and back, a total of 77 miles, and that felt OK so we’re fairly confident the mileage in France won’t kill us. From now until we leave in mid-May I’ll be trying to get in a few longer rides, and I hope to get in a couple of overnight bikepacking trips, just to break in the gear so to speak.

Last year, on LEJOG, we were glad to book in at hotels, B&B etc every night. We didn’t carry camping gear at all but I was rather keen this year to make our French trip as much of a cycle-camping tour as anything. After all it’s what I do and I’m still, after all these years, President of the Backpackers Club. So what kit will I be using, and how lightweight can we go?

Over the past few years I’ve become quite fond of my MSR Hubba tent, a double skinned, single person unit that packs up really small and weighs under 3 lbs. For this trip I’ll be using the latest in the line of Hubba designs, a Carbon Reflex 1, which is essentially the Hubba design with carbon fibre poles to reduce the weight. The tent I’m using weighs in at about 2.5 lbs, or just over 1kg.

I really like this tent. It’s freestanding and the little pole on the top, which crosses the main semi-hooped pole, gives some extra headroom in the tent itself. It’s very similar in design to the old Phoenix Phreerunner, which shows how advanced Ken and Alan of Phoenix were in their tent design back in the eighties and early nineties. Internal space isn’t massive, but I’ll only be sleeping in it and not holding a ceilidh so it’ll be fine and besides, there is a good large porch, certainly big enough to take both my panniers and still leave room to cook.

I’m well aware that you can buy lighter tents and that tarps are even lighter still but we’ll be camping mostly in camp sites so I want an element of privacy. A double skinned job is best for that and many tarp models are nowadays dependent on using trekking poles to suspend the fabric. We won’t be using trekking poles on our cycling trip and I don’t fancy trying to suspect a tarp from a bike frame…

Inside the tent I’ll be using the latest ThermaRest air mat - the NeoAir XLite. This is well shaped, almost coffin-shaped, and weighs in at a respectable 350g, which is a bit of a saving on my usual ThermaRest mat. I’ve been using an older, thicker model of the NeoAir mat for a couple of years and have become used to the comfort of it, although it took me a little while to trust it. That’s largely because the first one I bought went down on me, if you pardon the phrase, on my first night out. That did little to give me confidence in it. Anyway, this newer generation NeoAir is lighter and more packable and I’ll try it out a couple of times before I commit myself to it.

Something else I’ll be trying out is a new ThermaRest sleeping bag. The Antares bag has zoned insulation - ie most of top, less at the sides and even less on the bottom. Two elasticated straps (called SynergyLink Connectors to be really technical, or a bit geeky, whatever you like) allow you to slip the NeoAir mat in between keeping your bag centres and eliminating potential problems with sliding, twisting and cold spots. Problem is I like to turn from side to side in the course of a night and with this set-up I’ll find myself turning around inside the bag rather than have the whole bag turn with me.

However, I’ll try it out on my shakedown trip and see how I get on with it. If it doesn’t work out I have a lovely little Rab Neutrino 200 that I’ll take instead. The Antares is a little heavier than the Neutrino, and weighs in at alb 15oz/890 gms. It has 750+fill Goose Down and is a little wider at the shoulders than the Neutrino.

Not sure yet what I’m going to cook on but I’ll certainly be carrying my MSR Titanium Kettle as a single pot. I’m greatly tempted to take my lovely titanium Caldera Cone meths stove but I’m unsure how easy it is to get meths, or denatured alcohol, in France. I suspect we’ll end up carrying several screw-on gas containers (we won’t be flying to France so we can carry some gas from Blighty) and using some boring old lightweight gas stove. Ho-hum…

But maybe we won’t do much cooking… What’s the point of travelling through the world’s most famous gastronomique country and cooking up flavoured pasta from a packet every night? I suspect we’ll eat out as often as possible and just brew up in the morning. Which makes me think - should I carry one of those new fresh coffee thingies? Fresh coffee and croissants and freshly baked baguettes for breakfast?

And finally the best news of all. Hamish has bought himself a new saddle - a Specialized job - which he reckons has solved his sore bum problem and might, with a bit of luck, eliminate his need to slow down every hundred metres to de-clench is buttocks. There is nothing worse than slip-streaming someone only to have to do an emergency stop every time he decides he has to brake and de-clench. Slip-streaming takes on a whole new excitement under such conditions. Let’s hope the new saddle is a success!

SOME news from Mountain Aid, an organisation I think is well worth supporting, especially after this winter’s dreadful tally of mountain fatalities.

“Dear Mountain Aid supporters,

WELL, after a lot of faffing around, much uncertainty and a general acknowledgment that our familiarity with France is pretty scatty we’ve finally hit upon a route that might just take us from La Manche, the English Channel, to the shores of the Meditterranean.

Part of the problem, and this vividly portrays my lack of knowledge of all things French, was that I spent ages pouring over maps looking for a channel town called La Manche. It took a long time before I realised that La Manche is French for The Channel. Doh…

We then decided to use the European Bike Bus, get it to drop us off at Calais then pick us up a fortnight later in Montpellier. Why Montpellier? Well, it’s the only Med coast town I’ve been to. I know there was an airport so if things went wrong and we missed the bus we could always fly home. Well, that’s the theory.

As it happened we decided we’ve like to take a coastal route for much of the way, down through Normandy to Brittany then down the Atlantic coast to Bordeaux. The Canal de Garonne and Canal de Midi would then take us across country to the Med at Sete, just south of Montpellier.

This all looked pretty good until we worked out how long it would take us – much more than our allotted fortnight, so we cut short the northern section and decided to sail from Portsmouth to St Malo, and cycle from there.

This then, is our proposed route. If anyone has knowledge of this route we’d love to hear your thoughts. We’ll be using touring bikes with panniers, carrying camping gear and mix camping with B&B accommodation.

Day 1/Thursday 16^th May

Portsmouth to St Malo – Brittany Ferries 20.15 (Check-in 60 mins before)

Day 2/Friday 17^th May 21 miles/35km

Arrive St Malo 08.15. Mont St Michel etc. Cycle to Dinan

Day 3/Saturday 18^th May 38 miles/63km

Dinan to Questembert on V3. Dinan-Plouasne-Mauron-Ploermel-Questembert

Day 4/Sunday 19^th May 46miles/77km

Questembert to St Nazaire. Questembert-Muzillac-La Roche Bernard-St Joachim-Saint Nazaire

Day 5/Monday 20^th May 73miles/122km

Saint Nazaire to Chateau d’Olonne on Velo Ocean. Saint Nazaire-Pornic-Les Moutiers en Retz-Bourgneuf en Retz-Beauvoir sur Mer-St John de Monts-StGilles Croix de Vie-Chateau d’Olonne

Day 6/Tuesday 21^st May 60miles/100km

Chateau d’Olonne to La Rochelle. Chateau d’Olonne-LaTranche sur Mer-Marans-La Rochelle

Day 7/Wednesday 22^nd May 60miles/100km

La Rochelle to Royan. La Rochelle-Chatelaillen Plage-Rochefort-Marennes-Royan

Day 8/Thursday 23^rd May 57miles/95km

Royan to Lacanau. Royan-ferry across La Gironde-Pointe de la Grave-Hourtin-Lacanau

Day 9/Friday 24^th May 40miles/65km

Lancanau to Bordeaux By Velo Route to Gare SNCH Bordeaux St Jean

Day 10/Saturday 25^th May 68miles/114km

Bordeaux to Les Mas d’Agenais. Bordeaux-St Macaire-Les Mas d’Agenais

Day 11/Sunday26th May 74miles/123km

Les Mas d’Agenais to Moissac. Les Mas-Agen-Moissac

Day 12/Monday 27^th May 51miles/85km

Moissac to Toulouse. Moissac-Montech-Toulouse

Day13/Tuesday 28^th May 63 miles/105km

Toulouse to Carcassonne. Toulouse-Castelnaudry-Carcassonne

Day 14/Wednesday 29^th May 63miles/105km

Carcssonne to Beziers. Carcassonne-Le Somail-Beziers

Day 15/Thursday 30^th May 30miles/50km

Beziers to Sete.

Day 16/Friday 31^st May 15miles/32km

Sete to Montpellier