Our Rides in Words, Photos & Videos

[Cowlitz]

According to the weather people, we are between storms today. I took off up the hill and into the woods today. We've had a wetter spring this year and I suspect the wildflowers are gonna be happy. I thought the sunflowers (balsam root) were at their peak some time ago, but with the cool weather, they're still blooming like crazy. The hillsides have a lot of yellow to them.

This pear orchard was in full bloom. We will hope the nights don't get so cold because it sounds like the world will need all the food that can be grown this year. I haven't heard the roar of the orchard fans for a couple of mornings, so there is hope. I noticed some gridlock at the openings to the beehives which were almost too close to the road. The bees were making up for lost time? It did rain yesterday.
Here's the future pears and bike with new bags. I've almost tipped over getting on and off because I am in the habit of compensating for one bag on one side.

After thirteen miles, my buns were saying it was time to turn around. I was up higher and into the start of the woods. This is still along Salmon Creek, which supplies a lot of irrigation water to the valley below.

On the way back, with five miles to go, I had to get off the bike for a bit. I snapped this picture of the Okanogan Valley which becomes the Okanagan Valley once it is in Beautiful British Columbia, eh. It was either downhill or flat from here on. No restaurants--well, maybe they might have peanuts or something at the Golf Course....

You can't see the bottom of the valley because of the "flats" that are up out of it. Today was 26 miles sans Demon Dog.

 

[Stefan Mikes]

Wish it was available in bottles here in the US, instead of cans.

I'm a great believer in beer cans. Nowadays, even the most expensive ales and stouts are distributed in cans. Beer does not degrade when transported in cans but is does in the bottles.

Oh, and here is one for @Stefan Mikes , that hard clay with all the foot prints, hoof prints, and tire ruts, that is guaranteed to knock your fillings out!

I feel I need to take a photo of some surfaces I'm riding...

 

[Cowlitz]

I'm a great believer in beer cans. Nowadays, even the most expensive ales and stouts are distributed in cans. Beer does not degrade when transported in cans but is does in the bottles.

I feel I need to take a photo of some surfaces I'm riding...

There are some microbreweries that will can a beer for you. It's a bigger than normal can and that's all I know.

 

[Stefan Mikes]

There are some microbreweries that will can a beer for you. It's a bigger than normal can and that's all I know.

I've been in so-called "craft beer world" for a couple of years. Many of beers in the list of "100 Best Craft Beers Of The World" can be found canned, and these are insanely expensive. What matters is the beer shall be poured into glass before serving. The cans allow transporting the most excellent beer unspoilt worldwide. Here, a 17.2% ABV (yes, you read it correctly!) Imperial Stout from the American EvilTwin Brewing made in cooperation with the Lervig of Norway. All honours to the United States of America for the "craft beer revolution"!

 

[Stefan Mikes]

"2022 Gravel Master (Short Route)" Re-Enactment, or All Went Wrong!

• Przemek The Gravel Man invited 10 people to take part in a trip over the course of the recent "Szuter Master" Race (2022 Gravel Master Race).
• Darek Howard was my riding partner. Howard is a close friend of mine. A jack-of-all-trades, and a very helpful man who had helped me during recent disasters, has been riding my Lovelec e-bike for the last Winter. He was very enthusiastic to join a long trip, and was extremely well prepared for the ride. (I was riding Jacek's Giant Trance E+).
• We started from Budy Grabskie, a location in the very centre of the beautiful Bolimów Forest.
• It was the best day of 2022 weather-wise. Warm, sunny, calm, dry -- were it even warmer, we would think it was Summer!

How to spoil such a fantastic day, and turn the ride into torture?

• Forget taking the backpack/pannier harness with you, and ask Howard to haul as many as two panniers, each containing a heavy spare battery...
• Leave your Wahoo at home...

Without the Wahoo:

• I was blind as to e-bike ride parameters (speed, distance ridden, ride duration, battery level, distance left to go...)
• No GPS navigation for the defined course...
• No ride recording.

Yes, I was trying to use Strava for GPS navigation. (Never do this at home, as to say).

There was a single occasion when Strava navigation helped us. The main group was following blindly the Gravel Master course, and they had to carry their bikes ankle-deep in the mud over a distance. I, Howard and Joanna took a detour, assisted by Strava. Here, at the Bolimów Lake.

As we learned later, both groups had to eventually cross the same wooden gangway over the River Rawka.

Actually, the whole group was split into three sub-groups at that time. Eventually, all 10 people could ride together again.

The top quality "gravel freeways" in the Bolimów Forest. See Howard with the two panniers at the left. He was doing extremely well, also off-road!

The First of May. The Workers' Day, and a big holiday in Poland, with people having a really good time, especially with such weather!

The Reconnaissance. Gravel-cyclists need an operating grocery store on their trip to replenish food and beverages. Would any store be opened on May 1st? One of the guys volunteered to do a recon. As it turned out, grocery stores are open on the May holiday in the countryside, so the party-goers can replenish their beer & sausage, too!

Sands and hills in the Land of Łódź.

Still 10 people on the ride.

An e-MTB is a poor choice for "gravel-cycling" rides
Let me be very honest: It was a mistake to take the Giant Trance E+ for that trip. The e-bike only shone on sand and for climbing hills. A heavy machine that is slow on-road was the worst choice possible. Even the touring hybrid e-bike (Lovelec) would be a better choice there! Necessary to mention, an e-MTB is a pain to pedal at speed on-road. You need to work very hard to keep together with the fast group!

When you meet a location by name "Holy Chicks" (or, you interpret the name so), wouldn't you laugh?

Maków. Seven people still on the ride, with one of them leaving soon. (Howard was on the road, so he's not pictured here).

The things started to go really wrong...
We had three ride members who set off for that demanding ride unprepared (like, their first 2022 ride). They were constantly dropping out and stalling the ride. Worse, neither of them had GPS navigation with the ride course! Two guys left because they could not continue the group ride, one had just to leave, and there was a nice new friend who was bravely struggling to the end. I and Howard didn't want to leave Sebastian alone. We lost the touch with the main group. And we had no good GPS navigation...

The red line is the part where I, Howard, and Sebastian got lost. Eventually, we rode for 94.8 km, 8 km more than the main group.

I and Howard ate a poor lunch in Budy Grabskie. Sebastian told us that if we drove to Szpularnia restaurant in Żyrardów, we could get excellent beef tartar and herring tartar. So we drove there

 

[ChezCheese:)]

My objection to cans is because of the plastic lining of the cans. As for the ale degrading in glass... Drink faster!

 

[Stefan Mikes]

My objection to cans is because of the plastic lining of the cans. As for the ale degrading in glass... Drink faster!

It is the light that causes photochemical reaction in the beer, leading to creation of "skunk". Also, glass bottles with metal caps "breathe", with oxygen getting in and degrading beer.
The plastic lining of the cans is totally neutral. That's the whole point. No light or oxygen can enter a can.
(Did I ever tell you I was a process engineer?)

 

[kahn]

"2022 Gravel Master (Short Route)" Re-Enactment, or All Went Wrong!

• Przemek The Gravel Man invited 10 people to take part in a trip over the course of the recent "Szuter Master" Race (2022 Gravel Master Race).
• Darek Howard was my riding partner. Howard is a close friend of mine. A jack-of-all-trades, and a very helpful man who had helped me during recent disasters, has been riding my Lovelec e-bike for the last Winter. He was very enthusiastic to join a long trip, and was extremely well prepared for the ride. (I was riding Jacek's Giant Trance E+).
• We started from Budy Grabskie, a location in the very centre of the beautiful Bolimów Forest.
• It was the best day of 2022 weather-wise. Warm, sunny, calm, dry -- were it even warmer, we would think it was Summer!

How to spoil such a fantastic day, and turn the ride into torture?

• Forget taking the backpack/pannier harness with you, and ask Howard to haul as many as two panniers, each containing a heavy spare battery...
• Leave your Wahoo at home...

Without the Wahoo:

• I was blind as to e-bike ride parameters (speed, distance ridden, ride duration, battery level, distance left to go...)
• No GPS navigation for the defined course...
• No ride recording.

Yes, I was trying to use Strava for GPS navigation. (Never do this at home, as to say).

View attachment 122115
There was a single occasion when Strava navigation helped us. The main group was following blindly the Gravel Master course, and they had to carry their bikes ankle-deep in the mud over a distance. I, Howard and Joanna took a detour, assisted by Strava. Here, at the Bolimów Lake.

View attachment 122116
As we learned later, both groups had to eventually cross the same wooden gangway over the River Rawka.

View attachment 122117
Actually, the whole group was split into three sub-groups at that time. Eventually, all 10 people could ride together again.

View attachment 122119
The top quality "gravel freeways" in the Bolimów Forest. See Howard with the two panniers at the left. He was doing extremely well, also off-road!

View attachment 122121
The First of May. The Workers' Day, and a big holiday in Poland, with people having a really good time, especially with such weather!

View attachment 122122
The Reconnaissance. Gravel-cyclists need an operating grocery store on their trip to replenish food and beverages. Would any store be opened on May 1st? One of the guys volunteered to do a recon. As it turned out, grocery stores are open on the May holiday in the countryside, so the party-goers can replenish their beer & sausage, too!

View attachment 122123
Sands and hills in the Land of Łódź.

View attachment 122127
Still 10 people on the ride.

An e-MTB is a poor choice for "gravel-cycling" rides
Let me be very honest: It was a mistake to take the Giant Trance E+ for that trip. The e-bike only shone on sand and for climbing hills. A heavy machine that is slow on-road was the worst choice possible. Even the touring hybrid e-bike (Lovelec) would be a better choice there! Necessary to mention, an e-MTB is a pain to pedal at speed on-road. You need to work very hard to keep together with the fast group!

View attachment 122124
When you meet a location by name "Holy Chicks" (or, you interpret the name so), wouldn't you laugh?

View attachment 122125
Maków. Seven people still on the ride, with one of them leaving soon. (Howard was on the road, so he's not pictured here).

The things started to go really wrong...
We had three ride members who set off for that demanding ride unprepared (like, their first 2022 ride). They were constantly dropping out and stalling the ride. Worse, neither of them had GPS navigation with the ride course! Two guys left because they could not continue the group ride, one had just to leave, and there was a nice new friend who was bravely struggling to the end. I and Howard didn't want to leave Sebastian alone. We lost the touch with the main group. And we had no good GPS navigation...

View attachment 122128
The red line is the part where I, Howard, and Sebastian got lost. Eventually, we rode for 94.8 km, 8 km more than the main group.

View attachment 122129
I and Howard ate a poor lunch in Budy Grabskie. Sebastian told us that if we drove to Szpularnia restaurant in Żyrardów, we could get excellent beef tartar and herring tartar. So we drove there

An "exhausting" report . Steak tartar - yes. I had an incredible version in Paris. It was seared on only one side adding an excellent flavor element. And herring, too. I must visit Poland (in my next life).

 

[mikeschn]

(Did I ever tell you I was a process engineer?)

That explains everything! Ha!

Mike...

 

[mikeschn]

"2022 Gravel Master (Short Route)" Re-Enactment, or All Went Wrong

• so the party-goers can replenish their beer & sausage

Looks like you had great weather, and good food. And you really didn't get lost... you were just a bit bewildered! How many hours was your ride? My guess is 4 to 5 hours.

Dang, now you have me craving a good smoked polish sausage! Like the one on the left...

Mike...

 

[Chargeride]

Part One: The Honeymoon

We’ve just finished our honeymoon and did a weeklong cycling trip in the Lake District, followed by the same in the Peak District.
View attachment 122054

I’ve broken this down into four posts, the preamble, (this one) and one for each week in the different National parks and an epilogue.

Initially, we were going on an escorted coach tour to Morocco for the honeymoon. However, we did not fancy three weeks on a coach wearing a mask. Additionally, travelling through six different countries, each with their own rules for COVID, would we get back OK if there was a new outbreak.

So, we had a re-think. And, as Mrs DG has seen so little of the UK being here for just over three years and the effects of COVID, we thought that we would see some of the nice scenery that It has to offer.

We did the New Forest last year and did part of Exmoor in February this year. We are doing the Broads in June, so slowly working out way through the National Parks.

End of Part One and onto Part Two…

The Broads is the only one I havent visited, we keep meaning to go.
Do t forget to post it!

 

[Chargeride]

Unnamed Route

I wanted go on a metric century southwards on Saturday. However, we had an online party with @Brix the night before I woke up too late and in bad shape! When I got better, I thought I might take my Vado SL for a ride northwards against a mild NNW wind as well. The weather was so beautiful, I decided to wear Summer cycling clothes! Lucky me I took a windbreaker with me, too! And an extra Range Extender inside a small backpack (REs are truly lightweight! 1 kg or 2.2 lb).

When quickly planning my trip with RideWithGPS, I noticed the default name was "Unnamed Route". And that became the name of my trip!

View attachment 121952
The ride to the border of the Kampinos National Park just took 34 minutes.

View attachment 121953
When I was happily drafting the route, I overlooked the fact it would lead through roads I really hated, such as this totally damaged access gravel road...

View attachment 121955
...or that cobblestone one!

View attachment 121956
Meanwhile, I felt hungry (it was already early afternoon!), so I changed the route and rode to the "Na szlaku" (On The Trail) biker restaurant in Palmiry (25th kilometre). I started with this excellent, generously hopped alcohol free Ale. There are not many of such ales around but Miłosław Bezalkoholowe really rules!

View attachment 121961
There was a very limited selection of the food on the day (the cook had probably left for May Holidays), so I only ate the Ukrainian Borscht. The variety is made not only with the red beet but also plenty of vegetables and meat.

View attachment 121964
There are not many gravel roads in Central Mazovia. Local gravel cyclists make that deficiency up with riding in forests and on any bad roads they can find

Here, my "gravelized" Vado SL shone:

• Lowly attached handlebars with Innerbarend "hoods"
• Full Redshift Shock Stop suspension system (front & rear)
• Specialized Pathfinder Pro 2Bliss gravel tyres
• Before entering the forests, I deflated the tyres down to 3 bar (45 psi) front, 3.4 bar (50 psi) rear. Such pressure was good for asphalt, too!

I could ride these rather flat cobblestones with no pain there!

View attachment 121967
It took me many kilometres to find the first decent gravel road!

View attachment 121971
Already in the Hollander Land (50th kilometre). I crossed the River Vistula embankment for some rest. Sun was shining, frogs croaking, birds singing. What you can see is not the river; it is rather a bay (proper Vistula flows behind the green island in the background).

View attachment 121974
A Mascarpone & Blueberry Cake "At Marta's" in Secymin Polski. Now, I started riding with the mild tailwind. It felt cold.

View attachment 121976
The return ride over the ridge of the "Carpathians" sand dune inside the KPN.

View attachment 121977
A traditional visit to Klimatyczna Cafe I could enjoy the sweets outside! At last!

View attachment 121978
To my big surprise, RideWithGPS found a road I have never ridden before! It was a mud road, full of dried up ruts (@mikeschn - see it!)

View attachment 121980
The average assistance was about 70/70% (SL), and I used 510 Wh of batteries: the second Range Extender was necessary!

Only a few years ago if I saw someone taking a picture of food, I would be...just eat it man!
Now Im drooling over Stefans cakes and doing it myself.

 

[PatriciaK]

Creeping back towards 10 miles ...

Neglected to charge battery after last ride (PM had been riding during my respiratory health challenges), and dropped down to 2 bars (out of 5) shortly before the halfway mark. (Unnecessarily) freaking out about having enough juice to finish, I turned PAS completely off and rode several miles in manual mode . Actually, it was a good reminder that I'm perfectly capable of riding the Flow without any power on flat and slight inclines, if I need to - though my knees are NOT going to thank me for the slight inclines sections of this later ! Better take Tylenol now!

The Bicentennial Greenway portions of the ride were pleasant, as always; the streetside traffic portions as nerve wracking as usual.

No pictures enroute, so included the obligatory bike shot (sans battery, which was immediately put on the charger) from our patio, after our return .

It's gotten hot, all of a sudden, so need to start earlier in the morning from now on!

 

[DiggyGun]

The Broads is the only one I havent visited, we keep meaning to go.
Do t forget to post it!

Part Two tomorrow…

 

[Twin Valley]

Part One: The Honeymoon

We’ve just finished our honeymoon and did a weeklong cycling trip in the Lake District, followed by the same in the Peak District.
View attachment 122054

I’ve broken this down into four posts, the preamble, (this one) and one for each week in the different National parks and an epilogue.

Initially, we were going on an escorted coach tour to Morocco for the honeymoon. However, we did not fancy three weeks on a coach wearing a mask. Additionally, travelling through six different countries, each with their own rules for COVID, would we get back OK if there was a new outbreak.

So, we had a re-think. And, as Mrs DG has seen so little of the UK being here for just over three years and the effects of COVID, we thought that we would see some of the nice scenery that It has to offer.

We did the New Forest last year and did part of Exmoor in February this year. We are doing the Broads in June, so slowly working out way through the National Parks.

End of Part One and onto Part Two…

sure hope there is a picnic in part two, if not the honeymoon is truly over - coming from me who has been stuffing his backpack with cardboard tasting energy bars for the past 40 years, mind you Stefan has taken the picnic concept to a whole new level . . .

 

[DiggyGun]

sure hope there is a picnic in part two, if not the honeymoon is truly over - coming from me who has been stuffing his backpack with cardboard tasting energy bars for the past 40 years, mind you Stefan has taken the picnic concept to a whole new level . . .

All will be revealed…

 

[DiggyGun]

Part Two: The Lakes

We decided to stay in Premier Inns hotels for the two weeks.

Our first one was in the centre of Penrith on the top right side of the Lake District National Park.

The first ride was the Langdale Trail, which runs from Ambleside to Little Langdale, but added an extra bit onto Coniston.

Had our first picnic stop in St. Andrew’s churchyard in Coniston, where we found the grave of a VC holder from the First World War. Looked up his details and his citation was a very interesting read.

Our second picnic stop was back in Ambleside.

The second ride was the Gorse Trail in the Whinlatter Forest. This is operated by the Forestry Commission and has a number of cycle trails, including some technical MTB trails, but we took the leisure trail.

Although, not a long ride, it was very steep in places, using Turbo power and the lowest gear setting. One of the inclines was so steep, that if you stopped, you would not be able to restart and would have to walk the bike up. Because of the greater use of power, at the end of the ride I only had eight miles left on the battery.

Only one picnic stop today, but it was a fantastic view with spectacular surroundings.

The third ride was postponed due to a rain forecast for most of the day. And boy, when it did come, it was very hard.

Ended up having a drive round to see the area and finished up at Maryport after a walk around Keswick.

Maryport had a harbour with some commercial fishing boats. However, some of these did appear to be rusting hulks, so not sure if they are still working.

The fourth ride was along the West shore of Windermere Lake from Ambleside to Bowness on Windermere.

Our first stop for lunch by the edge of the lake.

We called in to see Wray Castle, which had some excellent views.

There were some very good bridleways, so very little riding on the road.

We noticed that there was quite a number of trees that had been blown over in the recent storms.

Our second picnic stop.

The fifth ride was round the Lowther Castle and Gardens Estate, near Penrith. There has been a castle here since the Middle Ages, but these ruins were built between 1806 and 1814. It closed on 1937 and the roof was removed in 1957.

There were a number of trails with a mixture of off road trails, estate roads and minor lanes. We took a number of these and saw some spectacular views.

Our first picnic stop.

We had another picnic stop in the old stables courtyard of the castle.

Saw a nice vista of water reflecting on the underside of a bridge.

The sixth ride was the Grasmere Trail, from Ambleside to Grasmere.

Our first picnic stop.

Our second picnic stop.

Had a change today, had a third picnic stop.

End of Part Two and onto Part Three…

 

[dodgeman]

The scenery where I ride near my house (western Illinois) is pretty boring compared to some of these pictures but I’ll share what I see. I rode about 18 mikes yesterday to a greenhouse out in the middle of nowhere owned by the Amish. No real reason to go there other than some place to go. The pic was on the way of several horses. I thought it was an Amish farm but once I got past the barn I saw a car in the driveway and an electric service going in the house.

 

[Chargeride]

Part Two: The Lakes

We decided to stay in Premier Inns hotels for the two weeks.

Our first one was in the centre of Penrith on the top right side of the Lake District National Park.
View attachment 122194

The first ride was the Langdale Trail, which runs from Ambleside to Little Langdale, but added an extra bit onto Coniston.
View attachment 122196

Had our first picnic stop in St. Andrew’s churchyard in Coniston, where we found the grave of a VC holder from the First World War. Looked up his details and his citation was a very interesting read.
View attachment 122195

Our second picnic stop was back in Ambleside.
View attachment 122197
View attachment 122198


The second ride was the Gorse Trail in the Whinlatter Forest. This is operated by the Forestry Commission and has a number of cycle trails, including some technical MTB trails, but we took the leisure trail.
View attachment 122199

Although, not a long ride, it was very steep in places, using Turbo power and the lowest gear setting. One of the inclines was so steep, that if you stopped, you would not be able to restart and would have to walk the bike up. Because of the greater use of power, at the end of the ride I only had eight miles left on the battery.

Only one picnic stop today, but it was a fantastic view with spectacular surroundings.
View attachment 122200
View attachment 122201


The third ride was postponed due to a rain forecast for most of the day. And boy, when it did come, it was very hard.

Ended up having a drive round to see the area and finished up at Maryport after a walk around Keswick.

Maryport had a harbour with some commercial fishing boats. However, some of these did appear to be rusting hulks, so not sure if they are still working.
View attachment 122202View attachment 122203View attachment 122204


The fourth ride was along the West shore of Windermere Lake from Ambleside to Bowness on Windermere.
View attachment 122205

Our first stop for lunch by the edge of the lake.
View attachment 122207
View attachment 122208

We called in to see Wray Castle, which had some excellent views.
View attachment 122209
View attachment 122210

There were some very good bridleways, so very little riding on the road.

We noticed that there was quite a number of trees that had been blown over in the recent storms.
View attachment 122211


Our second picnic stop.
View attachment 122213


The fifth ride was round the Lowther Castle and Gardens Estate, near Penrith. There has been a castle here since the Middle Ages, but these ruins were built between 1806 and 1814. It closed on 1937 and the roof was removed in 1957.
View attachment 122214

There were a number of trails with a mixture of off road trails, estate roads and minor lanes. We took a number of these and saw some spectacular views.

Our first picnic stop.
View attachment 122215


We had another picnic stop in the old stables courtyard of the castle.
View attachment 122217

Saw a nice vista of water reflecting on the underside of a bridge.
View attachment 122218


The sixth ride was the Grasmere Trail, from Ambleside to Grasmere.
View attachment 122219

Our first picnic stop.
View attachment 122220
View attachment 122221

Our second picnic stop.
View attachment 122222

Had a change today, had a third picnic stop.
View attachment 122224

End of Part Two and onto Part Three…

Really lovely pics, I recognise the lot of it!
You cannot beat the Lakes for utterly sublime views mixed in with handy civilisation.
This is why Id probably never leave Liverpool, all the great terrain is just an hours drive in every direction.
Any punctures?

 

[Chargeride]

So I repaired the snapped in two wobbly bike, two alloy plates and a few bolts.
Now hubdrive and still silly.

Dont zoom in if you are some kind of perfectionist, theres only demons here for you.
Just needs wide rim fitting on back