hike | camp | paint
I ambled along Fenchurch Street, by now used to the looks of mild disdain that the sight of a guy dressed for the outdoors and carrying a rucksack evokes in city folk. I left them to hurry on to their early heart attacks while I headed for nature's playground, deriving extra satisfaction from the fact … Continue reading The Odyssey resumes
It could have been a great trip, were it not for the weather and the way I dealt with it. Here's the story of the trip - how it was planned, what happened and the lessons learned. The individual posts telling of the story of the trip are indexed below: Initial Planning - The initial phases of planning … Continue reading Trip Report: A Far Eastern Odyssey
There's no such thing as bad weather, only the wrong clothes. Or so goes the proverb. But it's a load of sanctimonious bollocks... If there's one piece of so-called outdoor wisdom that really gets on my tits, it's this. Not because I totally disagree with it, but because of the way that people trot it … Continue reading A Far Eastern Odyssey – Part 4: Bad Weather ? Bad Gear ? Bad Decisions ?
Faint strains of cuckoo song broke through the assortment of snoring and farting noises as the new day dawned. A typical hostel night with 6 blokes in an 8 bed room which makes for very poor sleep. And a tactical error timing my check-in meant I was in the top bunk. Hoping that inspiration had … Continue reading A Far Eastern Odyssey – Part 3: Whiffs of Vanilla and Echoes of Thriller
Sunday 1 July Today was a severe test of resolve and several issues were thrown my way. Not all of them were successfully resolved. I woke to the sound of rain pattering on the tent. I'd expected that but not for it to last 4 hours. So the tent was wringing wet by the time … Continue reading A Far Eastern Odyssey – Part 2: A Lost Mojo
Saturday 30 June I alighted from the train at Windermer to be met by the usual mix of Japanese tourists, walkers and locals milling around and getting in each others way. The locals and I made straight for the waiting 599 bus which was about to leave due to the train being late. We took … Continue reading A Far Eastern Odyssey – Part 1: A Failure Avenged
There's now only three sleeps left until I load up my camel, plant my feet firmly on the Silk Road and head to the Far East. Well, the "Far East" of the Lake District, that is. And I've started gathering some gear... As anyone who read my previous post will have gathered, I've been a … Continue reading A Far Eastern Odyssey – Loading my Camel
I've spent what little spare time I've had in the evenings over the last week staring at the map and my Lake District wallchart, trying to crack the puzzle that is the Far Eastern Fells. And I think I might finally be getting somewhere... The octopus-like nature of the FE Fells makes for difficult planning … Continue reading My “Oriental” Plan takes shape
All Change The rain is falling outside, but otherwise all is quiet as I have the house to myself. Soon the family will return from their afternoon out and in a few hours time the long Jubilee weekend will be over, and it will be time to head back to work. And it's likely to … Continue reading A Far Eastern Odyssey
The title's probably a touch dramatic, but in my post New Year's zombie-like state of mind, it seemed to do the trick. Of course, if you believe the Mayans we've just had our last New Year's Eve parties (no loss there really) as the world is due to end sometime this year. Video by CGP … Continue reading A Day of Judgement
This was my first solo trip to the Lake District and little did I realise how significant it would be or how many subsequent trips would follow. It's only in hindsight that these things come into perspective.The PlanThe previous weekend I was sitting at home, my parents were around and I'd just had a really … Continue reading Ambleside Ambles
Friday 28 October 2005 - Skiddaw Yesterday was such a frantic day, that it was good to finally get out into the hills today, even though it certainly wasn’t the weather we would have wished for. At least I took a day off work to prepare – I hate to think how bad it would … Continue reading A Wet Weekend in the Lakes