Ideas for cycling trips
10th December 2006 Whenever a fine day offers, I'm off on my bike to work and often take a longer route home than I took to get there. Over the years, I have managed to get in the odd recreational cycle as well. When still in Ireland, I was wont to go for regular cycles around my native West Limerick during summer holidays, and in all weathers! These days, I am far more choosy about cycling conditions. In Scotland, my biking has taken me all around Loch Tay, up along Glen Lochay and across the Isle of Skye from Portree to Dunvegan and back, all on hired/borrowed bicycles. Since I moved south to England, I have taken a bike around Yorkshire, Cheshire and even Derbyshire. I must admit that I have never ventured into Wales with a bike, though.
When based in Skipton, my cycling forays took me up into Wharfedale. One took me on to Bolton Abbey, Burnsall and Grassington before I made my back to Skipton via Threshfield. Later on, I continued past Threshfield to Cray at the head of Wharfedale, taking in Kilnsey Crag, Kettlewell, Starbotton and Buckden. As if to prove how fast weather can change, a dull day turned into a fabulous evening in the space of an hour or so. As luck would have it, I forgot my camera; I have more than made up for that since then.
These days my cycling forays seem to be limited to Cheshire, though I did cycle back to Macclesfield from Stoke-on-Trent one Friday evening during this past summer. Tatton Park, Little Moreton, Astbury, Gawsworth Hall, Lower Peover: they've all been ports of call on cycling trips. One evening, I headed over the top to Buxton, a cycle ride involved steep hills that caused me to think that hillwalking might be a worthwhile activity when exploring wild places. I cycled there but a train took me back to Hazel Grove, from where I returned to Macclesfield. The thought of re-encountering steep slopes caused me to rethink my return.
Following the Buxton trip, I restricted my cycles to the flatter parts of Cheshire but the thought of extending my range beyond has come more to the fore this year. There are two sides to this: getting around the limitations of patchy public transport networks and reducing the amount of tedious walking (yes, it does exist).
As regards the first of these, one possibility that comes to mind is the area around Sedbergh and Kirkby Stephen in Cumbria. The paucity of public transport provision is patchy makes a bike look a very liberating device, especially when it comes to exploring the Howgills. Highland Perthshire is very like this part of Cumbria in this regard and having a bike would make exploring the mountains around Loch Tay a reality without the need for a car. Other parts of Highland Scotland are like this too. For instance, a bike would really make light work of the trek from Fort William to Gairlochy (a soul-destroying walk, if ever there was one) and open up the delights of Loch Arkaig. In the spirit of this, speeding along an estate road would shorten many a walk-in, a fact that has not lost on writers in TGO and Trail. One example that comes to mind is the prospect of exploring the landscape around Loch Ericht, a great example in my view.
When I was staying in Pitlochry, I had a passing cyclist joking that I, then in full hillwalking gear awaiting a bus to take me to the start of another walk, was doing things the slow way. Highland Perthshire, like many parts of the U.K., has its share of the National Cycle Network and that puts further ideas into my head. Coming south of the English border, Northumberland has a share and this raises the possibility of exploring Northumberland's coastline by bike, an enticing prospect.
As you can see from this, I got quite a few ideas in mind. Now, all I have got to do it get around to turning them into reality and get over my fear of getting a puncture and missing a train home...
ForecastFox
11th November 2006 While taking a look around the new Accuweather UK and Ireland website, I spotted a mention of this useful Firefox plug-in (or add-on). Having had Firefox since the first betas and now using it as my main browser, I decided to investigate further. While not an Accuweather development, ForecastFox does take Accuweather local forecast data and show it in the Firefox interface wherever you decide; personally, I keep in the browser status bar. Apparently, it started out life as WeatherFox, using Weather.com data, before the plug-in's developers found the conditions placed by that provider to restrictive and looked elsewhere, finding Accuweather to be an welcoming partner. Intriguingly, Weather.com offers its own weather toolbar, for Internet Explorer!
To return to ForecastFox, a really feature is that you can set up multiple profiles and have a weather from different location on display in each profile, great for planning a weekend walking expedition. Nevertheless, this does have the disadvantage that settings are associated with the profiles and you cannot cascade things from a global setting. For instance, if you want to see 7 days weather (although I suspect that 15 is the limit, you can have as many days as your screen allows) for any location, you have to go into each profile and change its display settings as appropriate. Having the ability to have a single profile and change the locations would be a bonus. Also, you cannot have temperature in Celsius and wind speed in miles per hour: you have to have metres per second instead and my comprehension of Fahrenheit (with which you do get mph) is ropey to say the least. These may be areas for improvement but ForecastFox remains a very useful gizmo.
New site for Accuweather UK and Ireland
10th November 2006 When OnlineWeather.com was replaced by Accuweather.com UK and Ireland, there were some things that were lost. Among these were maps for long range regional forecasts and regional precipitation probabilities; the latter was limited to mountain forecasts.
After something of a hiatus, maps are making more of an appearance in the new site, albeit for the whole of the UK and Eire rather than the regions as before. Interestingly, one piece of text referred to the UK as "the nation", giving away the American origins of the forecasts. Local forecasts continue, but with more description of what the weather is going to do over the whole day: a useful summary. However, the number of places covered seems to have been reduced: for example, Dolgellau is no longer recognised and looking for Keswick results in the weather for Norwich, not good. When a search request is not found, the header disappears at times, but that is probably a teething problem.
In summary, this site looks more pleasing on the eye than the old (apart from the ads with which it is laden unless you pay for the service) and contains some new features such as health-related forecasting. In addition, they also have very nice feeds for blogs and so on. Nevertheless, it has some way to go before it fully occupies the niche left by OnlineWeather, which seems to be fulfilled a little better by Metcheck. That said, the site provides another perspective, if a conservative one, and is more than valuable for that.
The right jacket has arrived at long last
8th November 2006 After a wait that seemed to stretch on forever, I find myself with a package containing the Rab Latok jacket I had ordered back in August. The previous month, I had received a different kind: the Rab Latok Alpine. A fine piece of craftsmanship, it was a jacket that truly had me second-guessing my decision. However, it was not meant to be; this particular model had to make its way back to its place of origin. Silence followed, and I found myself wondering if the Rab Latok would ever find its way to me. Last week, an email, sent only after my workload subsided, seemed to spark the journey once more.
Upon opening the package, I was struck by the striking similarities and noticeable differences between the models. The cut of the Latok is undoubtedly longer, a design feature that, while not immediately apparent, is surely beneficial for those frigid days when every inch counts. The fit, however, appears closer - an aspect that, while perhaps not ideal for warmer weather, would prove invaluable on a cold day out in the wild.
The sleeves of the Latok are longer than I expected, but thankfully not unmanageably so. They will undoubtedly provide the necessary protection and insulation that one requires when braving the elements. Now all that remains is for me to test this new addition on the hill, an opportunity which may present itself this coming weekend.
Getting a bus to Glendalough
7th November 2006 The rolling landscapes of Ireland's Wicklow Mountains have long appealed to me, and they also were a favourite haunt of my parents. And now, I've discovered a twice-daily bus service that transports you straight to this alluring corner of the Emerald Isle: the St. Kevin's Bus.
The 30-mile (48 km) route commences in Dublin, where I once spotted an evening service departing, adorned with its web address. This coach ride will take you to one of the most picturesque locales in Ireland. Along the way, the bus makes a stop at the coastal town of Bray, a place where my parents once honeymooned. The place is home to an enchanting promenade that offers panoramic views of the Irish Sea. Beyond that, Roundwood is the next landmark along the route, the highest village in Ireland.
The final destination is Glendalough, which resides within the expansive Wicklow Mountains National Park, a haven for nature lovers and adventure seekers alike. Two picturesque lakes, the Upper Lake and Lower Lake, beckon visitors to embark on serene picnics or invigorating hikes. The area offers a variety of outdoor activities such as rock climbing, making it an ideal destination for those wishing to immerse themselves in the natural splendour.
The Wicklow Mountains, with their rugged beauty and abundance of walking trails, make for an ideal destination for those seeking nature. And while I have yet to visit this captivating region, the knowledge of the bus times has sparked a sense of possibility within me, the promise of new journeys waiting for embarkation.
So, if you find yourself in Dublin and yearning for an escape into the countryside, you can hop aboard the St. Kevin's Bus. Then, you can allow the Wicklow Mountains unfold before your eyes, as you traverse an enchanting land and uncover its quieter corners. Their rugged beauty and abundance of walking trails, make for an ideal destination for those seeking an escape from urban confines.
Even though, I have yet to visit this captivating region, the knowledge of the bus times has sparked a sense of possibility within me, the promise of new journeys waiting for embarkation. Perhaps one day, I too will step off that bus in Wicklow, hoping for invigoration as I take my first steps into this attractive area not far from Dublin. Until then, those hills and valleys will be kept on a shelf where appealing ideas are retained.
