SE (Chilterns) Winter Bivy - 10/11 Dec

[benp1]

Date for this bivvy now confirmed as 10/11 December (Sat night)

We'll be somewhere around the Eastern end of the Chilterns (Tring/Woburn)

Route and plan to be agreed closer to time (Jameso and other locals taking a lead role in this!)

Register interest for now and the rest can follow

[crewlie]

Very interested...nothing planned for that weekend, and not too far from home

[ssnowman]

Toying with the idea of going snowboarding that weekend. But if it doesn't happen definitely interested.

[RIP]

Hi chaps! Yep, still on for this, be nice to meet all the other SE Wimps as those people out in the sticks call us ;-). Am in Leighton B'stard meself. Pickers said he might up for coming down (up? eh?) from Alcester as an honorary South Easterner.

Do we carry on with this thread to thrash ideas out and whatnot or use PMs or what?

MuddyPete in bivvyamonth sounded keen too (u there MP?) from Bletchley area. Fascinating to see how many BBB'ers there are round this area.

Happy to go anywhere round here really - can even use Euston railway line to create "one-way" type routes if you like. As benp1 says there's Tring (railway stn), Wendover Woods, woods behind Chequers, Risborough, Totternhoe Knolls, Rushmere Woods behind LB, massive Woburn Woods area, etc. Maybe that's a route right there - Tring station to Wendover Woods back to Tring, Ivinghoe ridge, Totternhoe Knolls, Rushmere Woods, Woburn Woods, Bletchley station. Afternoon and a morning's toddle. Happy to do two full days as well if anyone fancies something else?

Should be a laff anyway!

"Reg"

[Bearbonesnorm]

Please don't take this as interfering ... but

To pull this off, you'll likely find that someone needs to make the decisions ... a dictatorship rather than a cooperative, if you will. I know that 'telling' people what's going to happen isn't always easy and some people don't like the percieved responsibility but no one will hold you responsible if it rains or the pub runs out of nuts and in the long run, it'll probably work out much better.

As you were.

[Dan_K]

I'm hoping to be around for this. Sounds like fun!

[TheBrownDog]

Count me in.

[benp1]

Good challenge Stuart. I don't think it'll be a fully crowdsourced route, but we'll have a bit of input I'm sure

Something near a good train station would be helpful. I'll either train from home to somewhere closer or ride there if I'm really energetic

[jamesatthelodge]

Hi. Im intrested. I live near leicester so not to far away.

James

[MuddyPete]

How about this:
Option 1 -
Meet at Leighton Buzzard train station (between Euston & Milton Keynes) at a 'reasonable time' for everyone (perhaps midday-ish? Bearing in mind it will get dark at 3.51pm). There's parking in side roads available nearby if driving and it's generally safe to leave a car overnight.
Pedal around for a bit, generally NE-ish towards Woburn/Millbrook.
Find a pub.
Find somewhere to bivi.
Sleep until the weather wakes us up.
Pedal around a bit more.
Find breakfast somewhere warm & dry.
Ride back to the station & congratulate each other on a job well done.

The Woburn area is on a sandy ridge, so drains fairly well. But there's mud available for the connoisseurs, if desired.
There are plenty of trails to keep us entertained if the weather is good; or plenty of pubs to keep us entertained if the weather is gopping.

Option 2 -
Meet at Tring station (also between Euston & Milton Keynes) at a similar time.
Ride west towards Wendover woods (someone else will have to suggest a route as I don't know this area).
Pub.
Sleep.
Breakfast.
Ride.
Home.

Option 3 - something else? I'm open to suggestions.

Don't forget your lights...
Pete

[RIP]

Never sure of the etiquette of these type of threads.... Advertising a bivi spot bad plan, not sure about showing route details. As Stu says, the full communist approach doesn't work; but there's presumably room for a bit of banter and argy bargy as we home in on something over ten weeks ;-). I think Jameso and benp1 started the thread so I hesitate to chip in, then again things seem up for grabs at the moment?

An egalitarian approach to the start point would be to do one of those pins-in-a-map-showing-everyone's-home then the elastic bands to a stick in the middle (*) which evens out the distances. Probably end up in the middle of a railway yard or a river or something.

M-P has probably homed in on the two main areas, and a Leighton station start would be nice for me a couple of hundred yards away, ahem .

Leighton to Lidlington is about 15 miles, and Tring to Princes Risboro is about the same. Nothing round here as technical or remote as Cader Idris of course, but there's options for "twisty little passages all alike" woodland and a few wide rough tracks in both areas. Must admit I was thinking Tring railway station to Risboro - poss Sat lunch start at Ashridge Monument caff, along the ridge behind Tring/Chesham, pot of tea at Wendover, through woods from there to Risboro, poss stop after Chequers at the "PM's pub" (opportunity to hurl abuse/praise as you wish). Then plenty of pubs, shops and curry places etc in Risboro itself - more scope I think than Woburn/Lidlington area considering you might be in the pub for 6 hours of darkness as MP says! Also loads of bivi spots around Risboro. Back same way but there's many different bridleways/tracks from previous day, Tring nice lunch places, back to station after lunch? Obviously that's an old codger's plan - hardcore types can skip all the caffs/pubs/shops .

My penn'orth anyroad. Anything special anyone wants to see or do or visit?

"Reg"

(*) did I mention I'm not really an electronic gizmos afficionado? You can't go wrong with an elastic band I always think.

[benp1]

Thanks for input so far

Won't respond to anyone's specific comments as there's no formal route yet, but the rough (broad) area that everyone has been commenting on is about right for location

Potential participants look to be:
benp1
jameso
crewlie
ssnowman
RIP
Dan_K
TheBrownDog
jamesatthelodge
muddypete

It would be helpful to understand how many will be driving vs arriving by train or riding there so we know if it needs to be a circular route. There seems to be a lot of people who are local so we could do a linearish route (say NE to SW). It's unlikely I know...

I'll probably ride/train there from home (in North London, near the top of the Northern Line), it's about 30-40 miles from home depending on where we actually start

[RIP]

Train please (Berkhamsted, Tring, LB, Bletchley, Woburns Sands, Lidlington, Millbrook etc). Happy start/finish anytime Sat/Sun.

[crewlie]

Was thinking of driving. But can probably sort out a train (bikes on trains novice), if it makes the route planning easier/better.

[jamesatthelodge]

Hi. I was thinking of driving but a train is possible.

[Dan_K]

Train for me from East Croydon. Tring would be ideal.

[MuddyPete]

Train or ride for me (Leighton or Tring).
Crewlie - Trains run direct from Northampton/Long Buckby/Rugby to Leighton Buzzard and Tring. Bikes are carried free & trains are more beer-friendly than cars. No bike reservation needed on these (London Midland) trains.

To minimise the "which way now?" scenarios in the dark, can it be led by someone with a GPS, or who knows an area well. Unless everyone's happy to bimble around aimlessly (from pub to pub...?).

[TheBrownDog]

Happy to meet where consensus takes us and will drive or ride there depending on the distance to the start point and the distance home from the bivvy spot. Wendover Woods is a good shout or Ashridge.

[Zippy]

Hi all,

Bit late to the party, but I'd like to come along. Most likely to drive there, but as long as there's somewhere vaguely nearby to leave the car safely, then train station isn't a bad shout meeting wise.

[Pickers]

Potential participants look to be:
benp1
jameso
crewlie
ssnowman
RIP
Dan_K
TheBrownDog
jamesatthelodge
muddypete

I'd like to add my name to the list if I may.. RIP might vouch for me.... And RIP knows where the pubs are as well.

[benp1]

Pickers, of course, all are welcome

More on the train than I expected, will definitely incorporate at least 1 train station

Latest list - 11
benp1
jameso
crewlie
ssnowman
RIP
Dan_K
TheBrownDog
jamesatthelodge
muddypete
Zippy
Pickers

edit - we might be giving those pesky northerners a run for their money here

[RIP]

Yeah I'll vouch for you Pickers mate, you're a top scout. For a Midlander . Bl00dy gatecrashers .

11's not bad is it. We've just gone one louder ;-).

With that number there'd be scope, if desired after Benp1 comes up with his SE200 mega-route ;-), for a WRT-style LHC-A (Mileage Folks) and LHC-B (Slouching In Pubs/Cafes Talking Boll0cks) split.

[Chew]

edit - we might be giving those pesky northerners a run for their money here

You'll have to sort where you're going first

[MuddyPete]

"SE200" . That's a lot of pubs to cover in 24 hours...

[RIP]

Couple of quickies: Bedford-Bletchley trains don't run on Sundays so that may affect any train-based scenarios. Also, would suggest not bivvying south of Leighton or NE of Tring cos that area's under Luton flight path - got woken at 06.30 today even with my bikepacking earplugs in and in my own bedroom!

Dead jealous of all the shenanigans going on 160 miles WNW of here as we speak. Still, I'd only have got a far as the first cafe then 10 miles later keeled over in a ditch somewhere.