My first bivvy
Posted: Fri Mar 20, 2020 4:12 pm
Set out on my first bivvy bikepacking adventure yesterday. Lots of lessons learnt in a very short space of time!
Loaded up the Lidl specials with as much as they could take only to realise my eBay special bike only came with one bottle holder which was rendered useless by the frame bag. Queue a frantic drive up to Taunton Leisure to purchase a new bladder for my Camelbak. That also meant i could take some
Extra bits.
The route in hindsight was ambitious at best. It was 22 miles on the road to Bellever, Dartmoor from my place in Exeter so from the comfort of my living room, plotted the most direct route taking in as much off road as possible, avoiding the main roads. This took it to 27 miles but foolishly took in some of the steepest valley sides that Teignbridge has to offer. By the time I reached the edge of Dartmoor I was hanging out. From Manaton I took a rocky and rutted route directly up the side of a tor which was barely walkable, let alone rideable. Add the fully weighted bike in to the mix and by the time I got to the top of the tor I was at the end of my tether. Seemed like a logical route from the satellite images but they gave no indication as to the severity of the incline. Maybe pay more attention to the contour lines next time. Heavy fog had descended across the moor reducing visibility to 100m or so. This was freezing on the descents and made the whole experience all the less pleasurable.
As I descended the tor I passed a fellow MTB rider and we had a quick chat. Little did I know he would save my bacon later, for I acquired a puncture around 10 mins on and soon realised the old pump I’d slung in my bag no longer worked. He arrived shortly after and we managed a repair. With this delay and the painfully slow progress, I was hugely behind schedule. On top of this, with my questionable route planning in the back of my mind, I decided to take the final 10 miles on the road to make up for lost time. The MTB was slow going due to weight and gearing and I found this frustrating coming from a carbon road background. I managed to roll in to The East Dart Hotel at 5pm, sink two pints and a burger and get to Bellever for 6:30 and the light was rapidly running out. I chucked up my tarp against a fir tree and was in my pit by 7:30. Due to doing this in the dark, I misread the slope on which I was sleeping which meant I spent most of the night wriggling back up my sleep mat. The alternative flatter ground was heavily water logged however. The tarp was adequate but not ideal and the damp from the fog clung to the tree and dropped on to my tarp above my head through the night and was occasionally flicked in to my face as the wind picked up. Another lesson here! I had a rough night with a noisy mouse scurrying around, the heavy wind and cold feet. I woke at 6, smashed a rehydrates chilli con carne and set off home. I took the direct road back which was just over two hours into a strong head wind.
The Lidl bags held up well given their price and I was generally impressed. The meths stove worked really well although surprised at how much it used. Despite all my errors, I’m not at all put off. I loved the challenge and getting home feeling like I’ve done something with my day off. Life can get very sedentary so it’s important for me to get outside for some physical activity. I love the feeling of exhaustion and Recovery.
In the future I’ll probably drive myself to the moor then use the energy on decent trails, rather than waste it on the commute there. I’ll research my route more and make sure I leave plenty of time to set up a decent camp.
If you’ve read this far then you’re probably as exhausted as me :)
Loaded up the Lidl specials with as much as they could take only to realise my eBay special bike only came with one bottle holder which was rendered useless by the frame bag. Queue a frantic drive up to Taunton Leisure to purchase a new bladder for my Camelbak. That also meant i could take some
Extra bits.
The route in hindsight was ambitious at best. It was 22 miles on the road to Bellever, Dartmoor from my place in Exeter so from the comfort of my living room, plotted the most direct route taking in as much off road as possible, avoiding the main roads. This took it to 27 miles but foolishly took in some of the steepest valley sides that Teignbridge has to offer. By the time I reached the edge of Dartmoor I was hanging out. From Manaton I took a rocky and rutted route directly up the side of a tor which was barely walkable, let alone rideable. Add the fully weighted bike in to the mix and by the time I got to the top of the tor I was at the end of my tether. Seemed like a logical route from the satellite images but they gave no indication as to the severity of the incline. Maybe pay more attention to the contour lines next time. Heavy fog had descended across the moor reducing visibility to 100m or so. This was freezing on the descents and made the whole experience all the less pleasurable.
As I descended the tor I passed a fellow MTB rider and we had a quick chat. Little did I know he would save my bacon later, for I acquired a puncture around 10 mins on and soon realised the old pump I’d slung in my bag no longer worked. He arrived shortly after and we managed a repair. With this delay and the painfully slow progress, I was hugely behind schedule. On top of this, with my questionable route planning in the back of my mind, I decided to take the final 10 miles on the road to make up for lost time. The MTB was slow going due to weight and gearing and I found this frustrating coming from a carbon road background. I managed to roll in to The East Dart Hotel at 5pm, sink two pints and a burger and get to Bellever for 6:30 and the light was rapidly running out. I chucked up my tarp against a fir tree and was in my pit by 7:30. Due to doing this in the dark, I misread the slope on which I was sleeping which meant I spent most of the night wriggling back up my sleep mat. The alternative flatter ground was heavily water logged however. The tarp was adequate but not ideal and the damp from the fog clung to the tree and dropped on to my tarp above my head through the night and was occasionally flicked in to my face as the wind picked up. Another lesson here! I had a rough night with a noisy mouse scurrying around, the heavy wind and cold feet. I woke at 6, smashed a rehydrates chilli con carne and set off home. I took the direct road back which was just over two hours into a strong head wind.
The Lidl bags held up well given their price and I was generally impressed. The meths stove worked really well although surprised at how much it used. Despite all my errors, I’m not at all put off. I loved the challenge and getting home feeling like I’ve done something with my day off. Life can get very sedentary so it’s important for me to get outside for some physical activity. I love the feeling of exhaustion and Recovery.
In the future I’ll probably drive myself to the moor then use the energy on decent trails, rather than waste it on the commute there. I’ll research my route more and make sure I leave plenty of time to set up a decent camp.
If you’ve read this far then you’re probably as exhausted as me :)