Crew: Butty, TJ, PTD, El Pres, Croxy, Slim, Stunt
Route: BL, Zig, Teggs “suicide” extreme LHS descent, Crooked Yard Road, Charity, Singletrack to Narnia, Extension, Forest Chapel to Standing Stone, Nessit Hill, the all new “son of Dentists” trail, upper ressies, Leathers, Witches cottage, Charity, Campfire/Bivvy
Conditions: Warm, bit of breeze, dry with occasional damp patches on the trails.
Notes:
Butty celebrates his half century with a campfire/Bivvy night.
Logistical support via Team Palmer – El Pres orders the curry, Tom does the delivery, together with bivvy stuff and beers.
Despite talk of a slack ride, PTD and Croxy get all excited and plan a very uppy downy route to do “all the good stuff”.
Not as hot as the last couple of weeks (thankfully) but we are still glad of the bit of breeze.
Sparrowhawk buzzes PTD on an attack run low over the hedges on the way up to Teggs gate, and a nice bit of banter with a kindly dog walker who holds the higher gate for us.
The Library being discussed at the start of the descent turn out to be a real book thing! (as opposed to a reference to a Mr T p#rn stash that many of us assumed!)
The top section may be rideable to PTD, but many of us chose to walk most of it, the lower section – totally excellent and worth the wait 🙂
More grinding up hill, with much chat..including “a load of shit” ..motorhome toilet geekery…120L water tank capacity anyone?
Plenty to admire in the lovely light, contrasts in the fields, sunny slopes dry and dead, shady lower ones still green.
Shire horse and a shetland in the same paddock, sun glinting off distant farmhouse windows.
A regroup at the start of Charity, up the now 2018 summer regular RHS upper pathway, rather than the BOAT.
Croxy gets to experience the swoopy singletrack for the first time.
Time check suggests we can get over the other side of nessit for the trails there, and still be at Charity to meet Tom for 9:30.
Despite the camera buffs stopping for more unmissable shots, we do make it, although PTD and Butty do more trails off Nessit, while the rest do plan A – which takes us into trail monkey territory complete with sharp bend signs, big jumps (we didn’t) and new routes. Cleared trees add a new dimension lower down, and with such dry conditions a joy to ride!
Legs getting a bit weary now with a short uphill to do the higher ressie track, then the long ride up.
Wagon full of logs parked on the fire road (presume the driver in the leathers!) more good views to distract from the drudgery.
Needing to dig deep on the final road section, we find ourselves ahead of time!
The wrong A3 is parked in position, this one having ferried some rather tubby couples who are taking photos in the fading light.
Butty and PTD head up with 2 bikes apiece to start the campfire, the rest RV with tom and bring up the supplies.
Having earlier spotted a big plume coming off the roaches, extra rocks are found to make a double height fire pit (but we leave Rusty to lie)
With flame contained, and beers quenching thirst, we unpack the food to discover NO PLATES!!
Never fear the TNR ingenuity is brought to bear, and with a cunning use of penknife, Pete crafts a cup from and empty beer can, meanwhile some logic puzzling magic deduces that we have enough receptacles with the rice and mains containers…we just need to move the contents about. Rice emptied onto the Bhaji bags, and spare curry into the popadom relish pots, and hey presto all is good 🙂 We feast until full, then burn the rest on the fire.
Much chat, banter and putting the world to rights, and time flies. The first leavers head off to be home by midnight, others stay for “just another one”, a Hammock is strung, and Butty and TJ take charge of the fire with a bivvy overnight.
Another great night..
