It's been a while!

Well it's been an awful long time since I last blogged on here, but I have got a lot done this month in preparation for the trip:

• I have drawn up maps on the OS website that follow the exact route I shall be following and provide a nice visual for those interested in the distance covered each day. The routes for each day have also been drawn onto a Driver's Atlas of Britain, and it is these that I shall use on the trip itself as my guide for each day.
• I have also began to bring together a kit list for the trip, and as I mentioned I am aiming to keep this very minimal, I will endeavor to upload the kit list in the near future.

However there is still a long way to go! I need to organise campsites for each night, and even though I plan to wild camp where possible it would still be useful to have a backup plan for each night. I also need to pick up the training significantly during the next few weeks and get some proper miles in.

Apologies for the briefness of this blog, I will provide a more in depth blog within the next few days.

the latest LEJOG bits

So the why?

The question I found asking myself was really "why not?", rather than "why?". This summer is potentially the last summer of its kind for me, a summer where I can do essentially what I want, when I want, with the only prerequisite being that I return to Uni in October. Determined not to sit at home for four months this challenge seems like the perfect reason to get outdoors and away from the hustle and bustle that is London. Don't get me wrong I love London, but often find people don't seem to take time out to look at the whole picture. Can you get a clearer picture than that given on a 1000 mile bike ride across Britain? Well there's only one way to find out!

Now for the how!

I shall be attempting this on my current bike, a hard-tail mountain bike (Kona Blast if you're interested), which although not the best vehicle to do the journey should be more than up to it after a few modifications. (i.e. Panniers, Touring tyres, bar ends etc). Accommodation is going to be in the form of a "tarp and bivvy bag", which as well as being extremely lightweight will be a new experience for me. I've always wanted to try this approach to camping but never got round to it, this trip seems like the opportune moment to try it out (although if I don't get on with it I could be in for a very uncomfortable two weeks!). I'm hoping to take the bare minimum for this trip, as I'm not the largest chap in the world and so can't physically carry a great deal and because I think less is more on this kind of trip. 

 

The journey begins..

So... where to begin?

I guess it all started about a year ago when I made the conscious decision to start biking to work, in a bid to save money for my final year at uni. Biking 5 miles to and from work (around 50 miles a week) for a few months built my fitness level up to a fairly reasonable level, and, in passing, I mentioned to my girlfriend (Maxine) that I would love to do an extended bike ride in the summer. This idea was then pushed to the back burner and all but forgotten about until Christmas, when....

Maxine bought me a book detailing a route from Lands End to John O Groats, and she agreed to assist me with planning and organising the trip. So we began discussing how I would go about it and for what reasons...

I think for my first blog this will do for tonight, but I shall continue tomorrow.

Jim