Berkshire to ____

[alone]

Please bare with me, I can (some how) go on a bit...

Well, here I am. This is my first post. and with any luck, one of very few. I don't mean any offence- It's more that I'm a relatively quiet person who sits more in the background than stands jumping towards the front.

I'm a motorcyclist. Funds are tight, and my last (and first proper) motorcycle trip went off badly. I was supposed to leave the day of my birthday (my most hated day of the year). However, I crashed outside work on my way home the night before - Obviously it wasn't meant to be, as I was then unable to ride for the following two months.

Money has become tighter and tighter. So I found myself an old touring bicycle for a costly £10. It's probably crap and over weight. I believe myself to be of relative fitness. I work as a postman and have never encountered a problem with jogging my delivery for 3hours+ a day carrying a bag.

As I sit here typing this, I have my bike (about to go into shop for new bearings/fixings/clean up etc). It comes with rear panniers, and a handlebar bag. I'm getting proper cycle shorts (thinking 2 or three pairs). Same number of cycle tops. I have a tent and sleeping bag (planning to sleep rough). My spares will include 3 or 4 inner tubes, along with a repair kit. A couple of spare common bolts just incase (old bike). Basic camping kit (stove etc).

My plan is one of two right now;

I am leaving in July. My rented house is up on the 6th, and I hope that's the last day I need anywhere to stay! I plan to either cycle down to Plymouth and catch a ferry across to Santander (Spain), head south towards Madrid, and then decide whether to continue south or what. My other choice is to head towards the channel tunnel, skip down towards southern France and across into Spain then see where it all takes me.
(Spain is an odd one for me. I feel drawn there, so it must be a part of my trip)

I'm posting more for direction from the experienced people here. I haven't undertaken anything like this before, and it is a huge life step for me. Names of places would be nice, but aren't a must. I'm more after pointers on anything I've forgotten (which will be a lot I'm sure) and anything I really should know. I have nothing drawing me back,, I won't have a home anymore, the family I have aren't anything, and I'm single. All I'll have left are my motorbikes in a secure garage. So there is no real time frame either. Unfortunately, money is my biggest issue. I'm leaving with around £400/500 only.

Please excuse the disjointed nature of my post, it's more a symbol of me than an uneducated mess.

 

[ASC1951]

These days £500 doesn't last that long in continental Europe, I'm afraid. It should be enough to get you to southern Spain and back, but it will be tight. It might be worth setting up some sort of emergency fund from a mate before you set off, which you can get wired out if things go truly tits up.

Apart from that, just go. Personally I found big wodges of western France rather dull - I went Roscoff > Pyrenees and back - but I suppose only by comparison with the best bits and if you go straight to Santander you will miss out some very good bits. I certainly wouldn't go over to the Tunnel and down through Normandy. Get a map which has the whole of France and another of the whole of Spain - you definitely don't want too much detail, just a rough idea of where you are heading, because that is part of the point of your journey. If you are a book person, how about something dense and thought-provoking that you can re-read constantly, until you fling it away after three weeks? Try Zen and the Art of Motorcycling, which isn't really about motorcycling and rather less about Zen, but is about someone setting off on a similar life step.

The most important bit of kit will be between your ears. You may well never do this again, so try to be constantly interested in what is around you. Assume that the people you meet will be helpful, friendly and honest, because most people are. Don't fret if things go wrong, because they sometimes will.

Quite a few people on this forum, me included, go on some solo tours. I find it important to have some mental exercise as well as physical. Meditation is a very useful technique and well worth learning: here are two basic ones that I use. http://www.fwbo.org/meditation/mindfulness.html and
http://www.fwbo.org/meditation/metta.html

The main thing is to get on your bike and do it. At best it will change your life. At worst it will be useful.

 

[andym]

You jog your round? - I bet Adam Crozier would love to meet you!

Have you checked the fares for Portsmouth-Santander - that's a big wodge of your budget gone already. Portsmouth-St Malo etc is probably a better bet.

Have a look around for discussions on costs of camping in France etc. You'll need to cook for yourself but even then unfortunately, £400-£500 isn't going to last very long (think £10 a night for camping then there's food). My strong advice would be to get in all the overtime you can and don't give up your job (if that's what you're planning) until you have more put aside.

You don't need loads of cycling shorts and tops - just get some travelwash and wash them.

 

[alone]

I'd quite like to meet him too. Show him the equipment we're supplied to do the job.. Infact, I'd love to take him around a delivery one day haha. Anyway, we're off-topic.

I realise my budget is extremely tight. Which is why I was planning to sleep rough, off the beaten track (used to camp a lot when I was younger, and am going to do it for a week, alone, before leaving to catch up on tent and cooking skills). Food will be my biggest expense, I hope. If I was to ferry across to Santander, I'll cover that cost with overtime, as I will with the tunnel.

My father has said he's able to transfer money to me if things turn really bad, but that is an absolute last resort.

I already do meditate from time to time, and enjoy just, well, sitting and relaxing taking in everything around. There's plenty around to keep your mind active. Although, I will check out that book you've suggested ASC1951, along with the meditation links, thanks a lot. I also already own fold out maps of Spain, France, Italy, Germany and one of the entire of Europe.

I'll cut the amount of cycle kit down, and come up with a proper equipment list this afternoon.


As said, I think the best thing to do really, is to just get on the bike and get out there. After all, no amount of planning will ever cover everything.

 

[Riverman]

I think whatever you do, you need to make sure it's all planned. The main thing I'd be concerned about is that I have somewhere to stay when I get back!

 

[chris667]

Join www.warmshowers.org , there might be people on the way who would put you up for a night.
If you don't mind my saying so, though, don't you think this is a bit extreme? I'm not saying it's impossible, but I'd go on a few shorter tours first if it were me. Reading > Oxford is nice for a first night out, and will cost you no more than £10 if you take your own food, including a campsite. Build up from there.

 

[alone]

I'll check that site out, thanks a lot. I've heard of similar for back-packers but it hadn't even crossed my mind..
I'm camping for a week before I go, so I guess I could easily mix that in with some cycling also. Problem is I've never started things slowly, I've always just thrown myself in the deep end and seen if I can float. I don't get on with the 'softly softly, plan, plan' approach. I'll be sure to update here as things do come about.

The help so far has been more than I could have asked for, thank you. Any question, or picking at points is progress in my mind. Helps me to align the few things I do have properly.

 

[Brains]

I'd suggest the route should be cross the channel at Dover/Calais or better still Newhave/Dieppe (there is a cycle lane from Dieppe/Paris)

My reasons for chosing that route are:

Short cross channel is only expensive. Long cross channel will break the bank.

You are on a £10 bike - My experience with £10 bikes is odd things tend to break in the first 500 miles. France is full of decent bike shops, Spain is not.

France is better geared up for both cycling and camping

France has camping municipals all over the place where you can nip in, in the middle of the day for a (freebie??) shower.

You can also sleep in camping municipals, arrive late and leave early and you often don't pay. Even if you do pay it's only a few Euro's.

Take tools. On a £10 bike you will become an expert
Take a stove (meths is the cheapest to run), so a 2nd hand Trangia would be perfect
Take some form of shelter, at the very least an Army 'basha' which can be got for £20+ from Army surplus stores
And you only need two sets of cycling clothes and one set of non-cycling clothes

Head south until the money runs out!
Getting work in the bars/hotels of the Spanish holiday resorts may still be possible by the time you arrive to work your way home

 

[Riverman]

Short cross channel is only expensive. Long cross channel will break the bank.

You'd be surprised. It's quite cheap if you book a reclining seat.

Have you checked the fares for Portsmouth-Santander - that's a big wodge of your budget gone already. Portsmouth-St Malo etc is probably a better bet.

£52 single + £8 for the bike? Hardly breaks the bank.

I agree it's probably better to camp in France but it might be good to start in Santander and work your way home.