Day 1 - Swindon to Buxton (Peak District)

Friday 03/05/2019
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Well, we finally headed off. I took the whole day off so spent the whole morning packing / faffing / re-checking stuff. More urgently I noticed that my footpeg was loose and also one of my EXUP valve cables was snapped so these needed attention..... My new EXUP cables arrived this morning so I set about replacing them. Took all day so we left pretty late as none of my stuff was properly packed....
Dino managed to get an early shift in at work so we didn't leave until well into the afternoon but that was mainly my fault as I was faffing.
That said, today's ride was meant to be a relatively short one so this should have worked-out well...... 
Unfortunately Krysia locked the front door, left the keys in and exited via the garage so the kids couldn't get into the house. Got to Moreton in Marsh when we got the call saying the kids can't get into the house..... I left Dino and Krysia at a petrol station and headed back at full speed through the shocking Bank Holiday traffic. Luckily, after about 10 miles I got the call that my mum had managed to break-in so I turned around and headed back.
We did the whole route on small roads, would have been great but it was pouring with rain the entire time and my bike is so loaded that it wheelies every time I give it some gas.... Dino was struggling a bit with the pace, weather and his visor steaming-up so we took it steady. Despite this I lost him once which cost us a few miles and even more time.... Some of this is because my soft panniers cover my rear indicators so Dino has no clue about my next move.
We came into the Peak District from the South, it was chucking it down but the views were still great. As the altitude rose it got colder and colder.... I was shivering by the time we got to Buxton at 8pm. All the decent camp sites were full or reception was closed due to the late hour. Finally found a dodgy place that's a bit crap and in the middle of nowhere (and not cheap). Think Carry on Camping and Mr. Fiddler and you won't be far off.
Put the tents up in the dark and went looking for a bar and food. Got neither but managed to blag some cider and ate the emergency Snickers and peanuts stash. Too late / cold / wet to cook....
Hoping for better weather tomorrow - this was a rather stressful day that felt like an endurance challenge. Tomorrow Lake District and Scotland!

Mileage: 184
Country count: 1 (GB - England)
Beers: 4
Fines: 0
Bribes: 0
Ass pain: 4/10
Mechanical issues: 0
Accidents: 0
Wetness: 7/10
Coldness: 7/10



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