Quantocks : Round 2

This is the same as the route below however I followed a long uphill route at the beginning that I saw another rider coming down as I stopped to fix a puncture. (Pinch flat from the previous Downhill). It was fun to come down but very steep (my forearms ached at the end from all the braking.)

I also followed one of the extensions from the "rough ride guide" but I think I followed it the wrong way - was a nice very fast downhill on the tarmac though. (had a close call with a ford KA coming the other way!)

I also didn't start logging the GPX until part way into the journey

Quantocks

This is a nice route but not quite as technical as I would have liked. It had a very nice downhill section at the end down into the valley and then following the stream back to the car park.

I was following a route taken from the Rough Ride Guide South West book.

Dartmoor - Grimspound Hound & Tor : Round 2

I went again mid week (doing the whole route this time) and enjoyed the journey. Some very nice views and some challenging rocky terrain. There were also several nice downhill sections but not as many as I would have liked.

I did get a bit lost though as I was nearing the end of the route (this was the bit I had missed out on the previous visit. 

I was following a GPS route and came to an intersection. The track was pointing to go to the right but I could see the path went straight on (I couldn't see a path on the right). There was also a sign there that said there was a bridle way straight on and one to the right.

I cycled up and down several times but couldn't see the path on the right (through the forest). I decided to head into the forest along what looked like a path that maybe hadn't been ridden for a very long time as it was quite overgrown.

After a while I realised I'd gone the wrong way but it was too late to turn back. I ended up climbing over large boulders (it was literally a case of jumping from one boulder to the next) and dragging my bike over them and through bramble bushes (in my shorts) in order to try and get back to the main track which I should have been on originally.

Luckily I eventually managed to get to the path but I must have been clambering through the forest for about an hour and was exhausted when I got out (it was more tiring that the 25 mile cycle ride) and still had a massive hill to climb.

That is the last time I go down a route that doesn't look like it is a proper/previously ridden path!

Photos:

Dartmoor 2010

Dartmoor - Grimspound Hound & Tor

I did this route on my way down to Cornwall. It is a 25 mile route in the north of Dartmoor.

The route I followed-
http://www.gpsies.com/map.do?fileId=iwxfvddrjfgmddef

I did have to take a diversion near the end of the route as I was with my brother who was struggling to keep up so the ride was cut short.

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A couple of weeks ago I'd purchased a Dakota 20 GPS and found a few GPX files for the south west. It hasn't stopped me getting lost but has made it more difficult to! It would have also taken me a lot longer to plot it out on the OS map and navigate so overall I'm very pleased with it.