Rides bikes, paddles sea kayaks, takes pictures. Life on the road & my home in Cornwall.
November
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Ramblings and a few snaps from early winter.
“Winter Lag: Extreme tiredness and other physical effects felt by a person after the rapid onset of winter“
With reference to my previous post it occurred to me that perhaps the problem is not winter itself, but rather the time taken to adapt to winter after the typically rapid onset of rubbish weather; the difficulty of the transition from the relative comfort (i.e frequently wet but not cold or too windy) of summer to the cold, dark, very wet, and very windy misery of winter. Out riding at the weekend in gale force winds and heavy rain, with my feet soaked by frequent immersion in “above the axles” flood water I’d decided that actually I didn’t mind too much. I’d adapted, in much the same way as one recovers from jet lag, albeit over a longer time scale – hence the rip-off above of the OED’s definition for the same. To be fair too, the sun did shine in November, and for the day or so that it lasted I very much enjoyed an “all the hours of daylight” ride. It felt so special I didn’t wish to be encumbered by a camera, however for all the other days I did, hence a few snaps follow below. Despite the sudden burst of positivity I am sure, based on past experience, that by February I’ll be sick of it again ;-)
Trees in autumn plumage on the road through Lamorran Woods. I love this stretch, it’s essentially a “road to nowhere” so is mosly traffic free. This stretch has the perfect “swoosh” to it, and as I had dragged a mate along for a spin I made him wait until I was ready to grab a snap :-)Similarly fabulous tree-tunnel ahoy! He’s a good sport.A hike for a change. Winter is the perfect time for the coast path and an appreciation for weather. This is Mullion Cove. Built in the 1890s the harbour walls are suffering badly from the increased frequency and intensity of winter storms.National Trust signage… at the correct height for hobbits.. or gerbils even.Wave watchers at Kynance. It is infinitely preferable to visit this honeypot in winter, and approach along the coast rather than from the car park, but even then you’ll occasionally find folk tottering around in high heels and fur coats…FungiA spot of shelter for a brew. I always find it’s better to make tea with freshly boiled water rather than out of a flask.Residents.. some fine ‘hornage’.
Apols if the above is slow to load. I usually forget that the thing in my pocket can take useful video snaps when a still picture isn’t quite right.
Back on two wheels… and if proof were needed that this is a damp climate… this wall only went up 3 weeks ago ;-)This trail is part of one of my favourite winter rides… it doesn’t turn to inches deep slop, and while rocky and slippery, is manageable on a 38c ish winter tyre.As a rule I can’t be bothered much with trails in the winter, most of my favourites are just deep slop that becomes deeply tedious to (try and) ride through, and tedious to clean up from, in the context of the longer, roaming, mostly road, rides that I enjoy in winter … however there are exceptions that keep a ride interesting, particularly when the weather is crap.Shiny new signpost went up a few weeks ago. Amusingly the alignment seems slightly off and implies that the footpath to Porthleven involves a swim.Loe Bar.. good all year round but especially so in winter with hardly anyone around... and Loe Pool, which sits behind the bar.The woodland here is lovely.Similar to Lamorran Woods above in that it is a reminder of what Cornwall ‘should be like’ without the activity of humans.
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6 thoughts on “November”
Hey Mike loved the update and pictures. Hope you are well and staying positive 👍
Hi Mike,
It’s nice with you.
Winter has now arrived here with snow and ice. I bought new fenders from Velo Orange (42mm) for my Cross Check and spent half an afternoon installing them… But I now have to mount the spikes on my F29 for ice and snow because they no longer fit under the fenders.
The travel time to work at 4:30 in the morning has now increased to more than an hour. Every day – that goes to the substance. At the weekend there is a break. But the bike also suffers a lot from the roads spread with salt and lye. I have to clean the bike and lubricate the chain every two days.
On Monday it was -10° in the morning for a change.
All the best and happy holidays from Vienna. Thomas
P.S. At the moment I’m enjoying my pictures with the M6 from Grado from October where I was traveling with the Surly. https://www.flickr.com/gp/thomasmika/dMA28WB4z2
hey good to hear from you! I well remember those kind of conditions, 7 winters in Montreal.. it does take a toll but at the moment I think I preferred it to perma-rain we have here these days. I guess it’s a case of wherever you are, somewhere else often feels like it would be better!
lovely pics, cheers for sharing. they have that ‘m’ feel!
Hey Mike loved the update and pictures. Hope you are well and staying positive 👍
hey, cheers for writing, glad you enjoyed it! I hope life is treating you well!?
Hi Mike,
It’s nice with you.
Winter has now arrived here with snow and ice. I bought new fenders from Velo Orange (42mm) for my Cross Check and spent half an afternoon installing them… But I now have to mount the spikes on my F29 for ice and snow because they no longer fit under the fenders.
The travel time to work at 4:30 in the morning has now increased to more than an hour. Every day – that goes to the substance. At the weekend there is a break. But the bike also suffers a lot from the roads spread with salt and lye. I have to clean the bike and lubricate the chain every two days.
On Monday it was -10° in the morning for a change.
All the best and happy holidays from Vienna. Thomas
P.S. At the moment I’m enjoying my pictures with the M6 from Grado from October where I was traveling with the Surly.
https://www.flickr.com/gp/thomasmika/dMA28WB4z2
hey good to hear from you! I well remember those kind of conditions, 7 winters in Montreal.. it does take a toll but at the moment I think I preferred it to perma-rain we have here these days. I guess it’s a case of wherever you are, somewhere else often feels like it would be better!
lovely pics, cheers for sharing. they have that ‘m’ feel!
A beautiful set of wintry images, Mike! And yes, videos can be nice too!
cheers Cass!