My own little world

Me & my shadow + 1

2008-11-02T16:24:00.001Z

Me & my shadow + 1
Originally uploaded by ebygomm

A quick blast roundabout

OS Openspace

2008-04-12T21:03:00.011Z

Routes over OS 50k maps, how exciting!

Easter in the Lake District

2008-03-29T14:26:00.004Z

We're far too hardy (or foolish) to let a forecast of snow put us off camping so we set off for Turner Hall Farm Campsite, got pitched in a relatively sheltered spot after only a minor mishap getting the car stuck in the mud. Luckily Mik managed to push me out but not before I'd sprayed mud all over the side of someones campervan! Had a wander around, stocked up on supplies and spent my Christmas money on a lovely Down jacket that proved money very well spent over the course of the weekend. Arrived back at the campsite to be greeted by howling winds, going to bed hungry was the favoured option over trying to cook. One very noisy night later (although the tent stood up admirably) we woke up to find several tents had disappeared in the night and it was still very windy.

Not to be deterred we set off for Grizedale and were surprised to find glorious sunshine and shelter from the wind amongst the trees. Ten minutes into the ride we found we were stripping off the layers. Found the North Face Trail to be really nice, some slightly technical stuff amongst the trees then amazing views to make the boring riding along the fire roads worthwhile. Unfortunately the trip was cut slightly short by somebody falling of his bike and hurting his thumb (and his shoulder and ripping his jacket) but was good nonetheless. Thankfully the wind had calmed considerably by the evening and with my recently purchased jacket we could sit and cook outside quite happily.

Sunday morning and the world was white. Not quite snow where we were, more frozen sleet but pretty all the same. Finally registered that the strange sounds in the night had been ice sliding off the flysheet. A fairly relaxing day since the injured one wasn't up to much, driving round, seeing some places we'd not seen before, going for a few short wanders.

Monday morning and time for home, although not before one rather scary drive over Wrynose pass complete with frozen snow on the road.

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Ashover Circuit

2008-03-15T18:19:00.003Z

Managed to squeeze in a nice 12km ride today without getting rained on :-) Lots of lovely single track down through the woods.

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Cannock Chase - Follow the Dog

2008-01-14T21:34:00.001Z

After follow the dog
Originally uploaded by ebygomm

A trip to Cannock Chase to check out the XC course there. It was really great, not even marred by the fact my chain snapped half way round, pulling the rear mech into the back wheel and I had to complete the course only using two gears because of a severely shortened chain. As the picture demonstrates, it was a little bit muddy, not surprising considering the amount of rain.
Total Distance: 6.3 miles

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2008!

2008-01-01T19:05:00.001Z

HAPPY NEW YEAR! HAVE A GREAT 2008!

Wonderful Wonderful Copenhagen

2007-12-16T11:55:00.000Z

Friendly old girl of a town...

Sunny skies greeted us in Copenhagen. A quick visit to the Little Mermaid and pleased to find she was all in one piece. Then a walk around Kastellet, a fortification constructed in a pentagram, with an obligatory photo sitting on a canon. Our next stop was to be Vor Frelsers Kirke - Our Saviour's Church - which has spiral stairs leading around the outside of the spire but disappointingly it was closed for renovations. A look at the pretty colours of Nyhavn and then a wander down the Strøget to the Rundetårn. A climb to the top of the round tower doesn't involve lots of stairs, but rather a ramp that winds its way to the top. Views of all of Copenhagen greeted us at the top along with a glimpse of Sweden across the water.

As it got dark it was time to go to Tivoli, an amusement park right in the centre of Copenhagen. Luckily for us we knew the right people so avoided the monster queues to get in. It all felt very festive, lots of sparkling Christmas lights but really we were there for the rides...which were fun, but one of the main ones broke down right before we were due to go on, and it's not quite Alton Towers!

Newstead Abbey Circular

2007-12-01T17:50:00.000Z

Up and down and up and down, that's how it went today. A route described as pleasantly undulating; undulating yes, pleasant not so sure about that! I suppose you have to go uphill to enjoy the downhills, I would just prefer the uphills to be on something other than nasty sandy soil.

Total Distance: 16.05 miles (not including detour)

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Silver Worms

2007-11-30T21:52:00.001Z

These big silver worms eat people! I have seen them sliding through the streets, with men, women and children in their bellies. They must be stopped!

Trent Lock Circular

2007-11-26T22:55:00.000Z

A nice ride along the river to Trent Lock, through Kegworth and then back towards the river. Then things got a bit more 'interesting' as we attempted to navigate our way along a bridleway across the fields in the fading light, our wheels totally seized up with huge quantities of the clay soil. Headlights alerted us to a road nearby and we managed to gain the tarmac again. Before long we were once again lost in a field, the bridleway sign pointed towards a track that looked promise, but alas it disappeared into nothingness. By this time the light was well and truly faded. Although we could make out our destination in the distance, various dykes, reeds, and water courses prevented us from getting there so we had no choice but to turn back and stick to the main roads. So a real adventure, nearly 40 miles in all including detours, a bit longer than anticipated but mostly good fun.

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Grangemill Circuit

2007-11-18T17:37:00.000Z

Having faith in the weatherman's predictions that Sunday would be a total washout we dragged ourselves to the peak to complete a leisurely 11 mile bike ride. The first half followed the High Peak Trail and the cuttings and embankments provided shelter from the wind most of the way. The second half had us wishing that we'd already invested in the clear glasses we'd been talking about, wheels flinging sheep and cow poo at you takes some of the enjoyment away from downhill sections.

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My first Munro!

2007-11-04T20:59:00.000Z

Well, the nightmare 7 hour journey up to Scotland for the weekend proved to be worthwhile. Although did start to doubt that it just wasn't meant to be after we spent an hour getting lost trying to find Asda before getting to the hills and then our chosen route turned out to be no go due to 'deer management'. But alternatives are never far away in that part of Scotland.

Saturday we walked up Coire Odhar up to Ben Lawers (my first munro) then across to Beinn Ghlas (my second munro) and down again the same way we came. We'd had a late start so the light was soon fading but we just managed to make it to the cars without resorting to the headtorches.

Camped in a nice little spot beside Loch Tay and a babbling brook and Sunday we took a leisurely drive back, enjoying the views, the lochs and the autumn colours.

Clumber Park & Surroundings

2007-10-21T18:17:00.001Z

So, my first trip out on Esmerelda (she was christened on our return with water and Muc Off!). We did a 16 mile trip round Clumber Park, including a rather nice downhill section through a sandstone cutting. Our route came from the Mountain Bike Guide Nottinghamshire

Total Distance: 16 miles

See photos on flickr

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Derwent Valley Bike Ride

2007-10-18T17:24:00.000Z

Such a glorious day, who'd waste it in work. Had a great ride around three reservoirs, Ladybower, Derwent and Howdon. The dams are great, okay they're not as big as the hoover dam, but they're far prettier.

Total Distance: 15.5 miles

See photos on flickr

Route Map

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Back to Las Vegas

2007-09-21T20:31:00.000Z

And so back to Las Vegas, 3000! miles later. Just time to see the bright lights and visit the all you can eat buffet at the Rio before flying home.

LA (Briefly) & Joshua Tree National Park

2007-09-20T20:11:00.000Z

Our journey south went as far as LA, nothing much to interest us there, we saw the Hollywood sign up on the hill and that was enough. So east to Joshua Tree National Park, a new place for both of us.

And it didn't disappoint. Lots of granite boulders (quartz monzonite if you're interested) surrounded by, unsurprisingly Joshua Trees. Lots of fun scrambling about, the rock is some of the roughest I've felt, very grippy! Found myself a throne, and a nice little hole to lie down in, would have been a great bivy spot but the rock was so coarse I worried about my sleeping bag getting torn so stuck to the tent.

Elsewhere in the park were the chollo gardens, thousands of cacti all together on this one particular hillside. At night we had fun pretending to be joshua trees as the sun went down.

Definitely a place to go back to (and I'll be taking a full rack of climbing gear next time). The campsite right amongst the boulders was once of the nicest I've been to.

Pacific Highway 1

2007-09-18T19:08:00.000Z

Revisiting another place I've been before but this time the sun was shining and going south rather than north means it's much easier to pull over and stop whenever you feel like it.

A visit to Point Lobos State Park for a spot of wildlife viewing. Pelicans, seals and sea lions all plentiful in and around the water. Mikkel decided to do a spot of ocean side bouldering on the frankly, rather dodgy weird conglomerate and lived to regret it when he managed to leave a quantity of skin there!

San Francisco

2007-09-17T18:33:00.000Z

Completely avoiding the hassle of parking in San Francisco and getting a nice ride across the bay to boot we caught the ferry from Larkspur into the city.

Had a nice little wander, visited the sealions at pier 39 (they're noisy buggers! see for yourself below) did the obligatory tram ride, saw wiggly Lombard Street and then did a bit more wandering. A day was more than enough city time for us. Back on the ferry with all the commuters (what a great way to commute!) then back in the car and onto Pacific Highway 1 down the coast.

China Camp

2007-09-16T18:15:00.000Z

A lazy day after a lot of driving. First night out in the new tent in a wonderful little spot in China Camp state park overlooking the San Francisco Bay Area and I finally got to indulge in a spot of rock (pebble?) balancing.

An evening trip to the Golden Gate Bridge overlook, Mikkel complaining that it's not gold at all but red/orange - there's just no pleasing some people!

Yosemite

2007-09-15T17:28:00.000Z

Moving on from Tuolumne we drove down into the valley, great views round every corner, it really is an amazing place.

Caught our first and only glimpse of a black bear wandering along the valley floor and tried to spot climbers on the huge expanse of rock that is El Capitain.

To Glacier point to look back down on the whole valley, with great views of Half Dome then down to Mariposa Grove to feel small amongst the giant redwoods. Walked through a tree and were treated to a close encounter with a deer and her fawns. Camped at Crane Flat under a blanket of stars.

From Yosemite west towards the San Francisco and the Pacific Coast. Resisted the lure of a small town Chilli cook off but couldn't resist a quick stop at REI and picked up some more spacious sleeping quarters. An evening of deja vu as we failed to find a vacant campsite north of San Francisco (well, we did find one but I remembered the reason we'd ditched that idea last time $45 a night! for a campsite!) and ended up in a motel (ok, so it was more expensive, but better value).

Sierra Nevada

2007-09-14T16:17:00.000Z

After the heat of Death Valley we travel north, up through Bishop and Mammoth until we reach a point where we can cut west across the mountains and into Yosemite at the Tioga Pass.

Mono Lake and its Tufa Towers provided an interesting distraction along the way, lots of birds and creepy amounts of alkali flies along the shore.

Then up into Yosemite, shades of green a welcome sight after a week with the sometimes bland colours of the desert and finally some cool air. Although as we discovered later that night, maybe a little too cool, but I realised what a good investment my expensive sleeping bag was and I stayed snuggly warm. Low of -5 C we later learned.

Heading West

2007-09-12T05:42:00.000Z

Badwater Basin
Originally uploaded by ebygomm

In search of cooler weather we head west towards the Sierra Nevada.

Via Death Valley, so no respite from the heat just yet, in Badwater Basin 282 feet below sea level, 85.5 metres and 120 degrees Fahrenheit.

Mystery Canyon Aborted

2007-09-11T05:39:00.000Z

Enjoying Zion
Originally uploaded by ebygomm

We got an early start, planning to do Mystery Canyon, shuttle sorted, permits sorted, gear sorted.

Had a nice walk to the head of the canyon, dithered a bit about where the trail down started, got going, scrambled amongst horrible chossy mess and scree, abseiled various bits, route not looking anything like the description and we got to an abseil that would mean the point of no return so we decided to scramble back up as we just weren't happy with the way things were. Back at the top we just had an 8 mile walk and over 2000 feet back to the valley floor in 38 C (100 F) heat - phew!

Bryce

2007-09-10T05:34:00.000Z

Horseback riding in Bryce
Originally uploaded by ebygomm

Escape the heat by driving up to Bryce Canyon National Park. At around 8,000 feet it's a good deal higher than Zion and a whole lot cooler.

Mikkel persuades me to take a horse ride, it was...ok, although I have to say I still prefer walking but I rode a proper horse, Mikkel just had a donkey, well a mule but it looked like a donkey! But it was really nice to wander around amongst the hoodoos.

Zion - Hot!

2007-09-09T05:30:00.000Z

Woke up to the sight of the towering red walls of Zion, and spent a leisurely day seeing some of the sights and trying to stay cool. It's unseasonably hot here.

Canoeing on the Colorado

2007-09-08T21:06:00.000Z

Shower time
Originally uploaded by ebygomm

After a very warm night camping alongside Lake Mead we had an early start ready for our canoe trip, we hired a canoe from Desert Adventures which included the shuttle service and the relevant permits - great service

We put in just downstream of the Hoover Dam and spent the day paddling nearly 12 miles downstream to Willow Beach(map). Along the way lots to see, caves to paddle in, hot springs to shower under, the cool (12 degrees C) water of the Colorado to dip into when we got too hot.

Hot!

2007-09-07T21:14:00.000Z

Lake Mead
Originally uploaded by ebygomm

Unseasonably hot here, first day spent getting some supplies, went for a drive and a quick dip in Lake Mead.

36 degrees at 2am meant we didn't get a great nights sleep.

Climbing Denmark Style

2007-08-13T16:00:00.000Z

Here in the flatlands, it's a bit limited for choice climbing wise. Luckily for us, some nice people had built some concrete bunkers and for some unknown reason these now have various holes in them, making for some nice little bouldering problems. In a great location too, right on the beach. Murder on your fingers though, but hey, you can't have everything.

My fingers got sore from the bunker bouldering pretty quickly, so time to relax and fly the kite instead

Welcome to the world of automatic geotagging

2007-05-31T21:06:00.000Z

No more hours spent geotagging my photos on rainy days. One GPS + One Digital Camera +GPSTagr = automatic geotags = happy me!

So unbelievably simple I'm amazed.

See where we went for a walk tonight and what we saw.

Places I've been!

2007-05-25T17:46:00.000Z

My world map looks surprisingly bare still, but my USA one is coming along quite nicely

Summer's on it's way

2007-03-27T20:48:00.001Z

Planet
Originally uploaded by ebygomm.

Well, the clocks have gone forward and it's almost like summer.

This week I've had fun playing with polar panoramas, I'm rather pleased with my first efforts

It's Christmas

2006-12-19T20:05:00.001Z

Christmas Tree
Originally uploaded by ebygomm.

Merry Christmas

and a

Happy New Year

I'm saving trees this year (plus i'm lazy :-) ) so instead of cards I've made a donation to C-R-Y

Have a good one!

Sun, sea, sand and starfish

2006-12-09T16:04:00.000Z

Ok, so the sun only put in brief appearances but the title wouldn't have worked so well otherwise!

First of all to Esbjerg for a quick wander round the shops dodging the showers and Santa Claus. Then to Blåvand, the kite shop was closed though :-( probably for the best as we could only endure being out in the wind and rain for 10 minutes at Blåvands Hug, the most westerly point in Danmark.

After waving to England and Scotland we drove further north to Vejers right onto the beach. The rain had stopped but the evidence of previous bad weather was literally littering the beach. Thousands of starfish and razor shells (see here ) Never seen anything like it before. We looked for amber, but only Mikkel's dad was successful but it's my souvenir. The sun put in one final appearance and the reflections were amazing, pretty pictures on a cold, wet December day
More Photos

Hello Denmark!

2006-12-09T09:14:00.000Z

Yay, I'm out the country again :-)

Unfortunately the sun wasn't out to greet us when we got to Denmark but it's making an appearance today.

Yesterday we went for a very little walk at the coast just down the road from here, Darum Dige and then in the evening to Ribe, the oldest town in Denmark. Very pretty even in the rain.

And now it's time for new adventures

Barcelona

2006-08-28T20:00:00.000Z

Spend the last few days in Barcelona, trying not to do too much, just relaxing on the beach and wandering about, winding down.

After the solitude of the Pyrenees it seems awfully crowded but never having to worry about getting cold is great!

Montserrat

2006-08-25T20:00:00.000Z

Say goodbye to the Pyrenees and head in the direction of Barcelona. Before too long Montserrat is looming and I take the train up to the monastery.

Even though i've promised to give my tired legs a rest the urge to explore is just too strong and spend all afternoon just wandering about.

It's spectacular and something totally different from the Pyrenees, I'm jealous of all the people climbing though.

Day 21 - Valle de Pineta

2006-08-24T20:00:00.000Z

We start off doing another section of the GR11 today, and I'm thanking my lucky stars we weren't doing it with packs on because it was about as steep as it can get. The original plan was to climb up to the Col de Añisclo but seeing as it would just mean heading up into the clouds/mist we take a right along the Faja de Tormosa instead. We didn't see a soul, although a little marmot did pop out from behind a rock to say hello and we managed to find some dessert in the form of wild raspberries along the way.

Descend back down to the valley right by the Cascada del Cinca, Monte Perdido still hiding amongst the clouds and then up to Llanos de La Larri before calling it a day, in fact calling it 21 days because this was our last day of hiking in the Pyrenees.

Route Map

Day 20 - Valle de Añisclo

2006-08-23T20:00:00.000Z

Time to leave Torla behind and see some other parts of the Parc Nacional de Ordesa y Monte Perdido.

First stop is Valle de Añisclo and we do a short route here. See the Ermita de San Urbez although we're left wondering about the history behind it because our Spanish isn't up to much.

Camp in the Pineta valley, after hearing cracks of thunder we decide that perhaps guy ropes might be a good idea after all and get safely inside the tent just as the downpour begins, the thunder's not loud enough to stop me sleeping though!

Day 19 - Marmots and the chamois who tried to steal my lunch

2006-08-22T20:00:00.000Z

So the plan was to do a nice little circuit along the Faja Racon. Yet again we get distracted and end up climbing the Clavijas Cascada de Cotatuero. Turns out to be a great decision, above the clavijas there was no sign of anyone else and at the top we were greeted by marmots and a short while later a lot of chamois.

This one particular chamois was very friendly, although turned out she had an ulterior motive and was actually after my lunch.

Spend a couple of hours before retracing our steps and then continuing along the circuit. Have some fun with echoes and then start the descent. My knees are complaining with every step.

Route Map

Day 18 - Valle de Ordesa

2006-08-21T20:00:00.000Z

An early start ready for a long day. Catch the bus into the park, luckily the rest of the bus are heading off in a different direction.

Zig zag up Senda de los Cazadores, quickly need to strip off most of the layers we'd wrapped ourselves in in the cold morning. Enjoy the view from the mirador and then along the Faja de Pelay with great views all the way. Arrive at the Circo de Soaso where we rejoin the crowds, but it's nice to relax enjoy lunch in the sunshine besides the Cascada de Cola de Cabello. And i must have been relaxed because a lizard walked right on over me as I was laying down.

A sign directing to the Refugio de Goriz por clavijas intrigues me and after watching several people make their way up a seemingly un-passable (from a distance) cliff face we decide to go and investigate. Turns out they're sections where pegs and chains allow you to 'climb' the rock. Of course we had to go up. At the top it seemed sensible to do a figure of 8 and return to waterfall via the 'sendero' path. From there it was an easy walk back down the valley back to La Pradera de Ordesa, with plenty of 'cascadas' to see along the way.

Route

Day 17 - no boots day

2006-08-20T20:00:00.000Z

We're still walking but letting some air reach our feet instead of hiding them away in boots. From Torla into the national park and the information centre, arriving 10 mintues after they closed for a 2 and a half hour siesta - not very good planning. We walked a little further into the park then back to Torla along the camino de Turieto Bajo. A nice little stroll (if you can call 4 hours a stroll) in the shadow of Mondarruego.

Route

Day 16 - Ibón Gran de Batisielles

2006-08-19T20:00:00.000Z

A shorter walk today, to allow time to head to Torla in the evening.

Along the Valle d'Estos on the GR11 and then up to Ibón Gran de Batisielles, we're in Aragón now so no more Estany's for us. We complete a survey for some girls working for an Aragonese mountaineering organisation, they were quite excited to be able to put down England & Australia for countries of origin!

It's not a particularly long walk but the days of hiking are starting to take their toll and my feet kill at the end of it. So it's nice to be able to enjoy the scenery on the way to Torla from the comfort of the car.

Camp under a blanket of stars, the first time we've really been able to appreciate them.

Route

Day 15 - Ibón de Cregüeña

2006-08-18T20:00:00.000Z

A steep climb all the way to Ibón de Cregüeña nestled in a rocky bowl, and it's cold up there! What looks at first glance to be snow actually turns out to be piles of hail presumably dumped in the big storms we had the night before. No nice sunny spot to stop for lunch today.

Distance hiked: 22km
Ascent: 1,200m (Route)

Day 14 - and all the way back again

2006-08-17T20:00:00.000Z

After swapping the book I "acquired" in Espot for new reading material at the hostel, time to pick up the car, a new Peugeot 107 with less than two thousand miles on the clock. After christening him Pug (not very imaginative I know) it's all the way back to Lleida we go.

Then from Lleida up to Benasque, pick up two Czech boys who are trying to hitch hike to Toulouse, thus my hitch hiking karma is restored. Plus it's nice to have some company aside from Spanish radio.

Reach Benasque and the rain that has been threatening finally arrives. Benasque is a lot bigger than expected and beginning to wonder whether I'll actually be able to find Barry again. Consider staking out the supermarket but there's more than one so probably not much point. Amazingly 30 minutes after I arrive I manage to find him.

Day 13 - Catching a bus to Lleida Take Two

2006-08-16T20:00:00.000Z

Another early start to catch the bus, this time we're successful - yay!

By this time I've had enough of Spanish public transport it's going to take way too much time and effort to get around the Pyrenees without a car. So from Lleida it's a train all the way back to Barcelona.

A quick search on the internet reveals car hire might actually be within my budget, although the stupid people at Hertz won't match their internet rates at their locations so I have to book the car hire for the following day and spend the night in a hostel in Barcelona.

Day 12 - Spanish public holidays grrr!

2006-08-15T20:00:00.000Z

Day 11 was another day of doing very little ready for a 4:15 am start on day 12 to catch a bus to Lleida.

We'd arranged a taxi to the bus stop which was 8km from Espot on the main road, after being abandoned at the side of the road, there wasn't anything that resembled a bus stop nearby, we waited, and waited some more. An hour later we decided that for some reason or other, the bus wasn't coming. So still waiting for the sun to come up, we started walking towards Llavorsi, just trying to reach civilisation so we could sort out plans.

The first place we reach is Escaló, find a regular bus stop and discover there is a bus that runs to Sort Monday to Friday and it's arriving in 15 minutes. Think we're in luck, but it's another no show, put it down to an error in my translation of the Catalan bus timetable. With the heavens about to open it's time for a quick decision, we get a taxi to Sort in the hope we can continue our journey to Lleida from there.

Our first stop at the tourist information provides the explanation for the lack of buses, it's the 15th August - La Asunción de la Virgen and a spanish public holiday = no buses. Nice of the lady at the campsite who told us the bus times and booked the taxi and the taxi driver to inform us of this fact!

Resigned to the fact we're not going to get anywhere that day and the weather being atrocious we find a cheap hostal. Have a little wander round Sort but the rest of the day is spent catching up on some sleep and watching (not understanding mind you) Spanish TV.

Day 10 - Espot to Estany Negre de Peguera

2006-08-13T20:00:00.000Z

Had a day of rest on Day 9, entertaining myself on the campsite was quite challenging and the only reading material in English was lots of back copies of My Weekly, not really my first choice but better than nothing. So I was ready to be back hiking on day 10.

Not the GR11 today but the GR11-20. A lot less busy in this section of the park, which was good, probably because it was pretty much a constant uphill climb. But the lakes at the end were spectacular, Estany Trullo and Estany Negre which is the deepest lake in the park at 117m. It was our third "Estany Negre" but none of them looked very black to me. No way of doing a loop trail today so it's back the way we came.

Total ascent 1,022 metres (Route Map)

Not exactly going to plan

2006-08-12T10:21:00.000Z

Well, after 5 days of pretty much solid walking it all
seemed like a bit too much! Ive got a nice infected
wound on my ankle (i have pretty pictures) and i spent
a day being sick so the gr11 has been put on hold. It
was getting to be too much like an endurance test.
Were still in Espot, doing lots of day walks round the
national park. We met some other people who started
the same time as us. They gave up after day 1! Well
probably stay here until monday and then make our way
to Benasque and do some multi day trips from there. So
as i said, not exactly going to plan, but the timings
in the book were ridiculously optimistic so we get to
see more of the best bits this way.

Day 8 - Port de Ratera

2006-08-11T20:00:00.000Z

We do the done thing and take a 4WD Landrover Defender taxi to Estany de Sant Maurici. Leaving the crowds behind we looped around the south side of the lake then up to Port de Ratera d'Espot via the GR11. A slightly different route back down, to take in the Estanys d'Amitges, and the Cascada de Ratera before completing the loop round the north side of Estany de Sant Maurici and continuing all the way back to the campsite in Espot.

Total Descent 1,214m (Route Map)

Day 7 - decisions

2006-08-10T20:00:00.000Z

Decide to go to Espot and try and explore the Parc Nacional d'Aigüestortes i Estany de Sant Maurici, won't let a silly infected ankle put an end to this trip just yet.

Day 6 - the end of the road?

2006-08-09T20:00:00.000Z

Well, it seems I'd managed to develop a nice little festering wound on my ankle (don't click here if you're squeamish!). It hurt quite a bit and smelt even worse and after a trip to the pharmacist it was clear that we couldn't carry on with the traverse as planned :-(

Decided to have a day of rest in Llavorsi and work out a plan.

Day 5 - returning from France!

2006-08-08T20:00:00.000Z

Retrace our steps back down to Estany de Sotllo but the weather's not looking good. A decision is made to head back to Vall Ferrera and make our way to Espot and skip days 4-6. Just as well as soon there was thunder, lightening and hail to contend with.

Reach Vall Ferrera and so thumbs out we start walking towards Areu. Ten minutes later we're in luck and we're out the rain in a van with the heaters blowing and it's so nice! They dropped us at the main road and we walk another 2k before we manage to get a lift the rest of the way to Llavorsi.

Find ourselves a nice little campsite with friendly neighbours, they gave us some red wine when we first arrived, we must have looked like we needed it.

Route Map

Day 4

2006-08-07T20:00:00.000Z

Waking up with this sort of view is pretty nice.

Walked down to the Refugi de Vall Ferrera and then up the Sotllo valley and Estany de Sotllo, so far so good.

Following red and white signs without too much thinking we eventually reach to the top of a coll after a very steep scree slope (this turned out to be Port de Sotllo at 2894m). At the top we're a little confused about the route but if you've climbed up one side of a coll the only correct way is to go down the other side - surely? Well, turns out that logic only works if you've gone up the right coll in the first place. Unfortunately for us we hadn't. By this time though it was getting late and we only had about an hour of light left. We just about manage to find somewhere where we can pitch the tent. So we spend a delightful night in France, trying to sleep on a 30 degree slope, there's some nice big rocks amongst the grass as well, just for good measure!

Day 3

2006-08-06T20:00:00.000Z

Well, officially it's only the start of "Day 2" but hey. It's another long climb to start with, but this one doesn't feel quite so relentless, or maybe we're just getting fitter. The coll at the top opens up into a beautiful valley, and then it's climb after climb after climb all the way to the Andorra/Spanish border at Port de Baiau.

The relief at being at the top is surpassed by the realisation of what we have to go down, a very steep scree slope. It's not as bad as it looks though and when you can just slide a lot of the way it makes it a bit quicker. Eventually start the more gentle descent down to Vall Ferrera.

Lots of cows around, but we eventually manage to find a few square metres free of cow pats to pitch the tent.

Day 2

2006-08-05T20:00:00.000Z

Straight into the walking today, manage to lose the GR11 and end up in Sornàs, no great problem though, it's only a short walk to La Cortinada and we're back en route. We reach Arans and then it's time for the "tough ascent to Coll de les Cases" and they weren't lying! The Coll is a beautiful place to have lunch though.

Going down the other side is almost as tiring as going up and we decide to call it a day when we reach Arinsal. We decide to head for a campsite recommended in the book, supposedly 4km down the road which you can catch a bus to. We get off the bus only to find the campsite is another 1.3km away - probably explains why the driver was confused and I just thought it was my bad Spanish. Head back to Arinsal and get a cheap room in a Hostal.

We're starting to realise that the timings in the book are ridiculously optimistic, actually pure fantasy would be a better way of describing them and there's lots of other little inaccuracies.

Day 1

2006-08-04T20:00:00.000Z

After stocking up on the breakfast buffet it's time to get to Canillo. My backpack goes in the trunk of the bus and I have visions of the driver taking off before I have chance to retrieve it. Thankfully that doesn't happen and I manage to get both myself and my luggage to Canillo.

After getting some fuel (for us and the stove) it's straight into the hiking.

So far so good, we reach the Planell de les Basses and in the excitement of spotting the first red and white GR11 markers take a left instead of a right - doh! Luckily we realise before too long and after lunch get back on track. Manage to walk up the steep hill to the Coll d'Ordino twice after a bit of dithering about the route - doh 2!

Pass a couple who have been walking for 30 days, they tell us this is the worst part of the GR11 they have done so far, nothing like jumping in at the deep end.

We had a late start so push on until it starts to get dark, and then find the first available spot to pitch the tent.

Bored in Amsterdam

2006-08-03T07:21:00.000Z

1 hour down another 3 to go!!! Bored in Schiphol airport right now. Flight to Amsterdam was uneventful, quite impressed that we got fed and watered, mind you they have to throw it at you becaus you're not up in the air all that long.

Off to find my gate and take a nap.

Yay, I'm off exploring again

2006-07-30T13:15:00.000Z

Finally I get to go on another adventure, 26 days in all, so only a little trip by my standards.

So on Thursday I fly to Barcelona and from there I will get a bus to Andorra and on Friday start walking from Canillo to Sallent de Gállego! A long long hike, 305 km more or less, mostly along the GR11. It sounds a lot but if you say 13km per day it doesn't sound nearly as bad! It's meant to be spectacular and I'm sure it will be. 23 days without work, woo hoo, I'm so excited, the only things to worry about will be walking and eating and sleeping and enjoying the scenery. Hakuna Matata!

We're using the Lonely Planet Pyrenean Traverse as a rough guide, but we may alter things along the way depending on conditions (for example, the weather or our aching legs). Hopefully, through the wonders of modern technology, I'll be able to update this blog with snippets of information along the way but no promises.

Ronaldo (not fatty, the Portuguese one!)

2006-07-02T23:05:00.000Z

Well, England are out of the world cup. A quarter final exit on penalties seems to be our destiny. C'est la vie! But this little cartoon is enough to cheer anyone up.

My Pirate Name

2006-06-06T19:47:00.000Z

My Pirate Name Is

Red Bess Flint

Passion is a big part of your life, which makes sense for a pirate. Like the rock flint, you're hard and sharp. But, also like flint, you're easily chipped, and sparky. Arr!

Get your own pirate name from fidius.org.

Day 10

2006-05-28T11:33:00.000Z

Yay, on the road to recovery. Can walk normally now (providing I think about it!) and most of the swelling seems to have gone but there's still a bit of bruising, including some new stuff on the inside. I am now working on balancing on the bad foot because I have lost the ability to do this. Apparently you are meant to be able to hop 5 times on the bad ankle before returning to high risk sports so being able to stand on one leg is the first step!

Hmmmm beautiful!

2006-05-22T22:14:00.000Z

Five days on and my foot now looks like this, very pretty i think you'll agree!

Ouch!

2006-05-20T14:31:00.000Z

Ouch, I hurt my ankle on Thursday :-( and have been confined to sitting with my feet up since then. Now I know this might sound like heaven to some, but the novelty of doing nothing soon wears off and I'm bored to tears now. And hopping about gets pretty tiring after a while.

So in my boredom I decided that as I hadn't written anything on my blog in a little while I'd tell my own little world about my ankle and put up a nice pretty picture for everyone to see!

Easter Greetings!

2006-04-14T15:10:00.000Z

Happy Easter!

Today I have been mostly...

...playing about with animated gifs.

Wouldn't go as far to say that the results were impressive but it's kept me occupied!

Have a good Easter weekend everyone.

Another animation I made here. It's a work in progress.

Out my window

2006-04-10T22:43:00.000Z

Been playing about with autostitch software this evening. Pretty impressed with the results so far, really does require no user input so it's pretty clever.

This is a pretty rough attempt out my bedroom window, without tripod or anything so not to bad all things considered. Even managed to get a few ducks in there too.

Just need to go somewhere nice where I can have a go at doing a really nice panorama now

Where do you live?

2006-03-05T23:20:00.000Z

New feature! I've added a guest map, click the link in the sidebar and show me where you live. Probably somewhere more exotic than me!

SNOW!

2006-03-03T19:13:00.000Z

So after hearing about the snowfall just about everywhere else in the UK I've been very jealous all week. But now finally, the snow has arrived and there's a pretty good covering already. 'Tis all so pretty and white :-)

Flickrmap up and running

2006-02-26T18:27:00.000Z

So my main purpose of starting this blog was to have somewhere to put my Flickrmap. Spent most of the weekend geotagging my photos with the help of Google Earth and my flickrmap isn't looking too bad at all. Lots of places still to see obviously but I'm working on that.

And so it begins...

2006-02-25T16:53:00.000Z

Questions & Answers

DO YOU WISH ON STARS? Yes
IF YOU WERE A CRAYON, WHAT COLOR WOULD YOU BE? red
WHAT WAS YOUR FAVORITE TOY AS A CHILD? Lego
DOES YOUR CAR HAVE A NAME? Yes, Mickey
CAN YOU JUGGLE? nope, but I can make balloon animals

So now you know a little bit more about me!

I am sailing, I am sailing...

2005-12-29T17:25:00.000Z

Got into Gibraltar, greeted by the sunshine, arrived on the ship, Stavros S Niarchos, and got assigned our cabins and watches (3 watches on ship, because someone has to be on duty 24 hours a day so the watches rotate). We were lucky because there were only 8 girls but 24 boys so the girls cabins were really empty and we had loads of room to make a mess of. No time to visit the monkeys but we had a bit of time to have a few drinks, before we set sail.

And then we were off, spain on the starboard side and morocco on port side but soon there was no land in sight at all and it was 5 days before we saw any again. Lots of other stuff to see though, dolphins swimming alongside, turtles, whales, flying fish, bioluminescent plankton that light up in the nighttime and the stars, soooo amazing.

On the third day there was a wicked swell and the seasickness started to kick in, but at least the fish were kept well fed, what with half the crew being sick over the side of the boat. Wishes were made on the shooting stars we saw in the hope we would all feel better again.

The next day all was right again, and the sun was shining so siestas on the bow sprit (the pole and netting that is at the front of the ship)were the order of the day, really, really cool.

The morning of Christmas eve, and land was in sight once more. Passing north of tenerife we watched the sunrise over mount teide, and headed into Santa Cruz de La Palma. Time to explore, buy presents in our capacities as secret santas and have a dip in the sea, sure all the locals thought we were crazy brits but the sea was plenty warm enough to swim in (and i'm a wimp normally) although a bit cool when we got out. Didn't stay too long on dry land though, back to the boat, the whole land sickness thing was getting to people and standing still upright required a lot of effort. Back to the Stavros for BBQ and music on deck. Counted down to Christmas day, santa had found some people aboard the boat so presents were opened, but it was fairly quiet really. We were all too knackered.

So Christmas day, started off with sunshine and shore leave, had to keep reminding ourselves it was Christmas. Went on a tour of the island christmas morning, then christmas dinner, which was excellent and the atmosphere with 50 people in our the tiny mess room was great, although not much elbow room. A little rest to let lunch settle and then off for another dip in the sea. In the evening there was a fiesta on the quayside, we danced along the quay to flamenco pop music, had a quiet festive drink and watched the fireworks at midnight.

Boxing day arrived and time to set sail again, headed for tenerife. I was at the helm as we sailed out of port, a little bit scary, there were lots of things to hit, but we successfully avoided all of them. And finally we had some really good wind, heading down between Tenerife and La Gomera. And then it was time to climb the masts and stow the sails because we'd reached Santa Cruz in Tenerife, the end of the journey. A few drinks in the town in the evening and then time to say goodbyes.

San Fran to St Louis (the long way round)

2005-06-17T20:20:00.000Z

So in short from San Francisco we went to Yosemite, then north to Crater Lake in Oregon, Mount St Helens, Seattle, Olympic National Park, Victoria on Vancouver Island in Canada, Vancouder, Banff, Calgary, Yellowstone, Mount Rushmore, Badlands and back to St Louis. Suffice to say, it was really cool and saw lots of great things and lots of wildlife (bears, whales, moose, elk, buffalo, wolves etc.)

Click here to see the whole route.

Vegas to San Fran

2005-05-21T20:14:00.000Z

Las Vegas Boulevard,
originally uploaded by ebygomm.

So the bright lights of Vegas were cool, a very surreal place, had lots of fun. From Vegas the next stop was the Grand Canyon, we spent one very cool night at the top (24 Fahrenheit!) and hiked down into the Canyon the next day and then back up again. So after the cool nights at the Grand Canyon we decided we'd had enough of the cold and headed to Death Valley on Friday 13th. Spent the night in Furnace Creek which was lovely and warm as the name would suggest and explored the valley in the morning before it got too hot. Thankfully Richie (the car has been christened) made it out and we decided to head to Sequoia NP. It wasn't made easy by encountering road closures that added 70 miles to the trip and some hills that Richie really wasn't keen to do. Sequoia was cool, saw some BIG trees and walked through the snow in my flip flops, perhaps not the wisest footwear choice. Travelled to Kings Canyon, saw some amazing waterfalls and camped the night. And then it rained, and rained and rained, pretty much most of the night. Not discouraged by this we packed up our stuff and headed to Yosemite where we learnt that it had also rained and was now CLOSED due to flooding... by this time we were a little bit down and seeing as the NPS didn't know when it was going to be open again we decided to head for the coast and hopefully some sun. Well, we found the coast, but the sun was a little bit less reluctant to cooperate. Driving up Hwy 1 through Monterey and Santa Cruz we arrived in San Francisco last Wednesday in the rain and people told me it hardly ever rains in California - liars! Well, finally the sun was back and we've had a couple of good days here. We're leaving tomorrow, not quite sure where yet but the general direction is North.

Missouri to Utah

2005-05-06T20:08:00.000Z

Delicate arch,
originally uploaded by ebygomm.

Well, we’re nearly a week into our trip and everything is going well. We’ve seen all kinds of scenery and all kinds of weather – often in the same day!

So, I spent my birthday in Denver, wandering around and had coffee in starbucks, then we drove to the rockies where we realized we would have to be absolutely crazy to try and camp so we stayed the night in a motel. Went hiking the next day, saw lots of snow and elk and ground squirrels. Alberto tried to hike across a snow covered lake and got wet feet! Then from the rockies we headed west, stayed the night in a ski town, stocked up on food for the next week from the free buffet breakfast and then headed to the Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park. Scenery was absolutely amazing, we camped the night there, saw some deer and froze our butts off! Next stop was Arches National Park, with a brief stop at WALMART (where else?) for supplies. And here starts the adventure….

So we made it to the visitor centre, got out, came back and the car wouldn’t start. We tried for a while, but eventually had to get a ranger to get some jump leads and help us out. Well it started no problems so it all seemed good and we headed out into the park. Lots of great scenery, but about 16 miles in the car decided to die – aaarrgghhh! Well, some nice German guys gave us another jump and we made it another 5 miles and then we got another jump and we made it about 3 miles and another one and then the car was DEAD! So after passing messages on to tell the rangers we were stuck and seeing the sun come down, one came out and phoned the tow truck which was paid for courtesy of triple A. So the very nice tow truck man took us to a hostel in Moab and took the car to the garage. The next day the car had a new alternator and we were 100 pounds poorer but on the road again. Went back to arches and saw all the sites and then we headed to our next stop for the night on the way to Capitol
Reef. It’s all going great until the car starts to vibrate really badly at 55mph. We checked the tyres and they all seemed fine so we carried on, (slowly). We got to this amazing campsite at Goblin Valley State park, and decided we’d sort out the car in the morning. The weather was kind of funky, thunder, lightening, mini-sandstorms but by far the warmest we’d been so far. In the morning, the front tyre was completely flat so we guessed that was the problem. Changed the tyre for the spare, went to see the goblins in the valley, and then went in search of a new tyre – easier said than done in the middle of utah. Eventually found a place – only 70 miles down the road! – so we were on the road again with a new tyre, and the spare in it’s rightful place in the engine compartment (we’d had it taking up valuable trunk/boot space for all of the trip). Drove through some amazing scenery, total whiteout up in the mountains and then canyons and sandstone features and ended up here having in a little coffee shop in Escalante with an internet connection.