Ride from London to the hills, camp wild, watch the sunrise - a lovely Brompton trip! and a puncture
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- Опубликовано: 10 сен 2024
- On this trip, I rode my Brompton from London to Bedford, doing about 100 miles in total, over two and a bit days, camping wild.
I had two gorgeous wild camp nights, one high up in the hills at the eastern end of the Chilterns, and one in the valley of the Great Ouse, in a Cambridgeshire wood.
An old schoolfriend of mine lives in Bedford, and the idea was to go for lunch, doing the journey on my Brompton with my tent.
It was frosty at night actually, but the sun shone all day both days. You don't always get beautiful blue skies, and beautiful sunsets and sunrises. But sometimes you do. And sometimes you get punctures too haha
Hope you enjoy the film!
And the music is....
The Foragers feat Viktor Nilsson / Tennessee Skyline
Melanie Bell / Easy Now
Arch Tremors feat Lollo Gardtman / Talking About You and Me
All courtesy of www.epidemicsound.com
Another great wee video Susanna, I'm amazed at how you dealt with the bad news about your cancer. It is an easy thing to say, but you are an amazing woman and after all you have been through, it is so unfair that the bl**dy horrible thing is back. I really hope they can get it this time and I often think of you and the fortitude you show, which is an example to us all. I'm not a religious man, but I believe in the power of nature and positive thinking, so I for one, along with many others I wish you well and hope the coming month are good to you. I was only talking to Sandy the Wiltshire man the other day, who is also embarking on a Brompton camping trip soon and he follows you to. Please fight on and keep posting if you are able to. ATB Big Dave Scotland
Hi Susanna,
You are looking well :)
A bike ride with overnight wild camps is an "Adventure", even if it's from London to Bedford:) Beautiful woodlands, solitude, sunsets and sunrises and a Brompton. We don't need anything more....!
Having said that, I'm off to cycle and Wild camp The Way of the Roses tomorrow on my Brompton. All 180 miles of it:)
Sandy
Aw that sounds brilliant!! hope right now 11pm you're all packed up and can relax and looking forward to it!! haha prob not if you are like me, prob still squeezing things into bags haha. Happy cycling! looking forward to hear - and see - all about it!
Looking forward to the video Sandy!!
Another great video. Love how you fit all your gear, even your travel chair! Love your stove, what make is it? Keep on truckin'.
Susanna,
I love your “meandering” mentality; getting lost is part of the adventure.
Yes, that derailleur lock nut and even presta valves can shut tight. I now (been in the same situation )carry a micro tool with a tiny-winy pliers for those moments. When really stuck, two small sticks used chop-stick style can give the needed mechanical advantage.
Great to see you out there enjoying your world.
Peter
Hi Peter! Thanks for writing! glad you enjoyed the film. Ah yes I used to carry tiny pliers too, years ago, cute little pliers, I liked them haha! but I never used them really, so I stopped bringing them along... Sticks! good idea! yes I can imagine two sticks might have helped, more leverage and would hurt my fingers less. I think my hands are still more sensitive due to chemo last year. So feeble! Thanks for writing with feedback and ideas!
Hi Susanna - apart from being just a lovely human being you’re also an inspiration to others and because of your adventures I’ve just (yesterday) bought a new (well new for me) Brompton and am planning a tour around Wales in a couple of weeks. Thank you so much for your amazing videos and wonderful outlook on life…. I can’t wait to get out there - maybe we’ll meet on the road one day?
Just wanted to check your choice of tent - and ask whether the foyer is big enough for your Brompton when folded. All the best Nick.
Hi Nick! oh that sounds great, wonderful that you have got a Brompton now, woo! and are planning to do some riding in Wales. Wonderful! About my tent, it is a Hilleberg Akto, and yes there is enough space in the porch for the folded bike. The bike fits in standing up, and also lying down. I used to always stand it up in there, but these days I mostly lie it down, so there is no chance it tips over and ends up ripping the tent. I put my empty panniers in the porch too, at the end. About tents, I do also have a Terra Nova Laser Lite, nearly 20 years old now, still OK. The bike fits in that porch too.
Aha!! My favourite scene was seeing you emerge on Day 3 and having to peel your way through the branches - adventure at its best!! 🤗 A lovely trip Susanna - nice to see you meeting plenty of friendly and helpful people along the way too! Your resourcefulness is always a marvel to see - puncture repair, camp site finding, trail finding, water sourcing and cooking lovely food!! Great you got a scone in with your pal too 🤩
Super impressed by the pancakes. Awesome preparation and thought gone into your food. Love that. I own a touring Brompton but ashamed to say I had no clue about rear wheel removal, great prompt in your video, looked that up and feel bit more prepared. I presume you use Google maps on phone for navigation ?
Haha yeh squeezing between the bushes haha! When I first crept into that wood the evening before it felt a bit sort of gloomy in there, but once I got pitched and settled in and dinner on the stove it felt good. Actually a little fleet of microlights flew over me during the evening, really low and if they looked down I think they could easily have seen me, as the big trees overhead had only early small leaves. I heard the noise, didnt know what it was, thought it was machinery in a field or something. Once I realised what they were I scrambled and hid in my green tent! I thought I was so well protected in my little wood, noone would see me but hadnt imagined people would fly over the top haha. Aw yeh we always have scones, my friend's husband always knows what to expect, we disappear on long walks and eat scones so nice. Best wishes Miriam!! hope you are having the odd scone afternoon there too with lovely pals 🥰
Hi Susanna, thankyou for sharing another lovely video, it was beautiful. Your videos have really inspired me to do my own tour. Since losing my wife last year I've finally plucked up the courage to organise a tour of the Rebellion Way in Norfolk next week, although cheating a bit as I'm not camping and staying in b&bs etc. I'm now getting nervous about it and whether I'm ready for it, keep changing my mind over what I need to take. If it goes ok I would really like to do a trip with some camping involved next.
Oh thank you for writing. I'm so sorry that you lost your wife last year. Well done you, organising a tour. Wonderful! Haha of course I think that. Solution to most things in life is, if possible, go on a bike ride haha. Massive well done that you decided to do it, and set a date. Yay. And massive well done that you are getting your gear together. About being nervous, I think everyone is nervous actually. Definitely me - I mean, excited, but also a sort of trepidation... And it is kind of hard work gathering everything and working out how it will all squash in etc and what you need in which bag etc. But within a few minutes of rolling through Norfolk, I hope you feel as good and free and kind of peaceful as I do when I am on two wheels, gliding along, looking at things and thinking a bit and then wondering what's round the next corner and looking forward to having a coffee somewhere nice.. Stuff will go wrong but dont stress too much you'll fix it and people are mostly super nice and help, with pliers haha or water or just a chat. Wishing you miles of happy cycling Aid M. Best wishes
"So... this.. is where I was when they rang me......."
Oh crikey, Susanna! 😭💔
I can't wait for summer to ride in the mornings ,!😎
🌞😎🚲
Excellent as usual Susanna thanks. ❤️👌🚴♂️
Thank you so much for taking us on your adventures! Wonderful as always xxx
Hi Eva! aw that's thank you for coming along!
Thank you for another lovely, lovely video.
When it got to the part where you said "this is where I was when they phoned me to say the cancer was back" I just wanted to send you a virtual hug and say to you "but now you are moving on...." ❤
Great girl strong brave and positive.so enjoy your channel.
aw thanks Mick, glad you are enjoying the films! more coming soon!
Bit late to this one Susanna. Another very fine video and some lovely locations. I always like your choice of background music, very fitting. So good to see you out and about and exploring. Best wishes.
Another great video your videos always inspire me to go cycling nowhere near your level but I usually have a good day out thank you
Hi Geoff! aw sounds great - yeh the thing is just to go out isnt it. Having a good time out on the bike, that's all that matters to me too
Hi Susanna , I recently purchased a Brompton. I live in Hamilton Ontario Canada. You have inspired me to get out and explore Ontario with my Brompton. Happy travels and all the best.
Hi Richard! oh that sounds great! Hope you have a great time exploring!
Lovely to hear the birds chirping on your sunrises, probably telling each other about the aroma of your pancakes.
Brommie rear punctures are a pain, l had one last Aug, fixing it at home I needed pliers (Park Tool LP-7) to get the valve lock ring off, stripping the diamond knurling of the lock ring in the process (fortunately the new tube had another lock ring).
Aw yeh the pancakes! Makes the morning extra nice haha. esp with jam. About that punture, it was kind of good that it happened, in a way cos next puncture shd be doable now, without extra tools, plus I have actually now bought chunkier tyres, Schwalbe Marathon Plus... About those lock rings you get on tube valves, when I read your comment I vaguely rememberd back in the day there was debate about what purpose those lockrings serve, if any. I just googled it and yeh seems the discussions are still going on! Anyway. Thanks for writing. I'm setting off on another ride soon and looking forward to the birdsong, ahh. Thanks for the lovely comment! 🐥🦉🐤
Aaahhh, another wonderful trip and video to match! I live in the Chilterns, in a village just outside Aylesbury (Aston Clinton). I LOVE where I live! The cycling is great; all the reservoirs , canals and of course...the hills! Oh, and the Dunstable Downs. I've appreciated it 100-fold since I took up cycling again in 2018. Aren't we lucky?! Life might have its trials (mine certainly has right now) but cycling always helps me feel better. Thanks for a great video!
Aw thanks for writing Alice. Hope you are OK. You said it so well, we are so lucky to be able to get out on a bike and feel better...
@@susannathornton too true! Thanks for your replies 😊
@@susannathornton sorry, I missed part of your reply. Thank you I'm fine. Just been a very tough couple of years and especially last year. But things are settling...onwards and upwards! ❤️
Good!
Thank you for sharing your adventures ❤
Loved sharing this journey with you. I love seeing all the beautiful English villages. Looking forward to sharing your next trip😀
Many thanks Susanna. Excellent as usual.
Thanks Colin! Glad you liked it!
Thanx for taking us with you in this new trip!
Excellent Susanna, loved this trip. Thank you
Hi Jo! thanks for watching! glad you enjoyed it!
Dear Susan, it's always nice to see how you manage to share the joys you feel in your travels. Your positivity in dealing with the various difficulties you encounter is commendable. And then there's the beauty that one encounters along the way. As Rita Sozzi, a great cycle traveller, says, "they say that there is nothing at the North Cape? There is a road to get there at the North Cape, and it is beautiful". Thanks again and I hope to see your new adventures soon!
Aw how lovely, thank you Maurizio. I just looked up Rita, very cool. I love the title of one of her books, nocturnal singing of a cyclist... Thank you for watching and for writing x
Hi Susanna. Love your videos, such an inspiraton. I recently bought a six speed Brompton C line in bumblebee yellow (why wouldn't you....). and I am also a huge Trangia fan as well. You have inspired me to leave the camper van behind every now and then and get out wild camping on the Brompton with the Trangia in tow, of course! Can't quite afford the Hilleberg, but a very friendly camping shop allowed me to try a couple of their display tents to see if the Brommie will fit in the porch and I can report back that the Vango Nevis 200 has a vestibule just big enough to squeeze it in. A good budget alternative for now. Keep up the good work! Panda.
Another lovely video thank you.
Thank you for sharing your story. Well done to you! Also, I never travel without my multi tool which has a great plier feature. If I run into you… you can absolutely borrow it!🤙
Nice to see you again Sue , stay strong ❤
Thanks for beautiful video thank you be well safe and happy my friend
Wow im impressed thank you brian
Great stuff as usual. Have you ever thought about writing a ‘bike packers cook book’ with some of your tips, recipes etc?
Was just thinking the same
Hi Susanna,great ride,lovely villages,one thing that might be on Santas list is a Leatherman multi tool with pliers👍,as always take care & looking forward to more adventures,❤ Colin P.
Hi Colin! aw thanks for writing! glad you enjoyed it! well tbh I dont plan to add pliers or anything. It was just that this was the first time I removed the back wheel on that (newish) bike and the factory had done up the locknut really tight. it needed to kind of "click" before it loosened. From now on it will be finger tight ie normal, and wont require pliers. Sods law something else I havent thought of will happen now! but basically over the years I have hardly ever needed pliers or grips or whatever on the road, so dont carry them. Less weight is good!! Every small thing gotta be considered and worth its weight. Actually about Santa he kind of already arrived with some Schwalbe Marathon Plus tyres haha! Had some before, and they were fantastic, but they got stolen with the rest of the old bike boo hoo. Anyway, onwards! Take care you too and happy cycling!
Hi Susanna, I found your channel after checking out the channels on one of my recent subscribers channels. I must admit, I was initially interested when I saw you rode a Brompton. However, after watching your '...London to the Hills' vlog, I realised it's not about the Brompton at all. It is far more inspiring! Great footage, lovely dialogue and I felt as if I was part of the journey. Especially sat at the tent, looking into the trees. I have now subscribed. Safe and happy travels. Mal.
Hi Mal! thanks for writing such a lovely comment! And for subscribing! More films on the way! I have been out on the bike a lot these last couple of months, and am making the films now. Welcome! Glad you like the channel!
Top lady. Wish I had your courage.
A pure joy to watch - you are inspirational 🤩
Thanks for another great video. I've walked from the River Lea to Bishop's Stortford along rhe River Stour recently and it's really lovely. Really interesting to see the landscape north of there. Take care.
Yeh I really enjoyed seeing the landscape upriver of Bishops Stortford, lovely there on the Essex Herts border, I had never really paid any attention to that area but it was gorgeous, lovely villages
I loved this, it looked so lovely and it’s great to watch the joy you take from it. I’m also intrigued and impressed by wondering how you manage to film so well on the bike - I expect I’d be in the hedge trying it!
Aw thanks Laura, er yeh well I nearly lost it in that water splash haha
Hi Susanna, great to see you having so much fun on your trip to Bedford. Great wild camping spots. Wish you all the best.👍👌💪🏻
又见到Susanna在骑车的路上，这太好了👍👍
Having rewatched this video, I think an apology is in order for my last comment, as when you stopped by the river at 1:40, you said 'this was where you got the call that the cancer was back'. I misinterpreted it as being in the now , not the past. So I'm very happy and obviously wish you all the best and look forward to many more camping rides which are so good to watch. Regards Dave
Aw Dave no need to apologise for anything! Yeh it was last year ie 2022 when I got the call. That place is kind of burned in my mind now. Anyway! I am doing great happy days so grateful for everything. Hope you are doing OK!
I'm doing fine thanks Susanna, I appreciate you taking the time to reply 😄
It’s been said by everyone, Susanna - inspiring and infectious zest for Life. Even when you got the dreaded rear wheel puncture and with a borrowed pair of pliers, fixed it! Your confidence and courage just to get on and do it, us wonderful.
Hi John! aw thanks for the lovely comment! well I dont know, but infectious zest for kindness was what I experienced on that trip! The chaps who lent me the key to get water at village hall! amazing! And the guys with pliers! So kind. And the bloke in the pub where I asked for water was nice too. And the man working on the street lamps in Gamlingay, lovely to have a long natter with him. Actually when I was fixing my puncture, a woman from opposite came over and asked if I needed anything and invited me to tea and everything. Would have been lovely to have tea with her but I felt like at this rate I'd never get to Bedford
Another truly wonderful film. Thank you for taking us along with you. Also, I love your choice of music! :)
This was so nice, inspiring and full humanity. Love how you decided to take Brommie and go. Hope I find that courage once. You are a pure inspiration. Your morning welcome of sunrise made me think of my childhood when I spent more time exploring nature. I could smell the air based on your video. Really looking forward for your next one. Take care and fight! You are not alone!! Never!!!!
Excellent, life doesn't get much better than that.
aw thanks ascot 104
Love watching these videos and from a creative point of view comparing the editing style with other creators. I'm also big fan of Harry Dwyer '1700 miles around UK in a tiny speedboat' and Roger Barnes 'Avel Dro in Venice'
Hi LJD! oh that is interesting, I will have a look at those! Thanks! yeh when I am cycling I am always trying to think what the experience it actually like, and mostly i do it all wrong and I forget to film the bits I need and I tilt the camera wrong and put fingers in front of the lens etc, but what I am trying to do is make a film that puts across something of what it was like to be there. Actually I went to the Hockney Lightoom show in London with my Dad the other day, and it was really interesting to hear Hockney talk about the experience of driving along a road, and what people actually see and hear and feel when going along a road, and try to paint etc what it was actually like. Anyway. I think it is really interesting. Thank you for writing!
Inspiring as always! Love your resourcefulness & enthusiasm!
I can't believe how much stuff you carry on your little bike - it always looks heaps when you set it all up. 😊
Congratulations on your 1000th like 👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏bravo 👍🚴
Oh!! Nice! Thank you for that lordbikealot!
Hi Susanna, well done and thanks for taking us on your latest adventure. You’re a wonderful photographer, you do so well within the strictures of the bikepacking scenario. You make me want to go to all your places. My husband cycled along the varsity line on his Brompton where you ended this ride. Hope that cancer gets defeated soon. Eat well, relax, do what you can.
Hello! oh you're very kind, a lot of what I try and film goes wrong haha I frame things wrong or miss the most important bits and all sorts. I like watching my films myself haha! and make them cos basically it is a nice way to help remember the trip and enjoy the whole thing again. Oh that's interesting about the Varsity Line, I just looked it up. I hadn't really heard of it! What a nice idea to explore that by bike. Thank you for writing Mel! Best wishes to you and your husband!
Hi Susanna another fantastic adventure!! Thanks for bringing us along ❤
Very nice video 👍
Beautiful journey 💞
You make such nice videos - it all flows so easily, but the shots must be carefully planned and the editing and the way it all fits the music is ever so good. The early morning scenes after the first night were a super example of this.
I bought self-sealing inner tubes for my bike, filled with "slime" and I tell everyone how good they are. When I change a worn out tyre after a few thousand miles I usually find that there are several punctures in the tube that the slime has sealed without me even knowing (sometimes you hear a brief hiss). Especially in bad weather in winter it is convenient (and safer) not to have to stop in the cold and dark to fix punctures - in several years I've only had one tread puncture which the slime couldn't seal and then I had to get the patches out because i had carried my unused spare tube in my bag for so long it had worn a big hole in it. For non-tread punctures it doesnt help of course, but they shouldn't happen (I had 4 on my last tour caused by a split rim tape).
You should do a Trangia cookbook! You make such nice meals. How do you dehydrate cooked rice?
I loved watching this. It really feels like I was enjoying the trip with you. Thankyou!
Hello and thanks ra5585! aw glad you like the videos! I make a lot of mistakes when I am filming through not thinking enough about what I am doing and how the clips will fit together, so then I come home and try and edit, and realise I messed up haha. But I enjoy it. I am trying to make films that give a sense of what it felt like to be there, and what I am doing. Oh that sounds good with your self sealing tubes. Oh split rim tape grr, how annoying, 4 times is too much!! About dehydrating rice etc, I do it with a food dehydrator, basically a kind of very cool fan oven, with lots of trays. I bought it a couple of years ago, after I saw how through-hiking type people in the US use dehydrators, to make their own food for the trail, which can be healthy as you can choose your own ingredients and cook from scratch, and cheap compared to buying those sachets of freeze dried meals you get in camping shops. I thought I would try it. For rice, I just cook the rice then spread it over brown paper on a tray in the dehydrator. I also dehydrate all sorts of other things, veg, fruit, fish, etc. It is brilliant . Anyway, thanks for writing!
@@susannathornton Thank you. You do a great job of conveying what it was like to be there - almost magical!
Thanks for the description of dehydrating food. I used a dehydrator to preserve my excess apple and pear crop last year - I had no idea I could do the same thing with rice. Thanks for telling me how!
@@ra5585 oh that's great that you already got a dehydrator. Don't know if it's any help re recipes, but I think this website is brilliant for camp cooking inspiration, and dehydrating know how, the woman behind it is a chef or nutritionist or something, forget exactly but the ideas are great and the photography great, whole site really inspiring www.trail.recipes/
@@susannathornton Thanks for that. The website does look very good - I bought my dehydrator for drying fruit and it only had instructions for making beef jerky (I'm vegetarian) and I hadn't realized that I could use it for so many other things. My camp cooking usually doesn't look good and isn't very varied even if it is nutritious and filling. I usually camp late and end up eating in the dark (I've noticed that even a candle in the tent makes it stand out like a lighthouse when you're trying to be hidden). I've often reflected that my cooking probably looks better in the dark! Maybe things will improve! Your meals always look and sound nice! I hope you've got more trips, meals and videos planned! Thankyou!
Nice one Susanna. I love how bike packing allows you to turn a potentially fairly mundane trip into a mini adventure 😀
Hi Jules! thanks for writing! I love your comment
you make me want to be a better human ! Thank you, I guess.
chapeau!
What a lovely reason to have a ride. I loved your parting of the trees leaving your camp spot, it looked very well hidden.
Cycling and flat tyres are part of cycling in spite of those who would have you believe tubeless are the answer.
My dad died far too early but told me to live every day as if it was your last. I try to do this but it's hard sometimes and you have to fall back on determination.
I guess a pair of pliers will be on your Christmas wish list.😃
Thanks for sharing your trip.
Aw thanks for writing Colin x well the last camp spot seemed well hidden till a little fleet of microlights flew over haha, I thought I was well hidden but I was thinking from the sides, hadnt thought about people flying over haha. Sounds like your Dad was a wise man. Happy cycling you too! punctures and all!!
I really look forward to your videos. Excellent and thanks again. ❤
Hope you like holland.......would have said hello, but you were gone before i realized it was you......have fun be save ❤😎🙏
Oh how amazing that you saw me! sorry I didnt write before, have been on the road! yes I have had a fantastic time thanks!
Another beautifully made and inspirational video. Those sunrises with the birds singing were wonderful. I’m impressed with how you removed the back wheel and repaired the puncture. Thanks for ‘taking us with you’ on your adventure. We’ve just come back from cycling in the Netherlands on our Bromptons. It was lovely cycling in the wetland areas. I got two broken spokes on the last day. We managed to remove the back wheel, only to find my spare spokes were the wrong size. No worries - we took our Bromies on a train for the final leg of the journey home. 😊🚴🙏
Aw thanks Jennifer. Your recent tour sounds lovely. Whereabouts are the wetland areas actually? I have loved the bits of touring I have done in the Netherlands, partly cos all the basic camp sites, love them. Aw no, broken spokes!!
@@susannathornton We stayed in Groningen and cycled around Zuidlaardermeer. Lots of wetland birds and noisy frogs in May! 🐸 Then we staying in Giethoorn, laced with canals and thatched cottages and began to cycle around the Weerribben-Wieden national park. Saw many herons as cycled to Rotterdam ferry port. We stayed in air b&b’s - I have a slight back issue - so we decided to play safe. Camping sounds fun.
@@jenniferbailey44 Sounds very nice! aw I am excited, I am hoping to ride through the Netherlands again soon. Maps out all over as usual haha
Always wonderful, thank you 🙂
Another lovely gentle video 👍
Just a suggestion, I added sealant to a couple of bike inner tubes last year I probably haven’t done enough miles to prove that it works but might be worth trying due to the faff of removing a Brompton back wheel.
Looking forward to your next video 😊
Hi David! aw I read about people trying that. Actually I went for the option of new tyres, bought a pair of lovely Schwalbe Marathon Plus and put them on. I had the same on my old Brompton that got stolen, and loved them and I never punctured on them actually. It already feels really good - I was bashing along on a busy road the other day through loads of scrappy rubbish and glass bits etc at the edge of the road, and felt so glad that I had the chunkier tyres on. The original tyres were lighter, but I would have been riding along trying to wiggle around and worrying about it
Lovely! Love those towpaths for riding by the side of rivers!
Great Video Susanna, you are an inspiration to all, keep your adventures coming 👍
I've watched a few of your videos recently and loved them so much that it's inspired me to get a C Line Explore through the Cycle to Work Scheme! I've got a dutch style bike for general pottering about town and to work, but looking forward to getting out there on the Brompton to do some miles and exploring :)!
oh that's great! yeh I have the same kind of bike set up - an old hybrid thats unlikely to be nicked for getting round town, and a Brompton for exploring further afield, combined with trains and buses etc. Hope you love it! happy cycling!
@@susannathornton Happy to say I've got the bike and I love it! 😄
Really enjoyable to watch as always!
You are some woman!
Many thanks.
Aw thank you sparky v
There is so much involved with rear punctures. Would be interested in hearing more about your bikes gearing. Thinking of buying one.
About the gears I use, I have ridden 6 speed Bromptons , but I went for 3 speed, because I want things simple, so that there's fewer things to go wrong, and if something does go wrong, it's easier to fix. The main thing I need is a decent low gear so that I can climb most climbs withouth running out of gears so I lowered all three gears by swapping the big chainring that came on the bike to a small chainring, a 38 tooth, which is the smallest you can fit on. Costs very little, just a few quid for a chainring. The first time I tried this I just used an old 39T chainring I had in my box of old bike bits, to see how it worked out. And basically I think it is a great modification - essential for what I want to do. Now with a small chainring, first gear is nice and low, ideal for climbing. Of course my top gear is also lower, I have pretty much never thought 'oh I really wish I had that old monster gear'. If I am going downhill or with the wind etc and I spin out, I just freewheel, happy days. And re fewer gears, ie 3 not 6 etc, I basically dont need close(r)-ratio gears, as I am not competing these days, not looking to maximise performance etc etc - just want a simple bike that works reliably. Anyway that is what I do and why! hope that helps!
@@susannathornton Thank you Susanna for all this information on the gearing, this all makes more sense now. Stuart.
Another lovely video Susanna. At the moment I get out of breath just going upstairs!!
being local to where you camped on the second night, did you hear / see any deer as that little copse is normally full of them. Another fantastic adventure, thanks for sharing 👍
Well I didnt see it but something huge walked past my tent. It sounded kind of heavier-footed and larger than a deer. I wondered if it was a stag. Do people ever see stags there? or anything like that?!
Aghh the stress of a puncture when you are miles from home. That lezyne mini floor pump is worth its weight in gold. I bought the same pump after watching your gear list video. I'll be adding a mini pliers to my gear list next! Brilliant video. Your overnight camps in random fields are my favourites. Wishing you a happy, healthy, sunny summer.
Hi Richella! thanks for writing! yeh I love that pump too - so much easier than a hand pump and I can get decent tyre pressure with it, great. About pliers, actually I shant add any to my kit, cos I shouldnt need them now - bascially the problem I had on this ride was a result of the locknut having been done up by the factory - this bike is fairly new and I had never removed the rear wheel. Now the locknut is finger tight, ie normal, so I wont need pliers for that in future... if you see what I mean! Anyway, bla bla! happy cycling! And I hope you dont need to use any tools out there, plain sailing all the way! thanks for watching!!
A very top Lady.
Putting me to shame having a 6 speed brommie that’s hardly used as it’s too hilly up here in the Lake District ! another lovely inspirational journey, best wishes from Cumbria.
Very cool video Susanna , great countryside pics. Love your resolve and spirit.
Keep well Alan
Another great adventure. Thanks for sharing.
Ann Davies
Thanks Susanna. I love cycle touring but can't do it at the moment. it gives me huge pleasure to join you on your travels!
Aw thanks Ann! Hope you are having a good day! Hope you can pack the panniers and head off along some lovely lanes soon...! Thanks for coming along and joining me meanwhile!
Really enjoyable adventure Susanna, well done. You are a very brave lady when tackling these journeys. Thank you and Stay Safe.
Thank you Susanna - a wonderful video as always. Rear wheel Brompton punctures are never fun, but great that you got it fixed. And, as usual, I discover some new music!
Aw thanks Dave! glad you enjoyed the film, esp the music, yeh I love choosing music for films, nice thing to do, wasting loads of time listening haha
Another great video, thank you.
Gosh! Susanna. Such a lovely trip. I imagine you studying OS maps for routes to follow. It is so satisfying when a plan produces rewards such as the beautiful villages, churches and countryside you came to. That was a super post mill you passed by. The vicarious pleasure of travelling with you is immeasurable. So pleased to find you latest journey this morning. Take care.
Hi Emma! aw thank you for the lovely comment. Yes! there are OS maps littering the floor here now as I write haha oh so nice. There were several old windmills along that ridge of hills actually, so nice, that fabulous white one with sails and two more close by, just the tower stump. Must have been amazing when those old mills were all going, all the sails wheeling in the wind. Thank you for writing! Take care you too!
Nice video Suz. Love the ride and cookery lesson too.
Absolutely love your videos. You are an inspiration. Keep up the great work and happy camping/biking.
Hi Barry! aw thank you, for watching, and for dropping a line!
lovely video, you even went through my birthplace and the village i grew up in, Bishops Stortford and Manuden. i used to ride my bike around most of the lanes and bridleways in that area. the cricketer's pub in clavering is or was Jamie olivers mum and dads pub.
Thanks for another cracking video, you do find some lovely routes. On the puncture front, have you tried Stans tyre sealant? If not I recommend it. I used to commute to Hull 5 days a week, used to get a puncture every 2 or 3 weeks, drove me mad! Had seen the anti puncture fluids around and seen a lot of negative reports about them, but then found Stans and the reviews were so much better so decided to take a punt. That was 6 years ago, not one puncture since I am pleased to say. One little bottle is enough to treat both tyres on a Brommie, and it needs reapplying every y months or so. It really is well worth searching out.
Will look forward to your future adventures.
Terry
Hi Terry! aw thanks for the comment, glad you liked the film. Yeh there were some lovely lanes up there. I had no idea that up there along the Essex/Herts border was so quiet really, and into Cambridgeshire, lovely, so big and empty. Really liked it. Ah good to know you have had such a good experience with that sealant! It is normally for tubeless tyres, right? Actually I have gone for the sort of nuclear option and bought a pair of Schwalbe Marathon Plus tyres and put them on. I had Marathon pluses on my old now long lost Brompton that got nicked, and loved them cos I never punctured on them, could sort of bash through anything. So I have gone for another pair of those.... Brand new right now, and still really nice and black!
Great to see a new adventure ride you took! Bummer re flat tire, but thankfully you got a hold of some pliers! :) Nice camping spots you found! :)
Another gorgeous adventure! I loved it when you caught the lovely sunrise; I’m always on the lookout for the minor miracles in each day, and there are usually plenty of them when we take the time to look. I’m planning a ride out to the ancient village of Ledsham for half term next week, as it has a beautiful Anglo Saxon church that I’ve been meaning to explore for ages. Bike rides to historic places are my happy place 😀
Aw thanks sounds so nice Linda. I just looked up Ledsham. Sounds great. Hopefully the weather will be nice for you next week too.... I like your idea of minor miracles. I think I might have one right here right now, in the form of some chocolate and a cup of tea haha
Love your videos and adventures! Have you ever been asked to “move on” when out wild camping? Thanks so much for sharing your adventures, I’m addicted :-)
Hi Nic! thanks for writing! now I have never been asked to move on. I look for spots where it's unlikely anyone will go, and where noone will see me. Then of course I respect the place, grateful for borrowing a couple of square metres of someones land for a few hours overnight, and then in the morning head off early and leave no trace, just some grass a bit flatter than it was before. Actually in Germany I was discovered once. I had pitched at dusk in not very good spot, near some horses by a dyke where people were likely to come, but it was going dark and I had run out of options. And a local guy did come by walking his dog. I stood up so they could see who it was, and said hello. And he was really nice actually. I explained I had run out of time before dark etc and was just camping overnight before moving on, we had a massive nice chat and actually he invited me round for coffee etc etc. Which I didn't cos I would never do that, cant risk doing risky stuff like that, but he didn't fuss at all about the camping. Later the owner of the horses came by too, and also didnt mind. I think thats the only time I have been discovered actually.
Thanks for taking the time to reply.! As you say pick spots where one is least likely to be discovered. Love your video’s you’re a real inspiration . Continued happy cycling and adventures :-)
Do you ride with tire liners installed? If not, I recommend them. They're a lightweight last defense from any wire or thorn that makes it as far as your inner tube. Its like upgrading from Schwalbe Marathon Racers to standard Marathons, or from standard Marathons to Marathon Plus, except without as much extra weight & bulk.
Also, I don't know about Brompton's standard tires, but many original tires on new bikes from the factory are under width sized so they can advertise low weight. That can leave you with insufficient tire flexing room when crossing a sharp edge. Best in that case to upgrade to a larger width. I'm more fond of 1.75" than 1.35" for that purpose. The wider tires also carry the load more gracefully with less pressure.
Cheers!
Hi Mike! Thanks for writing! Sounds like you have had good experience with the liners, thats great! Maybe they have got better over the years - when I worked in a bike shop I think the view back then was that they might work but might also be troublesome and the edges poss actually cause punctures. On that's interesting what you say about manufacturers using under width tyres, hmm, yeh I see. Talking about upgrades wider tyres etc, I just invested in a pair of Marathon Plus. I had Pluses on my old Brompton - the one that got stolen - and they were brilliant. Fingers crossed these will work as brilliantly as the stolen ones - which I guess someone else is now riding around on, somewhere....! Thank you for watching, and for writing! Happy puncture-free cycling!
Thanks for sharing your adventurers Suzanna
I love your videos, you're a real inspiration to older cyclists like me!
What a great little trip, and that no-chicken pilaf and the pancakes looked delicious! You have a real talent for choosing lovely camp spots. I wonder if the trees watch over you as you sleep and miss you when you leave in the morning? Oh dear, getting dafter in my old age 😬
I work in Bedford but didn’t spot you on my many gaze-idly-out-the-office-window-wish-I-were-cycle-touring sessions. Maybe on a road somewhere someday when, hopefully, one of us at least will have a pair of pliers 🙂
Haha thanks for the lovely comment! Haha. Daft is good! aw yeh I really loved that first wood, a patch of grass, and those great tall bare trees and a view... I wonder what is happening there right now... I do wonder that sometimes, about all the little wild camp spots I have enjoyed and left behind. I can recall them really well somehow, all the details, the light through the grass and everything. Prob cos when I camp alone I have nothing to do really, just sit there. Hope you are having a nice morning there in Bedford oh fancy that! I should have popped in!
Don’t leave it too long between videos, I was worried about you - great trip !!
I sometimes wonder in this age of cell phones, what difficult news I might have to deal with in a grocery store line or something. But maybe it’s better just to deal with it on the spot rather than start the telephone tag… So happy to see you having another adventure Susanna…thank you for sharing!
Yeh. It is a new thing isnt it, in the age of cell phones, things like that happen. I have also thought back and thought actually maybe it was a good place to be that day, in a way, out there by the water and the reeds and the geese just going by
@@susannathornton yes, a grocery store lineup would be far worse. Maybe being on the move somehow gives the mind something to do while your soul deals with the new state of affairs 🤗
Great video Susanna. You’re going to be a world expert on English rivers and villages at this rate. Bad luck getting a puncture and on the rear tyre too. Nightmare! Last time that happened to me I got on a bus!
Hi Lynne! Haha yes rivers and landscape and everything haha, at the mo I am really into maps showing rivers and valleys and geology, so interesting to look at how it all fits together. I find the geology hard to understand once they start talking about oolitic and things but anyway nice to look at maps. Hope you are well and not having too many punctures!
Oh Susanna you've done it again, inspired me to get off my backside and do these wild camps on my bike but how the hell do you find them....? I wish I knew the places you actually stayed because you rode past an area where I live so it's more doable for me, I would like to do the same spots you camped at as they seem perfect...
Aw thanks for writing. Great you liked the video! Hope you enjoy a bit of wild camping, honestly there are millions of spots, just got to dive in really and you'll be away. What I do is just look for areas away from roads and houses and people, obviously. On a short trip, when I know more or less where I will hopefully be each night, I research online in advance using OS and google street view etc, to look for possible spots to try. I look on the map for tracks or bridle path etc, or footpath, to get me away from the road. It always feels better to start out with some ideas of where I might sleep, although on the ground things usually are different from what I expect, eg dog walkers, cows, bog, difficult stiles etc. Then I just hunt out corners out of sight of people, unploughed field corners, walls, hedges, edges of woods etc. It is always a little bit nerve wracking. Often the first place I try doesnt work so I have to push on. But once you find a good spot and put the kettle on it is so nice. Thanks for watching!! happy cycling and camping!!!!
Hello Suzanna,
As always an enjoyable video, thank you. You passing through Harlow reminded me of many happy memories racing behind the derny's there on a long gone velodrome. I have been putting together my kit for Brompton adventures and have been wondering about taking my Victorinox Deluxe Tinker knife. I will for sure now as it has some pliers for the toggle chain in case of punctures. Another lesson learnt for me was your selection of places to camp, very secluded within the trees.
It was great to see you looking so well... Thanks again for a great video.
Take lots of care.
Paul,,
Aw thanks Paul. Derny racing haha wow cool. I never did that. I dont know if any us us women rode derny actually, never heard of anyone. We just rode behind fast fellas and it was like motorpaced training or racing for us anyway haha. Harlow... was it quite banked? I think may have raced a WCRA track champs thing there many moons ago, but it might have been on Welwyn... which has also gone hasnt it... I rememebr the track was pretty decent steep banks, good fun. About the toggle chain, actually the lesson I learned is that basically, on a brand new bike, loosen the locknut at home where you have pliers or grips etc to hand if needed (you may manage it anyway with your hands but as you saw I couldnt!) and then tighten it again finger-tight, ie normal. And then you're sorted, wont need pliers. Thanks for writing! Take care you too!
@@susannathornton Harlow was a small wooden outdoor track... My favorite track back then was Paddington, sadly that's gone too.
1:20 Bitter sweet! bad news but with an attitude like yours, you'll do fine!
Thanks Sparky. Dont know about sweet! feels like 100% bitter haha but yeh, chin up, carry on, is what I am trying to do
Lovely video 👍
Thank you 🙂
A great video thanks
A lovely trip again! I was interested to watch about your puncture. I must admit this is why I have not gone on a solo tour with my Brompton: I'm just not confident changing punctures! It's so complicated. The first time (and only time, honestly!) I had a puncture I changed it at home and it took me about an hour and a half and I still got it wrong. I'd love a detailed video of how to change a puncture and the pitfalls to avoid.
Hi Keeley! thanks for watching! about detailed videos of how to fix Brompton stuff, I like @brilliantbikes videos, just flicked through their channel now and couldnt find the exact one I wanted of theirs but this also looks good re rear wheel puncture ruclips.net/video/L_RQ4Y94-6M/видео.html you have prob already seen these but anyway! Gloves made a big difference for me, hate getting my hands all oily and dirty etc, esp when I'm out touring and it's not necessarily easy to get my hands clean again
@@susannathornton Thanks, Susanna!
Beautiful
Susanna, great video. Re: the puncture. You can just lever the tyre off, pull the tube out and mend the puncture in situ, without removing the wheel. Locating the the 'hiss' or thorn or whatever makes it even easier. I've only done this with a larger wheel, however. ;)
Ah, yes! I have actually done it once with a Brompton wheel, cos I could literally see where the thorn was. It took about 5 mins pumped it up again and carried on and the friend who was cycling with me was totally astonished and she put me down as some new kind of Bear Grylls haha
@@susannathornton Ha, ha! (Bear Grylls). You can pretty well pull the whole tube out if you don't know where puncture is. Nuisance on a loaded touring bike though. With panniers and rack loaded on top with tent etc.. :) Do love your 'assertive' wild camp site choices.