After months of planning, at least 5 different threads, careful consideration to the mixed abilities of the possibly enormous group and after wetting ourselves at the possible appearance of guest journalists, the big Dartmoor ride is here. The park rangers have been alerted that there will be a large group of cyclists and any reports of a marauding herd of wildebeest around the Manaton environs is to be ignored as bogus dope.

Meet at the Bovey railway 10.30. We'll be doing stuff and that. All welcome.

dammit , have got to work , enjoy anyways, maybe next time.

Cheers Woody, I'll put the date down in my diary and let you know whether I'm coming a bit nearer the time 😉

I bought me a new Whitewater kayak, I'm off boating.

Tis the perfect companion sport for mountain biking down here

i should imagine the rivers are quite lively. where you off to ?

I bought me a new Whitewater kayak

From the Totnes Kayaks 30% off sale?

bullocks, got the mother in law up with us and missed this one – have fun

Easing myself in gently on the tavy, not been in a boat for ten years.

Uplifting the river dart next weekend hopefully…..

ARSE im at work too.

fiddle-sticks too short notice for me as well 😥

Looks like it might be just you, Simon, Cilla & morpheus 😉

he'd be welcome. i doubt he'd ever have a bad word to say about dartmoor afterwards 8)

Trailmonkey

You must be psychic or something as this is where myself and my new student friend Priscilla are going to be biking tomorrow. I was going to put a request out for a bike for her, but another stude Ben has a bike that she can borrow. Am a bit worried about her not having a helmet, so will see if someone else has one for her.

However, not too sure she is into a really big ride. I have mapped out the ride that you outlined a few days ago (up to Hound Tor) and was going to try that.

One thing maybe is we could meet you guys and then decide if we should join you or maybe just do a smaller ride for now and then a bigger one later? What do you think?

Is 10.30 the meet time or the ride time?

Also, can you email me your mobile so i can let you know if we are running late and therefore likely to miss you guys? Things have not yet totally been set in stone so to speak, but once I find a free day for myself would love to join another ride too of course.

Si

What did ya get jam bo?

I'm wishing I had some transport so I could get up to the Dart regularly.

Got a dagger vertigo from a mate for a bargain price.

simon, meet at 10.30. ygm. your freind might want a helmet, it's quite hairy riding 😯

Wow, old school, you don't see many of them around anymore. 😀

They are absolute pigs to roll by the way, try to flick over onto a low brace as you come up, and watch the upstream edge, they aren't the most forgiving. Good boats though.

When I last paddled my acrobat 270 was cutting edge, now it's marketed as a beginners boat.

Still, should be a laugh….

Jambo, I've spent the last few winters paddling an Acrobat down the Dart but this year I'll be doing it in an H3 'cos buoyancy is apparently where it's at. You can also fit a bigger lunch box & flask in the H3 as well and you spend less time stuck in stoppers and under waterfalls 🙂

Are you familiar with http://www.paddlepirates.co.uk/ the local Devon paddling forum? Google it if the link don't work.

My first boat was a 270, this was back in '96, when it was a choice of that or the Dagger RPM. Both are absolute classic river runners now 😀

This will be your first time paddling a planing hull boat then? That will be fun, especially if you can find a nice green wave to surf and get it on the plane 😀

An H3 is a bit overkill for the Loop isn't it? For the Upper I'd still use something like my Switch, unintendo city on the manic mile in big water 😉

Perfect for the Erme, Upper Plym and De Lank though.

An H3 is a bit overkill for the Loop isn't it?

Yeah, well I'll give it a whirl this season, probably literally 😉

I'm hoping to do the Upper Dart as well this year. The last couple of years' attempts have been crushed by a combination of work commitments, wrong weather & childcare obligations.

The guy I bought the the boat off paddles with the paddle pirates I think. Known as ferret.

To be honest just getting back on the water is gonna be good. Used to paddle all the way up to grade 6 back in the day but just looking for some fun threes and fours now.

What sort of ride (distance) do you have planned? I was planning on going to Woodbury Common tomorrow, but I've just found out that the Commando Challenge is on this weekend so the place is gonna be crawling with people, so was looking for somewhere else to go. As a recent STW member, would be nice to meet a few more people.

Where abouts is the station?

The Upper is great fun in the right conditions, but it is one of the UK's classic hard rivers. It'll give you an absolute kicking if you let it though 😉

Grade 6, are you a nutter/mate of Al Ellard? 5 is about my limit, though I'd need to get a few rivers under my belt and get paddle fit before I started running them again 😉

Bovey (dismantled) railway here
not sure what route tm has in mind, probably one of those 3 hour rides that takes 5 hours, most likley hound tor and back.

as above, all welcome

Cool. Maybe see you there – I'll be the one on the retro HT Stumpy!

I've got to pop into work but should be able to make it if I go in early 😛

will look out for you both

Well been out but my friend Priscilla is not feeling too well so it will be me tomorrow joining you guys. She did check with the Totnes bike shop and bikes can be hired at £15 a day so maybe we can join you guys at a later date too.

But in the meantime see you all tomorrow for my first Dartmoor ride – really looking forward to it.

Si

8)

Grade 6, are you a nutter/mate of Al Ellard? 5 is about my limit, though I'd need to get a few rivers under my belt and get paddle fit before I started running them again

Grade 6 was my absolute limit and I was never comfortable there. some of the guys I was paddling with were proper loons. it was the main reason I stopped paddling with them, i thought I was gonna get myself killed.

anyhow, little bit of water in the tavy this morning and a couple of little rapids and waves through the park, i'm off in a minute to get used to moving water again.

cool will see you's there tomorrow morning, will be great start to my Sunday.

Sorry guys – only just finished work & didn't realise what the time was until Jim rang, have a good one.