I recently got two off Amazon (Songsier) if you have slim wrists check the size as I’m at the very smallest size. They fit well, a little more fiddly taking on and off (probably more so if you have big hands or wrists) but stretchier elastic may make this less of a problem. Main gripe is that they stay wet for a while, if I wear my watch during a shower I’ll get wet patches on my clothes until it’s fully dry, whereas the silicone strap is dry after a wipe with a towel.

The silicone strap needs to be stretchy to get a good fit, but means that the strap splits (not yet entirely) near the holes you use the most.

Overall the elastic strap fits better, but day to day practicality the silicone is better.

I think I joined abbout 2003, I think under the username Biketart (because I was too skint to be one), and then changed username  in about 2008, after the infamous hack.

@tonyf1 although not it’s maiden voyage, there do appear to be some parallels here, especially if an inquest brings about some regulation as an output of this tragedy.

A quick wiki on ‘Alvin’ DSV certainly makes you think the craft was far from capable.

Chapel House is what I was thinking of, hadn’t realised the Stonethwaite one had re-opened. Lane foot is good too, been there too and had forgotten about it.

Thanks for all the suggestions.

I know that one. Never stayed and next to the road, but very close to the pub!

There’s some pretty heavy stuff, and a roof box so probably fine.

Only the stupidest (oh wait….) people woudn’t see BoJo and Farage forming a party as anything other than a cynical platform for garnering support from the knuckle draggers. Farage is complaining that Brexit isn’t working, yet it was Bojo that ‘got it done’.

If the universe is finite, what’s on the other side?

The idea of it being infinite is beyond most people’s comprehension, we like to know that things are contained. To that extent I believe the univers is finite, but had no edges, its like a donut and just keeps looping rounf on itself, however on the other side of the multivers it begins and ends at the sky’s edge and all the water in the oceans falls off the edge of the world and the stars are just lights painted on the ceiling.

Back to UAP’s, whys is this such a big thing in the USA, as opposed to the rest of the world?

Coniston Hall campsite

Not made my own gels, but have put many gels into a 150ml soft flask – decathlon do one with a locking valve, which you’ll want as leaky gel is messy.

It works cos you can sip a small amount rather than take the whole gel (sometimes it’s not convenient) but on the other hand you can’t judge how many gels you’ve consumed I.e. over-dosing

Can’t help on the bobbling but I’ve found that anything with wool in, or entirely woollen, has poor longevity

Some really eye popping behaviour observed here

Three Days In May …

True, the glass on my Fenix 6 is fine, the outer case has a few nicks and the first time it happens it jars a bit, but you learn to love them!

You can get all sorts of aftermarket bezel and screen protectors.

The Garmin straps are a bit disappointing mind, the genuine ones are nearly £50 and I’ve found that the rubber begins to split at the hole that is most frequently used. I’ve found that the cheaper non-Garmin ones always seem to have a pointy bit of metal in the wrong place. I’m going to try one of the elasticated velcro ones next.

There’s also a real inconsistency about what works well and doesn’t across the phone platforms they operate with, I find that the device syncs much better with certain iOS apps like OS Maps – I can send routes directly to my device whereas with Android theres a really convoluted process of emailing them etc. whereas the weatehr information on Android is much more reliable, and I can tailor app notifications much better in Android than I can iOS, though i suspect that that’s because its not an apple watch, where as its part of the ‘eco system’ you can tailor it to your liking more.

The scratches are your story. Allowing a super flash watch to gain some scratches tells a better story – it’s getting used for what it was designed for.

Anyway, I’ve never found the navigational features of the Fenix 6 to be particularly reliable, I think that the way you plan your routes is really important, it seems to miss indistinct junctions, and you can easily overshoot a junction. More often than not it’s telling me I’m off-course, as opposed to telling me that I should make a turn. I’m sure if I made the junctions ‘harder’ when plotting my routes it would work better.

@Jordan do you know if they let you use their toilets, or is it for campers that are self-contained?

Sleeping in a campervan after a few beers is actually a potentially serious issue for exactly that reason. Would be easy pickings I expect for the Police in some areas if they wanted to reduce the vans parked out of official spots

They are a distraction that I’d rather not have

Thanks @Ginkster, I’ve heard rumours, but there doesn’t seem to be any information on this online since about 2018

The NT campsite at Langdale has space for a tent, do we just book that and sleep in the campervan? Their website only allows you to book a campervan pitch which is sold out. We just want to park and use their facilities, could just pitch the tent then sleep in the van as the tent was too noisy 😃

I’ve had a couple of Pairs of Oakleys and they end up getting scratched despite being careful. My last favourite pair were some Bloc’s for about £30, looked good and good optics but sadly snapped near the hinge when they were on the peak of my cap and I took the two off together, over extending the hinge. I’d buy them again, the lenses stood up well and they looked far better than the price tag suggested.

Anything ‘solid’ (e.g. flapjack, bananas, sandwhiches) are for long slow / steady runs when you are going to stop and eat, or moving very slowly. Its difficult to not choke when racing, even on gels sometimes. Shot bloks are ok, but tend to be a bit fiddlier than gels, and require chewing, which means you either risk choking on them, or get very out of breath, depends how hard you’re pushing.

I’m experimenting with putting a load of gels in to a small, locking soft-flask (150ml from Decathlon). This is because sometimes a whole gel can be too much, or the wrappers can be fiddly to open. The danger is that you consume all your gels too quickly.

Step father sounds like a jolly nice man.

With regards to peaking I knocked 3 minutes off my previous time on the Fairfield Horseshoe fell race the other week, both occasions it was a Championship race, 10 years apart.

One thing that seems to be common is a lot of poeple wear what they like and don’t care what other people think, yet also have some opinions about what is acceptable / not acceptab;le for other people to wear. I’m not really sure how that stacks up.

Varifocals – glasses will never cost less than £200

On the other hand I’m probably in the best shape of my life, and would kick the 21 YO version of myself in to a cocked hat, and showing people half my age a thing or two about how to run up and down hills

Very nice

Nothing says sad like a middle aged / old man that doesn’t try anything different

@cougar I thought socks with crocs / sliders was the thing ATM

It seems you have 2 extremes of dressing, not bothered through to dapper, so the idea of dressing up isn’t entirely foreign to you.

And don’t be such a fussy Duffy about your own age and what you can and can’t do at certain ages – I think the whole idea of getting a new wardrobe goes completely against that kind of attitude.

Your current wardrobe is a reflection of your attitude to clothes, therefore to change your wardrobe you need to be open minded to change. If you’re going to close down everyone’s suggestions then this whole exercise is pointless.

What’s wrong with a band t-shirt?

A man that wears outdoor trousers round the house thinks jeans are wrong…..

If ts bi-directional it will have an L shaped arrow with a head on each end

Depends if its bi-directional

Vaga is all the rage over the ‘Gram ATM, available in lots of colours https://www.teamvaga.co.uk/shop/club-cap

For truly hot conditions, though zero SPF then Patagonia do a string vest hat https://eu.patagonia.com/gb/en/product/duckbill-cap/28818.html?dwvar_28818_color=BLK&cgid=mens-hats-accessories

It’s in Scotland, who recently have a reputation for implementing poorly thought through policies recently.

I have an Outwell Montana and was pretty underwhelmed by the build quality, not bad, but nothing special.

We have the Decathlon Air seconds 4.1 and the materials and design are way ahead of Vango and Outwell, both of whom seem to have the same tent design and just upscale it accordingly.

We’re tempted to sell it and get the 4.2 as our daughter is wanting her own space and an entirely separate compartment is preferable to the dividing curtains (not present in the 4.1) in most large tents, but the 4.2 does pack larger.

The blackout feature is very good, however finding stuff during the day can be tricky as it’s so effective.

Take your time, ie don’t rifle through a couple of shops and settle on something for the sake of it. It could take full days of weeks to get a few decent outfits. Also it may be quite expensive. If you can take a companion for a second opinion then that will help. Also a personal shopper may make suggestions that you’d never have thought of before.

Are there any images on Instagram of styles that you like? Could be helpful to get you started. Your closed mind to denim sounds like you’re closing off a lot of options, yet accept that your current look (which is as a result of your attitude to fashion / certain clothes), needs an overhaul. Therefore your attitude to clothing needs to change.

Fit is important, but also knowing what makes you look good, and feeling proud / happy about looking good or smart is important.

You can take a horse to water, but you can’t milk it.

Rutty’s a bit smelly and sticky if that sort of thing puts you off.

It seems that there were other reports, and all her friends and colleagues were sad, but who offered her the lift?