I’ve put together a video of my recent gravel bikepacking trip to Dartmoor as part of an event called The Socially Distanced. Please check it out and give me a thumbs up and a subscribe on YouTube if you’re keen for more!
This ride was some thing I put together initially for a fun weekend riding bikes and camping on Dartmoor but the day we set of we were met with torrential rain and poor visibility on the moor considering the forecast was intended to be a few showers and sunshine.
So I ended up doing the ride solo the following weekend in slightly better conditions and it also coincided with not only the Socially Distanced event, but also my late son’s 21st Birthday. Hayden took his own life in July 2019 after what can only be described as mental health issues that he kept from even his closest family and friends. He had such a bright future, and we miss him so much.
As tough as the ride was, I think we could have had really fun time if he had been here to join me. But then, there’s a good chance he would have been having a massive night out with his mates instead and a banging hangover rather than facing a ride home from Dartmoor.
It was an amazing couple of days riding some really testing terrain with a fully loaded bike and I saw plenty or places on the moor I’d not visited before along with some still left on the list to do.