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TL:DR It’s important to remember that our time is precious and we should be enjoying what we’re doing, not forcing on for fear of being judged as a quitter.
This bikepacking trip through Devon and Somerset was doomed from the start. For once I was well organised with my bike packed and ready to go – only to catch COVID in the days running up to leaving. I rescheduled for a week later but it wasn’t as plain sailing as I’d hoped.
I caught the train down to Plymouth and cruised up past Cann Woods and Burrator Resevoir (the route I’ve taken dozens of times before whilst at university) on to Dartmoor.
My plan was to camp around Steeperton Tor (I’ve since discovered that cycling isn’t permitted on open moorland!), drop down to South Zeal, wind my way up to Exmoor, sleep there another night and then head home via the Quantocks.
I knew the section up from Postbridge was going to be hard work with a fully loaded bike and for some reason thought I’d head to Teignhead Farm and then bash my way through to Hanginstone Hill from there. On foot, this is fairly direct and easy to navigate, but with a bike it is a nightmare. I had spent the whole day pushing on to make sure I got this section sorted in good light and before the weather changed – this wasn’t supposed to be such a mission.
Finally making it to the hut on Hanginstone, I noticed the firing flag was up… and then realised I hadn’t re-checked the firing times for my rescheduled trip!! Thankfully, I was there only ten minutes before daytime firing ended so I stayed put and had a minor telling off before dropped down to Wild Tor and finding somewhere to sleep.
This is where it started to get grim. Up until this point, it had been adventurous type two fun and I was still enjoying it. Having spent so much of the day rushing forwards, I hadn’t really stopped and was tired, hungry, and dehydrated. I know from experience this is a recipe for disaster so prioritised getting my tarp up and getting food on before I woke up feeling the effects of over-exertion.
The weather was fairly miserable over night although I must have bagged a few hours sleep.
I knew my mindset had changed because at 5am, I started to question my route, instead planning to head up to Tiverton and Taunton along less exposed byways and cycle paths. Yet, after I had packed everything away and enjoyed a fun descent off the moor, I realised, I had had enough. I ended on a high and turned right to head into Exeter and catch the train home instead.
I felt content with my decision at home that night. I would have continued on feeling wet all day, only to endure another wet and windy night, for what?