Where are you going. No idea, Telford is that a town?

I invited myself to my friend Rashmi’s house. We always joke we can visit each other any time. A very recent weekend gone by Rashmi was at Blenheim Palace but had unfortunately contacted me too late for a meet.

I just called her up on Friday and invited myself for the weekend.

I designed the route and downloaded to my Garmin 810. I had my second Garmin 700 and my phone as backup, what could possibly go wrong.

I woke way too early Saturday morning, 04.00 approximately. So I got up packed the last of my clothes and set off.

20 mins out of Oxford my Garmin turned itself off Grrrrrrrrr. But I stopped and fired it up again. Lucky it all worked.

Then I got the first rough road (despite having set the map to roads only)

I ploughed on regardless.

Sunshine, coffee, Turkey cooked the night before.

Along the tow path in Worcester I believe. Tranquillity abounds. 🤗

Ice cream.

Now when I was setting up my Garmin a few years ago I couldn’t be bothered to download the maps of anywhere north of Birmingham. So somewhere on my route I lost the map but was just following a line that sometimes turned. I got lost a few times especially along the rough tracks I was being taken down.

Then 9 hours in my Garmin ran out of battery and deleted my whole ride.

But I had my backup.

I turned it on, it turned itself off immediately. I turned it on again, it turned itself off immediately grrrrrrrrrr. Backup cocked.

Lucky I had my phone so I was following my Google directions on the phone, holding in one hand along a track. Desperately losing the will to live.

Eventually I arrived at destination after 13 hours. Tired hot and disorienting.

Gotta do it all again tomorrow now but backwards

Thanks for the great weekend Rashmi and Mark. 🙂🤩