About a year ago – or was it two? – I bought my first piece of Mosko Moto kit, the Nomax Tank bag, for my then new KTM 790Adv. When it arrived, I was surprised, maybe a little disappointed, that it was so small, and not only small but divided horizontally into compartments that made it even smaller. This was not the tank bag that you could dump a small supermarket shop, or your large DSLR into and ride off. It encouraged or rather forced you into organising the number of necessarily small items that you might want to have at hand. Even the additional map holder was so small I had to search for an A5 size road atlas to fit into it. But then the KTM, and other off-road-ish bikes, are smaller than BMW R1200s that my previous Touratech bag perched on. Touratech tank bags are described as being 15L in volume, compared to a third of that for these MM bags. That’s got that out of the way.
I think it was the influence of a Youtube motorcycle traveller that brought the Hood tank bag to my attention first. I liked its simple design and the fact it seems to be one large compartment and one that’s meant to be highly waterproof too. So I shelled out and it arrived from somewhere in Europe without me having to pay any extra tax. I wanted to know whether it had the carrying capacity of the Nomax so tried this experiment:
Soundtrack inspired by David Lynch
Pretty much all of those small tools for minor maintenance and some personal things like Ibuprofen and folding cutlery fit into the two separate pouches that fit inside. That leaves the centre of the bag for the usb charger and the tangle of wires and battery chargers that most motorcyclists carry around on their trips. The bag has some waterproof holes and routes for a charging cable to reach the bike’s usb charging socket installed now by the new tower. And that’s just about it. So just like the Reckless 80 that I also have, instead of opening it and reaching for the item you need, you have to take a bunch of things out first to find what you want – maybe not so much fun if its raining and you are by the side of the road. That’s the price of the ‘light is right’ approach, I suppose.
The real test is to try it out on the bike which I haven’t done yet.
Everything I do ends up with lashings of anxiety. My bike was/is due its first MOT just after Christmas so at my KTM dealer getting a service done a couple of weeks back I asked whether my high beam Baja Squadron Pro would pass its test. I knew that it was sold as not street legal and I also know that it is blindingly bright. I was told that it would be ok but the dipped headlight would bring ‘an instant fail’. And why? Because its beam sloped up to the right rather than the left which is how LHD countries require headlights to point. (See below – subtle, eh?)
So, on the mail to Aurora Rally equipment, based in definitely RHD Greece. They pointed me helpfully to a Hella light on Amazon with a LH slope, ordered then delivered a few days later. I thought I would replace both headlamps and brought the bike back home from its usual location in Cambridge. Its not really that difficult to remove the front of the tower, just a little time consuming. For me though, the new light looked like it could never fit because the connection seemed totally different, so every step proceeded with a sense that everything would go pearshaped on this job at any moment.
Needless to say everything worked out well. The dipped beam is a small LED (over €100) which easily replaced the halogen bulb that came with the new light, though the Aurora tower does not seem to have enough upwards adjustment for the dipped beam.
So, rather than head back up to Ipswich I took the bike to a local MOT and mechanics, ChasBikes on Kennington Road. I was uncertain that the bike would get through.
It was easy to book, and there was no waiting time when I arrived and the test was done in half an hour, possibly less. The place is great and a welcome antidote for those corporate dealers where you get a coffee from a machine while your bike is whisked off and the mechanic’s space is out of bounds to customers. This is an Old school motorcycle garage at its best. I sat about 10 feet away from the mechanic testing my bike and could explain its oddities – like the headlight only comes on after the bike has moved a couple of yards. Chas and his mechanic both have an enjoyable dry humour (‘when electric starts came out I thought this won’t catch on’). I’ll be back for sure – next year at least. Chas mentioned that he had lived in East Africa, but I didn’t enquire further. The bike passed and I learned a few things about how the bureaucratic MOT system works. Interestingly this is what I found when looking them up to do a Google review:
‘CHASBIKES was started in 1984 by Charles Holt M.A.(OXON), a former East African wildlife biologist. Originally located on an industrial estate in Greenwich, the company hired out Honda CX500’s to dispatch riders, before beginning to specialise in repairing them for the public. The company then moved on to work on other popular dispatch riding models….’ https://www.yell.com/biz/chasbikes-ltd-london-6519580/
I made it onto the ferry and parked on level 3 green stairs – I must remember that. This morning at the campsite I was offered coffee by two separate people. This made me feel more welcome than my arrival yesterday evening into what felt like an impenetrable packed crowd of Spanish all speaking too loud (that says more about me than them). I should not be surprised, but I am, by how much nervousness can influence my sense of the atmosphere in a place. But it was noisy last night on the campsite with dogs barking, thudding disco distant beats and camping neighbours talking. But I had a good strategy. After an ok pizza and beer in their cafe bar I walked on the sand in the beautiful evening and watched some families ride hired horses in circles cleverly instructing well trained horses to make smaller and smaller circles. All in the slowly goldening evening. When I did return I lay down in my tent and listened to some music I had on my phone with H’s earbuds (that I had thoughtfully brought with me). Leonard Cohen, Tom Waits and then my tracks on SoundCloud. I learned or noticed for the first time that Leonard Cohens live recordings were all about emotional and sonic crescendo with vocals (both his and his amazing backing singers) and instruments soaring to some hallelujah. Something to take to my own music though plenty of songs don’t do that big emotional thing. Kraftwerk for example. They just go on and on.
This morning I lingered on the beach then left at about 10.30.
was this the morning or the evening before?
Packing up
By 11.30 I was at the ferry port and whisked through at such speed that the immigration officers had to call me back without a smile as I obliviously rode past the place where I should have showed my passport. Did I say I have decided to get a new flipping front helmet?
Fellow travellers
Leaving Santander – a beautiful resort not just a ferry port
On the sun deck
We got on first, about 6 or so riding bikes all in glorious sunshine. And I was showered and changed and up on the for once really sunny sun deck 40 minutes before we left diagonally at first then we gained more speed. Santander and its long beach on a spit was stunning in the sunshine with sailing vessels of all kind across the wide water. Then I slept as the wind seemed to smash into the side of the boat where my outside cabin is. Everything seemed to rattle and vibrate. But still I managed to snatch some brief sleep.
Brittany ferries apologised for the lack of staff to serve us our hugely expensive meal so we leant against the swaying wall in a long queue for self service. I would have enjoyed my meal and chilled wine a little more if the sea were slightly calmer. But I am back after some fresh air on my bed.
As usual I woke in the night and instead of lying awake I read some more All Tomorrow’s Parties. Gibson is the perfect author for these trips.
First sight of Blighty
What worked well on this trip: my helmet lock and disk lock. They were easy to use on supermarket and other brief visits; the bike apart from the odd clutch problem before I even left England. It was easily manoeuvrable on campsites and other spaces, it would have been fine in the ACT if I had more skills and confidence, I think it needs some device to alter the low end fuelling also discovered by some searching . I think I will purchase (though now on a closer look, I am not that sure). The tent worked fine. The Klim gear: It’s ok as it’s inconspicuous but in hot weather it is undeniably hot. It has too many pockets or rather I did not use them well and had too many things in them so I was always searching for things I thought I had lost – like my phone. The Nexx helmet and its own Bluetooth set up. It did the job but putting in the earbuds each time I start off was annoying and they pulled out when caught on something unpredictability as I moved my head to look over my shoulder. The helmet inner is getting tatty and is falling out from so many rewirings of earphones. It needs sorting properly. Needs replacing. New Sony still camera good but I didn’t use to its potential. Drip coffeemaker is fun but it took a while to get the strength right. It flows too quickly. I think it is a design fault. A porcelain or even a plastic version just has holes at the bottom. This is one big sieve. Mosko Moto gear: that’s a topic for a post of it’s own (see Previous post). At the very least I need one more dry bag in the mix. I envied the bikers and the bikes will good old hard panniers. My Xero Z-trail camping shoes: These worked well and were comfortable and took up hardly any space. Much better than the too small canvas shoes I had before. Garmin Inreach.
Garmin EarthMate
I didn’t really need it (little surprise there). Sharing my location was slightly nice and could have been important. Camping clothes: ok and take up little space – if boring – but who cares?
Total miles was 1,629. My GPS unfortunately deleted the first half of the tracks. Very odd.
I’m writing this sitting on a rocky wall, dangling my boots over the beach just outside Rogaton Laredo campsite. I packed up at Leon this morning dismantling the one person town that I had built, my home from home, and was on the road by 11 heaving a sigh of relief as I rode off. There’s always something of a release to get out on the road. I didn’t surrender to the easy option of letting the gps take me all the way here on motorways but instead persuaded it to route me on some N roads, partly through the Picos to the coast. I’m so pleased. The route took me to a road where I looked down on the clouds around the mountains. I thought that Spain had saved me the most spectacular view till my last full day of riding. Eventually I had to join the motorway just down from the coast with the occasional view of the sea so I made quicker progress but it was a tiring last third of the ride. Once in Laredo the place felt so unfamiliar that I began to wonder if I had chosen the right town after all. I followed two huge caravans with F plates all the way here. I was determined to get in here first (in case they took the last spaces or more likely that they took up ages of time of the person running the site). They parked outside and I rode straight in. The lady in the desk said they could squeeze me it. This place is heaving with caravans and families older than in Rio Ulla. Someone had to move their car outside to free up a small space of grass that fits both my small tent and my motorcycle. It’s nice to need so little space.
Someone is riding along the beach on a horse.
The campsite web presence is all about sustainability but to me it seem just like every other busy site crammed full of vacationers. The location is good though. It would be a pretty sad site to have nothing special about it. The have a cafe bar here that serves food from 6.30 so I will try it to avoid unpacking all my cooking equipment and to eat more of the unhealthy food I seem to be eating for some at least of this trip. I’m glad I had a good ride today as my sense of killing time for these last few days was starting to rise up.
I am opposite a family who are constantly talking and disputing now doing some repairs with a power tool. I need to chill or to go for a walk.
A couple of minutes walk, almost a turn around, and you are on this beach and all it’s beauty.
an antidote to the super crowded campsite
Pizza and a beer in the site’s cafe was fine and seemed to cost 11 Euros. No regrets.
In the MUSAC in Leon. I’ve just been ushered in to watch a rather slight ‘performance’ of a smoke machine and some lights changing colour. It made the phrase ‘dreams gone up in smoke’ come to mind. I was thinking about the two years of planning applications now finally rejected. But then I considered ‘what was the dream?’ Not that specific design of a house (that was rejected) for sure. More the experience that a place to live out in the country that contrasts with tight London can offer. That can take many forms.
There was an exhibition of ceramics in the gallery but I can’t find any information now about it so can’t write about the artist.
You have to guess – is this part of the exhibition or part of the facilities?
MUSAC just behind the block of flats.
After my visit to the art gallery I walked around part of the town, perhaps not the most attractive part, and sat at a bar to have an orange juice and a bready snack. Then I sat on a bench in a shady park and was shat on by a bird – so moved on. Luckily I always carry tissues in case of urgent need.
Today I rode up to the beginning of the Picos up to Riano. The area is stunningly beautiful. There’s a large dam and reservoir that still seemed to be holding a vast amount of water despite obvious signs of its level having gone down.
Water level in the Spanish drought
This is my third visit to the roads of the Picos and it never disappoints. Each time I take different roads the Garmin sending me down a long but entertaining dead end track ending in a gravel trail prohibited to motor vehicles. Another rider maybe would have tried it out to see if it goes where I wanted to end up.
Picos
The bike has been great and I have been growing in confidence with it despite noticing I’ve lost a large nut on the bash plate (I needed to tighten the others) and wondering whether the wheel bearing at the front was leaking. I cleaned off the grease and dirt and I don’t think it is. Zooming through lovely twisties mostly 4th and 5th gears was such fun.
Back here at the campsite things are emptying out and quietening. The pool isn’t open now it’s September and also the bar seems closed. The ‘Chico’ wasn’t there this morning to pay for another night and the grumpy man with the loud voice seemed to be telling me that he will be back tomorrow. There are only two other tents one housing a mysterious young guy who seems rarely around and another with a car of a couple with bicycles with German number plate I think who arrived today to replace the British couple who left today. Also my neighbour a solitary older man who did not respond to my greeting had completely and noiselessly vanished, tent, cycle and all be the time I woke up, scratched my head and looked around. It’s quite nice being at the end of the season. A little forlorn though. It is super quiet. It’s a juggling act with time and the weather. I really want to avoid camping in the rain. It makes everything awkward but I am restless here. There is not much to do up at Laredo I know apart from walk on the beautiful beach. I keep checking the weather to see if it is still raining there. Even if I leave earlyish on Saturday I could spend the afternoon and evening on the coast.
Solution: I will spend the day tomorrow looking round Leon. Apart from the cathedral there is a gallery of contemporary art and I could head there first.
Watching a large camper van arrive made the phrase ‘Carry your home with you’ come to mind. Even with the limited space on a moto that’s the idea isn’t it – if you are camping? Maybe not so much if you are using hotels. But I like that idea. I will see if I can use it as an organising principal in future. My early aim of buying and adapting a light weight travel bike with off-road capability has been helpful to recall at times when I have been unsure about what I am doing. So some statement like that is good to have.
I think I’ve said it before but the evenings are the best time here. There is still sunshine but it is a perfect temperature. The sun is low through the trees. If I ever come back to Spain, maybe on the way to (attempt again to) ride the ACT again, I will stay here.
