Start mileage - 48,677
I set off from home at10.30 am and rode over to the shell garage at Haydock on the M6 and fueled up the bike. ( £23 - mileage 48,686 - 9 miles ) I drew out all the cash I had left ( I dont get paid until 15th so I hope it goes in on time as I 'll be on the ferry by then ) I would need sterling for the way down and also in Gibraltar.
Got to Neil' s at about 11.15 . Neil's mate Pete was there to see us off ( also a biker and is buying a place in France so a bit of local wisdom to pass on to us )
Julie fixed up a brew and some fried eggs to start us off on the right footing .
We pissed about for an hour or so , Neil tying down his soft luggage , me putting a bit of air in my tyres to compensate for the extra weight. ( The tyre pressure machine at Haydock was out of order so my portable air inflator gadget was already in use ) A few of the neighbours came out to wish us luck.
My bike loaded
Neil's bike loaded
From memory we set off at about 1.15 after hugs / photos etc .
I said to Neil " Fancy nipping down to Gibraltar " -he replied " Yeah ... why not " and we were off.
As a bit of an anti-climax we stopped around the corner at the garage for Neil to fuel up.
Setting off we just took a steady run down the M6 and being cautious about traffic volume we tried the M6 toll road- the first of many !
The bad thing was the radio's were not that great, better, but not as clear as we had hoped.
We stoppped for a stretch and a quick pee ( not the same task ! ) in the bushes on the A34 at 3.30pm ( mileage 48,847 - 257 miles )
We had a steady run and got into portsmouth with time to spare. We found a local garage and filled up so we could get a wriggle on when we got off the ferry in France. ( mileage 48943 - 257 miles ) getting about 54 to the gallon. We were standing next to a bus depot here , and had a few " I'll get you Butler " Blakey jokes .
We double checked our strapping etc and had a quick drink, it was pretty hot by then - ( you can see Neil's Heath Robinson seat gel pad arrangement here ) .
We set off round to the ferry terminal and queued up in our own little lane . A caravaning couple came over to talk, as they do , bikes seem to have that affect. There always seems to a look of envy at the freedom of traveling on a bike . You tend to see the look in blokes eyes as they sit in their car's full of luggage and bored kids. We waited about 45 mins in total but it gave me the chance to change the time foreward 1 hour on my mobile/watch and bike clock and make a couple of calls to family.
Anyway we got the call to board and we were almost first to get released . We then had to wait 15 mins at the ferry mouth for a couple of trucks to get on. There were about another half dozen bikes by then.
The ferry ... no going back now ! We were loading into the pointy end down under the blue gantry.
It's always a bit dodgy getting onto a ferry as the loading ramp is painted steel and greasy with water and various splashes of fuel, added to the weight of the bikes it gets a bit tense. Its not the thought of damaging your bike its not wanting to look a tosser in front of other bikers.
Once on the deck we are directed to the bike area and the bikes strapped down by the stevedore's. There are steel loops welded into the deck which are used with ratchet straps and a thick plastic covered cushion placed on the seat to tie everything down securely - the bikes are left in gear just in case.
It always gets a bit frenetic as you want to get up on the boat to chill out but want to make sure your gear is safe. We had both got our kit set up so that we only needed to grab our tank bags which held our important stuff. By 7.15 pm we were all done.
We trekked up 4 or 5 decks to a sort of cabaret type bar. By now we were knackered , crushing up stairs in a hot ferry with our bike gear on we needed a bit of refreshment.
Neil quaffed a couple of Fosters and I broke my teatotal habit and had a pear cider, well it's only fizzy fruit juice init ?
I took the oportunity to upload my photo's from my camera to my Archos media player. I have set up folders for each leg of the trip and plan to upload all pics/ vids each night which keeps my 4gb of memory cards free.
By now it was dark outside , to get a bit of fresh air I went up on deck . Pics not great as I had messed up the night settings.
By now ( about 10pm ) were were completely goosed so we retired to our accommodation , a reclining chair and blanket. Well it was only a fiver ! We picked this overnight ferry as it saved us a nights accommodation in either the UK or near the port in France. We tried to get a cabin once on board but they were all gone . We'll definately book one in advance next time. As usual Neil just bedded down on the carpet a put his earplugs in.
Man I look knackered , if ever there was a photo that makes you realise you really should make use of that gym subscription this is it !
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