Marvin's UK Tour 2013

[Image2000uk]

Marvin
Not sure if you want to do data only for an update or talk and data but have a look at the 3 network plans but buy the sim cards from ebay they are much cheaper you can pick up 1gb data and a month to use it in for as little as £5.49 just make sure you phone is unlocked first though.

www.three.co.uk

 

[Marvin16x]

Hello all,

finished my A-levels last week, so I'm basically done with school.
It's time to get the car and myself prepared for the trip.

Purchased an old but decent set of wheels for as little as 15 pounds last week as I don't want to ruin either the winter tyres or the sexy Evo-1s on 215/45

Also equipped my phone with some – more or less – useful apps such as the two Britain ones you can see somewhere in the middle of this screenshot:


Any other recommendations?

Besides that, there are still some minor issues on the car to deal with, but nothing special. Should be able to fix it all within the next 6 to 8 weeks

What I'm more concerned about is wild camping ... heard it was only allowed in Scotland? What about England? Do you know more about it?

Thanks in advance,
Marvin

 

[Lyserman]

Marvin,
Should your trip manage to get to Saltash in Cornwall then you are more than welcome to spend a night or two at our place. As long as you are not allergic to dogs then all will be fine.
Wild camping is, unfortunately, frowned upon in England but there are a lot of cheap campsites around.
Dartmoor is on our doorstep and Bodmin moor not far away and you can even have a go at stand up paddleboarding with us.
I will keep an eye on this thread with interest.
Tony

 

[Marvin16x]

Hi all,

time flies. It's already June, wow!
Only about 60 days left until the scheduled start of our journey

I quickly modified the route a bit in Paint ...
Still not sure about the return after the Peak District though.
East of England doesn't seem to be too spectacular, does it? Any ideas? I'm glad about any response of you guys

Basic route so far: Dover – South Coast – Southampton – Stonehenge – Plymouth/Dartmoor (first meet ups?) – Cornwall – Bristol – Cotswolds – England/Wales Border – Snowdonia – Manchester/Liverpool – Preston (next meet ups?) – Blackpool (Airshow) – Lake District (next meet up?) – Ayrshire – Glasgow – Loch Lomond and more – Edinburgh – Catterick (as suggested by Del) – Yorkshire Dales – Sheffield – Peak District – ??? – London – Dover

Doesn't sound too bad imho
Longer than expected but it will be worth it I'm sure ...
(I know about Scotland probably being covered less than it deserves but we can't just drive around forever, petrol simply costs too much )

@Lyserman: That sounds great and we would of course love to pop in at yours when we're in the area
Same with billy-nommates: I really appreciate your hospitality and I'm looking forward to meeting many of you guys then!

It's needless to say that we're of course willing to do stuff like cleaning etc. to deserve all the board and lodging you provide us with.

Best regards,
Marvin

 

[trapperjohn]

Keep on planning boys. Thats a heck of a route.

CHEERS

 

[Niks]

If your coming through London, give me a shout.. would be great to meet you guys!

 

[Orwic]

Hello all,

finished my A-levels last week, so I'm basically done with school.
It's time to get the car and myself prepared for the trip.

Purchased an old but decent set of wheels for as little as 15 pounds last week as I don't want to ruin either the winter tyres or the sexy Evo-1s on 215/45

Also equipped my phone with some – more or less – useful apps such as the two Britain ones you can see somewhere in the middle of this screenshot:

http://abload.de/image.php?img=screenshot_2013-04-272lu5q.png
Any other recommendations?

Besides that, there are still some minor issues on the car to deal with, but nothing special. Should be able to fix it all within the next 6 to 8 weeks

What I'm more concerned about is wild camping ... heard it was only allowed in Scotland? What about England? Do you know more about it?

Thanks in advance,
Marvin

Try nosey parker (finds nearby car parks), traffic eye (traffic cameras - check potential jams) UK traffic (route planning), she'll motorist (nearest fuel station - similar for other brands).

Have fun!

Orwic

 

[Marvin16x]

Bad news ... seems like we need to remove Lake District and Scotland from the list, so basically the northern part of the route :-(

I got told that it's not really possible to do 2500 miles in 2-3 weeks because we would be in a constant rush
without spending enough time at all those beautiful destinations etc. then, especially as young lads with no experience whatsoever

It's really hard for me to accept that truth but I reckon it'd be better to focus on England and its beautiful places (up to Yorkshire) THIS TIME ...

What is your opinion on that?

I'd like to come again next year and drive straight up to Lancaster on the motorways to enjoy the north, and only the north...

What a difficult situation

Thanks guys

 

[Dieselman]

I would do the Northern section only, Derbyshire Dales, Yorkshire, Lake district and Scotland.

2,500 miles in three weeks is OK, Mrs Dm and I did 2,800 in 11 days round France first time we went.

If it was me, I would ditch the central part of the route apart from visiting specific places of interest, like engineering museums et-al, and do the North then if time allows a bit of Wales and the tip of Cornwall instead of Devon.

The rest of the Uk is similar to Germany, commercial and industrial. These are the nicer touristy parts where you will see things you don't get in Germany, such as narrow canals(with pubs on) and quaint seaside villages.

Get the ferry to Newcastle or Scotland and start there.

 

[Marvin16x]

Thank you Dieselman!

That sounds great. And to be honest, we're actually more in favor of doing the northern section of the route, too.

Yesterday I talked to a young woman who also went to Scotland with some friends a couple of years ago.
They also took the ferry up to Newcastle and started there. Needless to say, they were absolutely delighted with their trip.

I quite like this idea, but just saw that it would cost about 400 Euros at best, which is way too much for us.

My suggestion: ferry from Calais to Dover, then straight up to Lancashire (315 miles) via M1 and Derbyshire,
then Lake District -> Scotland -> Yorkshire and back (and if there's some time left -> English-Welsh border)

Now I'm happy again :bannana:

 

[franey]

You could consider the ferry to Hull overnight, then you have cut out the south part. A lot less tiring than driving from Dover up to Lancashire. You are welcome also to call here for coffee and cake!

 

[Marvin16x]

Hello all,

and another month has passed ...

Since the last post, I've slept in the car twice. It really is alright!
The first time was at an Iron Maiden open air concert in late July. It was rainy as f*** that day, but after getting rid of the wet clothes we had a pretty good sleep.

Second time was last weekend at a W201 GTG some 220 miles away.
Interesting: it was a journey of about 450 miles (720 km) length in total, and I managed to get 44,5 mpg (to) and 50 mpg (back)!! I love this car!

I'm currently trying to find a roof rack and box. Tent, sleeping bag and all that stuff really suck a lot of space.
AA Road Atlas will be ordered today....

We will either take the ferry at Dunkerque or Calais...
and then drive straight up to Preston, Lancashire, probably via Derbyshire, to continue with Lake District.

Will probably create a new thread for the trip itself (daily and hourly updates, pictures, ...). Might be of interest for some of you.

Best regards
Marvin

 

[trapperjohn]

Dont forget to drop by my gaff. Ill take you to the cheapest petrol station around and fill you up with tea and biscuits and chocolate for your onwards journey. Ill PM you my mobile and post code just in case it has gone missing.

 

[Marvin16x]

Hi all,

@ John: thanks a lot sir, you know we appreciate this very much.
Lookin forward to seeing you soon!

So another week has passed ...
In the meantime I was given a roof rack and box, the rack will be mounted tomorrow if the weather isn't too bad.

Didn't expect the road atlas to be so big though... lol

(that thing on the left is a cat sleeping oddly...)

We will probably start the trip on Monday, 5th August at 6 am or so...
I'm excited

 

[Ted]

WE'RE excited!!! :bannana::bannana:
Drive safely!

 

[Marvin16x]

Thanks ted!

Alright, only 5 days left until the trip starts wouwww....
Got some more minor things done, roof rack was mounted on saturday and the original 1988 emergency wheel was replaced some hours ago (by a 2003 one lol).
Ordered a giffgaff sim card, will then go for a £12 pack with unlimited internet

I hope my test pic gets uploaded...



As mentioned before i will create a new thread on sunday...

Ahoi