Safiya was just one of our group who’d never camped before. This is her account of the event! The City Council is keen to promote Active Travel because It will help to boost the health and wellbeing of Leicester residents, reduce pollution and promote safety for all.
Friday evening.
All set for the night. You can tell I’m a novice, when the others saw my chair, they said that’s not a chair it’s a throne! That made me laugh, looking at the images now, it’s huge. Very comfy.
Instant noodles, pasta packs and soup but I really was out of my comfort zone, it took me longer than normal to prepare my dinner!
Cleaning my teeth – Miswwak Natural Toothbrush
I took my Miswwak with me to camp! This is a natural toothbrush that my fellow campers did not know about, so here it is!
A Miswak is a small thin twig, derived from the Salvadora persica tree. The Miswak’s natural properties serve as chemical plaque control. It’s easy to carry, disposable, biodegradable, and eco-friendly. No need for toothpaste ( less to carry), and it’s healthy. Read up to learn about this natural product. You can buy on-line and they come vacuum packed. We’ve been using these for over 1400 yrs! 🙂
Overcoming my fears 
Time to switch off the lights. I settled into my tent and was just hanging the lantern over my head so I could just organise my stuff – and there it was! The biggest spider I had ever seen!
I had to calm myself quickly and so I named the spider ‘Steven’ it worked, and then there was another so that was Steven’s wife! I managed to get them both out. After, that I was unable to get to sleep. I could hear a fox crying. But, I did eventually get to sleep.
Saturday Morning. What a beautiful view to wake up to!
Saturday was a beautiful sunny day to cycle around.
Getting ready to ride around Watermead Park with one of the two cycling groups organised that day.
I joined the led ride with Peter and Kevin, this was my first and I enjoyed it very much. My confidence was building and I look forward to joining more of these.
I didn’t ride all the way up the hill to the life-sized sculpture of a woolly mammoth, but I certainly sped down and stayed on my bike. Susan & Maryam, my instructors at Ride on Sistas, would have been proud! Excellent control. I was proud of myself, didn’t fall and had excellent smooth brake control!
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This was fun! I made a suggestion to Peter. I said we had the before-ride photo of the cycle group, but it would be cool to have the after image – looking exhausted! We agreed it with the group and so I got to say “ACTION!”
I made ‘masala tea’ and shared it with bloggers, around-the-world-cyclists and like-minded individuals who shared their camping experiences and tips. I was in another world, so calm, not once did we talk about our work and that’s exactly what I needed.
Safiya recently finished one of her sessions with ‘Ride on Sistas’. Everyone’s talking about my masala tea 🙂
Looks like I have inspired others to take part in this cycle camping activity. Some have made it clear that will only come if I’m there to make the masala tea!?.
Perhaps we could have one day when I can come and make masala tea like a taster’ for everyone.
I think this might just work, of course, it’ll have to be a Saturday or Sunday and at the Outdoor Pursuits Centre (local ) we can kill two birds with one stone, help the centre get the customers it needs and get the publicity that will help to attract more participants trying out “Active Travell with a cycle on holiday”. ?
Saturday Evening
- Links to other tweets on the subject of cycle camping. https://traveltalksleicester.co.uk/2877-2/
- https://traveltalksleicester.co.uk/active-travel-on-holiday-camping-taster-weekend-sponsored-by-ride-leicester-and-community-cycles-leicester/
- https://traveltalksleicester.co.uk/2877-2/