Some of you may recall a post (https://fat-bike.com/2022/12/fatbike-to-the-cottage/) and video that I posted back in the winter of me riding to a mountain cottage I use. Well this time I made my way there in summer conditions and by a different route. The weather here in the UK has been a bit below par these […]
Author Archive | summittoppler
2024 Salsa Cycles Fat-Bike Announcement
The marketing department at Salsa Cycles HQ have just released details of their 2024 Fat-Bike line up and if you didn’t know, there’s some big news… We’ve got new spec, new colors, and a new name! Beargrease The Beargrease was inspired in part by John Beargrease, the son of an Anishinaabe chief, who carried mail […]
Solstice Bivvy
I’ve had a few weeks off the bike recently and with the recent summer solstice falling midweek during a decent spell of weather, it was a good excuse to get back out. After finishing a work conference I made the 2 hour drive to the heart of Eryri (formally known as Snowdonia) where I would […]
Book review, Bikepacking Scotland by Markus Stitz
Back in 2015, Markus set off from the UK and headed east on his singlespeed Surly Ogre and nearly 12 months later became the first person to cycle singlespeed around the world. So with that, you could say he knows how to plot a route! Since his return, Markus has been busy riding the lesser-known […]
Remote Scotland (100th Film!)
Back in 2019 I set off from home on what I had hoped to be a 10 hour drive to a destination I wanted to ride, Sandwood Bay in the far north west of Scotland. Unfortunately after a few hours driving my vehicle decided it wasn’t to be, so the plan was put on hold. […]
C5 GORE-TEX THERMO GLOVES Review – by Summittoppler
C5 GORE-TEX THERMO GLOVES I’ll get straight to the point about these gloves, fantastic once again by GORE! I’ve used these gloves down to -4c here in the UK and they kept the cold air from getting to my hands which is a great indication of their insulation and windproofing. When I did wear them […]
Fatbike to the cottage
Some of you may have seen a few of my previous trips to this little cottage in the heart of Snowdonia in Wales before. I had intended on using it again for last weekend’s Global Fat Bike Day but unfortunately, it was already booked so I got to have it for the following weekend. Luckily […]
GORE C5 GORE-TEX INFINIUM™ THERMO JACKET Review
I’ve been wearing Gore Wear kit for nearly 20 years now so you could say I’m a keen user. What I’ve like about Gore is it ‘works’. So if they say its windproof, it will be. If they say its breathable, it will be. You get the idea. So a few months back a care […]
ABUS MoDrop Helmet
I’ve been using the ABUS Modrop helmet for about 3 months now and here’s my take on it. Firstly, I think this helmet looks pretty cool and with that it does keep you cool with the 14 vents dotted around the wonderfully manufactured lid. The front 3 vents feature a protective netting so as to […]
Bucksaw Bikepacking
My bivvy a month campaign is going well this year with some pretty fine camps. This one was up there with the best! The only way is up! Again on familiar territory within the Snowdonia National Park in north Wales, I headed up the second highest mountain in Wales & England. At 3490 feet Carnedd […]
Gore Trail KPR Gloves
Lovely Glovely I’ve been using these gloves for a few weeks now, both on the fat bike and on the commuter gravel bike. The Gore Trail KPR gloves are designed to be a robust but lightweight summer glove. Gore says that “Trail gloves have multiple needs: they should be lightweight, offer grip and tactility while […]
FatFOD
Last weekend I met up with some of the fat bike guys from the south of England for FatFOD. FatFOD is an annual met up run by Graham Foot of Smokestone bikes. A couple of social days riding the natural tracks close to Gloucester followed by beers in the evening. Big views Saturdays route was […]
Solstice Bucksaw Bivvy
Summer solstice, the fattest day of the year! As part of my bivvy a month challenge, the month of June was slowly nearing its end. With other plans covering the weekend (FatFOD), my only chance of getting a bivvy done in June was going to have to be a midweek getaway after work and try […]
Out and about…
After being out and about on the bike last weekend I spotted a track about 3 miles away on a hillside and thought “I’ve gotta give that a try”. There’s a track in the distance going between them two hills So 7 days later I headed out to southern Snowdonia in Wales for a bit […]
Lad and Dad in Scotland
We all love making plans of future bikepacking trips, don’t we? Back in October 2019, I set off with a plan of heading up to the Assynt which is in the far north of Scotland for a few days bikepacking. However, after 5 hours of driving, an engine warning light decided to throw those plans […]
Remembrance Day Bivvy
Last winter I made a great winter bivvy spot at an old slate mine in one of my favorite spots here in Snowdonia, North Wales. By rigging a tarp over the remnants of an old slate workers’ hut, I had managed to have a great retreat during the colder nights. It helped having a fireplace/chimney […]
Ogwen Revisited
A few weeks back I had my first bout of sciatica which had me bail my bikepacking ride. I posted about it here: https://fat-bike.com/2021/08/bad-back-bikepacking/ I honestly thought I’d be out of action for quite some time as the days following were very painful. However, after getting some meds from the Drs, I was soon moving […]
Bad back bikepacking!
We all love making plans and love it even more when they work out for the good. However sometimes things don’t go as planned and that’s a real bummer! Last weekend saw me have a couple of spare days to go out bikepacking in some fine weather here in Snowdonia. I had a route in […]
Fat (video) Tuesday – Jennride
On Saturday the 26th of June I found myself at the start line of the challenging #JENNRIDE two day Bike Packing event starting in Staveley in the Lake District, England. The #Jennride is a 100 mile off road bike packing charity event in memory of Jenn Hill organised by a well-known Lake District mountain biker […]
Bucksaw Bikepacking
The Salsa Bucksaw made an appearance for this local bikepacking trip under the gaze of Wales’s highest mountain, Snowdon.
Slate bivvy
I’ve had a busy few weeks getting some fine riding in and a few bivvies to make up for what I’ve missed doing the past few months. One of those bivvies was in my favourite place of Cwm Eigiau. Back in late March I posted a video https://fat-bike.com/2021/03/85-days/ of me checking out future over night […]
Revelate Nano Panniers
Revelate Nano Pannier Bikepacking has evolved over recent years from using panniers to strapping bags to various places on your bike. Panniers are still used but it’s mostly for touring as you can get away with filling them up and not worry too much about the weight. With that, there was a gap, a pannier […]
Fat Bike Bivvy in Wales. Yeah!
Balmy sunny days in the UK With parts of the US experiencing some cold times of late, the UK saw some near record temperatures at the end of March. So with ‘warm’ weather coupled with the start of 2 weeks off work, this was the perfect time to get one of my bivvies in again […]
85 days!
We all know it’s been one hell of a 12 months, there are many sad stories of loved ones lost. We have had restrictions put in place which has affected our mental health as well as our (my) weight! So when the Welsh Government lifted the restrictions on the Stay at Home so that meant […]
Lockdown ride to the mountains
After a belly full of beer from the night before I somehow got up early and left the house just after 5am. Just over an hour later I was waiting on a hillside for the sun to rise and start the last Sunday of March. I waited for around 45 minutes and soon got cold. […]
Lock down ride to the beach
Due to local lock down restrictions here in Wales, all exercise has to be done starting and finishing from home. Luckily for me, the coast isn’t too far away and to get there is pretty scenic too. Check it out… Would you share your Plus or Fat Pixels? Give us your tired, your poor, Your huddled pixels, […]
GFBD 2020 in Snowdonia
GFBD UK Covid Edition The C word has put a downer on many things this year and sadly has caused pain and heartache to many. So this years Global Fat Bike Day ride was going to be a little different for many. You could say it went back to how it was in the early […]
Return to the coast (Video)
Ride along with Summittoppler for a cruise along fabulous Newborough Beach on the Isle of Anglesey in North Wales
Salsa EXP Series Anything Cradle system
A couple of months ago Salsa announced they were releasing an updated version of the EXP Series Anything Cradle and Anything Cage systems. Luckily for me the Anything Cradle system found its way to Wales for some use in the Autumnal Welsh mountains. Black is good The Anything Cradle is now compatible for both 35mm […]
Super Sparrow bottles
For the past few weeks I’ve been using these Super Sparrow water bottles after they dropped into Wales. Super Sparrow was founded in 2015 with the aim of providing people with the ability to easily enjoy both hot and cold drinks and always stay hydrated on-the-go. The bottles I chose to test were a 500ml Sports […]
The Slippery Peak of the Witch (Video)
A few weeks back I set off to do this bikepacking trip but bailed as I wasn’t in the ‘zone’. I was pretty gutted as the weather was perfect, no wind, no cloud and the chance of a great sunrise. Fast forward 4 weeks and I wasn’t going to let it go as I again […]
Return to the Slate
3 weeks after filming my SLATE video I made a return to the area as a friend of mine, Allen, really wanted to see the slate sights. So we quickly picked our date and was joined by John Climber. The 3 of us set off on a very humid Sunday afternoon which had plenty of […]
SLATE by fatbike
With restrictions being lifted here its great to be able to get out and do what I’ve missed doing for the past few months. So I’ve got some catching up to do! For this bikepacking overnighter I went to a local area that rich in slate history, the Cwmorthin & Rhosydd slate mines. The mines […]
Fat (video) Tuesday – Cwm Dulyn
Cwm Dulyn translates to the Black Lake and is one of my favorite valleys here in Snowdonia, Wales. This is a route that not many take, especially on a bike due to the terrain. Its usually very hard going due to the long grasses and sodden ground. Perfect for the Salsa Mukluk then! Would you […]
Hydro Flask Down Shift 14 Litre Hydration Pack
Luckily in the last few weeks of testing the new Hydro Flask Down Shift Hydration Pack here in Wales, the weather has been kind by throwing up some unusually warm weather. So with warm temperatures, a cool drink has been a welcome treat. Hydro Flask was founded in 2009 in Bend, Oregon. They have been […]
UK Packrafting Meet Up
John ‘Climber’, one of Fat-bike,com’s friends decided it would be a great idea to get people who are packraft curious together in North Wales, UK. Luckily for me the venue was just a 1 hour drive away which was on the shores of Bala lake. However the attraction of trying out packrafts attracted people from […]
Fat Bike above the clouds
We’ve all got that idea in our minds prior to going on an overnight camp whether it’s your first time or if you’re a seasoned veteran camper. You know when you want the perfect weather window, no wind, dry not too wrm/cold, great views and basically an overnight trip that will stay in your memory […]
(Time to Start Planning…) Global Fat Bike Day 2019
Let’s kick it up a few notches… Summer, this time of year is when I start thinking of shorter days and colder temps and with that brings Global Fat Bike Day. This year the date falls on December 7th for peeps from all around our universe to get out on their own or with a […]
A Fat Bike Bivvy and Welsh Goats
3 years ago I walked this area with one of my sons as a reccy for a fat bike ride. It soon become clear that this was no place to try to ride a bike as it would have involved a fair bit of pushing. Fast forward a couple of years and in May of […]
Summer Solstice Bivvy
June 21st and the summer solstice luckily fell on a Friday, and luckily for me I finish work early on a Friday! YEAH!! The sun was shining, the forecast was good so a quick plan hatched to bivvy out for the night. I’ve had my eye on this sheltered spot facing east for some time […]
GORE Wear C7 Bib Shorts
When I was informed by Fat-Bike HQ that I’ll be reviewing a pair of bib shorts I was a little confused. Personally, I thought fat bikes and bib shorts didn’t go together as well as bullets and guns! However the new GORE Wear Vent C7 Bib Shorts soon put that thought out of my head. […]
Fat Bike The Ridge-Y Cribau
This year’s bivvy a month campaign hasn’t really got going as much as I had planned. In January I managed to get a couple of days riding in the heart of mid Wales on my gravel bike. February saw me ride to a mountain cottage in the local snowy hills which was great on the […]
Fat (video) Tuesday – Bivvy a Month 2018, the best bits!
Jeff Price sent us a compilation video that covers all twelve of his Bivvy a Month trips from 2018. If this doesn’t get you stoked to take up the quest to complete the Bivvy a Month Challenge for 2019, nothing will! I got out a few times in 2018 in what some might say was […]
Bivvy a Month Challenge #12 GFBD2018
Bivvy a Month Challenge Global Fat Bike Day 2018 We all know December 1st 2018 was ‘our’ special day as it was this year’s Global Fat Bike Day. However it was made even more special for me this year as I bagged my final Bivvy a Month for the year. I’ve organised the last […]