Intro to Tenerife and Beyond?

As the darkness of January hangs over us northern souls like an endless black and purple cloud, we sit in our comfy homes with the lights on and radiators oozing out heat, and we long for brighter and warmer days. The kamikaze hailstones bouncing off the conservatory windows finally convinced me that I needed to search for a comfortable climate to ride the motorbike.

On such a wintery day I surfed YouTube (again) for anything that could give a glimmer of hope that there were still places out there that were not wrapped in cold and darkness.

It will come as no surprise to you that ‘travel’ and ‘motorcycles’ feature highly within my filters on the infamous red and white app, but YouTubers will always struggle to keep me as one of their trusted followers due to my inability to remain interested in anything for long periods.

However, a young motorcycle chap popped up on the channel with a golden nugget of inspiration:

‘Road Trip from England to Tenerife’.

That was all it took to get me fired up, and so the seed was sown.

Sunday 27th February 

The strong headwind from the south made for a less comfortable ride than I expected. I was beginning to think my mind was playing tricks with me (yet again), as I seemed to recall that riding Reg the Rocket was always a more comfortable experience. On the plus side it meant the temperature reached the dizzy heights of 15c, still not enough to to stave off my desire to have the heated handlebar grips on. As Reg and I slogged our way south I had a reminder of Portugal and Spain. By the time we’d reached 100 miles that dreaded fuel warning light made its premature appearance, the headwind had taken its toll! Thirty miles left in the tank and by my reckoning I should be at my destination on the south side of Manchester in 20. We made it with a few miles to spare, hopefully I’m slowly getting the hang of fuel management?

Monday morning I lie in bed with the window open and hear the regular ‘take-offs’ from nearby Manchester Airport, many of which will no doubt be destined for the Canary Islands, a flight of just four or five hours. By contrast, I depart Manchester today and arrive in Los Cristianos, Tenerife nine days later! But those nine days are not just a means to get to the destination, in fact, I would say my destination is actually Carlisle, it’s just that I’m taking the scenic route.

Over recent weeks I’ve been spoilt with many enjoyable times shared with family and friends, maybe that’s what’s contributing to my thoughts that I’m again stepping out of this comfort zone?

In answer to a friend’s recent question: 

“Do you not feel daunted by the prospect of these trips alone”? 

“Yes” 

But to coin a well known phrase “Who dares wins Rodney, who dares wins”