How much to take? We may have set off a bit too minimalistic. The most extreme omission was plates. Ali thought we could use frisbees to eat off and they would double up as entertainment. That was taking it too far. A few days into the journey and we upgraded to metal bowls.

I most agonised over tools. They could be heavy. A multi-tool (Leatherman wave), selected allen keys, puncture kit and spare inner tubes (turned out to be super important) - that did nicely.

Otherwise, it is amazing how little stuff one actually needs. When we got back it felt almost obscene how much stuff we have. Three shirts in rotation is perfectly sufficient.

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Setting off from Bennet’s Crescent, in Oxford.

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We had delayed our start to attend Dave Triffit’s gallery opening in Oxford. To make our ferry to Santander, we took a train to Calstock. First test, first failure: we managed to leave our tent on the train. Luckily the Calstock flyer goes up and down the same line. When in returned, we could retrieve our tent. At this rate, we won’t get far.