Author: Alan Cole

The National Botanic Garden of Wales 1

Wax Caps and Workshops: Plant Science Wales 2025

I somehow ended up coordinating the Plant Science Wales Meeting at work. Somewhat stressful, but it all came together in the end — and it meant a trip down to Carmarthen last week. It was a joint event organised by IBERS, hosted by the National Botanic Garden of Wales, and supported by the Learned Society...

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The Isle of Man (Take Two)

Well, we finally made it to the Isle of Man this autumn. After an aborted trip a couple of weeks ago, when the plane turned around mid-flight and landed back in Liverpool due to the weather, we tried again at the weekend. This time we flew from Manchester to visit Anna’s mum, Pat. We drove...

Severne Gator 5.7 0

The Trials & Tribulations of Replacing a 5.7

You’d think that buying a new windsurf sail would be simple. Decide what size you need, find it online, buy now, done! Not so simple though, when you consider all the idiosyncrasies and requirements. Many tabs later, lots of emails and calculations, and still there’s no parcel on my doorstep. A Sad Farewell to the...

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N + 1 Logic: The Case for a New Bike (AI Made Me Do It!!)

When logic, lust, and a little AI wisdom all point towards a new bike. Following a mechanical that stopped me joining a ride on Thursday, and the fact that my mountain bikes are now over ten years old, that old adage about the ideal number of bikes being n + 1 (where n is the...

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From Ynyslas to Urayasu – Morgan’s Japanese Adventure Begins

It’s been a big week or so in our household. We’ve dropped Morgan off in Manchester as he sets off on another adventure — this time to Japan. He’ll be spending four weeks in Tokyo before heading up to a ski resort on Hokkaido for the winter, working and exploring as he goes. It doesn’t...

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Solo Wild Camp Among the Arenigs

Things seem to have been a little hectic lately, and there doesn’t seem to be much chance of that changing in the near future. But last weekend was, at least, a quiet one. With a good weather forecast, it was also a good chance to get out into the hills and tick off a few...

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Making the Most of a Change in Plans

We were supposed to be spending the weekend on the Isle of Man visiting Anna’s mum. A storm was brewing, and I was a little disappointed that we fly to the island these days. In the past, we used to take the boat so that we had the car with us—and I could bring my...

Trail Ready 1

Back on the MTB – Night Rides, Gear Tweaks & Maintenance

It’s been a while since I’ve properly taken the mountain bike out, but over the past couple of weeks I’ve been sneaking back onto the trails. I even joined a local group for a very chilled night ride. It’s getting to that time of year were the dark nights are longer than the days so...

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Autumn!

Autumn has definitely arrived in West Wales. It’s been blowing a hoolie for days now, which has meant plenty of windsurfing opportunities. Just for a change, I’ve been out in a few different places. Usually, I simply walk across the road and launch opposite our house, and I’ve done that of course, but earlier in the...