The Coast to Coast Cycle St Bees to Robin Hoods Bay Route you take might not exactly reflect the classic Wainwright’s Coast to Coast walking route using the same start and finish points but it will be pretty close. This is largely due to the use of cycleways, roads, tracks and bridleways rather than footpaths but it’s still your choice whether you dip your toes in the sea at both ends.
For example Trailbrakes have a route starting at Ravenglass on the West coast just 16 miles to the south of St Bees itself rather than St Bees to take advantage of different trails. Just remember that all roads out of St Bees are uphill!
Anyway – the fact is that there are loads of different routes so hanging my hat on a particular map is difficult. So I will base this information on the well known Tim Woodcocks version called the Wheelwright’s Coast to Coast. Whilst being an excellent route it does come with a word of warning as it does go over Black Sail Pass, Wasdale Head and Walna Scar Road. Other options could be to go via Scarth Gap Pass, into Honister Pass for example.
Insider Information
The route through the Lakes is very hard going, the North Pennines are moderate, Vale of Mowbray is very easy and the North Yorkshire Moors is moderate.
One option is to follow the Sustrans C2C route to Keswick, then do the Old Coach Road and drop south to Pooley Bridge, then pick up the Wheelwright’s route from there. The Wheelwright’s uses the Tan Hill road from Barra’s, instead of the Nine Standards which after a period of heavy rain is very hard going underfoot and is not impossible on a bike. Tan Hill Inn is the highest Inn in England and a great spot for a pint. Then the descent into Swaledale exciting to say the least.
How to recognise your achievement
The Coast to Coast Cycle St Bees to Robin Hoods Bay Route is a great challenge. I have found all the information in this blog whilst researching the maps and data to enable me to create a picture for a customer. He had completed this route more than 20 years ago and it is still a strong memory for him. He chose the colour of the cycle frame to match the bike he used. My previous bike picture for Coast to Coast Cycle used the Sustrans C2C route which is very popular although the start and finish points are always in some doubt given the multiple variations. I have also produced this using my Tandem Design and the Road Bike Design.
Useful Links
http://www.mbr.co.uk/news/trail_news/mountain-bike-coast-to-coast-365206
https://www.routeyou.com/en-gb/route/view/145385/cycle-route/st-bees-to-robin-hoods-bay
http://www.trailbrakes.co.uk/mtb-holidays/wainwrights-c2c-ravenglass-robin-hoods-bay
https://www.sustrans.org.uk/ncn/map/route/sea-to-sea-c2c
http://www.mapmyride.com/sc/victoria-english-river/wainwright-coast-to-coast-cycle-route-3428847
One of the other things that helps to come up with the perfect Christmas gift for a man is understanding his preferences. For example there is no point getting him something that is wine related if he is a beer lover and remember if you live with this bloke your preferences might have to get involved too.
This is an often forgotten secret to nailing the perfect gift. All you have discovered about memories and experiences above had to happen somewhere. My wife and I got engaged in Paris and married on the Greek island of Zante for example which would be good information for someone wanting to buy me a great gift, but the location does not have to be this abroad of course.
This is where you start to put it all together to get to the Christmas presents for men in your life. If you want the best present for him then the main aim is to make sure that your man gift is Unique, Individual and Original. You might be thinking how the hell can I do that? But never fear there is a way you can create the perfect present and someone can make it for you.
A couple had a close family friend. All of them were into skiing and their friend was famous within their group of skiing buddies for skiing down a mountain wrapped in a Union Jack. Christmas was looming and they were struggling to decide what to get him as a present. They saw our skier cut out and our Union Jack fabric and their perfect gift search was over.
Jenny’s father 70 year old father had completed the famous Dragon Devil cycle ride in Wales she was wondering what to get him for Christmas. The Dragon Devil is an enormous challenge with more than 6 massive climbs. This is an annual event and one that mad cyclists fight to get accepted to take part in. She asked us to use one of our Bicycle cut outs and use maps to signify important segments of the ride. This was the perfect Christmas gift for her Dad.
John was visiting an old friend in France. This old friend had owned a Mark 1 Ford Capri and it had been a lasting memory for him and all their friends. John put together the two key items, Ford Capri Mk1 and France and so we created a cut out design of a Mk1 Capri and put a French Flag behind it. Delighted. Another #pecage win.
So finding the ideal Christmas gift for her involves bringing together four or five key elements that reflect her interests, preferences, memories, experiences and locations and then making it very personal. You might be thinking “How do I do that?” but don’t worry, just bear with me on this. All you need to do is fill in the blanks and we will do the rest for you and what you will end up with is something magical. We have named it Pecage – a new art concept designed around personalised elemental creations to produce the perfect Christmas gift for her.
Sounds obvious I guess but most people have at least one key area of interest and often it is very close to their hearts.
Since running Gecko Designs I have become aware of just how much memories and experiences effect people’s happiness across the age range.
This is where you need to have some pretty good knowledge of what she likes. It can be pretty simple to establish though if you think whether she prefers black & white for example. Or homely, country colours like green and brown. Does she love bright colours, pastel or paisley colours and is there a colour theme you can establish?
This is an often forgotten Pecage secret to nailing the perfect Christmas gift for her. All you have discovered about memories and experiences above had to happen somewhere. For example you might have got engaged in Paris or married on a Greek island so these are particular locations that mean something to her. Perhaps your female friend or family member was born in Scotland and is very proud of her Scottish heritage, she still has family in Newcastle or Birmingham for example. She might have had a memorable experience bungee jumping in New Zealand, or walking the South West Coast Path. Or perhaps you are the key, if this is your Mum we are talking about, where were you born for example. Her most important memory might have been going to and graduating from University, but which one? Did she cycle from Lands End to John O’Groats, or run the New York Marathon or did she meet someone famous or special at a concert in a town or city.
This is where you start to put it all together but the main aim is to make sure that your creative Christmas gift is Unique, Individual and Original. You might be thinking how the hell can I do that? But never fear there is a way you can create the perfect present and someone can make it for you.
It was for her Mum and a lady came to our stall wondering if we could help. She was one of three children all grown up and living away. In some cases a long way away like New Zealand. She wanted a creative gift for her mother that would mean something very special to her. We took our triple heart cut out and put maps of the current locations of each of the three siblings behind them. Mum was delighted with what Pecage had been able to do.
Most personalised gift offerings just add a name to an existing product, for example, but if you really want to find the perfect Christmas gift idea for someone really important to you then you have to think on another level to create something that reflects deep thought and attention.
Sounds obvious I guess but most people have at least one key area of interest that is often very close to their hearts.
Since running Gecko Designs I have become awakened to just how much impact memories and experiences have on people’s happiness across the age range. For your older relative, have there been stories of cherished memories and experiences? Perhaps they have children who now live away and they don’t see them as often as they would like. Maybe they met at a concert in the 60s and stayed in a VW Camper van on their honeymoon. Anything like that is great fuel for your perfect present workshop.
Josie has five people in her family. 
This isn’t the actual picture we created but Ben and Amy had their honeymoon in Egypt and their most memorable experience was flying in a Hot Air Balloon over the resort of Hurghada by the Red Sea. So we took our exclusive Hot Air Balloon cut out and put a map of the area they flew over behind it. They asked us to put it in their choice of solid wood antique pine frame. Example of shared experience, memories and location.
An enormous challenge with more than 6 massive climbs. This is an annual event and one that mad cyclists fight to get accepted to take part in. She asked us to use one of our Bicycle cut outs and use maps to signify important segments of the ride. This was the perfect gift for her Dad.
His daughter came to us, saw our single Yacht cut out and had an idea. Could we take some fabrics that she had at home, that had special meaning to her father, and make a picture for the presentation? Well we would give it a go. It took some work getting the fabrics in the right place but she was delighted and straightaway asked us to do another using the left over fabric. Gave us a tip both times. Very Nice!
These are just some examples of how to take your hard creative work and come up with an idea for the perfect personalised gift. In a lot of cases we might be one jump ahead of you. Based on customer feedback and sales we have identified 3-4 fabric choices for each of our designs that are most popular. This does not mean that your perfect picture is not unique because the fabric placement within the picture is never the same twice.
Whenever customers visit my market stall they have the benefit of seeing my pictures first hand, inspecting the precision bevel cut mount designs, the quilted fabrics, quality solid wood frames and generally ‘getting it’! 
Now the …age bit on the end you will recognise from words like collage and decollage, French arty farty stuff, – but the Pec… bit nominally stands for Personalised Elemental Creation. Hence Pecage or Pecage Art. The hashtag is just 
All Change for 2019! The Gecko Designs Market Stall is continuing to travel across Dorset, Wiltshire, Somerset and Hampshire in 2019 but there will be some major changes from last year. Also check out my 
My wife Elaine is always telling me that finding presents for men is always a challenge. I never thought I was that challenging but I think women are over thinking mens gifts to be honest! Nevertheless, our 5 step guide to finding unique, personal and excellent presents for men will help you.
We hear it every day when people visit our stall. My wife has a chat and at some point she will be discussing the worldwide difficulty in finding unique presents for men that their husband, dad, uncle, boyfriend, fiancee or brother will appreciate. Especially since many men love sport so lots of mens gifts are sport related, but sometimes this becomes somewhat boring. I mean how many items with their football team logo or name on it can you find.
This is where you start to put it all together to come up with an unusual presents for men in your life. If you want the best present for him then the main aim is to make sure that your man gift is Unique, Individual and Original. You might be thinking how the hell can I do that? But never fear there is a way you can create the perfect present and someone can make it for you.
Jenny’s father was going to attempt the famous Dragon Devil cycle ride in Wales and it was his 70th birthday coming up. An enormous challenge with more than 6 massive climbs. This is an annual event and one that mad cyclists fight to get accepted to take part in. She asked us to use one of our Bicycle cut outs and use maps to signify important segments of the ride. This was the perfect birthday gift for her Dad.
John was visiting an old friend in France. This old friend had owned a Mark 1 Ford Capri and it had been a lasting memory for him and all their friends. John put together the two key items, Ford Capri Mk1 and France and so we created a cut out design of a Mk1 Capri and put a French Flag behind it. Delighted.
Buying Engagement Presents is sometimes tricky. It is an important event for the “engagees” (is that a word?!) and you need that perfect balance of thoughtfulness, uniqueness and something they will treasure. Use our 5 steps to produce Engagement Presents that hit the spot.
Because there are two people involved we usually recommend one of our designs that include two or more cut out apertures to signify the two people. However, if there is a common interest then a single cut out might be OK. It really depends on how well you know them. If it’s your sister for example you will know her well and chances are you know the lucky guy as well and have done for a while so you can use the 5 steps below to come up with something special. Being creative is not that difficult when you have a set of guidelines to help as we outline below. And don’t worry you don’t have to make anything, we can do all that for you, all you need to do is come up with some creative ideas, using our help to produce that perfect engagement present idea.
