Poor Weather and Reading Week

A fill in post due to poor weather.

It is currently my reading week. Wanting to see the family and carry out some maintenance on the motorbike, I've travelled home.
Hoping for good weather and knowing that the BUMS Peak District trip is at the end of the coming week (12th/13th) I brought home my Trad gear. It hasn't left my room yet (typical after spending time packing it all). I hope the weather improves for Saturday.
A trip to the Nottingham Climb Centre on Monday was good. I think it can be useful to visit other climbing centres now and then. Your training and thinking become stuck with the style of your regular centre, going elsewhere helps to prevent stagnation (the fear of most climbers). 
I'm hoping to have a wander on Kinder Scout later this week. It hopefully will provide some entertainment, bog-trotting is amusing particularly after lots of rain.

I've spent sometime this week with an old friend, Harry Barnard. His adventures revolve around ornithology (bird-watching) in Central and South America. Working as a guide for eco-tourism he is one lucky guy. With amazing pictures of animals and the jungles I've been feeling rather jealous, in particular when he showed me a photo collection of birds that only a few people (including himself) in the world have seen.  

I'm currently trying to work out a few international adventures of my own. A 'Camp America' trip, and with the motorbike: An Alps circumnav (France, Germany, Austria, Italy and back to France) and another trip to Morocco (via France and Spain). Inspiration coming from motorbiking friends and the epic journey that is 'The Long Way Round'. Anybody got any clues where to get cheap(ish) metal panniers/top box? Any mods needed for alpine trips or desert riding?

With the weather changing, becoming cold, wet and windy, I'm looking forward to winter coming in properly. I'd much prefer to deal with snow and ice than cold rain, at least it makes hiking interesting and winter gully climbing possible (however bad motorbike driving weather). Also winter provides those adventures and epics I like to seek out.

Hear is to hoping the weather improves (or just snows).