The Ring Cycle

I don't know about you, but I'm getting a bit cheesed off with the limitations of lockdown riding now. (With apologies to those who aren't able to ride at all.)   I seem to travelled most of the roads less travelled that are near where I live, wearing a groove in the the same three or four roads away from home.

I wanted to do a longer ride, so I thought I would try a circle, five miles radius from home.   Because it's at right-angles to the direction I normally travel to/from home, it would be less-familiar roads.   And it wouldn't be far: 31.42 miles to be nearly exact.   Plus another 10 to get to/from the start.  41.42 miles.   Or so I thought.

When I planned the route, there were a few obstacles to get round.   Rivers.   Airports, stuff like that.  So it wasn't an exact circle.   Ride with GPS told me it was 44 miles.  Not too bad.   Anyway I set off mid Monday afternoon, hoping to avoid the crowds, which was largely successful.

Out along the river Crane cycle route to tackle the worst bit first: around Heathrow.  The A30 was quiet and not too bad for cycling: it had a cycle path but other people were on it and it was narrow.  Then the inner distribution road, past lines of parked planes - again quiet.    North through Harlington and Hayes and then turning east.  Across the canal, places I'd never been: Manor Court (north of Southall), Dormers Wells (south of Greenford), Castle Bar GWR railway station  (north of Hanwell) is about as far north as I got.

Now I was on a descent through Montpelier (north of Ealing), Acton, Stamford Brook, and then along the A4 to Hammersmith bridge, as the towpath is closed to cyclists.  The bridge has separate lanes for pedestrians each way, everyone very well-spaced out.  I was aiming to go round the river side of Barnes Wetlands Centre and discovered Harrods Village as I was cutting through to the towpath.  You can see the Furniture Depository building from the river but I hadn't realised that it's quite an extensive estate, with 2 bedroom flats for only £1m.   I didn't have my cheque book with me, so I continued on my ride. 

2 bedroom flat ???

 
It was a warm day so I was rationing my water bottle, a glug every 5 miles or so.  Along the towpath nearly to Putney before diving south.  A maze of flats in the no-man's land between Roehampton, Putney and Wimbledon before emerging victorious beside Wimbledon Common.   My circular route kept me off the common itself though.  Descent towards New Malden involved a rather zigzag approximation to the circle, including some nasty uphills (Wool Road!!!), and a bit along the A3.   I was at least half-way round but I was getting suspicious.  I'd already done 32 miles or so, and the distance remaining was 17 miles.

South Lane, New Malden has a neat little cut-through taking you to near Woodies pub - except I couldn't find it.  In the end it was hidden in a tunnel, actually through the middle of the parade of shops.   Round  Woodies' playing fields, a rather rough path along the Hogsmill, and then a lovely ride right round Surbiton: Alexandra Drive and Ditton Road and through a nature reserve to emerge at Thames Ditton.   Westbound now, past Esher station and along the path across the Wey to Walton, where I went the wrong way for quite a while before realising and turning back.

The sun was getting low in the sky now, and it seemed I had a long way still to go.  Bit of a diversion for Walton Bridge, better than swimming across, although some were immersing themselves, if not swimming - and then northbound to Upper Halliford, a stretch of the A308 Staines Road before turning right towards Ashford, and then north-east back to Bedfont and my starting point.    I treated myself to a last gulp of water and headed home, arriving just before sunset.

It was an 'interesting' ride.   Not very scenic, but a few nice places that I might go back to if I can think of an excuse.   Plenty of parks, still full of people at 4-5-6 o'clock, some in big groups playing football or having picnics, but also lots of people just doing very gentle exercise by lying down in the sun.   Much further than I thought: I realised that my Ride with GPS route didn't include the 12 miles to/from the starting point, so the total was 60 miles.