Ride Report for Sunday 31 August 2022 - a Bridge Too Far?

 

Until now I have never been quite sure of the meaning of the phrase 'howls of execration', but after today's ride I have a much better understanding!   The morning started off peaceably enough with Bob, Simon, Lilian, Ed, Diane, Dave E, Graham, Pam, Geoff G and Ray W joining me for a very pleasant elevenses, al fresco, at Squires, Stoke d'Abernon.

We left Bob at Squires and set off over Downside Common and Wisley Airfield towards Ripley where Lilian and Ed left us.  The rest of made towards Send Church where I thought it would be a good idea to introduce the group to the delights of the footpath to Sutton Green!

The path starts off innocently enough but soon sinks into a deep rut, then nettles close in on either side, then there is a barbed wire fence on one side and the river Wey very close by on the other, but once you have crossed the narrow, awkward, steep-stepped bridge you have passed the worst...until the stile at the top of the steep bank across the meadow!    Anyway, everyone took this character-building, assault course-type route in their stride and there were no visible injuries, or more importantly, damaged bikes!    

From there it was an easy ride through Woking Park to recover in the haven that is Wetherspoons!   After a good lunch we took the usual route back to Walton Bridge via Sheerwater, West Byfleet, Addlestone and Weybridge, no off-road sections by request!

Many thanks to everyone for putting up with my dastardly outbound route, and to Geoff for very kindly back-marking all day.

IMPORTANT - Change to Programme for Sunday 31 July 2022

With regret, Sunday's planned train-assisted ride from Horsham is cancelled as there is national rail strike the previous day and train services early on Sunday morning will be disrupted.

Instead, elevenses will be at Squires Garden Centre, Cobham.   A possible destination is The Herbert Wells, Woking, which we have not visited for some time.   There are some interesting route possibilities!

Ride Report - Sunday 24 July 2021 (Weybridge & Longford)

 

Bob, Tony, Diane, Lilian, Ed, Ray, Graham, Maureen, Pam and I met at Morrisons, Weybridge's least expensive elevenses venue, and duly regaled ourselves with the sundry delights on offer!   Bob, Ed, Graham and Maureen made their own ways home while, once baggage was safely stowed in the overhead lockers and all seatbelts fastened, the rest of us took off for Heathrow!  In a radical break with tradition, our route took us in an anti-clockwise direction!   Some thought they saw similarities to a previous route of Simon Lambourn's - pure, blind coincidence, I say!

There were one or two surprisingly picturesque corners en route to Hatton Cross, after which we weren't sure 'who was zooming who' - as we circumnavigated Heathrow we passed an army of plane spotters  watching the planes, as we, fascinated, watched them and their elaborate equipment!

Our 'refuelling stop', The White Horse, proved once again to an excellent place for lunch, with a very welcoming and helpful landlord, and delightful floral decorations.   Once replete and on the road again we kept the airport on our east side and took a fairly direct route to the end point at Shepperton.   The sky turned increasingly hazy as we travelled south, and the strong, acrid smell of smoke from a large fire on Hankley Common made it a distinctly unpleasant and stifling ride, but we survived!

Many thanks to everyone for your company!

Hot Pursuit to Guildford - 17 July

Hot

A great turnout at The Queen Stage, Effingham despite the amber warning of hot weather (31 degrees).  And not just the ten C&M riders but a constant flow of other groups of cyclists kept the place buzzing.    Great to see Mark back on his first outing after his broken shoulder.  Bob was heading home while Pam and Tony chose to do a shorter ride in view of the heat.   Very sensible.

Missing Pam, David & Tony

There he is!

Chat

The rest of us, not so sensible, headed to Guildford after a referendum chose the higher-level route, involving more shade but starting with the climb up Green Dene.  Once ascended, the only way was Down, along the North Downs Way to be precise.  (What is it called in the other direction?  Surely it can't be Down in both directions?)  We were worried about hordes of walkers but they were strangely absent - perhaps they had heard something on the weather forecast?

Rachel

Pewley Down

Keith left us after admiring the views at Newlands Corner to ride back along NCN22, and we continued to Pewley Down where more views were admired, including a pretty clear view over the whole London skyline from Wembley to Docklands, just near the semaphore tower.   The remaining six of us found a shaded table at The King's Head and had a very enjoyable lunch.  I was half expecting everyone to get the train home due to the increasing heat, but in fact it was quite pleasant in the breeze, and only Mark and David made their own way home. 

Up-market doggy bar

The return route was seeking shade, along the Wey Navigation and north where we were pleased to find that Jacob was in his usual good health - the signs saying Jacob's Well were out as usual.  Does he never have a bad day?  The temptations of Woking station came and went, so we dodged the War of the Worlds fighting machine onto the canal (towpath, that is) to make our way back to New Haw and on to Walton, where Lilian kindly bought Rachel, Graham and myself ice creams - thank you!   In the end the temperature was around 29 degrees at Walton in the shade, with a nice breeze making it bearable.  Thanks to all for coming out on a hot day and for your company.

Ride plan Sunday 17th July

We are meeting for 11s, as advertised, at The Queen Stage, Effingham (just on the corner of the double roundabouts), which has some air conditioning.   I still plan to ride to Guildford, and we can either go across the top (off road but all under tree cover) to Merrow Downs Pewley Hill, or perhaps do a lower-level route.  Lunch destination in Guildford will be by referendum, probably somewhere shady where we can rehydrate.

It's forecast to be 26 degrees at Effingham at 11.00, and 28 in Guildford at lunch time, so please bring plenty of water.  31 degrees by tea time, so the option of returning by train might appeal to some or even all of us by then.

Way Out West (10/07/22) - The ride

The mercury was heading for the low 30s as I left home.  The slightly delayed train at Whitton was crowded. At Staines it emptied (presumably Thorpe Park visitors). I continued to Datchet to join Dave and Simon in a quiet Royal Farmshop. We waited for 30 minutes but nobody came. 

From the A308 roundabout we rode along the southern edge of Windsor. Just after the aging "Brenda and Keith" in Fifield I tossed in a minor surprise by switching to the Drift Road. Thus was Waltham St Lawrence reached from the south. At the A4 in Hare Hatch we ran into a sportive (or at least signs of). Wargrave was skirted before we started the only climb of the day so Warren Row was reached from the northwest.

The Velolife cafe was busy and hot  whereever one sat.  Its menu is brief: toasties and/or cakes which suited us. As temperatures rose visitor numbers dwindled; we were amongst the last to leave well before two. 

We now had a tailwind. I pointed out the onetime RSG6 as we descended to Knowl Hill where  NCN4 was rejoined close to The Royal Oak. We left it as it entered the Maidenhead suburbs. After Bray the cycleway beside the widened M4 Thames Bridge is still unfinished  two years after opening! Dorney and Eton came next.

The wait at Datchet station was under five minutes which proved too tempting for Dave who joined me to Ashford (Surrey). His excuse: an 80 mile ride the previous day to Hastings. I was for a final surprise at Whitton - the next train was for Kingston! New to me so I took it.

As described 32 miles (or 66 miles if ridden from home).

Way Out West (10/07/22)

Sunday's ride starts (and notionally ends) at Windsor (Royal) Farm Shop [SL4 2RQ / SU981751 open 1000-1530]. It's 30+ miles topping out at a heady 340+feet. NCN4 is much used (lots of it tarmac). On my recces I was not ambushed by nettles, brambles and the like. 

Lunch could be Velofile [RG10 8QS/SU812807] , a cyclists' cafe. Its menu reads toasties and cakes (in my experience when available). So a mile or so further on the ride will pass the Royal Oak Knowl Hill [RG19 9YE/SU825794] which has a fuller menu according to Facebook. We'll decide on the day.

I'm no A308 fan so I may use the half hourly service to Datchet and cycle the remaining mile or so to 11s.
 

Ride Report - Sunday 3 July (Clandon and Catteshall)

 

It is a long ride to Clandon Park Garden Centre for some of us, but Bob, Terry, Simon, Keith, Diane, Bernard, Sabina, Ray, Ed, Lilian, Graham and Sunday newbie Dave E all made the effort and had a very pleasant elevenses.   Very acceptable cheese scones were available!

Simon, Graham, Lilian, Ray, Keith, Diane, Graham and Dave E then joined me for the shortish but rather hilly ride to lunch at Catteshall, which also had a number of offroad sections.   Ed set off to make his own way to Catteshall, but, unfortunately, mechanical problems led him to end his ride at Guildford.   

At Blackheath we paused at Simon's suggestion to have a look at the rather unusual 'arts and crafts' church, St Martins, and we were very lucky to be given a brief but comprehensive guided tour by the church warden.   The church is always open in the daytime and is well worth a visit if you are passing.    

Stepping onto consecrated ground brought out my sense of Christian charity and I relented in my intention to take the group along the rather rocky bridleway from Munstead Heath to Catteshall, substituting instead another (untried) track described as 'easy'!   Well, the surface was much easier, and so was the gradient, but there was a high stinging nettle factor instead!

All I can say of Catteshall Boathouse Tearooms (aka Hector's Bistro) is that you are guaranteed a welcome!   It is rather idiosyncratic, and perhaps a remnant of England gone by, but it is in a nice setting and although the menu is simple, the food is good value. You may wait a while but you can while away the time on the bank trying to spot fish in the backwaters.

After lunch, we headed for NCN22 to sample the brand new tarmac surface.   It is a considerable improvement, but sadly we could not try it all as one section was closed for work, so it was still a case of lugging our bikes down the steps.   At Guildford, some of us headed for the station while the main group continued for tea at Ripley.

Many thanks to Simon for back-marking and suggesting the church visit, thanks all for your company, and thanks too to Graham for supplementary information.