Forum ride: 100+ km in Cheshire. [DATE CHANGE] Sat, 1st July, 2023. Details to follow...

[ColinJ]

I will carry 24p in change just in case!

There seems to be upheaval on local trains this summer. I am finding rail replacement buses on several of the journeys that I was planning.

Even trains that are supposed to run suddenly get cancelled. Hopefully, that will not happen.

Anyway... I have been busy planning a new route from Glazebrook. I wanted it to come in at just over 100 km and the start from and finish to Glazebrook account for about 13 km of that.

My new loop is around 89 km, taking in lots of roads that we have used in previous editions of the Cheshire ride, but also a few that I haven't ridden before. I used cycle.travel to suggest roads and nudged it in the directions that I wanted using via points.

Cycle.travel unusually suggested what looked on my digital OS maps to be a very busy A-road so I investigated... My maps are out of date! The old A556 from Bucklow Hill through Mere to Over Tabley is now just Chester Rd, and a new A556 is taking a lot of the traffic instead. What's more, there is what appears to be a very good cycle path beside Chester Rd now if what traffic there is starts to bother us.

We will skirt round the western fringes of Knutsford, then pass through Lower Peover, Moulton, Whitegate, Little Budworth on the way to Cotebrook.

It had been my intention to go through Kelsall in search of a pub or cafe for lunch, but I have discovered that Kelsall Cycles is now up on the ridge above the village, and it has a cafe. I will give them a ring and see whether we might want to call in there.

After that... Delamere Forest, Acton Bridge, Comberbach, Lymm, and back to Glazebrook.

Sound good to y'all?

 

[GuyBoden]

I will carry 24p in change just in case!

There seems to be upheaval on local trains this summer. I am finding rail replacement buses on several of the journeys that I was planning.

Even trains that are supposed to run suddenly get cancelled. Hopefully, that will not happen.

Anyway... I have been busy planning a new route from Glazebrook. I wanted it to come in at just over 100 km and the start from and finish to Glazebrook account for about 13 km of that.

My new loop is around 89 km, taking in lots of roads that we have used in previous editions of the Cheshire ride, but also a few that I haven't ridden before. I used cycle.travel to suggest roads and nudged it in the directions that I wanted using via points.

Cycle.travel unusually suggested what looked on my digital OS maps to be a very busy A-road so I investigated... My maps are out of date! The old A556 from Bucklow Hill through Mere to Over Tabley is now just Chester Rd, and a new A556 is taking a lot of the traffic instead. What's more, there is what appears to be a very good cycle path beside Chester Rd now if what traffic there is starts to bother us.

We will skirt round the western fringes of Knutsford, then pass through Lower Peover, Moulton, Whitegate, Little Budworth on the way to Cotebrook.

It had been my intention to go through Kelsall in search of a pub or cafe for lunch, but I have discovered that Kelsall Cycles is now up on the ridge above the village, and it has a cafe. I will give them a ring and see whether we might want to call in there.

After that... Delamere Forest, Acton Bridge, Comberbach, Lymm, and back to Glazebrook.

Sound good to y'all?

Yes that sounds very good.

I'm worried that the Kesall Cycles cafe maybe just cake, I've always cycled straight past and gone to the Rose Farm Cafe.

The Rose Farm Cafe was the best in the area, it's at Utkinson near Cotebrook, but this year they have a new management and a new menu.
https://www.google.com/maps/@53.1816128,-2.6763737,78m/data=!3m1!1e3?entry=ttu

There are cafes at Whitegate, Beeston and Kelsall.

Kelsall Citrus Cafe is here:
https://www.google.com/maps/@53.2087785,-2.7153073,3a,75y,338.56h,90.42t/data=!3m7!1e1!3m5!1spZAeyx0pVusG6LL_qQaSPw!2e0!6shttps://streetviewpixels-pa.googleapis.com/v1/thumbnail?panoid=pZAeyx0pVusG6LL_qQaSPw&cb_client=maps_sv.tactile.gps&w=203&h=100&yaw=272.69788&pitch=0&thumbfov=100!7i16384!8i8192?entry=ttu

 

[neil_merseyside]

Rose cafe is great, the citrus cafe is good but just 2x2 seats? inside plus some outside seats 4x4?

 

[ColinJ]

I think Whitegate is a little bit early in the ride (just under halfway). I'd prefer the stop to be nearer two thirds of the way so the ride back is shorter.

I remember the cafe in Kelsall being very busy with cyclists one year and there not being much space out front.

We won't go to Beeston this time because I am trying to keep the distance down. (It becomes a long day when 3+ hours of rail travel is added to the total for the ride!)

Shall we give Rose Farm cafe our custom? That would be after about 60 km.

 

[ColinJ]

Ha - Neil has just beaten me to it!

 

[GuyBoden]

I think Whitegate is a little bit early in the ride (just under halfway). I'd prefer the stop to be nearer two thirds of the way so the ride back is shorter.

I remember the cafe in Kelsall being very busy with cyclists one year and there not being much space out front.

We won't go to Beeston this time because I am trying to keep the distance down. (It becomes a long day when 3+ hours of rail travel is added to the total for the ride!)

Shall we give Rose Farm cafe our custom? That would be after about 60 km.

I'll cycle to the Rose Farm cafe at Utkinson later this week, taste the food and check the menu. I've not been since Sept.

 

[Soltydog]

too far away from home for me. There won't be any lightening strikes on railway, 2 weeks minimum notice now, but train cancellations seem inevitable at the moment , just hope everyone can get there ok

 

[Chislenko]

As the unofficial ride coordinator of this site Colin, I just wish you lived nearer so I could join one of your rides.

Fair play to you for taking the time and effort to organise such.

Doff my cap to you.

 

[ColinJ]

As the unofficial ride coordinator of this site Colin, I just wish you lived nearer so I could join one of your rides.

Fair play to you for taking the time and effort to organise such.

Doff my cap to you.

Thanks. Funnily enough, I noticed the other day how many of my rides are appearing high in the listings this year - for some reason many other past organisers seem to have stopped!

As for the trains... Let's assume that they are running and run on time, BUT... the return trains are only every 2 hours so I'd like us to try to time our return so we don't just miss one! With a 2 hour wait, I would probably ride back to Manchester Victoria, but I would rather not do that! (I used cycle.travel to plot a return route and that went down some secluded paths that could be really scary if ne'er-do-wells were lurking. The alternative would be to stick to busier roads, and I hate traffic.) If we missed a train by only an hour, it would mean an annoying wait but it probably wouldn't save much time to ride back.

 

[GuyBoden]

Shall we give Rose Farm cafe our custom? That would be after about 60 km.

I cycled to the Rose Farm Cafe today and enjoyed a large Breakfast.

Plenty of tables outside and a fence to park the bikes.

I took a few pics of the menu too.
(I had a large breakfast at 1pm.)

 

[ColinJ]

Rose Farm cafe it is then!

If @Vantage and I aim to arrive by train at 09:37 and leave on the 17:11, that would give us around 7.5 hours total. Let's say 1.5 hours of stops... that means 6 hours to ride a pretty flat 102 km. Call it 5.5 hours to avoid a panic at the end... an average speed of only 18.5 kmph (11.5 mph). That doesn't sound too arduous!

In case of problems though, I have been looking at alternative routes back into Manchester. I have a 20-ish km route which avoids really busy roads until the chaos of the city centre. That would have to do.

My bike's bottom bracket has started clunking so I am about to see if I can transplant the one from my barely-used turbo trainer bike. I could use a different bike for this ride but I would prefer to do the ride on my '6-er' left in its 42/15 gear for the day. That is a near-equivalent to the bike's former 52/19 singlespeed gear which I enjoyed using for the Cheshire rides. I also like the fact that I can carry my gear on that bike in one of the panniers which Vantage sold to me recently.

 

[ColinJ]

My bike's bottom bracket has started clunking so I am about to see if I can transplant the one from my barely-used turbo trainer bike.

Hmm... When I came to whip out the old BB, I found that one side wasn't done up tight enough. I should have tightened it up and checked the BB again, but I didn't - I carried on and removed it. Then I took the turbo bike's BB out and discovered that the bearings in that one feel a bit rough so that isn't going to be used!

I'll buy a new BB for the 6-er and try the loose/suspect BB in the turbo bike instead, and scrap the one with the rough bearings. If the turbo bike BB is then annoying, I'll buy another new BB for that.

The other thing that I need to do is to get the soles of my cycling shoes glued back on. They have gradually been coming loose and I don't want a shoe failure in mid-Cheshire! There is a cobbler in Todmorden who is only open Friday and Saturday so I'll stroll round to his shop tomorrow and see how much he would charge to do it.

 

[Pale Rider]

I cycled to the Rose Farm Cafe today and enjoyed a large Breakfast.

Plenty of tables outside and a fence to park the bikes.

I took a few pics of the menu too.
(I had a large breakfast at 1pm.)
View attachment 694906

View attachment 694907

Looks to be good fayre for hungry cyclists, and I know @GuyBoden likes his breakfasts which is another recommendation.

I've not done much cafe eating since before lockdown so am probably out of date, but the prices look quite high to me.

It is leafy Cheshire which may add a premium, but I suspect it's a more a case of the cost of living crisis in action.

 

[PaulSB]

Looks to be good fayre for hungry cyclists, and I know @GuyBoden likes his breakfasts which is another recommendation.

I've not done much cafe eating since before lockdown so am probably out of date, but the prices look quite high to me.

It is leafy Cheshire which may add a premium, but I suspect it's a more a case of the cost of living crisis in action.

You're right, those prices are very high. I wouldn't buy anything other than a teacake or toast.

 

[ColinJ]

You're right, those prices are very high. I wouldn't buy anything other than a teacake or toast.

I was thinking that myself, but I may still be tempted by something pricier on the day!

I was incredibly hard up trying to limp through to my state pension so I had to watch every penny. I do still have to be careful, but it is nice to splash out on a treat now and then. I do a maximum of (say) 10 of these rides a year so if I end up spending £20-odd pounds on fares, food and drink each time that is only £200 a year. I can manage that.