Your ride today....

[Stonechat]

Went to the meet-upfor the club run. Uneventful ride there,
Notice the right shifter was slightly wonky so straightened

Started the ride and I had no control over rear derailleur
I am on Di2
Had a minor issue last week and no idea about di2, so need to get it looked at

Got home, warmed up for a while and went out on the Kona Roadhouse
So did a route via St Ann's Hill and Stonehill to Windlesham via the now reopened Woodlands Lane Bridge over the M3
Explored some nice small lanes in the Windlesham/Lightwater and almost Bisley area, back via Chobham and Addlestone

Weather was miserable, cold with a north wind, and occasional showers (only light)
Could've done with more clothes

30.27 miles @ 15.9 mph and 919 feet climbed

https://www.strava.com/activities/1538625659/

The earlier bit was only 3.6 miles

 

[Donger]

I thought it was supposed to rain all the time in Wales. Not today it didn't. Got up at stupid o'clock from the holiday cottage we are staying in at Llandanwg, and got in beautiful little 22 miler before breakfast. All in fine sunny (though chilly) weather. Headed off North into Harlech along the coast road. This was half a mile down the road (Snowdonia and the Llyn Peninsula in the background) :

I was soon up level with Harlech Castle:

..... from where I steered well clear of this road (note the eye watering gradient!):

and instead dropped down the gentle way through the woods on the B4573, listening to the sound of birdsong while looking through the trees to the sea below.

I turned back just before Talsarnau and took the pan flat road back to Harlech. Had one hairy moment when I narrowly avoided getting my wheel caught in a rail track at an obliquely angled level crossing, and then quite a sudden and fairly steep climb up past the castle. Carried on South past Shell Island in the direction of Barmouth, checking out places to park my car when I ride that way later in the week. (If I can cut out 6-10 miles at this end of the ride, I'll have time for 6-10 more miles around the Mawddach estuary ... which seems to be one of the highlights around here). I turned around when I got past Tal-Y-Bont, where I spotted these fellas in a field. Competition Time: How many alpacas?

returned via Llanbedr, which reminded me a little of Hawes in the Yorkshire Dales, and which, notably, has a bike sales /hire/repair shop called "Snowdonia Cycles".

At about the 20 mile mark, I slogged my way up the hill at Llanfair and arrived back at Llandanwg (Shell island visible in the background):

Before returning to the bungalow, I nipped down to Llandanwg Beach for a moment, gazing across to the Llyn Peninsula:

That's all folks. Cheers, Donger.

 

[Dave 123]

@Donger we'll all be disappointed if you don't ride up that 40%.
It would be silly not to while you're there......

 

[Reynard]

Wow, lovely scenery @Donger

Went to Snowdonia on a school geography field trip many moons ago, and we did a beach dune mappy thing on that very beach at Harlech

Dunno about that 40% hill though. I'm not sure my suggestion about assisting the climb would wash...

 

[C R]

I wasn't planning on riding today, as we were going to visit some friends in Reading, however I woke up at half past six and couldn't go back to sleep, so I thought I might as well do a few miles.

The day looked grey and not very promising but dry, though a bit cold. I decided I might try a new route, but with easy bail out points in case it started raining. Went out past St Peters Garden Centre, then left up Hatfield Bank (improved my best time in this segment by 14 seconds, I had to walk my bike to the top when I started cycling again a two years ago). Then left towards Wadborough past the Norton Parish Hall, and left again at Wadborough towards Drakes Broughton.

As it still wasn't raining I rode through Drakes Broughton towards the A44, where I took the left again towards Worcester. By this time I started feeling some drops of rain, but luckily it just stayed like that.

I was a bit apprehensive about cycling on the A44, but there wasn't a lot of traffic at this time of the day, and the traffic there was gave me plenty of room.

Turned towards the County Hall at Spetchley, and then towards home via Red Hill.

I got home in time for breakfast with the monkeys.

14.7 miles and 525 feet at an average of 13.5mph. This takes my April total to 137 miles.

 

[Katherine]

A bright and breezy ride with the A group ( my turn), up though Leigh and Hindley to Haigh Hall near Wigan, looking pretty in the spring sunshine. I'd downplayed the amount of climbing on the event invite but the uppity bits were soon tackled by the group.
Followed by my Stoneclough, Whitefield, Prestwich, Agecroft route to add some miles. It is a very up and down route. I love the decents and feel like I've earned them on the climbs. Today though, I nearly came unstuck when I met a large pothole at the bottom of the lovely descent into Kearsley.
Week 5 of clipping in and out, going much better.

 

[ChrisEyles]

Only 17 miles but it was lovely, every single millimetre of it.

Big thanks to @ChrisEyles for being nice!

https://www.strava.com/activities/1536380156

Glad you enjoyed the ride, and some lovely pics there! I did the same loop on Friday, and also blew out my rear tyre around Nun's cross, screwing up a hop over one of the culverts (had a spare tube in the bag so carried on no probs though)... my friend then blew his out heading down the bingo-wing-flapping descent into burrator!

Nice spot with the cuckoos. I was nerding out over the bog ecology there, spotted some heath bedstraw, milkwort, lousewort and lots of sphagnum mosses. It's a great loop, although quite a bit tamer than it used to be now they've re-surfaced sections of it.

 

[Dave 123]

Glad you enjoyed the ride, and some lovely pics there! I did the same loop on Friday, and also blew out my rear tyre around Nun's cross, screwing up a hop over one of the culverts (had a spare tube in the bag so carried on no probs though)... my friend then blew his out heading down the bingo-wing-flapping descent into burrator!

Nice spot with the cuckoos. I was nerding out over the bog ecology there, spotted some heath bedstraw, milkwort, lousewort and lots of sphagnum mosses. It's a great loop, although quite a bit tamer than it used to be now they've re-surfaced sections of it.

I was ultra careful on the culverts!

 

[Rickshaw Phil]

With the roads having had a good chance to dry out I thought it might be good to bring the Dawes out of its winter hibernation. Although dry it's quite breezy and cold out so I didn't plan to do anything too adventurous and headed to do the anti-clockwise version of my Melverley loop again.

Having mostly ridden the knockabout bike for the last few months, going to the narrower drop bars took a little while to get used to and my steering was a little wobbly. By the time I'd got about 10 miles done it was all starting to feel quite natural again though.

Although the wind was against me to Little Ness then an annoying cross wind to Melverley I still made reasonable progress (the advantage of riding this bike). I decided not to do the climb that I did last time, so went to Prince's Oak instead and had wind assistance up the climb there. The wind didn't seem to help as much as expected on the way to Halfway House and Westbury, then was coming in from the side along the straight to Nox so I didn't see the high speeds that I enjoyed last time (17/18 mph cruising speed, 26 max along here this time) and the bike was kicking sideways at every gateway or gap in the hedge.

I did get a bit of a boost on the way to Exfords Green then had to turn back into the wind for the last bit to home.

33.5 miles for this trip at 14.8 mph average. Looking forward to taking it for a spin on a nice warm day now.

Just the one pic today at the Royal Hill.

 

[Datum2]

Another Sunday another wretched weather day.
Our journey today started at the guided bus car park, St Ives. Headed out through the Hemingfords, Godmanchester on to The Offords the left to Graveley, Caxton and then goody stop at Abbotsley.
Onwards through Gamlingay and then Hatley, an interesting village with an old fashioned children road sign with red triangle on top.
Croydon, Arrington and through Wimpole. Decided the coffee stop should be elsewhere as Wimpole was heaving with visitors.
Then Orwell Barrington and the long drag uphill by the now redundant Cemex cement works followed by Haslingfield where we stopped at the Moringa Tree for hot chocolate, cake and soup and very nice too. Getting going again through the Eversdens, Bourn, Knapwell, Conington, Fenstanton and finally St Ives. Horrible weather for cycling, cold and windy. Next time blistering sunshine!
52 Miles.


The Moringa Tree in Haslingfield

Thatched wall in Orwell

Silo conversion in the village of Kingston

The shape of things to come with the new A14 as seen from the Conington - Fenstanton road

Very old style road sign in Hatley

 

[gbb]

A bit 9ff colour this weekend rtf so out tonight for the first time in about a week...and maybe a bit more .
19 miles. Quite blustery but just find a pace that works.
Saw some white bluebells. A couple clumps within a mile of each other...

Or maybe they'e just snowdrops

 

[gavgav]

I thought it was supposed to rain all the time in Wales. Not today it didn't. Got up at stupid o'clock from the holiday cottage we are staying in at Llandanwg, and got in beautiful little 22 miler before breakfast. All in fine sunny (though chilly) weather. Headed off North into Harlech along the coast road. This was half a mile down the road (Snowdonia and the Llyn Peninsula in the background) :
View attachment 406646
I was soon up level with Harlech Castle:
View attachment 406647
..... from where I steered well clear of this road (note the eye watering gradient!):
View attachment 406648
and instead dropped down the gentle way through the woods on the B4573, listening to the sound of birdsong while looking through the trees to the sea below.
View attachment 406649
I turned back just before Talsarnau and took the pan flat road back to Harlech. Had one hairy moment when I narrowly avoided getting my wheel caught in a rail track at an obliquely angled level crossing, and then quite a sudden and fairly steep climb up past the castle. Carried on South past Shell Island in the direction of Barmouth, checking out places to park my car when I ride that way later in the week. (If I can cut out 6-10 miles at this end of the ride, I'll have time for 6-10 more miles around the Mawddach estuary ... which seems to be one of the highlights around here). I turned around when I got past Tal-Y-Bont, where I spotted these fellas in a field. Competition Time: How many alpacas?
View attachment 406650
returned via Llanbedr, which reminded me a little of Hawes in the Yorkshire Dales, and which, notably, has a bike sales /hire/repair shop called "Snowdonia Cycles".
View attachment 406651
At about the 20 mile mark, I slogged my way up the hill at Llanfair and arrived back at Llandanwg (Shell island visible in the background):
View attachment 406652
Before returning to the bungalow, I nipped down to Llandanwg Beach for a moment, gazing across to the Llyn Peninsula:
View attachment 406653
That's all folks. Cheers, Donger.

It’s a fabulous area when you get weather like that! I’ve not braved the hill into Harlech yet!!

 

[Reynard]

A bit 9ff colour this weekend rtf so out tonight for the first time in about a week...and maybe a bit more .
19 miles. Quite blustery but just find a pace that works.
Saw some white bluebells. A couple clumps within a mile of each other...
View attachment 406763
Or maybe they'e just snowdrops

They're spanish bluebells (hyacinthoides hispanica) - also come in pink and blue.

 

[Donger]

My second day in North wales, and my second 06:45 start. Headed out in my high viz jacket, not knowing what traffic I might encounter on a weekday. Turns out there was none, even on the A road. Then I turned off up a side road at Llanbedr and headed up into the mountains. In the next two hours I saw two cars. This surpassed even Arkengarthdale as the most remote, out-in-the-sticks ride I have ever done. Only 19.2 miles, but loved every inch of it. Some steep little bits, and some plunging descents, but another great ride. I shall let the pictures do the talking.
1. In the beautiful Cwm Bychan:

2. Selfie, actually looking happy for once:

3. The upper reaches of the Bychan valley:

4. Rock and moss landscape by the lake (Lyn Cwm Bychan) .... accompanied by the sound of a cuckoo very close by:

5. I turned into an involuntary stock herder for a half a mile or so in each direction as this lot became suspicious of me stalking them silently with my tongue hanging out and panting like a wolf:

6. On the high road to Talsarnau looking out over the sea, Snowdonia and the Llyn Peninsula:

7. Dropping down towards Harlech:

8. Just above that 40% hill I showed yesterday. I reckon this bit must have been close to 30% too. I got off and walked. p.s., like almost everyone else I have spoken to over the last couple of days, the painter was also a Brummie! :

Travel plans and weather outlook mean probably no riding for the next couple of days, so my undercarriage has a chance to recover!
Harlech area highly recommended. More to follow in a couple of days. Cheers, Donger.

 

[Old jon]

Diolch yn fawr, @Donger for the scenery. I love the pics and am only slightly jealous of the ride.

Sometimes, life could be more accommodating. This is not a complaint, you understand, merely an observation. And of course I could try harder as I do have all the free time I could wish for, yet I still shoehorn bike rides in between other priorities.

So, another twelve miles, this time with added extra free rain! The locals tell me it rains a lot here, and I reply that it rains more in Leeds. Especially when I am out on my bike. Another observation; bikes without mudguards become incredibly mucky when ridden in the rain, don’t they? And also the rider. Both my bikes in Leeds have mudguards, proper ones. The one here does not. When I bought it I figured that any rain here would be warm, and I figured correctly, though this may change when winter arrives in June. No clearance for a rear wheel mudguard on this bike, so I have to settle for deposited dirt. Hmmmph!!

A quieter ride today, although one of the fishermen on the bridge over the Rio Itacorubi had just landed a fair size ( about two pounds ) fish as I arrived. The man did look happy. Riding on mostly flat, or almost flat, roads is OK but a familiar gradient hill would be a good change. No road signs to tell you how steep they may be here, local knowledge is all important. Mind, I did not look for hills, just the access road for a tunnel. Found it, and if I can schedule a ride for outside rush hour I will ride through the tunnel some time soon. Cyclists were few today, I overtook a couple of maybe commuters and was overtaken by one other. In the opposite direction, yup, some cyclists. The odd skateboarder and a couple of awkward joggers. Anyway, the ride to the bridge and back was as easy as ever, with only the final hill being a heave to pass the last stopping point. A mere one hundred miles since buying the bike here, and the fitness ( ? ) is returning. With a grin.