Your ride today....

[Edwardoka]

First outdoor ride of the year for me today, running errands. Only 7 miles, but lots of flooded roads and very heavy rain and hail. Completely soaked through.

Looked down at my computer at one point and saw I was going 27mph, I won't lie, my thoughts were: "Wow, my time on Zwift has made me a much stronger rider! I am going so fast!"

It was only on the return journey that I noticed the massive headwind...

 

[AndreaJ]

It’s been quite a nice day today after storm Dennis and despite a lot of rain last night there was more grass than water in the fields so I hoped for a longer ride. Still a lot of water on the roads but better than yesterday as I headed off to Northwood, Waterloo, through some floods to Edstaston, Creamore, into Wem and over the railway crossing to Aston, as I turned to Aston I found a big deep flood so turned back without getting wet and went the other way and onto Barkers Green, more big puddles and mud to Tilley and Nonely , Brandwood, up the hill to Myddle, back to Burlton with the plan to go to Colemere when I got a puncture. Pulled over in a muddy gateway to sort it changed the tube and found the spare one wouldn’t inflate either which was more than a bit annoying. Everything was too wet and muddy to patch either of the tubes so it was a walk home, luckily it was only 3 miles and wasn’t raining. It’s much easier changing inner tubes in a warm dry kitchen so it’s ready to go again and I have ordered some gator skin tyres which I have on the other bike. Found a hole in the spare tube which explains why that was no good. 22.5 miles on the bike and 3 miles pushing it home.

 

[Rickshaw Phil]

A couple of rides today, both to see what the rising river levels caused by Storm Dennis were doing to Shrewsbury.

For the first I headed out about mid morning and did a bit of a tour round town before heading out to Upton Magna, Atcham, the long way round to Cross Houses then Berrington and home via Condover.

I headed into Coleham to start with where the road into the town centre was blocked by the flood barriers having been put up. Despite several signs warning that the road was closed there were still a few drivers arriving and looking surprised that the road was closed. There was water out on the road here which I haven't seen in a while.

I headed into the town centre next via Greyfriars Bridge and found quite a spectacle with the level being so high. Probably best if I let the photos do the talking rather than trying to describe it all.

Having done my tour I headed out of town past the Prison and into Castlefields where my usual route along Sydney Avenue is blocked and so was the underpass that I usually use to connect to the old canal path. En route to Upton Magna I encountered a flood in a place I haven't seen it before (and was difficult to judge how deep it was) and one by Attingham Park which has been there a while wbut was deeper than before which slowed the traffic down a bit.

At Atcham I unexpectedly met up with my parents who had decided to have a look at theview from the old bridge while they were passing. The Atcham to Cross Houses road is always one of the first to flood so no surprise that it was well underwater so I needed to head up the road a bit and take another lane to cut across - this one had an unexpected flood too which looked deeper than I'd like so with a bit of a struggle I got past on a very squelchy verge.

I went out of my way to Cross Houses to see what the other end of the road was like and had a worrying moment when I thought the lorry coming up fast behind me with not enough room to overtake wasn't going to stop. It did but it was very close (timber waggon - they have a bit of a reputation I believe).

The rest of the trip was a lot less eventful but was mostly into a strong headwind so a bit of an effort. I had the legs cramp up towards the end which surprised me on a fairly short ride.

23.8 miles at 10.3 mph average.

Coleham Head.

St. Julians Friars. The council had warned they expected this car park to flood well in advance so not sure if people didn't believe them? The Fiat nearest had gone when I went back later.

Not much chance of oncoming cyclists today.

View across The Quarry.

At Victoria Quay the water is encroaching but deliveries still have to be made.

Flood barrier built to full height. They don't do that every time.

Roushill: the water is sneaking up through the drains. This will be flooded if the river keeps rising.

Castle Walk footbridge. I think that might be somebody's decking.

Sydney Avenue.

Later on near Cronkhill.

 

[Rickshaw Phil]

Second ride. In the afternoon I heard that the river was still rising and that it had got out into a few roads that don't usually flood so I dropped down into town to have another look. I headed into Coleham again where I was surprised at how much extra water there was. Likewise after crossing Greyfriars Bridge. Heading along Town Walls and St. Chad's Terrace I encountered the first signs of traffic problems as Smithfield Road was now underwater. Roushill and Raven Meadows had issues too.

I tried to get to Coton Hill but my way was blocked at Chester Street so I got what photos I could and headed through town again to leave over the English Bridge. The traffic problems were getting really bad now and at the end of Old Pott's Way it was proper gridlock in all directions as people tried to get across town without using the flooded routes. I think it's safe to say that I got home quicker than almost anyone else.

9 miles for this one at 9.4 mph average (to be expected when spending a lot of time pushing the bike.

Coleham Head again.

St. Julians Friars

Smithfield Road.

Raven Meadows.

Roushill. The drain I pictured earlier is still bubbling up.

Chester Street.

Looking along Cross Street to Chester Street. I understand the occupants of this car were brought out by boat.

Old Coleham. I hope the new development on the right will be flood resistant.

Nobody is going anywhere fast on the inner ring road..........

............or on the new bypass either it seems.

 

[AndreaJ]

It must be a long time since Shrewsbury last flooded like that.

 

[twentysix by twentyfive]

Looks like Upton is about to flood tonight. A colleague who lives in Ryall was saying the other day that the new raised road was supposed to be above the 100 year event height, it is something that within its first year of service it's already being overtopped.

Stay safe everyone.

It's odd but as they built it I didn't think it was high enough. The usual flooding spot at the Marina wasn't raised much at all. The Hanley Road floods much, much more often, yet no efforts to do anything about that. Something strange about the planning goes on somewhere.

There's a widening project going on on the Worcester south link. Supposed to mitigate queuing and free up land for housing on this side of the river. But there's a pinch point at Powick so unless Powick is knocked down that will be the usual limitation. Furthermore it floods on the approach to the south link at Powick with apparently no attempt to deal with that. Mega bucks being spent but with probably no real benefit.

 

[Rickshaw Phil]

It must be a long time since Shrewsbury last flooded like that.

Around 10 years since it last affected Coleham and Smithfield road like this I think. It came up higher still in 2000 but isn't going to match that this time. Having said that, there is more heavy rain forecast in Wales over the next couple of days so who knows what will happen.

I've been down again today to accompany my brother as he needed to check the situation at work (he works on the Sabrina pleasure boat). The river peaked overnight at 4.85 metres and had dropped to about 4.75 by the time I got there.

I'm really surprised at the number of people who think that the road closures don't apply to them and had to talk one driver out of driving through the flooded length of Longden Coleham as they'd have washed more water into the flooded shops and couldn't have passed the flood barrier at Coleham Head anyway.

There was another on Smithfield Road that weaved round two lots of cones and road closed signs only to be confronted by the water.

I should emphasise that on the whole, Shrewsbury is open for business. Just use park-and-ride if arriving by car or walk or cycle to the centre.

Edit to add: I almost forgot to mention the guy who was attempting to deliver a piece of equipment to St. Julian's Friars. I saw him turn away from the closure while I was there then near the English Bridge saw him again (after he'd been on a long detour round the edge of town). The site he was trying to get to is at least 3 feet under water but nobody had thought to let him know he couldn't deliver. I was able to advise that getting there wasn't going to happen today and last I saw he was trying to phone his boss for further instructions.

Another edit to add: Doug tells me that he got surprised while working when what he thought was a chunk of log moved and turned out to be an otter. I didn't know we had them around here (unless it got swept down to us from elsewhere). They also had a bit of an issue as someone forgot to move the bins from under the gangway and they were crushed as the angle changed with the rising water. Oops.

12.9 miles at 8 mph average. More walking than cycling.

Leaving Doug at the boat. The gangway he is on would usually be well below the level of the quay.

Smithfield Road. The fire engine is on its way to the Shrewsbury Hotel where the fire alarm was warbling away merrily.

Roushill. The water is higher than when I was last here but the line of debris at the edge shows it's fallen from the peak.

Raven Meadows - again higher than when I was last here. I splashed through the water yesterday but I'm not going to attempt it today.

The bus station. No services from here today.

Smithfield Road again from Frankwell footbridge. With it being half-term lots of people have brought their kids down to splash in the water.

On the Frankwell side of the bridge the one set of steps is a no go.

The whole length of Longden Coleham is now flooded and there is water in many of the shops unfortunately. Doesn't stop people wanting to drive through though.

Acess to and from Greyfriars footbridge is only for those with wellies today.

A diferent angle of Coleham Head.

 

[gavgav]

It must be a long time since Shrewsbury last flooded like that.

22 years I think, certainly not seen it this bad for many many years.

 

[Dave 123]

A few rides recently that I’ve not put in here...

a day off today as Lisa and Georgia have gone to Chichester, I’m on dog duty.

We went for a walk on Mothecombe beach at 7.30 for a few hours,?then I went straight out on my Spa. I was surprised to see the cows out, the ground is soaked.
A few new lambs, 4 buzzards and a pair of yellowhammers

https://www.strava.com/activities/3113343457

 

[Old jon]

Brrrr! But you all know that. New stuff, I took the geared bike out for a ride this morning. Almost predictable and certainly not unusual. Just like the temperature in February.

Checking over the bike before starting, with a bit more care than normal, all looked in good order. And thirty one miles later all was still in good order, so I guess the build has settled. Though I will not be surprised if the guess is wrong. Time to ride, down the oddly quiet main road and then wander through Holbeck. Ride along Water Lane, under the wings, and become aware of the wind. Goody, a tailwind. This helped all the way across the river and up to the clock at Oakwood, and further as well but not very noticeable while climbing Boot Hill. That is always a heave. Just after the crest turn right onto Red Hall Lane.

Skeltons Lane then leads to the first Thorner Lane of the ride, turn left and ride through that village. And for the first time in a while leave by way of Milner Lane. A quiet road, a few houses on one side, big green hill on the other. And a sharp little hill that leads to the junction with the second version of Thorner Lane. Stay on the flatter stretch of Milner Lane and dodge a few dog walkers. Not fair really, they are well behaved.



Continue to East Rigton, turn right at Rigton Green and at the top of the rise turn right again towards Bramham. Don’t often go this way, a nice change. West Woods Road from Bramham to Wattle Syke and down that to Collingham. This is the A58, and after a bite to eat I rode all the way into Leeds, up the hills and down. A squiggle back across the river and the final climb of the day brought me to my front door. All them miles and 1699 feet of up ( innit annoying, a number like that? ) and still my feet were freezing. But the smile was also there, for a good ride.

Strange, the way roads meander about

 

[twentysix by twentyfive]

Weather forecast was a bit iffy. I headed out anyway for the standard circuit of the Hills. The weather was actually not bad at all and despite recent storms the roads were fine. I met Will D just above Ledbury so we rode to Eastnor together. Mark B came the other way so we exchanged notes on the state of flooding on the Severn. It's a notable event for sure. The usual spot at Bromsberrow was flooded. An easy dodge is available. A bit of drizzle accompanied my last miles but it didn't stop me buying some onion sets to plant when the weather improves. 40 smiles

 

[pjd57]

A routine trip across to the east end of Glasgow. Waiting in for a delivery.

Only thing of note was the weather.
Wet , but for the first time in a week, no wind.

 

[AndreaJ]

Actually managed to finish a ride today without having to cut it short because of the weather or punctures. I wanted to try the route I had planned on Monday so apart from a detour to Poolhead to avoid the floods near Edstaston the start was the same as Monday but carried on to Colemere and part way round the mere before taking the wrong lane to Whitemere which was still the right direction just a bit further up the Ellesmere-Shrewsbury road then back to the plan past Whitemere to Lee, past Ellesmere College, into Ellesmere, out to Elson, Trench, back to the Mere at Ellesmere, Coptiviney taking a few guesses as to which turnings I wanted to get to Welshampton ( I have only come this way from the other direction, it’s surprising how different places look from the other way) there aren’t too many direction signs and quite a few lanes to choose from, luckily I was correct and got to Welshampton, Hampton Bank, Northwood and home. Most of the floods have either gone or are only part way across the lanes now so I didn’t get wet feet this time. Weather wasn’t that good but better than it had been.42.18 miles@14.3 mph.

 

[Algarvecycling]

Went to Portimao to see the start of this years Volta ao Algarve and wished the guys a good race.

 

[EltonFrog]

A filthy day, I just needed to pop to the post office which is a couple of miles away, I'm trying no to use the car for short journeys but i nearly did today. I got the bike out and it wasn't raining hard but it was windy, did the two miles to Blewbury with the most horrendous side wind for the first mile.
After I finished in the PO i went outside and it was lashing down, rather than face the headwind I carried on towards and down the B4016 along a bit of open road where the rain was stinging my face, then to East Hagbourne, where there was some protection from the wind, but not much. I finally got home soaked through to the skin. A bracing 6.13 miles