Your ride today....

[SatNavSaysStraightOn]

Today was another ride day and I had 3 planned rides and could not make up my mind which one I wanted. 2 had café stops, the other one didn't, and that was the one we eventually decided on. All 3 would be 'longest rides to date' rides, but the other 2 had 'issues', so we selected the one without the café stop and went for it. Now I planned it to be leisurely and to have some scheduled stops. It also had some significance in that it used to my Sunday morning ride with my husband when we had only a morning available and nothing planned.

So off we set, after applying the battle paint (BBC weather stated the predicted UV rating would be 8 on a scale of 1-7) and headed off north for a ride that was to be my longest and Rachel's longest to date.

It was one of those days where there wasn't really much to photo, so I will subject you to a general picture and yet another 22 degree halo! Yep we say another one, along with a sundog (Parhelia), a possible lower tangent arc and a strange green cloud on the horizon. I am sure there is an explanation, but I checked with Rachel and she confirmed I was not seeing things, but it was definitely green and sadly I could not photo it.

We had a really pleasant ride, stopped twice, once at Lewis Carroll's Birthplace and again at Arley Hall. I had planned these stops and I suspect that they helped with my overall speed.

Like I said, another 22 degree halo, though not complete sadly.
But the overall result was that despite a very slow uphill up a nasty ascent on the way home which Rachel managed well, stopping twice I still managed my fastest speed to date and my longest ride and if anyone had told me that 47.5km was 800m short of being 30 miles (that's 1/2 mile short for those not keeping up there at the back) I would have ridden my lane again, but sadly they didn't... so perhaps at the weekend I may make 30 miles? Anyhow https://www.strava.com/activities/338189262 just shy of 30 miles and my speed is slowly coming up, honest! But more to the point, despite the heat of today, I actually feel fine right now. I don't feel like I have cycled my furthest today and I don't feel like I have done my fastest overall speed.

 

[nickyboy]

Too good an opportunity to miss. Low twenties, light SE, plenty of sunshine. Managed to get a load of work done early morning so I got out 0930. Big loop......Glossop - Whaley Bridge - Tideswell (The Cathedral in the Peak...again) - Eyam (the Plague village) - Hathersage - Glossop. 95km with 1,500m of climbing
Even having done something like 15,000km in the past three years I'm still finding new lanes to try. Must have ridden 20km of roads I've never ridden on before

Eyam is famous for being the "Plague village". When bubonic plague arrived in Eyam in 1665 they chose to isolate themselves rather than risk passing it on to other villages nearby. For me it is now famous for a real nasty climb out of the village to the top of the escarpment. Here's what it looks like from the top

It was getting hot and there were happy people sitting outside the pubs on the way. I envied them. But I pressed on. Shortly after this photo the road was closed due to landslip but I got through. It's a persistent problem up here. Roads on steep hills and lots or rain are a bad combination.

Nice descent into Hathersage. This is a small village but it is home to the Hathersage Lido. We aren't blessed by Lidos (is that the plural of Lido or is it "Lido"?) and it was doing good business on a hot and sunny day. Here's a stock image

This also gave me my earworm for the rest of the ride home


View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DIu0jQ5TaRQ


......one more for the roooooooooooaaaaaaaaaaaaaaad........

Quick stop at the Spar in Hathersage. Chance to make a tasteful bike & flowers shot. It also shows my new 1 litre waterbottles. Needed them today....and that included a refill of non-potable water from Tideswell toilets (don't tell Mrs N)

Hot and sweaty up over the Snake Pass. Should have been a fast descent into Glossop but too many cautious drivers. I actually managed to pass a couple of cars when I was doing about 50mph which was probably a bit of a shock to them.

On the ride I must have passed a dozen good pubs. I had gone beer-tastic by the time I got home. Opened a nice cool amber ale. Here it is in a rather poncy garden setting with the Snake Pass in the background

 

[IDMark2]

@SatNavSaysStraightOn...well done you.Like Martyn Ashton's recent return to his bike, we're loving your progress too!

Right, my ride today.. I planned to get up to the Bystock Ponds which is a nature reserve near Budleigh Salterton managed by the Devon Wildlife Trust. To get there though I had to get up to it's height via a few back lanes. On the way I had to go past the Castle at Woodbury Common which has a suberb viewpoint over the Exe estuary.

That view is worth the effort of getting up there.
Next is the ponds, there are a good few walks around the reserve which encompasses more area than I managed to see today. At the planned halfway point of my ride I was happy to sit, have my banana, flapjack and a drink while I sat in the sun overlooking the main pond. There were some basking Terrapins around the corner, on a log sticking out of the pond, unfortunately my camera lens wasn't telephoto enough to get a shot but I know to take the proper kit up next time. Some good Macro opportunities too, all kinds of Damsel and Dragonflies abound. They do Bat walks some nights with the handheld monitors, about 7 species last time apparently as well as Nightjars.

After a final climb up to the Common again I then descended down into Yettington and on into Otterton. As I climbed an Adder crossed the road in front of me but he was moving too quick for me to reach around and get the camera out of the trunk bag, so that's one I can keep in my memory and unfortunately not share with you! There were some cracking views on my way down as well but when gravity is providing the energy I'm not stopping...

At Otterton I came upon an unfortunate juxtaposition..what sort of coffee was at this event? Looks like it might be shark infested.

On the road from Otterton back to Tipton some of the terrain made my choice of crosser type bike make sense... Last nights heavy rainfall had washed a lot of mud from the higher fields out over the lanes, this wasn't the first one I came upon... I wouldn't want to ride the lightweight speed machine over this.

As I headed back home there were a few spits starting to hit my glasses and the sun was hiding more regularly, I think I had experienced the best of the day, so a quick bypass of Ottery and home via the Talaton road.
A shade over 45km today, not fast but that's rarely the point.

 

[Racing roadkill]

https://www.strava.com/activities/338261645

Joey the war horse, it turns out he didn't want a sugar cube.

Very impressive military horses, I think they wanted some sugar cubes.

Princess Anne, I'm saying nothing.

Poignant Poppy's on Catherine's mount.

Owslebury.

Winchester Hat fair.

 

[gordyfinbar]

A whole week without a ride, and I was bursting to get out today. Should have been out with @gordyfinbar, @Dark46, @maltloaf etc and the rest of the club today, but I'm on my hols this week in sunny Languedoc instead. Weather "scorchio" today (35c), so spent most of it in the pool. Fortunately I got out early and avoided the worst of the heat. Started off from St Nazaire de Ladarez, the hill village we are staying at. Not a cloud in the sky, and about 21c already by 7.30am.
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Rode down the valley of the river Orb ....
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...... through the St Chinian AOC vineyards as far as Roquebrun. The sun was getting a bit hotter by this point, and dozens of cyclists were out and about from Beziers with their clubs or in ones and twos for a Sunday ride in the hills... At on point an old chap on a bike, wearing his local club kit, stopped me for a chat. I was pleased to be able to chat away in French, and I got him to take my picture for me. Sod's law.... it wouldn't download on Cyclechat! At one point he mentioned that he was heading up into the mountains from Beziers (must be a 60 mile round trip at least), but that he "wasn't quite on form today". Turned out he was 80 years old!!! That put my own efforts into perspective. A beautiful ride today, with very little flat road, but totally manageable hills. Great views everywhere, and was accompanied by the constant sound of cicadas.
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Made my way back via Cessenon sur Orb, where there were massive trout in the river, and people preparing to go kayaking ...
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A lovely 18.2 miler before breakfast, and a great start to my hols. Plan to get up and out before 7am tomorrow for more of the same, but probably heading southwards towards Beziers. Came across this mobile butcher on my route...
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Shame there wasn't a Cyclechat photo challenge to find a Frenchman wearing a beret. I've been coming to France for years and had never seen one before. Oh well, I'm off to bed now .... early start tomorrow.
Enjoy your own rides everyone.
Cheers, Donger.

Looks like your having a good time

 

[ScotiaLass]

https://www.strava.com/activities/338261645

View attachment 94790

Joey the war horse, it turns out he didn't want a sugar cube.


View attachment 94791
Very impressive military horses, I think they wanted some sugar cubes.

View attachment 94792

Princess Anne, I'm saying nothing.

View attachment 94793


Poignant Poppy's on Catherine's mount.


View attachment 94794

Owslebury.

View attachment 94796


Winchester Hat fair.

Was that Windsor?

 

[Racing roadkill]

Was that Windsor?

Romsey.

 

[Katherine]

https://www.strava.com/activities/338261645

View attachment 94790

Joey the war horse, it turns out he didn't want a sugar cube.


View attachment 94791
Very impressive military horses, I think they wanted some sugar cubes.

View attachment 94792

Princess Anne, I'm saying nothing.

View attachment 94793


Poignant Poppy's on Catherine's mount.


View attachment 94794

Owslebury.

View attachment 94796


Winchester Hat fair.

Isn't that St Catherine's Hill?
I grew up in Winchester and have been enjoying your photos.

 

[ScotiaLass]

Romsey.

Ah!

 

[Racing roadkill]

Isn't that St Catherine's Hill?
I grew up in Winchester and have been enjoying your photos.

Yep, hell of an effort to get up from the Morstead end, but well worth it.

 

[gavroche]

I only did a 12 miles ride after work but with the heat and wind against me most of the way, I was shattered when I got home.

 

[Hill Wimp]

34 miles in searing 35 degree heat between Delft and Gouda.

Left beautiful Delft after a good nights sleep in the 70s retro themed b&b The Soul Inn ( highly recommended ).

Our route followed the direct route of, for want of a better description, the red cycle paths through some lovely countryside and even a little ferry crossing.

Arrived in Gouda feeling like the next 40km were never going to happen so had lunch and a beer and got a train ticket to Maarssen, our next b&b for the TDF.

Changed at Utrecht at 1617 got on the final 10 minute journey to be theown off by an officious Dutch female conductor. The train wasn't busy and no amount of its hot, just this once, i am a daft tourist would help so off we got to wait for the next train we were allowed on the 1847.

Sat and watched the station gear up for the TT tomorrow for which we will be back for and finally got on our train.

Google saved us on route to the b&b after maps.me failed us in spectacular fashion.

All in a great day and the b&b is 5* .

Now for a steak dinner .

 

[coffeejo]

That was meant to be a pleasant 50 mile bimble in the sunshine but it turned out to be a bit more exciting than anticipated. For the second time this week, I returned a wandering dog to its rightful home, scared the living daylights out of two people (I can't help it, I just have that effect), and came scarily close to witnessing a crash after a numpty decided to overtake me (on a fast descent) into oncoming traffic. Fortunately the driver of the other car had her attention on the road and wasn't distracted so was able to slam on her brakes in time. Some people shouldn't be allowed in charge of anything more powerful than a square-wheeled unicycle.

 

[SatNavSaysStraightOn]

@SatNavSaysStraightOn...well done you.Like Martyn Ashton's recent return to his bike, we're loving your progress too!

thank you. I am pleasantly surprised at how good I still feel this evening! I think the 2 rest breaks during the ride must have helped much more than I realised and I never planned for it to be a fast ride, hence it being my fastest ! You know how these things work!

 

[Donger]

Fifth & final ride in Languedoc: had a free pass from Mrs Donger to take as long as I like, so I got out on the road before the farm workers at 6.35am and went for a longer one.

I actually overtook a vehicle today. Okay, so it was only a tractor (one of those little narrow ones that fits between the rows of vines). But I'm having it. Also overtook a nasty looking dog that came hurtling towards me at an angle. By the time I could hear his paws pattering on the road behind me, I was out of there. I don't know how fast he was going, but I do know it wasn't 25.2mph, because I got away. Gave me a bit of an adrenaline rush though, so I settled myself down by remembering my daily mantra- "Remember, in this country they drive on the wrong side of the road" and I carried on with my ride, equilibrium restored.

At 33.6 miles, this was my longest ride this week. Headed off up the Orb valley past Roquebrun to Vieussan, where I crossed the river by an old stone bridge before heading off up a series of hairpins into what I considered to be the mountains. (Not quite sure when a hill becomes a mountain, but the little road up to Mezeilles and Escagnes certainly felt like a mountain road).

After the first couple of hairpins, I came face to face with this cracking view across the river to the hilltop village of Vieussan, which I was now level with ...

Carried on up a steep little road past vine terraces and big stone bluffs, then dropped back down a couple of hundred metres to the mountain village of Escagnes, where I sat in the shade for a moment on this bench opposite the mairie for a few minutes, feeling pleased with my efforts.

No rest for the wicked, though, and I had to climb back out of the village before getting the benefit of an exhilarating glide back down to Vieussan. In this next shot you can see Vieussan still looking tiny down below a series of hairpins.....

Then got a move on to shift my ass back to St Nazaire de Ladarez before the sun got too hot. Couldn't help stopping for a picture when I passed through the Gorge de l'Orb though ....

Stopped off at Roquebrun to reserve a table for lunch on the terrace at a restaurant overlooking the river, and then again at the boulangerie in St Nazaire to pick up a baguette for breakfast. That's 127 beautiful miles in the Herault department this week in five pre-breakfast rides. Man, I'm really going to miss all this. Back to w*rk next week. Bummer!
Cheers, Donger.