Peloton and on.

[hirez]

Today's objective was a forty mile potter out into the countryside, which was conveniently the distance to Chew Valley Reservoir and back. (Ok, 39-and-a-bit miles) I'm now reasonably tired and a bit more convinced that I can hack the distances I've been talking about of late.

I was entirely unconvinced about thirty seconds before spotting the dam over a hedge, mind.

National Cycle Route 10 takes one through the villages of Woollard, Publow and Pensford, to name just the jaw-slackeningly picturesque ones. And past a very well looked-after red Saab 99 turbo, several less well looked-after Series Landies, the skeletal remains of a barn... All sorts of splendid countryside malarkey down roads no wider than a narrow car. I fear I whistled 'In party mood'[1] rather a lot.

One thing that I've noticed in the last couple of years is that when I was growing up amongst similarly pretty countryside (Well, when it was summer. At other times of the year, my corner of the North Cotswolds took on the appearance of a particularly blasted heath. At least that's what I thought until I went to Cambourne...) it was tedious as all hell and I'd far rather look at pretty much anything with an internal combustion engine. Or external, I wasn't that fussy. Apart from watching the wind ripple across in-ear barley. If that doesn't move you, then you're beyond any help I can give.

These days I can't get enough of the stuff. Daft, isn't it?



All from here.






[1] The Housewife's Choice theme.

Comments

[silentq.livejournal.com]

Your ride was more picturesque than mine. :) And sunnier!
Granted, my suburban living self still loves to get out into the ... well, outer suburbs, where there are no stop lights and the roads are lined with stone walls that keep back the trees.

[hirez.livejournal.com]

I think I was lucky. It was damp and windy on Friday, windy yesterday and hot and sometimes overcast today.

One of my favourite things about Bristol is that it just stops. The houses don't peter out, they're just not there any more. Well, inasmuch as any part of the southern UK is house-free.

I should try and bung it up on MapMyRide.

[silentq.livejournal.com]

Heh, the sun just came out, ah well, I avoided getting burned at least, and didn't over heat. :)
I started off on the Minuteman bike path, an railway bed that's been converted into a paved multi-use trail - it runs behind houses and businesses and gets you into the greenery pretty quickly. I generally need to go about 3-5 miles west for the houses to peter off, but I'm sort of on the north western edge of the heavily settled area.
I liked mapping out my proposed ride on the site, but I couldn't get it to print out, so I ended up just using it as a remembered guideline for when I was looking at my map on the road (though I ended up following it in the end, barring missing one turn and doubling back).

[hirez.livejournal.com]

Ah. Sunburn. I knew there was something. Oh well, it'll fade in a day or so.

Thankfully, the cycle routes are well signposted.

(And I was waylaid by a nice man from www.sustrans.org yet again. I obviously fit their profile.)

[inulro.livejournal.com]

Pensford is a bit ridiculously picturesque, isn't it?

[hirez.livejournal.com]

Yes. I'm not a great one for mob-handed Sunday pub lunches (because of the tiresome braying scum that would clog my local boozer's carpark with their BMWs and un-offroaded Rangerovers), but I'd cheerfully make an exception there.

[athenais.livejournal.com]

That church and cemetery is a rather nice photo. Where's that, then?

[hirez.livejournal.com]

Pensford again.

http://www.pensford.com/history.php

[athenais.livejournal.com]

Goodness. It's so charming my teeth hurt. Makes me miss England, I'll say that.

[quercus.livejournal.com]

Charming these days, apparently a bit of a war zone in its day. Full of miners with a fondness for a pint or many of a weekend.

[hirez.livejournal.com]

... And neatly bisected by the A37, which slightly takes the edge off the charm.

[aeia.livejournal.com]

been through it lots on the A37, must venture into the village proper sometime!

Thats a long hilly ride you did!

[hirez.livejournal.com]

It didn't look that bad on Google maps. Then I had a shuftie at the OS because it's actually useful and contains cycle routes and contours... And went 'Oh shit'.

I need to go buy more proper paper maps. This internet business is a bit rubbish.

[reddragdiva]

What are you using for a camera for cycle trips? Something chosen for robustness, I assume.

[hirez.livejournal.com]

A S-E K610i, oddly enough. Mostly chosen for not being an annoying lump in the pocket.

[reddragdiva]

Not bad! That explains the phonecam-like pixelation, then. The S-E Kxxxi line are surprisingly good cameras for phones, particularly in daylight.

[hirez.livejournal.com]

Yes. It took a while to work out that the auto white-balance doesn't, and if there's too much sky it has a bit of a fit, but it's none too bad.

Of course I'd rather have a digital Lomo, but that's basically me wanting a Leica D-Lux.