Riders met with a cool start as twenty-five of us met at the ‘Pheasantry’ cafe in Bushy Park. After an initial reshuffle of groups Tony Hooker led the first followed by Steph with the second and myself leading the third.
Having completed a short pre-amble of Bushy Park we then set out over Hampton Court bridge towards Molesey with a couple of minor detours towards Walton bridge and the river.
A familiar route led us towards Weybridge then over Chertsey Meads to cross the river at Chertsey bridge. Continuing our riverside tour we headed towards Laleham, Penton Lock then the main road to Staines and onto Thorpe village.
Lunch at the Red Lion was a new experience for many of us and despite previous assurances by the proprietor the servicewas slow and somewhat disappointing. It’s always good to find new lunchtime venues but a pity when they do not live up to our expectations.
After a brief photo shoot our afternoon ride took us towards Chertsey, over the river to Shepperton then up to Upper Halliford and an off-road path around London Irish rugby ground to Sunbury, then another path to Hampton Hill.
Veteran group members may well have been aware that the planned route then took on a meandering course through Fulwell and Teddington to reach our final destination in Bushy Park. Perhaps I was feeling somewhat adventurous in planning this section of the course or just filling time !
A welcome break and teatime refreshment was taken back at the Pheasantry where we were joined by other group members.
Many thanks to my two sub-leaders Steph and Tony for taking on additional passengers at short notice and to Colin for acting as my back marker.
We would also like to welcome Peter Suchy who joined us for the first time today.
After a series of hilly and more challenging rides in previous weeks I hope you all enjoyed what proved to be a flatter and less arduous experience.
Tim G
Tony writes:
Jacqui back marked for our group of eight. There were nine when we started but Tony baled out due to cold weather.
We kept to most of Tim’s route and I agree the pub service was slow . After lunch Brian join us. We
decided to stop for tea at The Walled Garden where we were joined by Madeleine. The garden is also known for The Embroidery Centre where we were given a guided tour and an explanation of the design of the Tapestrys. We saw that they are enlarging the Garden building.
A well planed route by Tim.
Steph writes:
A rather cold start for Tim G's riverside route. With Pete Barnard hanging on the back for a bit (come back Pete we haven't seen you for ages) Arwyn, Robert, Diane, Ann B, Tim C and I negotiated Hampton Court Bridge and turned for Walton and the river. The route was well planned and easy to follow but unfortunately I punctured east of Staines. Robert and Tim manfully tackled the tube while helpfully discussing the pros and cons of various approaches. Late to lunch but gave the group a slight detour in the afternoon as reward for their patience and snapped the camel and the Lochness Monster round Penton Hook. A lovely route back to Bushy Park (why do we always wheel along Lower Sunbury when the pleasures of a traffic free path past London Irish lie only a few yards north?). Big thanks to Robert for carrying the correct adaptor for my pump - I ve now got two as I went to Halfords to get a replacement then found the original lurking in the bottom of my bag.
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| Showing Steph's version of the route |
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