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THE OLD JAIL Only 5 starters at the library on this cold, windy grey day. The
threat of rain hung heavy and that's no surprise given that on the two
previous attempts at this ride, riders had got drenched. One dropped
out along the way as we headed to Sparrow's Den for a morning stop.
It's a hidden-away kiosk at the pitch n putt course with no indoor
seating but it's well placed for this particular ride.
As soon as you set off, you're out into the countryside. A route
diversion up the steep Fox Lane meant it was possible to get into the
grounds of Holwood House and visit the Wilberforce Oak. In 1788,
William Wilberforce, the anti-slavery campaigner, discussed the
abolition of slavery with William Pitt whilst sat on the seat at the
base of the tree. Both are still there but the tree is either dead or
on its last legs.
After leaving the grounds, we rode through the picture postcard
villages and hamlets around Downe and along to the Old Jail pub. It
was particularly busy and so only food from the bar snacks menu could
be ordered as we hadn't booked. But no problem as there were no
complaints with the food.
The route after lunch climbs steadily until you're at the top of
Beddlestead Lane, giving a good long descent with the wind behind us.
A short climb up Hesiers Hill leads to another long descent on
Featherbed Lane and then one more climb up Gravel Hill in Croydon for
the fast descent down the other side into Croydon and on towards home
in an attempt to beat the oncoming rain. Out for 6hrs, 30 miles.
Sunday 11th November MARBLE HILL HOUSE 11 of us met for Sunday's ride to Marble Hill House Ð built in the
mid 18th Century by George II for his mistress, Henrietta Howard.
Wow! He must have thought more fondly about her than we did about the
weather, as we set off down the Wandle Trail bound for Wimbledon
Common. The rain fell down - so much of it that within 15 minutes our
trusty band of 11 had reduced to 6. The ride leader felt quite
envious, thinking of his (missing) cycling colleagues sitting at home
toasting bread on an open fire...!
Thankfully, the sun came out soon enough for us to dry out whilst
enjoying a brief visit at the Armistice Ceremony in Wimbledon
Village. The fact that we left promptly after the 2 minutes silence
probably had more to do with an out-of-tune rendition of "The Last
Call" than our desire for refreshment. Wimbledon Common cafe was
buzzing - taken over by Sunday morning runners, so much so that it was
mainly standing room for us.
We left the cafe with the sun on our backs and soon made our way via
the Tamsin Trail in Richmond Park, down Richmond Hill and over
Richmond Bridge to reach the tow path to the west of the Thames
which, at this point is tidal and after a bit of fun heron-spotting
from the tow path, we reach Marble Hill Park. Marble Hill Place is
impressive but regrettably it was closed to the public. Although the
house was closed, we all thought the cafe in the park very welcoming -
they went out of their way to offer good service - even including a
free plate of toast and scrambled eggs - a mix up in the kitchen over
our order!
Mindful of the shorter days now with us, we departed at 1:30pm via Ham
Common and Richmond Park bound for the Kingston Gate exit and the
National Cycling route back to base via New Malden Golf Course and
Raynes Park. The six of us stopped at Merton Abbey Mills for coffee
and a chat, all agreeing that the element of pain and discomfort we
experienced in the early part of the ride was more than outweighed by
the better conditions prevailing thereafter. Out for six hours, 34 miles.
Sunday 4th November GODSTONE VINEYARD 14 at the library on this sunny Autumn day with another meeting us
halfway. The original plan was to use the Thames Water sewage path but
a quick run over Mitcham Common left too much mud on the tyres so I
opted to stay on the tarmac and used Beddington Lane. Normally this
industrial area is not very cycle-friendly but the supermarket wasn't
open and traffic was light. We joined the Wandle Trail and cut through
Croydon to the garden centre cafe on the site of the old Purley lido.
I decided to give the urban bridleway at Haling Grove a miss to stay
out of any mud and we were rewarded with seeing one of the London to
Brighton vintage cars broken down on the Brighton Rd. Another one
further down was being handcranked by the man from the RAC!
The last few trips up Riddlesdown used the shorter but steeper option.
This time we tried Riddlesdown Rd as it levels out after a moderate
climb. As always, the views from the top are worth the effort but the
descent has had new stones added which upgrades it from 'treacherous'
to 'lethal' for cyclists. Fortunately, we all got down in one piece.
The steady climb through Marden Park is lovely. Although it's a
bridleway, it's tarmac and serves as a private road up to the
Woldingham Sacred Heart school. At the top, you meet the North Downs
way, a long distance footpath that stretches from Farnham to Dover.
The surface resembles a gravelly farm track at this point so care has
to be taken as you swoop down with the vines of the vineyard on your
left. Generally there's no time for admiring the view as you need to
watch where your wheel is going!
The cafe at the vineyard has been patchy in the past. We've had some
great times but also a frustrating experience when the kitchen
couldn't cope with our arrival. Today we reached a new low. Despite
calling ahead and leaving a message that we were coming, that wasn't
good enough for the woman manning the cafe. She wanted several days
notice and exact numbers. A separate room had been set aside for us
although it wasn't requested. Several chose to sit on the terrace and
enjoy the sun but they were told that those tables were reserved for
'regular' customers. They subsequently remained empty the entire time
we were there. At least 50% of the menu wasn't available and even
then, there was confusion over what they did and didn't have. It put a
real downer on the visit and we won't be going back.
It's difficult to do a return journey that doesn't go over Farthing
Downs, simply because it is so amazing that this piece of open
countryside with it's unfenced road is so close to Croydon. On the
way, you pass Chaldon church which is not only a cute 10th century
building but also houses what amounts to a tourist attraction, the
earliest known English wall painting dating from 1200, depicting the
Ladder of Salvation. It was whitewashed over in the 17th century and
rediscovered during decoration works in 1869.
Whilst resting at the car park, we saw an acrobatic plane going
through some moves. The only problem with enjoying Farthing Down is
that the exhilarating descent dumps you in Coulsdon, under the new
bypass, with no pleasant route back to Mitcham. On top of that,
there's a giant hill to ride up unless you opt for miles of main road.
Instead of the mountainous climb on Smitham Downs, I decided to try
Grovelands Rd. At first glance, it looked just as steep but the climb
was much shorter which meant it was the right choice.
Instead of going straight down Wallington High St, we nipped left and
used parallel roads all the way into Carshalton and then into
Beddington Park for a final stop. By this point, most people had
drifted off as the sun was on the verge of setting.Out for 7.5hrs, 31 miles.
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