Following on from last Wednesday’s London ride, when the
weather was perfect, a week later and a return to winter conditions! Between
the groups we experienced virtually every sort of weather, sunshine on the way
out, rain after lunch followed by hailstones showers intermixed with sunshine.
Tony’s Group
There was a strong turnout
at Molesey Boat Club, with my group setting off first at 10:30. The ride began
smoothly as we headed into Bushy Park, continuing along the River Crane Path
and across Hounslow Heath. Thankfully, we encountered no “highwaymen” along the
way and made steady progress.
Our route then took us along
Parkway towards Cranford, west to Sipson, and northwards across the Grand Union
Canal. After crossing Horton Road, we joined a pleasant cycle path, but
unfortunately our progress was halted by crime scene tape, forcing a diversion.
Having ridden this route many times before, I was able to guide the group
around the obstruction.
We continued past Hillingdon
Hospital and arrived at our lunch stop, The Red Lion Hotel. Although I had
passed it many times enroute to Uxbridge, this was my first visit inside. The
Fuller's-owned pub and hotel, with over 50 rooms, is beautifully maintained
despite its age, offering a warm atmosphere with plenty of cosy seating areas.
Food service was a little
slow, but the quality more than made up for it. As other groups began to
arrive, the weather took a turn, with heavy rain setting in just as we were
preparing to leave. With dark skies looming, I suggested a quicker, more direct
return route back to Bushy Park, which the group agreed was the best option.
With the wind now behind us,
the return journey was brisk and enjoyable. After a quick photo stop by an old
tractor, we rode through Stockley Park, under the M4, and into Heathrow. From
there, we followed the cycle path to Feltham, stopping to shelter from hailstones
showers, re-joining the Crane River Path before heading
through Fulwell and back into Bushy Park.
Francis left us at a
crossroads to make his way home by 4:30, and Steph continued without stopping
for tea, leaving four of us to pause briefly. A few riders from other groups
arrived, though most opted to head straight home.
Despite the windy and cold
conditions, it was a great day out with a fantastic group of friends. It was
also nice to see Pam arrive at elevenses. Many thanks to Ray for planning a
route to such an excellent lunch venue, to my group—Steph, Mick, Francis, Bob,
and Martin—and a special thanks to Francis for back marking throughout the
ride.
Tony
Tony’s Group at the
entrance to Hale Field Park
Maddie’s Group
Madeleine’s group consisted of the hardy and
wise Tim Gibbons, backmarker and guide, and the good company of Jane F, Fixie
Dave and Martina. We had a fairly uneventful morning ride and particularly
enjoyed the off-road sections. Even experienced riders hadn’t been on many
parts of the route. Like all groups, we struggled against the strong headwinds
for the last part of the morning but enjoyed good cheer and even a photo shoot
along the way.
Like other groups, we were diverted by lots of
convincing police tape. Unlike other groups who found sensible on-road ways
round. We visited a nearby grassland in the wilds next to Uxbridge FC. Martina
had the good sense to join Ray’s groups for this special outing.
The warm stop at the pub was much appreciated, but
sadly, I didn’t record the appalled faces as the sky darkened and we witnessed
a magnificent hailstorm. Thank goodness, it was over fairly quickly!
The afternoon ride started well. We got to the
canal and were able to shelter under a bridge during some more inclement
weather. On seeing Ray’s group, we skedaddled ahead but let them catch us
when my navigation started to fail. Instead of trusting Ray more than my
satnav, I treated my group to a special tour of the cycle lanes along some
major A roads around Southall. And then back again. They were mostly very
appreciative of this bonus, though I did turn round suddenly to catch one
mouthing quite a bad swear word….
We made a new route which was effectively an un-romantic
beeline back to Twickenham. Luckily, Tim soon realised that we were
intersecting Ray’s original route. With great relief for all of us, he then led
us back to safety.
Just as we re-joined the Crane River and knew we
were getting close, Jane had a puncture. Despite having one of the best tyre
fitters in the business in Dave, it was very tricky to get the blooming tyre
off the rim, so a long time for even Fixie magic to work. Under Tim’s guidance
we made it through the gloaming to Bushey Park, too late for tea, but just in
time for Jane to fit in another puncture. Dave and Tim sorted her out enough
for her to get a lift home from a friend, thank goodness. I think we were all
happy to be home and warm by nightfall.
Ray’s Group
We were the third group to leave at 10.50 and was made up of
Tim C, Anne, Paul, Pete, Stephen and myself. As we pedalled our way across
Hampton Bridge the sky looked encouraging with the sun starting to break
through. Turning left into Bushy Park we cycled, traffic free, along to Laurel
Road where we joined some quiet roads before joining Wellington Road. At the
Great Chertsey Road we entered the western path of the river Crane. Using
various quiet roads or cycle tracks we by-passed Heathrow and West Drayton
before coming across Maddie’s group and police tape stopping us from using a
cycle path next to Chestnut Avenue Children’s Playground. After looking at the
map we then circled back and used Whitehorn Avenue to bypass the problem. It
was then a case of completing the ride to our lunch time stop, the Red Lion
Hotel.
The food was good and the staff friendly and welcoming but unfortunately
service was ‘relaxed’, which meant that we had time to chat. We then watched
the other two groups leave before setting off ourselves.
On leaving the pub, we entered the winter weather part of
our journey. The rain had briefly stopped but the roads were still wet. We returned
down the hill till Colham Road where we turned left and had an easy run, with
the wind behind us plus the slightly downhill roads, progress was quick. At Stilwell Roundabout we entered a path that
took us into Hale Field Park. Just after exiting the park the first hailstorm
briefly stopped progress as we all sheltered under some trees. We then entered
Lake Farm Country Park before exiting at Botwell Road, where once again we
stopped to put on rainwear and took shelter in a bus stop. Then along down to
the Grand Union Canal where the surface was rough in sections but dry. At
Weston Road Bridge we left the canal path and used the road running parallel to
the canal to reach the next bridge at the Old Oak Tree pub. After crossing the bridge,
we came across a horrible bit of road that was full of cars, with parents trying
to pick up their children from school. On crossing the Great West Road, we
reassembled as a group and cycled on to the Pheasantry Café at Bushy Park. It
was a relief to leave the Heston and Hounslow traffic behind.
Ray’s Group at the
start of the offroad path through Hale Field Park
There we meet up with Tony’s group and sat exchanging
stories of the ride hoping to see Maddie’s group follow us in, but they had
been delayed riding along the Crane River where Jane had two punctures. It was
overall a good ride with good company helping to make it fun for everyone.
Thank you, Tim, for back marking my group and the rest for adding the fun
element to the ride.
Ray
