With three fast riders the pace was bound to be brisk. We were in South Brent in what seemed liked minutes, buying refreshments and lunches to keep us going over the moor. Another sprint along the back lanes brought us to Ivybridge and the long climb past the paper mill towards Harford. The lanes here are delightful at this time of year, but our target was the shady tree beside Harford church itself. On arrival we were dismayed to see that two elderly ladies had settled in our spot with a picnic rug laid out on the grass. We needn't have worried, however, as they invited us to join them and entertained us with tales of many a moorland ramble. Joe seemed more interested in the horse in the stable block opposite - it kept stepping back, charging at its door and then snorting with frustration!

The next stage of the ride involved traversing a section of featureless moorland to join the Redlake tramway. The baking heat made the journey feel more like a desert trek, but finally we hit the tramway and lay down for a well-earned rest and drink. Michael had planned to continue across the tramway and down the hill to South Brent, but Joe and Gavin were keen to take the extended off road route inland along the tramway, a ride they both missed a few weeks ago. And so it was that we rode four miles along the rough track, picked our way through huge expanses of cotton grass to Petre's Cross, plunged down the hillside to the river Avon, picked our way gingerly across the stepping stones and rode along the Abbots Way.

We paused awhile to admire the spectacular view of the Avon Dam, sharing Michael's Lemon Meringue Pie to add to the pleasure of the moment. The need for large drinks spurred us on along our favourite track, past many moorland cattle and down the superb descent to Cross Furzes and home. Milk shakes never tasted as good as they did today!