With two last minutes cancellations we were down to six for our major summer weekend trip to Tintagel. The weather had been unsettled for weeks but we were hoping that the forecast dry spell on Saturday afternoon would materialise.

Everyone was loaded into our two Volvo estates before 10am but our journey had two interruptions, the first by Charles to refuel his car at Lee Mill and the second by Michael to buy an OS map at Launceston. He couldn't find his own Bude map at home, so had reserved one at Smiths in Launceston and then programmed his Satnav to take us straight to the shop! It worked almost faultlessly, and Olly and Ashley were able to nip out to buy the map in no time at all.

Very heavy showers accompanied our journey, leaving the youngsters rather concerned about the ride, but the rain stopped as we parked and not a drop more fell for the rest of the day! Bearing in mind the forecast for rain tomorrow morning we parked the cars at Langdon, near Canworthy Water and just a few miles from Tintagel.

We took the flat cycle route the three miles to Week St Mary, where we were surprised to see that Wallace and Gromit were in town - the “Anti Pesto” van was parked in the town square! We bought some refreshments in the post office, then, in view of the increasing sunshine, we decided to continue along the cycle route to Bude. We were very careful of course not to tell the youngsters that we were heading away from the hostel!

The route was relatively flat despite dire warnings from a local resident, taking took us along a scenic canal path into Bude. This was the first ever club visit to Bude, and we were greeted by a raft and canoe race on the picturesque canal where many youngsters and the watching crowd were making a great deal of noise.

We bought lunch at the local Post Office, then Ashley demonstrated his local knowledge by leading us all to a grassy bank overlooking the main beach. We ate our lunch there whilst watching a very red gentleman helping his children to build a sandcastle that was taller than himself!

At 2.30 it was definitely time to be heading for Tintagel. We took the coastal road, also part of the cycle route, which proved fairly easy as far as Widemouth Bay but then gave us a few challenges in the form of single arrow and even double arrow climbs. Olly and Ashley were pleased to take a short rest in a little cavern that we found on the side of one of the climbs.

We had thought about visiting Crackington Haven, a popular but secluded beach, but that would have involved another descent and climb that would have been a hill too far for our tired younger riders, so instead we took the main roads to Boscastle, scene of major floods in 2004 and a smaller repeat flood just a few days earlier. The cafe owner seemed pleased to tell us that he was closed at 5.05 even though he could see six of us with money to spend, so we spent our money instead in the local shop buying expensive organic ice creams. Fred bought two flavours in his cone, then managed to let the chocolate part fall to the ground just seconds after taking the first bite! He was so frustrated that he actually scooped up the bits that weren't in contact with the ground!

We had a look at Boscatle youth hostel where the warden showed us photographs of the 2004 flood - rivers could be seen flowing out of the hostel windows! Now it had all been redecorated inside and looked immaculate if a little modern.

The last four miles to Tintagel were hilly, but everyone coped after the rest at Boscastle. As we clocked 30 miles we stopped at the Londis supermarket in Tintagel: it offered a good range of food and drinks, including the special kind of Polos that Fred likes! The sun shone for us as we negotiated the track that leads across the headland, and suddenly there was the hostel, hidden from view until the last, offering spectacular views of the coast from its secluded location.

We had dormitory 1, not our favourite dorm but comfortable nevertheless and offering reasonable sea views. When everyone had showered and beds had been made we set about preparing food in the modern kitchen. There was initial concern about the tap water, which looked more like milk as it came out of the tap, but after being left to settle for a minute or so it turned clear, suggesting the colouration as mainly air bubbles. And speaking of milk, Michael spent considerable time introducing the youngsters to the delights of condensed milk, which he had purchased to go with his tinned raspberries. Everyone tried it, but only Fred was a true convert, finishing off the tin and asking for his membership card for the Condensed Milk Club!

Tintagel castle was the destination for our evening excursion. We parked the bikes at the top of the steep path and walked down to the ruins in the fading evening light. The main ruins on the island were closed but we got a good feel for the scale and history surrounding the place, reputed to be associated with King Arthur. Michael found a very slippery stone near the cove that left him flat on his back in half a second, but there was no harm done and we were soon heading back up to the bikes, disappointed that the land rover service was not operating!

As usual on these weekends Michael had brought his laptop for gaming fun, but the decision of where to play remained to be decided. The kitchen / common room seemed ideal in terms of space, but when Michael suggested this to the warden she seemed more concerned about maintaining peace and quiet for the few adults who were reading there - it seems that youth hostels are no longer primarily for youngsters! So we set up the game in the dormitory and enjoyed 45 minutes of fun before settling down for a quiet night.

The forecast rain was nowhere to be seen as we were eating breakfast. After packing the bikes and admiring the magnificent coastal views in the morning sunshine we set off for the village to explore the local shops. First off was the Tintagel Toy Museum, displaying a huge range of antique toys and figures as well as offering newer items for sale. Ashley bought a dragon for his bedroom, and Olly took the lucky dip and ended up with some face paints! After another supermarket stop we called in to Granny Wobblys fudge pantry where the proprietor was making more fudge in a huge caldron on the stove. After trying several samples we bought a few flavours for our journey home, but Butterscotch was definitely the most popular.

Today we had to ride just 12 miles to return to the car. We set off up the long climb from Tintagel, pausing on the way up to wonder what went on at Thermo Fisher Scientific. Nothing on the signs gave a clue, and peering into the nearest window to read the sign on a bucket only revealed the words "Paper Towels Only". We decided that something dodgy must go on there, but a later check of the internet revealed that it "designs and produces innovative chemical Building Blocks and Screening Compounds, and provides Medicinal Chemistry for the drug discovery industry".

The forecast rain rolled in just after reaching the top, light at first but getting us nicely wet by the time we reached the cars. The advance planning for the car location was now fully appreciated, and we felt ourselves very fortunate to have secured such generally good weather over the weekend in what had otherwise been a very unsettled week.

Michael used his Satnav to take us home by the shortest route, via Launceston, Tavistock and Princetown. It was indeed a scenic route, but Olly and Ashley were more interested in using the time to paint their faces rather than admire the views!

This had been an excellent weekend with generally good weather and some brand new cycling territory. The youngsters amazed us all by riding more than 30 miles after 12pm on the Saturday, so congratulations to everyone who took part.