Weather was somewhat overcast for our car-assisted ride to Haldon, but we were still a bit surprised at the relatively low turnout for a ride that is always great fun.

Having parked in the gateway car park near Buller’s Hill we first rode the Play Trail as a warm-up, offering interesting and mainly level paths around the nearby forest. There were interesting play activities around almost every corner of the route, which of course Ashley and Olly just had to try out. Next was the Family cycle trail, which was a little longer and slightly hillier. We then rode the few miles across Haldon's autumnal lanes to Mamhead Obelisk, which offered magnificent views to the Exe Estuary and beyond while we ate lunch on the comfortable seats. This was a new location for all except Michael, and they were so impressed that they will undoubtedly return again.

A few spots of drizzle began to fall as Olly and Michael chased each other around the nearby undergrowth, so we headed back along the tracks near the Obelisk and arrived back at the Forest Park just as the rain seemed to become more settled. We had seen a van selling hot pancakes earlier, so now was the time to sample them whilst giving the weather a chance to decide what it was going to do.

Freddie, who was also cycling around the park with his family, met us briefly, but the rain was definitely in for the afternoon and neither Charles nor the youngsters could be persuaded to do any more riding today. We headed back to Buckfastleigh for some computer games, looking forward to returning to the park at a future date.