Will was late up this morning so it was around 11 when we finally set off. We planned a medium-length ride as the forecast was for sunny periods all day, although it was a bit chilly at 7 degrees and the wind made it feel even colder.

We took the old road to Ashburton, but this turned out to be rather like a wind tunnel so George and Michael both suffered from cold, painful ears. Things improved once we turned up towards Ausewell, although we had to wait more than ten minutes for Will and Dillan to come back when they incorrectly sped on along the road towards New Bridge.

We climbed Ausewell hill and then met a female cyclist who had just come from Cold East Cross. She said she had been blown along by an icy tailwind and strongly advised us to avoid the high moor. Well this seemed sensible advice and it gave us an opportunity to try an unusual route to Widecombe, although it did involve an additional 50 metres of descent and 50 metres of climb.

Everyone liked the thatched houses in Buckland-in-the-Moor. At the church Michael offered a prize to anyone who could see “My Dear Mother”. As can be seen in the photo it was not immediately obvious so they spent some time looking at gravestones before finally getting a hint from Michael which helped them spot it.

We have never ridden up Elliott’s Hill in the club before. It wasn’t especially steep, but the farm at the top looked delightful in the afternoon sunshine with its streams and snowdrops. After negotiating the short rough section of track to the road we battled a short section of headwind before turning left down the hill to Widecombe, another road we rarely ride in the club.

Arriving at Widecombe at around 1.20 we settled into the posh Green Restaurant for lunch, enjoying a range of baps, jacket potatoes and soup. The food was a little pricey, but it was good quality and we were very happy to have somewhere warm and cosy to sit for half an hour.

We left around 2.10 with the aim of getting home by 3.30 for a massive computer game. We took the direct route to Leusdon and called in to see Michael’s favourite ducks: he was very disappointed to see only three on the pond today, but he was later assured by a local that it would have been a fox that ate the unfortunate bird rather than the owners.

Everyone was quite tired by the time we reached Hembury, so we were quite relieved to get home at 3.50. WE had our game of Supreme and finished soon after 5pm.