Our ride got off to a slow start when George managed to jam his chain between his wheel and the cassette. Ash was willing to get his hands dirty, but it took a bit of prizing to persuade it to come out.

Lawrence wanted the Avon Dam today in view of the fact, as he put it, that we hadn't done any off-road for ages. When John met us at Dean Seat however he exercised his veto on the whole idea of a ride across wet and boggy Dartmoor, remembering our last excursion to the Dam. We headed up Dean Hill and saw plenty of evidence of the recent heavy rain.

As a compromise Michael offered the track from Marley Head to South Brent, but this turned out to be so deeply rutted in the lower reaches that even Lawrence had to think before saying whether it was enjoyable. Michael had to promise John a free coffee by way of compensation, although he was as always good humoured about it.

At the junction with the Brent road George chose first gear again which resulted in an even more stubborn chain jam. The problem, it seems, was that John had got a replacement wheel after the bearing fell apart last week, but hadn't made the necessary adjustments to the derailleur. Fifteen minutes later we finally got the chain free and rode on to the co-op at South Brent, where well-deserved refreshments were purchased and consumed on the nearby bench.

It was getting chilly now so with warm gloves and coats keeping us warm we headed homewards via the station and the main lane through Harbourneford.

A forecast of showers from 12 and rain from 2 encouraged us to make the most of the fine morning with a ride along Colston Road to Staverton riverside. For a change we didn't stop at Staverton, riding directly homewards via Fursdon and getting back just before the rain started.

The wet afternoon was spent enjoying a grand game of Supreme Commander.

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.