9th March 2017 : Oswestry (brisk)

As the sunshine brings out the caravans on the roads, so it does with CER riders as we took over half of Cleopatra's this morning. It turned out to be the best weather so far this year, and we all got a large dose of self-manufactured Vitamin D today. The wind was from the north-west, so I had planned a broad reach route to Oswestry. The Brisk group today was Tom, Ivan, John M, Andy B, Paul R and myself. Off via Tilston, we were fairly motoring to Chorlton and Threapwood. The lanes were largely dry and, in a couple of weeks, would be bursting with new Spring growth.

We are now running down to Three Fingers and Little Arowry to skirt Hanmer on the main road. A left down Sandy Lane ( it wasn't) and Tarts Hill ( it was) brings into Welshampton. After turning right towards Ellesmere, we gingerly take the now “white” road down to Colmere where there is a very pretty thatched cottage nestling in the woods. The lane has seen better days but in the summer it's a glorious cut-through to Spunhill. Pulling up the hill, there are massive modern earthworks all around – is it an extension of the quarry or a new golf course? - time will tell.

We now pass White Mere and Tetchill and then up the charming Frankton Hill which, at 500ft, is the highest point around. A blast downhill on the main road towards Whittington finds us turning left on a long curving lane to Babbinswood. We are soon into the eastern extremities of Oswestry and make our way to “The Wilfred Owen” one of Tim Martin's establishments. The pub is named after the poet Wilfred Owen who was born in the town in 1893 and was killed a week before the end of WW1. The town is supposedly named after “Oswald's tree” which is a legend surrounding the 7C Oswald, King of Northumbria who was killed locally fighting King Penda, the Mercian Anglo-Saxon warlord.

As ever 'Spoons doesn't disappoint for a group of thirsty and hungry cyclists who want to get in and out quickly. I can't resist a visit to the two local “castles” - the Norman one is right in the town centre and the Iron Age one is just north of the town on our route out to Gobowen.

Knights of the Road at Oswestry Castle (ex ID's camera via a helpful local lady)

 From Gobowen we take cycleway 455 to Elson. We now go through Cross and Trench towards Sandy Lane. The way back is now clear to all being via Holly Bush, Worthenbury and Shocklach. As always, the Shocklach road becomes a race track as we motor back to Holt at around 1530.

So 60 miles around, some stunning countryside and the sun shone all day. Ivan and Tom motor back to Evans Cycles to get Tom's bike fixed before their trip to Nice, and the rest of us take another coffee in Cleopatra's. It'll be mid 80 miles for us when we are back home – and there's no need to wash the bike today!

See route map and/or gpx file download

CA