A good number of riders were present at Walk Mill Cafe today which was surprising given the weather forecast was for very heavy rain. Clive and Steve T arrived just for coffee as they didn’t fancy a dousing.
Three rides were planned . Ray S was leading a group out to Whitchurch. Dave H had no set plan as he was running late but looked to be leading another group on one of his magical mystery tours. I had ridden to Whitchurch twice very recently and as nice as it is I fancied a change, so put forward a circular ride to Malpas of 45 miles. Nick was happy to join me as he wanted to get home reasonably early and the return route passed close to his house.
Leaving Walk Mill, we headed East but within 1/2 mile the rain started so waterproofs were donned as Ray’s group passed us on their way to Whitchurch. Weaving around and through the many flooded sections of road we passed through Huxley and Tiverton to reach Tarporley. Crossing onto Eaton Road we exited the village and 2 miles on at Eaton we turned South towards Alpraham. This section of the the route had 2 road closures in place but neither delayed our progress.
Conversation was rather sparse as the rain and road conditions required a lot more of our attention although I did hear the bit where Nick admitted to looking for a new Gravel bike and is going to view one in Knutsford. Good luck getting that past the finance officer !!
The A51 at Alpraham was very busy and it took a few minutes before we were able to cross into Bunbury Road and then pass through Bunbury to Spurstow. At Peckforton , we met a large section of standing water, and one very kind motorist was unable to wait and ploughed straight through at speed and seemed totally oblivious to the soaking he had given Nick and I.
Another short section of main road at Gallantry Bank led us into Bickerton where we admired the new bench at Bickerton Church, it has been carved out of the remains of a large recently felled tree. The rain had been persistent and heavy since leaving Walk Mill and we were both feeling the wet and cold as water had seeped through our waterproofs.
Talking through our options, we decided to cut short the ride, forego lunch, and head for home. The direct route took us up Goldford Lane and into Tilston where we parted company and headed for home.
The posted route today was 45miles. Nick managed around 40 miles with myself covering 50 miles.
One bright spot today-the rain stopped as I arrived home so at least the bike cleaning was completed in dry. Thanks to Nick for his company and riding in truly awful conditions.
See route map and/or gpx file download
KP
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