Tuckenhay and its old creek looked delightful in the afternoon sunshine even though the tide was out.  This had to be the far point of our ride, however, if we were to return before dusk, so we veered right past the mill stream and followed the valley through Harbertonford and on to the final climb from Tigley to Rattery.  Having reached the twenty mile point at Tigley we were now heading into "extra miles": combined with the plummeting temperatures this began to take its toll on the younger riders.  When they got close to the top, however, they all found plenty more energy and we were soon warming ourselves by the gas fire at Buckfastleigh and enjoying hot drinks all round.

Finally the time came for the main event, and as usual the hotel provided a delicious meal and a quality atmosphere.  When the awards and Christmas announcements were over, the Burgess family headed straight for Newton Abbot as they didn't all have lights, and the rest of us took the short route via Birchanger and Halsanger to Ashburton, arriving home just before dusk.

All our younger riders are progressing well through the training scheme and will soon be ready for harder rides.  We plan to offer some Saturday rides on an occasional basis for those working towards Stage 3 - watch the web site for announcements.

We had to include a muddy track to keep James happy, then we headed towards Landscove and home before rain and cold feet dampened the enthusiasm.  As usual, the afternoon was while away happily with a games social at Crofters.

We spent a few minutes observing the usual high prices of china in the Cider Press Centre shop, then headed back up the hill towards Rattery as the rain gradually fizzled out.  The final leg of the journey past Pennywell Farm was pleasant, although the cold air ensured that Will descended very slowly to avoid frostbite!

The whole experience of cycling the Abbots Way moorland track was completely new to Ashley, who thoroughly enjoyed the brisk descent to Chalk Ford without incident.  This really was a perfect day for this excellent ride.

Louis and James had the most difficulty with the last few miles, mainly because they had pushed themselves to come on the ride even though they were suffering from colds.  Nevertheless we got everyone home by a reasonable time.

The ride continued along the woodland track to River Dart Country Park, offering plenty of fun for our newer riders and helping them towards their first certificates.  The final road section from Ashburton to Buckfastleigh left plenty of time for an afternoon games social at Crofters.

Everyone had enjoyed the ride very much, but there was more fun during the afternoon games social as four youngsters passed their puncture repair test and received JTP certificates.

When the fun was finally over we decided to miss out Beaston track and head for the cafe at Landscove.  Our faint hope that it might have been open was dashed on arrival, so we made the most of Michael's mobile chocolate shop and headed back via Green Lane.  Perhaps Fermoys cafe at Ipplepen - open all year round - would be a good destination for next week's ride!

We chose a leisurely ride (for David's benefit) along Colston Road to the Cider Press Centre at Dartington.  The queue for Cranks restaurant was rather large so we visited Muffins outdoor cafe for some delicious drinks and refreshments in the morning sunshine.  The cycle path to Totnes was delightful this morning, affording David new insights into the activities of the Buckfastleigh to Totnes steam railway.  Our return route was through Littlehempston and Staverton.

We still had plenty of time so Tao suggested Dr Blackall's drive, ensuring that this was one of the most off-road and enjoyable rides we had organised for many months.

One of the highlights of this ride is the ritual crossing of the Erme - impossible at high tide and only really enjoyable at low tide.  Fortunately the tide was completly out today, so with bikes raised high and shoes removed we waded across the shallow waters to the far bank.  Tao and Oliver, who hadn't fancied the prospect of getting wet to the waste, found the whole adventure much more fun than they had anticipated.  With no map we just about remembered our way home, although the planned detour through Aveton Gifford, Avon Mill cafe and Totnes had to be replaced by California Cross garage and South Brent after some particularly unhelpful signs led us astray! 

By now the sky was showing signs of clearing, so we opted for the Staverton extension that took us down a couple of tracks and eventually brought us home along Colston Road.

Finding ourselves back in the Follaton area of Totnes (we didn't have a map) ee followed the main road to Tigley and then negotiated the steep climb to Rattery, Pennywell Farm and home.

Our return route took us through Broadhempston and home via Green Lane.

Fermoys restaurant - also part of the plan - was just too tempting to abandon even though we were running quite late.  Numerous freshly-squeezed orange juices provided us with the sustenance for our brisk return home via Staverton.  Will coped well with his longest ride yet.

The all-different return route through Broadhempston prompted Richard to get his map out when he got home.

We thought the only noteworthy buildings in Diptford were the church and primary school - until we noticed a Post Office sign above one of the houses on the other side of the village.  Keeping up a good pace we were soon climbing the hill from Rattery on our way to Pennywell Farm and home.  Once again, all the younger riders performed excellently, except perhaps Keir who was much less energetic than usual.

After a little watery fun on the Avon we sat on the grassy bank overlooking the reservoir for a few minutes, watching the thundery clouds gathering in the distance and trying to catch sight of the fish that must have been responsible for the various splashes that we heard from time to time.  Moving on swiftly, we managed to get home before the afternoon's rain set in.

Michael was certainly pushing the younger riders by taking the Buckland return route: carrots and sticks were required on the steep woodland climb to achieve acceptable performance.  Once on the descent to Ashburton, however, there were plenty of happy sounds - except for the one made by Will as he accidentally steered himself into the nettles;  and then the one made by Ben as he crashed into Will!  All part of the fun I suppose!

There was time for Joe and Keir to get their feet wet in the river, but a few heavy raindrops prompted us to head homewards without further delay.  In fact it turned largely dry again, and our return past Hawson Court was augmented with the fabulous smells of damp grassland wafting over the hedgerows.

Eventually we decided that we'd better be heading for home.  Because of the nature of the terrain we retraced most of our outward route to bring us, for the first time ever, riding down the Plym Valley cycleway.  We really do recommend it!

With the threat of dusk pressing ever nearer we pushed on to the reservoir itself.  Here we discovered an oasis of beauty bathed in a magical peace, a feint summer haze blurring the distant hills.  It really was a perfect moment, and we all savoured it in our own individual ways.  The final pleasures of this adventurous ride came after we had picked our way along the edge of the reservoir and climbed the final hill along the Abbot's Way.  The downhill ride across the moor was action-packed in the fast-disappearing light, leaving happy memories to enrich our midnight dreams.

With the sun coming out we sped home past Hound Tor with a tailwind that made us all feel on top of the world.  Oliver, who had failed to get up in time for the start of the ride, came down to meet us to finalise our plans for the summer tour.  Now it seems we are going to Norway on 4 July, so Michael had better get the bookings sorted out in double quick time.

Keir put in a much improved performance this evening, managing to climb some of the steepest hills at a very respectable pace.  Part of the problem seemed to be his small bike that could not be adjusted high enough.  When he swapped bikes with Joe he went even faster, much to his personal satisfaction. 

We eventually emerged from the wilderness near Topsham Bridge and proceeded with good speed through Moreleigh to Diptford, Rattery and home.

Barbecue smells abounded from the camping areas of the Park.  Our return route from Ashburton brought us past the scene of a car accident.  The police were taking photographs and allowed us to pass, but it wasn't until later that we discovered that two Buckfastleigh lads had been seriously injured.

 The first shower of the day began as we were enjoying refreshments at Hound Tor, and kept going for a full half hour as we traversed the bleak moor on our journey back to Ashburton and Buckfastleigh.

Joe showed outstanding tenacity as he pushed himself up the first climbs towards Redpost, and soon he was setting a good pace back to Staverton.  Two steam trains passing each other at the station were a sure sign of brisk business on the Primrose line on this last Sunday of the holiday week.   Whilst the forecast rain did not materialise until later, a particularly nasty shower did its best to dampen our spirits on the final two miles home.

The climb to Druid farm quickly brought us to Holne Bridge and River Dart Country Park, where Tao, Ben and a few others were nearly caught out by an unexpected barrier across the road as the turned a corner.  The riverside track through Hembury provided plenty of amusement in the semi-darkness, as did Ben with his laser penlight.

From Hillhead we called in briefly at Sainsburys for drinks and the proceeded up Kings Ash hill to Marldon and the lanes to Staverton.  This has been our first full-length ride since September, so we all felt very satisfied as we arrived home, tired but full of the joys of spring.

New youngster Josh performed well on the climb, and we were soon on the open moor enjoying the last of the sunset and a few aerobie throws.  Four delightful miniature ponies raced us on the descent to Cross Furzes, clearly demonstrating their evolutionary desire for speed.

The return route was always going to be tiring for Ben and Joe, but they coped admirably with Corkscrew hill and the subsequent climbs.  Whilst they were close to breaking point after the final climb to Moreleigh, the flatter lanes to Diptford gave them new life.  They both made it home, tired but very satisfied at their 27-mile achievement. 

Oliver's worst nightmares turned real on the lower Hembury track when he got yet another puncture.  He fixed it with all due speed while we gazed lazily from the grass verges,  a bee adding to the distant babble of the brook, but when he had finished he discovered another puncture that needed his attention.  Eventually we set off once more to enjoy the final descent through the woods to Buckfast and home.

The final part of our route, across the open moor behind the reservoir, was new to nearly all the youngsters.  Ben made a long detour to avoid crossing the path of a moorland cow, only to watch it scuttle away as soon as Michael approached it.  The promised panoramic views from the top of the hill did not materialise, being obscured by a thick haze, but the downhill to Cross Furzes proved every bit as exciting as Michael had predicted.  Tommy managed to fly over his handlebars on the final descent, but he reckoned that was the best part of the ride!

After much stone-skimming (and stone splashing) we set off once more, this time for Landscove.  Mother Hubbard's Cafe was very tempting, but we were keen to reach an exciting downhill track so we pressed on up the final climbs.  When we finally arrived, the track was being used as part of the Rainbow Ride route - a charity ride for horse enthusiasts - but they were in no hurry, so we overtook them and set off to enjoy the rough descent across the fields and through the woodland.  Everyone enjoyed the ride so much that they wanted to do it again next week! A short but steep climb from Lower Combe brought us to Higher Beara farm, from where Green Lane brought us swiftly back to Buckfastleigh and an afternoon of computer games.  Congratulations to Jake on achieving his Stage 1 certificate today.

The off-road was the bit Daniel had been waiting for, and he wasn't at all disappointed with the long winding woodland track leading down to River Dart Country Park.  There was a little mud at the end, but that just made it even more fun from Daniel's point of view.  The ride finished with the riverside track from the park back to Hembury Woods, along which Jamie had to take out his car foot-pump three times to reinflate his tyre.  After the ride we discovered that the puncture was caused by another enormous thorn from the 26 January ride - which increases the puncture count for that ride to seven!

Suitably refreshed we set off for the daunting return journey via Woodland and Ashburton, with both lads beginning to feel the pain.  A few chocolate bars were required to coax them the last few miles, but they finally made it home by 2.30 having just achieved the target of 20 miles.  This was not a ride that Daniel will forget.

We made good speed along the occasionally-muddy woodland track that runs alongside the river, then headed for Ashburton for a cafe stop.  Unfortunately all the cafes in town were closed, so after bumping into Julian on Western Road we rode back to the Grange cafe at Buckfast to carry out an experiment on the relative sizes of their large and small mugs.  The result: the contents of a large mug will just fit into a small mug!

Descending to Avonwick we enjoyed the cobbled track that runs alongside the river Avon.  Several of the youngsters were suffering a bit from the cold, so the main road served as a useful shortcut to Rattery.  Here, a poultry show offered some comical entertainment before we tackled the final climb to Pennywell and home.

We made the best of the situation by enjoying the downhill to Coombe and then returning home for 12.30.

All in all this was an exhilarating ride, made all the more enjoyable by the welcome return of Tao to our ranks after an absences of several months.  There was more talk of possible destinations for the summer tour - check out our web site for the latest information!

An hour later we finally set off for a very late return home.  Everyone did remarkably well, especially in view of the fact that it was nearly 3pm when we got home.  Michael's supply of chocolate rations kept everyone going, so in the end there were a lot of points added to the Training Programme scoresheet, which probably made it all worthwhile.

We had hoped to stop briefly at Holne park, but today it was actually being used by some local children.  We proceeded along the ridge to Hembury Fort and got a little frisbee practice in before the first shower persuaded us to move on.  The final descent of the Slalom track through Hembury offered plenty of action to conclude a fun ride. 

When James had finished his lesson about the low friction between icy roads and bicycle tyres we continued past Gallant Le Bower in brilliant sunshine to the top of Hembury.  There was more fun for James on the track descent past the fort as he decided to ride into a tree - clearly he wanted to have as much action as he could get today!  The final lap back to Buckfastleigh rounded off a thoroughly enjoyable mid-winter ride.