The weather forecast this morning was very clear: heavy rain would move in at around 12.00.  We set off along Colston road, determined to make the best possible use of the 90 minutes of dry weather available to us.  Sadly, however, Charlie had different ideas: he managed to ride over some dead wood and drove the biggest thorn we had ever seen right into his tyre, through the tube and out of the sidewall!

Michael rushed to get his spare mountain bike inner tube, only to discover that Charlie's rim wouldn't accept schrader valves!  Having fixed the two punctures caused by the thorn we then discovered a third from an unrelated thorn, so it was half an hour later when we finally got moving again.

At Huxham's Cross we made the decision to get home by the time the rain started rather than risk going on to Totnes and getting drenched, so we detoured along the riverside path at Staverton and then headed home via Hole Farm and Abham.  Matt put up an impressive performance on his first ride with us, so we got back to Buckfastleigh in double quick time.

The rain began as we entered Buckfastleigh at 12.01 so our confidence in the Met office was thoroughly vindicated!  Computer games at Crofters provided some compensation for the shortened ride.

This extra Christmas Eve ride was scheduled after a request from John, who was back in Buckfastleigh for just a few days over Christmas.

The intended destination of Venford Reservoir proved too challenging for some of our members, so we contented ourselves with a fun ride through Hembury Woods that took in several of the tracks that span its length.  Michael dished out free Chocolate Orange bars by the river, and an after-ride social completed a very enjoyable ride.

The heavy overnight rain had obligingly moved away by the time our December afternoon ride began, but the strong gales that had brought down many trees still lingered to make the ride up Dean hill a little harder than usual.

During the detour around Harbourneford Ashley, who was riding the new Club mountain bike for the first time, was most distressed when he punctured the rear tyre with a large thorn.  Michael, however, was even more distressed to discover that his puncture repair kit was missing a vital component - the glue!  Ben and Scott saved the day by generously offering to push the bike back to Crofters while the rest continued with the ride.

It was clear that North Huish was going to be way too far after all the delays, so we contented ourselves with riding the very muddy branch-strewn track from Marley Head towards South Brent, which the youngsters thoroughly enjoyed, and then returning on the main road to Marley Head.  We then retraced our tracks to Buckfastleigh, pausing briefly at the top of the hill to splash through the deep puddles and test the strength of the wind.

Ben and Scott were waiting patiently for us when we arrived at Crofters.  Some of the muddier individuals went home to change before returning for the end of ride social, where warm fires and good refreshments made a perfect end to a very blustery day.

The deer at Powderham seemed to appreciate the fantastic weather almost as much as we did, with the entire group showing themselves off by the lake just metres from the road.  This all made Michael's offer of a chocolate voucher for the first person to spot a deer rather unnecessary, but Ashley claimed it anyway!

Bright sunshine greeted our largest turnout for several months, which included no fewer than four new members.  After picking up Ben at Buckfast an almost unanimous vote took us along the lower Hembury track, which turned out to be quite muddy in places after the recent heavy rain.  A huge group of walkers cramped our style somewhat near the end, but were surprisingly friendly as we regrouped at the end.

New and experienced members alike enjoyed the downhill to New Bridge, where the anticipated ice cream van prompted a stop for refreshments - which in Scott's case included a Hot Dog!

Everyone agreed to extend the ride by an hour so that everyone could complete the planned ride, which led us to the next step of climbing Poundsgate hill.  The first of the predicted "isolated showers" made the climb even more challenging for our younger riders, so by the time we reached the top of the main climb three were ready for a shortcut.  Michael led Ryan, Scott and Glen a short distance along the track to a meeting place on the moorland and then returned to catch up with the others on the final stages of the road climb.  Charlie had no difficulty with any of the hills, although he admitted he was impressed by young Alex, on only his second ride, who just kept on powering past him!  Ashley got top marks for achievement, however: he opted out of the short-cut and pushed himself on to the top, spurred on just a little perhaps by the offer of a free Hot Dog!

The youngsters posed at the top for photos with some ponies, and Ben, being Ben, left his helmet on the verge when we all set off for the track.  We had been riding for a full seven minutes before he realised he was helmetless, so the rest of us braved the strong winds and the third isolated shower to view the impressive Dart Valley from a high overhanging rock.

The sun returned again and Doctor Blackall didn't disappoint with his magnificent drive.  Just a few minutes later and we were reunited with the three younger riders, who had passed the time by rolling down the moorland slopes and, apparently, giving directions to passers-by!  They had missed the upper reaches of the tracks, but the best was still to come.  The final downhill across the moorland tracks provided a rollercoaster ride that left everyone elated - and muddy!

Hot soups and other refreshments from the ice cream van prepared everyone for the climb back to Hembury, although Scott, Ashley and Ryan needed a little encouragement.  Once they were in sight of Hembury Woods, however, they all found new energies, and finished the ride feeling justifiably proud of their achievements.  They made the most of the reward, by staying for computer games until after 6pm.

Our November afternoon ride was headed for one of our favourite destinations.  Progress up Nurston hill was hampered by Chris Mabin's wide tractor: Ben and co decided it was too wide to be passed, so they went back down the hill to a wider part of the lane!

It was nearly 4.15 when we arrived at Shipley bridge.  the car park was nearly full, but most visitors were heading back down from the dam as the light began to fade.  The only other person heading up with us was a woman on horseback, but her horse had other ideas when she tried to pass us.  Apparently the animal was terrified of bicycles, and this was part of the reason she had brought him out today!  Well try as she might she could not get the horse to pass us, so with gritted teeth she told her mount that he'd do it backwards then!  With that she turned him around and backed him past us, which, whilst a little ungainly, seemed to do the trick!

We soon passed the picnic table that Zac had assured us was there, and when we finally reached the reservoir it was not as deserted as we might have supposed: several people (and dogs) were still soaking up the tranquility and admiring the views from both sides of the dam.  We stopped just long enough to eat some refreshments, then set off at a good pace with Michael chivying everyone along in the diminishing light.

The sunset over White Barrows was magnificent this evening, and as we climbed the hill we were faced with a bright, full moon rising over the horizon.  During the descent of the Abbots Way the moonlight became increasingly our main source of light, so this turned out to be one of the eeriest rides we had ever undertaken to Avon Dam!

It was close to dark when we finally reached Cross Furzes, but we had plenty of lights between us for the final descent to Buckfastleigh.  We finished the ride just after 5.30 with everyone having thoroughly enjoyed the ride.

Our last hostel weekend for 2006 was to Bellever, but the weather didn't look too promising on the Saturday afternoon.  Ryan hasn't been hostelling before and had been off cycling for several weeks, and when Michael was delayed by another appointment we decided to use car assistance to Bellever.

We arrived at the hostel at around 4.30, although we could only just see it through the thick mist and light drizzle.  We were determined to do a decent ride before settling down for the night, so we set off along the track to Laughter Hole farm.

Both Ryan and Glen got excited when they saw a rough track branching off to the left, signposted to Babeny.  We explored it for a while, and both youngsters enjoyed the rocks and mud, but eventually they agreed to return to the main track.  We were soon on the open moor, although you could hardly tell where you were because of the fog.  Glen wanted to explore ahead, so Ryan and Michael watched him disappear silently into the mist.  He eventually returned having discovered a digger and a lake, and wanted us all to go on.  Ryan finally agreed, and we ended up riding all the way down the track to Dunnabridge.  We took a look at the concealed seat behind the wall and then headed back to the hostel at maximum speed as the light faded.

Our evening consisted of hot showers, educating Ryan on the techniques of using YHA sheet sleeping bags, preparing a meal (spaghetti for Ryan and rice for Glen), cleaning the kitchen, walking through the pitch blackness to the village phone box so that Glen could ring home, walking to the nearby bridge over the river with only the light of a fading bike light, enjoying some games of Atomic Bomberman in the dormitory (yes, Michael brought his laptop!) and finishing with some games of Pool in the hostel games room.  All in all we had an action-packed evening, and everyone slept soundly - and quietly - until morning!

The weather next morning was excellent, with bright sunshine greeting us as we set off for Postbridge.  There was time to call into the Post Office and village stores so that the lads could buy some drinks, then we took a look at the famous clapper bridge before heading off along the main road towards Two Bridges.  Both lads were very interested in the derelict buildings of the Powdermills that can be seen from the road, so we detoured down the driveway and took a look at the proving canon, originally used to test the strength of the gunpowder manufactured on the site.

As we continued along the main road we noticed that we were picking up cobwebs as we rode!  Looking around, there were cobwebs lining the roadside vegatation and huge lengths of cobwebs floating through the air, all glistening in the morning sunshine.   Maybe the weather had been good for spiders last night?

Next stop was Princetown, where we checked that the prison was still there before heading for the Foxtor cafe.  The fire engine was there, having just put out a fire in the cafe's kitchen, but the cafe was still open for business.  There was a special menu on today for riders of the CTC's Dartmoor Devil audax, and well over 200 riders were expected during the day.   None had arrived yet so we got fast service.

With plenty of time to spare we then set off along the old Princetown railway, now a very pleasant cycle path.  The riding was easy and the weather perfect as we enjoyed the excellent views and scenery.  Some sections of the track include long loops to avoid steep gradients, but we weren't in any rush and the youngsters enjoyed the bumpy sections just as much as the smooth bits.  Eventually we met the main road and headed back to Princetown for further refreshments, this time meeting some friends taking part in the Audax.

Dark and ominous clouds had spread quickly over Dartmoor while we ate, but fortunately no rain was forthcoming and we made it back to Dunnabridge and over the track to Bellever without getting wet at all.  Both lads were quite tired after the day's riding, which came to more than 23 miles, and they were glad to see the car.  They were very keen to take part in another weekend as soon as possible, which just goes to show how much they had enjoyed their weekend on Dartmoor.