3cyclists and an Old Git do some hills 52

Had a good day today after a visit from Mick and Graham (and their bikes) came to check out the hills around Cheddar.  We were joined by one of the Old Gits, Andy, who knows these hills fairly well.  Started of along the promenade and went out via Sand Bay, Puxton and onto the Strawberry Line to Congresbury and Wrington.  We then tackled Burrington Combe, descended Cheddar Gorge and back to Weston via Axbridge and Brent Knoll.  The weather was very kind to us, a slight breeze, dry with sunny spells to start with.

Birnbeck Pier

Mother Hen Tea Rooms

After stopping for a short time to see the derelict Birnbeck Pier, went through Congresbury to the Mother Hen Tea Room at Wrington.  This was at about 20 miles so it was sensible to have tea and a toasted tea cake before tackling Burrington Combe, about 2.5 miles away.  This meant the handing over the token from myself to Mick whose turn it was next to fork out for refreshments.  Mother Hen obliged by taking the photograph.

Burrington Combe

A 800 foot climb over 2.5 miles, this hill is a fairly daunting prospect for the 'more mature' cyclist!  With each of us taking it at our own pace, it was achieved in one go (apart from a couple of stops for air by yours truly).  It is tough but the sense of achievement outweighs the hard work.  On one of my unscheduled stops took this photo of some wild goats that live round this area.

 Through Charterhouse

Cutting through from Burrington to Cheddar, we went through Charterhouse, a small hamlet on the top of the Mendips.  Quite bleak around this area, the limestone outcrops and dry stone walls are reminiscent of Wales or the Peak District. The photo, taken by Andy, shows Graham holding Mick's bike whilst he takes an 'arty' shot of an athlete. 

The athlete

Here is that shot.  Going down into Cheddar was quite exhilarating.  There were some decent opportunities to take photos along this scenic ride but we were too busy enjoying ourselves to stop!

The socks

These are the club socks, kindly donated by Mick, they are Sport Relief charity socks and are worn on these 'club' occasions. No mention of which one us had them on the wrong feet with the logo on the inside. 

The token reappears 

This time in record breaking time, two hours and twenty minutes after the previous handover.  This time from Mick to Graham.  After stopping in Cheddar and debating about the best way to return to Weston, we found that some of the tea rooms were closed so we settled for a Fish and Chip restaurant.  No, we didn't have any fish and chips, just a cup of tea.  We asked a waitress to take our picture but she was a technophobe and said she would get one of the lads to do it. Shortly after a young lady appears and does a good job for us. 

Cheddar Gorge Cheese Co.

Just to prove we had been to Cheddar, we went next door to the chip shop and Andy took this picture of the 3cyclists outside the shop.  Sorry about the poor quality photo.

Left Cheddar and rode back to Weston through Axbridge, Cross and East Brent.  Taking a slight detour through the Brean Down Way cycle path and the Uphill Nature Reserve, we added a few miles on the take our total to somewhere between 51 and 52 miles dependant on whose GPS you believed. Bear in mind we started and finished them in exactly the same place.  A good day out finished off with a fish and chip meal at the Landing Light Pub.