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And that’s just one of some unusually corny Santa jokes which a large gathering of members and their spouses enjoyed whilst having their annual Christmas lunch at The Pheasant. After an excellent meal which included a choice of Loch Fyne scallops, prawn cocktail or tomato soup as a first course, followed by turkey, venison or sea bass as a main course, and lemon posset or Christmas pud for dessert, all washed down with some fine wines and beers, it was hardly surprising that by the time the speeches were made some could have been excused for nodding off.

Maurice thanked everyone for coming and said what a good year the club had had, with several new members taking an active part in the rides and whose company was very enjoyable. He said we had once again raised over £1,000 for charity, ably assisted by Sandra who generously donated some money that Maurice had paid her for catching rabbits in his garden. Maurice then showed a cheque for £1,000 that he would be sending to Macmillan Nurses for the work they do in caring for the terminally ill in particular.

Moley Martin then took to the stage and after firstly thanking Maurice and Andrew for all their hard work in organising the rides he welcomed John Tarrington, whose wrist had recovered well from his fall in Norfolk, and hoped we would see him out with us again soon.

He then proposed a toast to absent friends, including Linda Warner who was recovering from a recent operation and Kell Ryan who had been taken seriously ill whilst on holiday in the Bahamas. John and Lynn Bagrie were also missed but were hopefully having a good time on the ski slopes. Vernon was awarded the Recovery Prize for an astonishingly quick return to fitness after a serious operation in early 2015.

Moley thanked his deputy bloggers Brian, Andrew and Sandra and then proceeded to give some interesting facts and figures about the year’s rides – 56 rides to date (possibly some others not blogged), 1,701 miles ridden, average of 30.56 miles per ride, 26 members took part at one time or another and the best attendees were Maurice and Andrew. The 2016 Puncture Champion was thought to be Brian.

Members also took part in other rides during the year, clocking up a total of over 2,000 miles in the case of Andrew. These included Vernon riding a tandem for Camsight with a partially sighted co-rider, Tom and Brian riding 80 miles in the Tour of Cambridgeshire for charity with 8,000 other riders and Andrew, Maurice and Martin riding 184 miles in Scotland with Andrew’s friend Don, during which the infamous yellow carpet story was referred to again, complete with a colour photograph. Finally, Moley circulated a selection of the 200+ photographs that appear on the 2016 blog, printed copies of which would be available for purchase early in 2017.

Andrew, smartly dressed in his Scottish trews, then thanked all members present and others who could not be there for their support over the year. He also handed out momentos to Maurice and Moley of red stained pieces of yellow Axminster carpet together with packs of carpet stain remover as a reminder of the yellow carpet incident in Scotland.

Finally, Maurice thanked Ollie and Simon for their hospitality and support over the year and presented Ollie with a large bouquet of flowers.

This was not quite the end of the Windmill Club’s year as more rides were planned before Christmas and perhaps afterwards to trim off excess calories, but it served as a focal point for members and their spouses on what the Windmill Club is all about – good company, good conversation, having a laugh, keeping fit and, of course, good food and beer.

And just in case your Christmas cracker jokes do not come up to the mark, here are a few more corny ones:

What do you call a frozen elf hanging from the ceiling?
An elfcicle!

What do you get when you cross a snowman with a vampire?
Frostbite!

What carol is heard in the desert?
O camel ye faithful!

Happy Christmas from the blog team!

At 2.00pm it looked as if gathering around the fire in The Tally Ho with a fine pint of a Sussex beer called Dark Star was the best way of spending a Monday afternoon, but at the height of the drizzle outside four stalwart Windmillers comprising our Squadron Leader Maurice, Dirty Dawg Andrew, Two Scones Keith and the Revd Moley Martin set off on a 20 mile ride around the lanes. Soon the drizzle became light rain but after just a few minutes of praying by the Revd a miracle happened and we enjoyed a dry but gloomy ride typical of a December afternoon. (For a small fee the Revd is happy to perform miracles at any time.) Here is the route taken:

http://www.mapometer.com/embed/route/4449710

Arkesden has become the most photographed village on our 2016 travels and today was no exception when a mini Rudolf was spied outside a picture postcard thatched cottage which Maurice, Andrew and Keith, desperate to get into the Christmas mood,  couldn’t resist being photographed with:

Although it was only 3.30pm, it was nearly dark by the time the Tally Ho appeared once again in the gloom, by which time it had just started drizzling again, but the fire was roaring and well earned pints of Dark Star and other fine beers soon made us forget about the weather outside.

Thanks, Maurice, for planning an interesting reversal of our usual route around the lanes.

During this damp but dry ride (if that’s not a contradiction of terms) of 29 miles, Maurice was threatened with being reported to the RSPCC, the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Cyclists, if he attempted to take us up another steep hill. The first, which he did warn us about beforehand, was, appropriately enough, not far after the village of Nasty but closer to Dane End. A granny cog hill it was indeed and we all struggled up it, with the exception of course of Tom who left rubber on the road before zooming up it first. A subsequent so called steep hill proved to be quite gentle and so we let Maurice off with a warning.

And so there were nine Windmillers in all riding around quiet Hertfordshire lanes; Maurice, Andrew, Vernon, Ken, Keith (back from a month in Portugal), Brian, Tom, Sandra and Martin (back from 3 weeks in South Africa). Starting at The Golden Fleece in Braughing, we took an anti-clockwise route through delightful lanes stopping for coffee at a steamy café in Ware which served good coffee and cakes. Here is the route taken:

After coffee we pedalled on through quiet but slippery lanes, taking care on the steep dips and avoiding potholes which resulted in a safe and uneventful journey for all.

On the way back we stopped on a bridge over a disused railway running from Ware to Buntingford which Maurice said he would like to restore one day………… His proposed labourers thought otherwise and sped back to Braughing where a splendid welcome was awaiting us and a table bedecked with crackers. The jokes were a bit corny though – What kind of motor bike does Santa ride? A Holly Davison of course!

Thanks, Maurice, for organising a great ride and leading us safely through the lanes.

Moley Martin

A frosty Thursday morning saw nine Windmillers set out from the Fleur de Lys on a 35 mile circuit taking in the Pelhams, Puckeridge and Farnham. Our gang comprised Sandra, Tom, John B, Vernon, Ken, Brian and Andrew, accompanied by his old school chums, Ronnie and Don.

The lanes around Widdington were white with frost and, after a couple of nasty skids, Vernon thought it wise to turn back rather than risk a return visit to A&E. The rest of us, having checked our winter sports insurance, decided to brave it. Braking and cornering gingerly along the country lanes, we eventually arrived unscathed at Puckeridge where we stopped off at our favourite tea room.

Refreshed and with the lanes now frost free, we set off on the return leg. But it wasn’t long before Ken was brought to a sudden halt by his chain jamming in the front derailleur. Brute force proved insufficient to pull the chain free but Tom, getting to work with a multi tool, managed to release the mechanism and Ken was back in the saddle once more.

Then Tom himself was brought to a halt with a rear wheel puncture. With Don’s help this was soon fixed and we were on our way again.

The next hold-up was down to Network Rail at Elsenham. This must be one of the few remaining level crossings with manual gates. Opening and closing them is such a palaver that they just keep them closed for much of the day, or so it seems. We gave up waiting and humped the bikes up and over the very high footbridge. It felt like the highest point in Essex.

What with icy roads, jammed chains, flat tyres and slow trains, we were late getting back to the Fleur. But landlord Chris kept our usual table and we enjoyed an excellent, if somewhat delayed (2.30pm!) lunch.

Many thanks to Andrew for planning and organising things.

Brian

https://www.strava.com/activities/784250059/shareable_images/map_based?hl=en-GB&v=1480008661

A group of eight intrepid explorers Maurice, Andrew, John B, Ken, Rick, Vernon, Lawrence and Sandra assembled outside the Pheasant, Great Chishill awaiting instructions as to where we were heading on what was going to be a pleasant Autumn day, if a bit windy at times.

Wimpole Hall being the destination for the days excursion and a general consensus that this should be a very nice ride and it certainly was even with a few events on route.

We set off with Maurice guiding us on a path to Barkway which takes in some hills at Shaftenhoe End that would certainly warm us up for the rest of the route, this was also the same route that the BBC Children in Need Rickshaw challenge had travelled only the Friday before, those guys and girls are amazing to have pedalled the rickshaw up those hills. From Barkway we headed to Reed and Therfield before dropping down to then cross the A505 and head past Ashwell and Morden station on into the Cambridgeshire countryside where we first started to feel the force of the wind cutting across the field and the roads with sparse hedges, Maurice making good use of me as a wind break at times, which I was happy to oblige, with the occasional comment from Maurice that there was no need to rush, I think this must have been as he was dropped out of shelter from me. Passing through Steeple Morden and on to Wendy cum Shingay or is it Shingay cum Wendy, (I think that depends on which way you are travelling!), this was where I dropped in behind John B and Rick to shelter from the wind and also the same area where Andrew found another gear and came steaming through like an express train, must have been the porridge kicking in. On to Arrington and the entrance to Wimpole Hall estate, where Vernon came a cropper on the step through the gate, with words of guidance from behind “Don’t put your hand down”, he managed to stay upright even if his bike went through horizontally. Through the parkland dodging the various green currants left by the sheep and odd cow pat, we went in search of coffee at the park’s restaurant.

A little over 20 miles down and feeling refreshed we set off again, it wasn’t long before John B came steaming through and shouts of puncture are heard from behind, the team turned around and headed back to Wimpole Hall to aid/supervise the repair of Vernon’s tyre. Back on the road again to Orwell then Barrington, where Vernon was found propped up against a telegraph pole adding a bit more air to said tyre. Onwards to Shepreth and then Fowlmere when it was discovered that the group had halved in size, we’re four down, Maurice duly waited at the junction while John B, Vernon and I would head on to the next junction. At this point I was beginning to regret not having a piece of cake with coffee, as my legs had had enough (self inflicted calorie controlled diet that a Sparrow wouldn’t survive on, well that’s gone out the window now!) At the same time my bike started to feel unusual, yes I’d developed a slow puncture and it was while I was adding a bit of air, that the stray gang caught me up and the tale of Ken’s bike developing a major steering fault, basically there was no steering, thankfully this was sorted and we were on the move again. Not far now and hoping that my tyre would hold up to get back, well it did but not without a couple more puffs to keep me going, last 50 yards or so on foot, with Andrew and Maurice making sure I made it.

Over lunch we started to compare distances travelled during the day on the various GPS tracking devices, Vernon 34.75 – the shortest distance for a change, Lawrence 35.76, Sandra 35.75 and Andrew 36.4 – having spent considerable time rounding up the troops and making sure I was ok on the final stretch, thank you.

Thanks to Maurice for another lovely, if eventful ride.

Sandra

https://www.strava.com/activities/784250059/shareable_images/map_based?hl=en-GB&v=1480008661

Thursday morning saw seven Windmillers unloading their bikes in the car park of the Fleur de Lys at Widdington. The weather forecast was iffy – wind and a chance of rain – but we were up for it!

Maurice led us out – Andrew, Ken, John B, Chris, Ric and Brian – on an almost traffic free route through Henham, Thaxted and the Bardfields before stopping for coffee and cake at The Blue Egg. Popular with cyclists, the Egg is said to be Mark Cavendish’s favourite re-fuelling stop; and no wonder, the cakes are truly excellent. Brian’s piece of fruitcake could have fed a family of four.

Freighted down with cake, we took to the saddle again for the return leg through Great Sampford, Radwinter and Debden before the final killing climb (into a headwind!) up the hill and back to The Fleur. Landlord Chris had reserved our usual round table by the fire and served us up a superb two course lunch.

The conversation was wide ranging, everything from beer mixes of our youth (Black & Tan, Snakebite, etc) to paper cycle helmets (yes really – check out the BBC story).

Thanks as usual to Routemeister Maurice and Communications Manager, Andrew.

Brian

Recent Thursday rides had taken us to Norfolk, Suffolk, Essex, London and various other exotic destinations. Indeed, it had been six weeks since we last lunched at The Pheasant. So it was good to be welcomed back with a hug from Ollie and a table by the fireside.

Eight hardy Windmillers – Maurice, Andrew, Sandra, Rod, Vernon, John B, Ken and Brian – had clocked up 30 miles at a fair pace, taking in Barkway, Buntingford, Old Hall Green, Puckeridge and the Pelhams with a halfway stop for coffee and cake at the Something Lovely tea room.

The Pig and Abbot at Abington Pigotts; what a tongue twister! But that was the meeting place for our Thursday morning outing; landlady Pat kindly opening the Pig at 9am, welcoming us with coffee and taking our orders for lunch.

What’s more, it was Vernon’s birthday and rumour had it that he’d be buying the beer, which probably accounted for the good turn out, 10 Windmillers in all: the birthday boy himself plus Maurice, Andrew, John B, Chris, Rick, Sandra, Rod, Ken and Brian.

Maurice had planned – and was going to lead us around – a 30 mile circuit of the lanes north west of Royston. As usual – and just in case any of us went astray – he distributed maps with the route clearly marked. He even left a paper trail of £5 notes*.  What could possibly go wrong?

But leading the Windmillers is a bit like herding cats and, before long, our gang was scattered across the Beds / Herts border country. Most notable was Vernon, who did an unplanned visit to Gamlingay and Rod, who had to be chased down and turned around. “I may have been going the wrong way but I wasn’t lost,” he protested.

Eventually, everyone was rounded up and all 10 made it back to the Pig in time for lunch. We were particularly pleased to be joined by John T and Kell. They’d heard Vernon was buying.

*Maurice did indeed lose a fiver out of his back pocket but, miraculously, this was recovered and returned to its rightful owner by Andrew.

Brian

It was another of those knobbly knee, or not, autumn rides as eight hardy Windmillers gathered at the bridge over the River Lea in Waltham Abbey for a 37 mile ride to Tower Bridge and back. In the event only  Keith braved the slight chill but as the sun broke through he had clearly made the right decision as it warmed up considerably by the time we had wobbled along the towpath all the way to London town. The remaining participants were our leader Maurice, Vernon, Rod, Brian, Sandra, Chris and Moley Martin. This was the route taken: http://gb.mapometer.com/cycling/route_4431527.html

The first port of call was the white water centre at Waltham Abbey where thoughts of lifebelts were first had:

Then we set off into quite a strong head wind down 16 or so miles of towpaths alongside the Lea without touching a road until we reached Limehouse Basin via the Hertford Cut – a remarkable journey through some of London’s busiest north eastern suburbs. The path was narrow at times, particularly under bridges where a slight deviation could easily have resulted in the need for a lifebelt – a quick pump up of a spare tube was the only option we had to potentially save the life of a non-swimming Windmiller. The banks were lined with narrow boats and other craft almost the whole way, the occupants of which clearly had a very different lifestyle to landlubber Londoners. The river was not exactly busy but several boats were seen chugging away.

Thirsts could almost be photographed by the time we got to Limehouse Basin and so we dived into The Grapes for a quick pint before continuing our journey to Tower Bridge along cobbled streets.

Limehouse basin looking towards Canary Wharf

Maurice ducked and dived through the narrow streets and alongside the Thames, where the views got better and better as we approached Tower Bridge:

By this time it was gone 1.00pm and so thoughts again turned to gaining nourishment. After a brief stop at The Dickens Inn in St Katherine’s Dock, the consensus was to return to The Grapes where the beer was known to be good and the food proved to be both delicious, plentiful and very good value.

Fortunately, after such a large lunch, the tail wind whizzed us back to Waltham Abbey somewhat faster than the outward leg.

Thanks to Maurice for again organising this London ride. There was also talk of a future ride to the Cutty Sark in Greenwich.

An autumnal Thursday morning saw eight hardy Windmillers pedalling off from The Golden Fleece at Braughing to explore the lanes between Puckeridge, Ware and Hertford. Our team roster was: Pete, Maurice, Keith, John B, Sandra, Ric, Chris and Brian. As this was to be Chris’ first ride with the gang we thought it best to keep quiet about the hills ahead.

The highlight of the trip lay between those hills, a picturesque five mile stretch along the River Lea between Stanstead Abbotts and Hertford. Mid way, we stopped for coffee in Ware, though John went AWOL; rumour has it to the Saracen’s Head.

All in all, it was a lovely ride, mostly dry, and with just one minor setback when Brian picked up a puncture thanks to a thorn in his front tyre. The hedge flailing season is upon us again.

We clocked up just over 31 miles (though Iron Man Ric did a further 36 miles to and from our starting point; phew!) before returning to the Golden Fleece for lunch. Nobody enjoyed his beer more than Chris who hadn’t wavered when faced with those challenging Hertfordshire hills. Maurice promises a flatter ride next week.

Thanks to landlord Pete for his hospitality at the Fleece and, as ever, thanks to Maurice for organising everything.

Brian

Maurice planned a neat two county ride today of 36 miles – out from Thetford to Bressingham taking the Norfolk route and back via the Suffolk route, which made for a surprising contrast. It wasn’t just the wind, which was forcefully on the nose most of the way out, but the scenery too which included long forested Roman roads on the Norfolk side and lanes / heathlands on the Suffolk side.

So a large puff of nine Windmillers set off from Sainsbury’s in Thetford at 9.30am, comprising our Squadron Leader Maurice, Deputy Dawg Andrew, Shepherd boy John B, Wee Jimny Ken, Captain Keith Pugwash, Tank Engine Tom (previously Marmite Tom but now in short supply in Tesco), Brummie Brian, Sandra Shearer and the Revd Moley Martin. It was a chilly start, 9C, with only Moley showing off his knobbly knees, at least until coffee time in Bressingham when they too were given additional protection. We were hoping to see steam in action, if only to warm up, but there was not a lot going on other than a small locomotive seen and heard puffing away in the distance whilst we had coffee, over which the main topic of conversation was the manufacture of linoleum (a concoction invented by a Scotsman of solidified linseed oil and cork dust it seems). Which led on to cricket bats, putty and 101 other things that can be done with linseed oil without being arrested, so get some today……….

After coffee we inspected the waiting room and heard that Bevan Braithwaite, a long time steam buff and CEO of The Welding Institute for many years, was a trustee of Bressingham Steam Railway before he died and that an engine he built is still used there.

The return journey was faster with the wind behind us, through very picturesque lanes and and heathlands which were different to other, more rolling, parts of Suffolk.

Instead of a pub, we stopped at an American-style diner in Thetford and tucked into massive burgers and other large portions of food before struggling to pedal the final couple of miles back to Sainsbury’s.

Thanks to Maurice for planning the route and not getting us lost, and also to his faithful sheepdawg  Andrew for getting us to the starting pen on time.

“There’s the problem,” said Andrew, using pliers to extract a piece of wire from Maurice’s tyre, a puncture having brought us to a halt on a quiet lane between Little Saxham and Hargrave. Left to his own devices, Maurice could have fixed things and been on the road again within five minutes – but with seven Windmillers helping it took nigh on half an hour.

We had set out earlier that morning from the Packhorse Inn at Moulton – Maurice, Andrew, Sandra, Martin, John B, Ken, Tom and Brian – on a 30 mile circuit of the countryside between Newmarket and Bury St Edmunds. It was a chilly start but the stiff climb up the hill from Moulton soon warmed us up.

Gazeley, Cavenham and Lackford went by in a whirr and – before we knew it – it was time for a refreshment stop at the West Stow Anglo Saxon Village café. Thankfully, they didn’t expect us to wear loin cloths or apply woad; lycra would do fine.

It was on the next stage that Maurice had his puncture. Why is it always the rear wheel? No worries; between us were carrying more tools than an RAC patrolman, not to mention latex gloves and wet wipes.

Once re-inflated, Maurice led us off again and we completed the ride by lunchtime, returning to the Packhorse hungry, thirsty and with remarkably clean hands.

As ever, the barman queried our order; did we really want one lunch less – and two beers more – than the number of people in our party? We always leave it to John to explain.

The beer was good – Wherry good – and the conversation wide ranging, though some important questions remained unanswered:

• How many Windmillers does it take to fix a puncture or change a light bulb? It might be as many as eight.
• Have we ever seen a muckier bike chain than Maurice’s?
• Are wet wipes as good as Swarfega?
• Why does Martin carry child size rubber gloves? Sometimes it’s best not to know.

  

Thanks to Maurice for leading us once more on an excellent – and virtually traffic free – ride.

Brian

Although Maurice’s map offered three alternative rides, neither of the two easier rides got much of a look in as seven intrepid Windmiller’s set off at a pace at 4.30pm on yet another fine autumn, if not summer, evening. As well as Maurice, other members of the Puff were Deputy Dawg Andrew, Captain Keith Pugwash, John B the shepherd boy, Sandra Shearer, Moley Martin and Tim Goode. Progress was slowish to Manuden, which now has a pothole free High Street, and light was beginning to fade by the time Lower Langley was reached. Despite this, refreshments were called for by Keith, John and Moley, whilst the others returned to the Pheasant via Little Chishill with the exception of Tim who, having had a narrow brush with a car in Manuden, returned via Duddenhoe End. Here is the route taken by most:

Eventually, all assembled for copious helpings of goujons and chips in the Pheasant, washed down with some fine beer, and we were also joined by Sandra’s husband Steve.

Thanks, Maurice for organising the ride. We all wish his wife Lyn well with the treatment she has been having along with Kell and John (Titanium) Tarrington, all of whom we hope to see again very soon.

Due to rain in the morning (an unusual experience these past few weeks), a late start of 2.30pm from the Pheasant was arranged which successfully dodged any further precipitation. What appeared to be a shortish ride on paper turned out to be a surprising 36 miles, taking in Audley End, Saffron Walden, Sewards End, Debden, Henham, Rickling Green, Arkesden, Duddenhoe End and back to the Pheasant:

The Puff of Windmillers comprised our leader Maurice, his deputy (Dawg) Andrew, Captain Keith Pugwash, Marmite Tom, John B the shepherd boy, Botanist Rick and the cardinal sinner himself, the very right Revd Moley Martin. At Wimbish we called in at a very pleasant garden centre / nursery  café with the somewhat strange name of The Mutton and Kipper, neither of which was consumed, but the staff were friendly and the coffee / tea excellent.

The shepherd’s Bishop’s Finger ale was, however, the cause of much merriment:

There was a very strong tail wind from the west resulting in a possible record average speed of nearly 17mph from Great Chishill, not bad for a group of oldies (with the exception of Cap’n Pugwash). And thanks to Maurice’s devious planning, the route back seemed devoid of headwinds resulting in an overall average of 15 mph for the 36 miles. Almost every village pond was seen to be dried up with the exception of this one in Henham, which the local ducks were clearly relieved about:

And, for those interested in churches, here is one in Rickling Green that we frequently ride past at speed but rarely stop to admire its beauty:

The 2.30pm start meant we timed our arrival back at the Pheasant at a perfect time!

Thanks to Maurice for his superlative planning and to Deputy Dawg, his pet poodle.

The evenings may be drawing in, necessitating a 5.00pm start from The Pheasant, but, thanks to global warming, temperatures remain in the high teens which made for a very pleasant ride around the lanes for six Windmillers on this late September evening. Led by Maurice, his faithful followers included Deputy Dawg Andrew, Captain Keith Pugwash Jr, Lyn the lovely shepherdess, Bridget the shoe discarder and the Revd Moley Martin. The 18 mile run took in Heydon, Elmdon, Duddenhoe End, Langley Upper Green, Clavering, Meesden, Nuthamsted, Shaftenhoe End and back to the Pheasant for well earned drinks and succulent goujons, where we were joined by the shepherd himself, John B, and the other lady in his life Darcey, their slim-as-a-ballerina black labrador.

En route conversation varied as always around many assorted topics including a new luxury shepherd’s hut for John B that his shepherdess Lyn had arranged to be delivered, and which we are all looking forward to seeing, and Bridget’s dislike of John’s cleated bike shoes that she has consigned to the bin following his recent accident, from which he is making a remarkably quick recovery. We hope to see Titanium John back with us very soon.

Thanks once again to Maurice and Deputy Dawg Andrew for organising a very enjoyable ride. We have raised over £700 for charity so far this year and so let’s have some big turnouts between now and Christmas and exceed £1000 once again!

It was a fine, warm day when seven Windmillers met at the Carriers Inn in East Bergholt, Suffolk,  for a memorable ride around Constable Country, some taking the A14 to reach the start, some taking the A120 and Vernon taking the scenic route via a Colchester industrial estate. The other participants were Squadron Leader Maurice, Deputy Dawg Andrew, Captain Keith Pugwash, our resident botanist Rick, Marmite Tom and the Revd Moley Martin. Once assembled, we set off on this very scenic tour of 34 miles:

The precise route can be found here: http://gb.mapometer.com/cycling/route_4411318

The first stop was for coffee / beer at the idyllic Butt and Oyster Inn on the banks of the River Orwell at Pin Mill, a place well known to Maurice, Moley and other sailors / smugglers, and hardly surprising given its remote location. It has not changed over the years and is now home to around 25 house boats and an anchorage for visiting boats:

Then it was down to the marina at Shotley, a convenient point for sailors for quick access to the North Sea or the Stour Estuary, which brought back happy memories of good sailing days:

 Looking towards Harwich from Shotley

Then it was along the picturesque Stour, crossing the bottom end of Alton water (which has a cycle track around it, perhaps for next time) and past this strange multi-phallic gatehouse to a desres in the large grounds

before heading to Flatford Mill to see Constable Country in all its glory.

It was a surprisingly hilly ride at times and the final one back to the Carriers Inn produced thirsts that were soon quenched with some fine Adnams Southwold bitter followed by an excellent 2 course lunch for £7.95 except for the young Captain Pugwash who had to pay £8.95. The pub had some fine advice for its customers on display:

Thanks to Maurice for planning a superb ride. We look forward to doing it again in the future.

PS. For all those motivated by the special scenes at Flatford to take up a brush, paint, canvas and easel, go no further than Hinxton Mill where cows still linger in the cool water of the millpond:

A misty autumnal morning saw five Windmillers gathering in the car park of the Fox & Duck at Therfield; Andrew, John B, Keith and Brian giving a warm welcome to Sandra on this, her first Thursday outing with the gang.

Andrew had mapped out our general direction, a 30 mile circuit of North Hertfordshire and, this being his home turf, we left it to John B to pick out the choicest route through Dane End, Sandon, Rushden, Luffenhall and Weston to Baldock where we stopped for refreshment at the Delizia Café. The coffee was very good though John, finding the beer selection (Peroni or nothing) somewhat limited, opted instead for strawberry infused cider, a pink concoction which, we all agreed, looked a bit girly on him.

Refreshed, and now in glorious sunshine, we made short work of the return leg through Bygrave, Ashwell and Kelshall, returning to the Fox & Duck where we were joined by Vernon for a hearty lunch of steak sandwiches. As ever, the conversation ranged widely, everything from plastic fivers to the best way of shearing an alapaca (ask Sandra). In particular, we lamented the absence of our pal John T who we all hope to see out riding again soon.

This was a day we had all been looking forward to, a ride around God’s own County – Norfolk – but it had a sad end when John Tarrington unfortunately fell off his bike and broke his wrist, which required a speedy transfer by a paramedic to a hospital in Kings Lynn. We all wish John a speedy recovery and hope it won’t be too long before he can join us again. Accidents are few and far between, luckily, but this just shows that our rides are not devoid of risk, even on a warm sunny afternoon on a quiet country lane, and so we should all take greater care particularly as the days get shorter and the nights draw in.

Until John’s accident the other seven Puffs (the communal name for Windmill Club members) had completed about 90% of Maurice’s planned circuit from Fakenham, taking in sleepy Great Snoring, Wells next-the-Sea, Holkham, Burnham Market, Burnham Thorpe and Great / Little Walsingham en route, the Puffs comprising Maurice, Andrew, John B, Keith, Ken, Brian and Martin. We kept more or less to Maurice’s route but at times split up into a daredevil off-road group of two, John B and Ken, and a narrow gauge railway appreciation group (the others) but we all met up on the quayside at Wells for large helpings of shrimps, whelks and seafood as a mid-morning snack.

The planned route:

…………and the actual:

…..the main difference being a wonderful off-road stretch behind the beach at Wells as far as Holkham and a different route back after lunch.

After Holkham there was a busy stretch of the main coast road for a couple of miles (impatient drivers in God’s own County!) before turning off to peaceful and picturesque Burnham Market (also known as Chelsea-on-Sea), where John B showed us a cottage he was once tempted to acquire.

Next was actually Station Street, Burnham Market where Martin stopped off to say hello to a former colleague who he knew would be opening a can of Speckled Hen on the dot of noon………….. The others rode on to the lunchtime stop at the historic Lord Nelson pub in nearby Burnham Thorpe where Martin caught them up for a delicious lunch in the garden.

John T told us how Nelson had his last meal on English soil with his midshipman upstairs in the pub before setting off to fight at Trafalgar. Sadly, the table where they sat which had his initials carved in it appears to have gone missing since the room was converted to accommodation for kitchen staff just a few years ago……………. Nelson learnt to sail at nearby Burnham Overy Staite – it’s said that if you can sail there you can sail anywhere.

So, after a good lunch it was then back via Little and Great Walsingham but there was no sign of Our Lady of Walsingham – she probably knew we were coming and had gone shopping for the day in Norwich. And soon after that, John’s accident happened which took the edge off what had been a wonderful day up to that point. But the team worked well in organising an ambulance and looking after John until the paramedic arrived.Meanwhile Maurice and Andrew collected John’s car and loaded his bike for Andrew to drive home whilst John was swept off to hospital in Kings Lynn by the paramedic.

Thanks once again to Maurice and his Deputy Dawg Andrew for planning the ride and organising the lunch stop.

…………or in skiing jargon, should it have been green, blue, red or black? Those were the choices provided by our leader Maurice on a delightful sunny evening to five other Windmillers who accompanied him on the ride – Deputy Dawg Andrew, John B, Half scone Keith, Tiny Tim and the old blogger Moley Martin who was back in the saddle after being off games for a few weeks. Here were the choices:

All chose to do a combination of the red, blue and black of 19 miles which took in almost every hill possible and created quite a thirst and appetite for cod goujons by the time we returned to The Pheasant, and excellent goujons they were too.

Thanks, Maurice, for planning the route. The evenings are drawing in and so it was good to make the most of this one.