Season of mists and mellow fruitfulness,
Close bosom-friend of the maturing sun…
John Keats' poem Autumn came to mind as eight of us set off on a cold misty morning. A fairly direct route took us on the cycle track from Mill Green (thankfully now cleared of overhanging vegetation following my report to the Council) and along the tarmac section of the Cole Green Way. Then it was over the A414 to Bramfield. Ascending the hill out of Stapleford we were overtaken by an emergency water company van. We found him at the top of the hill puzzling over how to fix a broken water main, while we half-cranked it through the flood and Judy on the recumbent had to lift her bags clear of the water. Unfortunately no-one fell in (I had my camera ready), so we carried on past the duck pond at Chapmore End, swooped down the hill and sped along Anchor Lane to The Village Stores at Thundridge.
Tracey emerges from the flood
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Judy trying not to get wet
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It was our first visit to this newly opened café. We found Paul sitting in the bay window and the rest of us were soon provided with fine coffee or tea and a good choice of cakes. Let’s hope the shop and café keeps going, as it’s just the right distance out for us.
At Chapmore End
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Thundridge Stores
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The sun was creeping out as we headed north up the deserted old main road to Puckeridge and followed the old coaching route towards Cambridge. Here we caught a glimpse of John flashing by in the opposite direction on (or in) his Quest velomobile. A scenic diversion via Great Hornmead and Anstey brought us to the Tally Ho in Barkway. Greeted by a fading photo of Gordon Brown, and seeing no-one having Sunday lunch in the large restaurant, the conversation soon turned to the economy and the relative merits of the theories of Keynes, Hayek and Marx for solving the current economic slump. The log fire was making us dozy and no conclusion was reached, so we decided it was time to move on.
Making good progress and as the sun was out, I decided to put in an extra loop after Great Munden along an unfrequented lane to Colliers End. This justified consuming large slices of chocolate cake when we arrived at the golf club. It fortified us nicely while the temperature dropped rapidly on the journey home.
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Jon 7/10/2012
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