The October meeting of the Fairclough Flyer's Cycling Club was centred on Dartmouth and hosted by the club's latest honorary member, Mac. It is fair to say that Mac's expertise lies with nautical matters and boats of all shapes and sizes, although he does have 2 motorbikes and fortunately for us, access to a 2 bedroomed flat with spectacular views over river Dart and his pad above it!
I arrived in Dartmouth late Thursday afternoon after a windy drive down the M5 and enjoyed a convivial evening with Mac in the Seven Stars pub, a short stroll from his flat. An added bonus to the weekend was the fact that our cycling get together would coincide with the annual Dartmouth Food and Drink Festival. Dartmouth is also home to the Britannia Royal Naval College which overlooks the town and the busy estuary with its's constant marine traffic.
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| Leaving London on time! |
As Einar and Richard were making their way from London, I used the morning to take a short ride to Brixham whilst Mac did some work, so boarded the Lower ferry in Bayards Cove which took me across to Kingswear on the other side of the estuary.
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| Dartmouth to Brixham return |
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| Lower Ferry |
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Golden Hind Museum
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I'd forgotten just how hilly Devon is, so was surprised that my batteries were taking a real hammering and as a result I shortened my intended route. Shortly after I arrived back in Dartmouth Richard and Einar arrived so we spent the usual amount of time faffing with the bikes preparing them for a short trip to Sainsbury's (other supermarkets are available) to buy essential supplies.
With the supplies secured it was time to sample the local delights at the Food & Drink Festival and so, after a rapid descent past the Naval College, we were quaffing local cider from one of the many outlets in the town centre. A quiet evening in sitting round the table, drinking in the view followed by a sumptuous banquet of Chinese food, finished off the day and ensured that most of us slept soundly that night.
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| Cider or lager? |
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| Room with a view |
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| Reminiscing |
Well rested and ready to take on the hills of the South Hams, the plan was to cycle a loop of about 40km from Dartmouth to Totnes via Stoke Gabriel and meet Mac for lunch in the Malster's Arms in Tuckenhay, the pub once owned by celebrity TV chef, Keith Floyd.
The planned route was slightly more demanding than first thought! Quiet country lanes quickly became rough muddy tracks with very steep rocky descents, which Richard took with consummate ease, Einar slightly more cautiously and myself, grateful that I didn't fall off - but this would change later in the day.
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| A warning sign |
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| Bottoming out |
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| Mud glorious mud |
We reached Totnes and breathed a sigh of relief. The section to Tuckenhay took us down the Dart Valley Cycleway, a beautiful track that runs parallel to and high above the river. It was on a steep uphill section that I came a cropper! A tricky slalom manoeuvre through a staggered gate resulted in me taking a hefty fall - thankfully no witnesses to it except the grunting through the helmet intercom system, which the others could hear, and thankfully nothing broken. Lesson learned..... after composing myself and allowing some walkers to continue their journey we posed for a photograph before continuing to meet Mac for lunch.
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| After the fall |
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| Raising a glass to Keith |
After a glance at the expensive menu we settled for a pint before Mac headed back to Dartmouth on his BMW motorbike whilst we had yet more steep hills and brake testing descents to negotiate before we made it back via Sainsburys for yet more supplies. An eventful day to say the least with 42km covered with 1300 metres of climbing so another quiet evening was called for in front of the TV with pizza, banter and a glass or two of red wine in honour of Mr Floyd.
With the clocks going back an hour Sunday seemed to go on forever. Another ride was planned only this time without the off road bits. Dartmouth to Torcross returning via Slapton causeway.
The weather was kind to us once again but the hills didn't get any smaller or easier but the views over the sea were stunning. We posed for photographs at Torcross and Slapton before heading back to Dartmouth for a quick visit to Dartmouth Castle.
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| View from the top |
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| Torcross Tank Memorial |
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Slapton Sands
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The Sherman tank in Torcross serves as a memorial to the Allied soldiers who were killed during Operation Tiger, the exercises which formed part of the build up to the D Day landings, which ended up in a catastrophic loss of life. Over 1400 men lost their lives that day in April 1944 as a result of friendly fire and the arrival of German U boats.
The tank was raised from the sea bed in 1984 largely due to the efforts of local man Ken Small.
With the bikes securely back in the garage and the afternoon ahead, we headed up river on Mac's boat to the Ferry Boat Inn at Dittisham taking in the views of Agatha Christies house peeping out of the steep sided wooded bank and hearing the hooting of the steam train of the Dart Valley railway heading to Kingswear.
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The FBI
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On the way back
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Unfortunately we were too late for lunch in the FBI, not a table to be had, so we had to settle for some Old Rosie and some peanuts. We were treated to views of basking seals on a pontoon as we headed back down river and it seemed fitting that following our nautical experience, we sought liquid refreshment in the Dartmouth Yacht Club. This was followed by yet more refreshment at Paddy's flat. Paddy is Mac's Mum who is the most delightful, generous and warmest person you could ever hope to meet. She grew up in Dartmouth where her father was the town's GP. So with weekend nearly over we weaved our way back through the narrow streets to the flat and prepared ourselves for an early Monday morning departure to get Mac to Heathrow for a lunchtime flight to Barcelona.
Another great, action packed weekend, wonderfully hosted by Mac & Paddy....thanks!
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