According to gps: trip odo 8.47 moving time 1h10m odo 8.47 max speed 18.2 moving avg 7.3
So, last time I didn't get to do the ride in Reddish Vale... we did it today instead.
Running up to this weekend the forecast was for heavy rain for every day... but upon awaking this morning it was clear sky. The forecast was saying that we might avoid rain before about 3/4pm... so I thought I'd risk it. I gave a couple of colleagues an SMS which resulted in Richard and I meeting near Reddish Vale Visitor Centre at about 11:30.
We were following ride 7 in my Haynes book (I can't be bothered to link to it anymore!) and, apart from missing a couple of turnings, managed it without too many problems. We popped into Tesco for lunch which was conveniently en route and made a bit of a diversion to the place just next to the M60 where the River Tame joins the River Goyt to form the River Mersey (which was almost exciting).
The route then took us up through Reddish (which we saw rather more of than anticipated due to me misreading the instructions, oops) and onto a track betwen open spaces which was a bit waterlogged. OK, very waterlogged. At one point we cycled through this... lake that crossed the path - good fun, but you had to pray that you didn't hit a submerged pothole or brick or similar, as it turned out to be rather deeper than we anticipated (I estimate as much as about 20cm in places!). Fortunately just pootling slowly through got us through it - though it was quite fun hoping that we didn't have to put our foot down!
This track took us on to join the Fallowfield Loop Line briefly. From there it was a good long run downhill back towards the Visitor Centre in Reddish Vale. We then investigated round the lake there and packed up just before the rain started dumping significant amounts of water on us...
All in all, a good ride, and not too strenuous (but strenuous enough!). At home I think I balanced out any good I might have done by exercising by eating some pancakes...!
Oh, and apologies that these ride reports are beginning to sound a bit like 'What I did on my holidays' essays - and then I did this and then I did that and then we saw this and then we... etc. I'm just running out of inspiration a little!