Easter Monday ride today with John and Daphne since Linda is in Australia and Dave busy with family. The forecast for some rain late morning, but we decided to risk it anyway. We collected Daphne and parked at Mattingley church.
Route link screenshot at end.
Heading for Hartley Witney, we rode uphill on Hazeley Botten to join the B3011 for just a few hundred yards to then enjoy the downhill on Arrow Lane. Then cutting through Grange Lane we emerged at the traffic lights in Phoenix Green.
Next, we got onto the cyclepath alongside the "Pet Cemetry Road", continuing to Station Road Winchfield, and all quiet lanes now for a while, as we took the right turn into Bagwell Road.
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| A brief stop at Winchfield Church for Daphne to remove her jacket since now feeling too warm. |
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| Winchfield Church. Always difficult to photograph since its hiding! |
To Odiham next, using the underpass through to the canal and up the High Street. Our usual route heading to Greywell.
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| Deptford Lane Greywell. The Aubretia just come into flower this week. |
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| Upton Grey Road. |
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| Views from Upton Grey Road. A bit of a gloomy morning. |
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| Windows being prepped for painting. The decorator agreed they were shot! |
Having dropped down into Upton Grey to the shop, a return now to the top of the hill, and around the bend, continuing up hill, on Turnworth Road. (I had done this with Breeze 2 weeks ago, but at the X Roads we had turned left to climb to Weston Patrick). Today, our route was straight over the X Roads, which is what I have done many times in the opposite direction, but turning right to climb the hill to Weston Patrick.
Once through the X Roads, into Longroden Lane, a short climb uphill, and John pointed out the weather vane on the Old School House. I had never noticed it coming the other direction, since we are usually whizzing downhill.😊
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| I pulled over at the top of the hill to photograph this.... .... but a slight breeze caught it and turned it so that I couldn't see the detail!! I ended up walking back down the hill to get this shot. |
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| Looking back on Longroden Lane. The climb UP from Tunwoth X Roads, that I normally go down. |
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| The School House, with John and Daphne waiting in the distance for me whilst I get a photo of the weather vane. |
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| This green bench has an inscription of SG 1997. Silver Gubilee?😅 |
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| Admiring the view ahead beyond the bench, Tunworth. |
As we set off, we met a local couple coming walking up the hill, and I asked if they happened to know what SG on the bench signified? They didn't, even although they have lived here for over 30 years. A friendly chat for a few minutes before we set off again. They mentioned the church just a few hundred yards further on, but we skipped that today.
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| Rose Cottage, Longroden Lane, Tunworth. Winnie the Pooh on the weather vane. |
At a T junction, we turned left into Turnworth Road, John pre warning us that our right turn coming up, is a bit awkward.... and a climb follows. (also called Tunworth Road, now heading into Mapledurwell). I usually slog up this road, so its bliss in this direction, free wheeling for about a mile.
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| A very powerful scent of Rape crops as we drop into Mapleldurwell. |
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| The Rape crop opposite this farm, where we usually climb up hill. Daphne thought she also recognised this area from a walk she had done. |
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| Lilac in flower dropping in to Mapledurwell. |
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| Leaving Mapledurwell, and the last house is Maple Cottage. |
A climb over the M3 now, and into the little back lane with a cycle path to emerge at The Hatch Pub, on the A30, and a quick dash across to climb the gradual ascent on Hatch Lane, into Old Basing. When Daphne saw the name "Milkingpen Lane" as the next turn on her Garmin, an "aha, I know where I am moment".😂
Some pretty cottages and blossoms through Old Basing, and soon we turned left into Pyotts Hill, to join the cyclepaths through Chinnor, and eventually onto Cufaude Lane. It had started splitting with rain by now, but nothing much. As we passed a gate along Cufaude, a call to stop from Daphne too see the lambs.
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| Cufaude Lane. Lots of bleating going on! |
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| The lambs were quite curious as to who we were. |
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| The farmer swung around his truck, and then drove to this gate. As he did, all the sheep followed. He jumped out to open the gate, get back in his truck, drive through, and try to close it again before the sheep followed him. He almost made it. Quite amusing to watch. 😂 |
With the rain at times becoming a bit more threating, we peddled a bit faster now, heading to Bramley, then to Sherfield on Loddon. A busy A33 to cross to day to use the path to Harpley Wespall, passing the church. Easy going now back to Mattingley, and the rain never did come to much at all. A nuice route, and one to repeat, with the option to have coffee stop at Bramley Barn at 22 miles. .
