The long days in the summer are ideal for long rides. I had a few planned but due to family commitments at weekends they didn’t work out. So I took a days leave and set off at 9:45pm the night before to do my 400km “Avalon Sunrise” route.
setting off at 9:45pm It’s still light
Badger
After avoiding a badger scurrying across the road in Dunster at 00:30am I got on the A39 section to Bridgwater. If you know the road during the day it is often busy, especially in the summer. But in the early hours of the morning it is deserted. I’d had an hours rest, trying to sleep before I set off. However, by 2am I was getting an attack of the dozies. Some caffeine tablets seemed to work to fix this
ProPlus time
The night this time of year is quite short and one of the delights of this type of ride is seeing the sky get lighter again, then the birds start singing and finally the sun comes up
Sunrise on the old Frome Road
Cycleway as Art
The next high point was the amazing new “Two Tunnels” cycleway in Bath. They have taken an old rail tunnel that punches through the considerable hills at Bath and converted it into a cycle route. The tunnel is lit in a beautiful way and riding through it is like being in an art installation
Bath Cycleway Tunnel
I stuck pretty much to off road cyclepaths all the way from Bath to North Bristol. Then some nice lanes and over the Severn Bridge and back.
Severn Estaury
I’d not managed to find a good coffee that day until I reached the Cotswolds and McQuiggs in Wotton Under Edge sorted me out
fine cup of coffee at McQuiggs
As I rode around various villages I saw dozens of signs for Fetes, open gardens and other events happening next weekend: so if that’s your thing there’s a lot of it on in the English countryside!
Everywhere has a Fete on the 21st of June
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