Ten riders gathered just before 8:30 at the Square on a decent morning – not too cold or windy and roads drying nicely after some overnight rain, with no rain to speak of in the forecast. We set off via Southgate St and Seymour road, through Tuffley via Bodiam Avenue and hence through the mazes of Kingsway and Hunt’s Grove. A tiny bit of gravel path was used to access the small bridge over the M5 by Warbler Close, then it was into the lanes via Haresfield to the Stonehouse road. Turning left to head into Stroud on the Ryeford road we were greeted by a ‘road closed’ sign, but continued anyway and enjoyed a very quiet run in bright sunshine all the way to Cainscross – passing the roadworks was straightforward and not even requiring a dismount. The road then became busier but not too bad as it was still early and we went straight into Stroud, climbing up under the railway bridge where we heard some rather fruity language from the user of a mobility scooter who seemed to take undue umbrage at being overtaken by a few cars! However he turned aside and no abuse was directed at us (well not until later, at the roadworks in Stratton…).
Once beyond Stroud, Malcolm left us for an alternative route as we turned off for the climb to Butterow Hill – with the expectation of a climb right up to the common, some cries of anguish were heard. However we didn’t go to the top but turned off just after the old toll house, taking Bagpath Lane to Montserrat (grand house now long gone) and beyond – a narrow, undulating, gritty little number. At the head of the group, Seb and I were lucky enough to see a small deer (it looked like a muntjac) in the road, which quickly made an exit. Now this was a very narrow road – a sign at one point advised drivers of larger vehicles not to continue due to the certainty of getting wedged… we soon saw how this could happen at Swells Hill with stone walls either side of a very narrow and bendy section! No problem on a bicycle of course except for the dodgy surfaces here and there, not helped by the overnight rain. However all made it safely to regroup at the crossroads and continue up to Burleigh. Kudos to John M for riding this on a bike that definitely did not have the appropriate lower gears! Amazing effort.
Once at the top, all was plain sailing with a nice tailwind and easy cycling, past the Ragged Cot and the airfield (loads of gliders sat gleaming in the sun), onto the A419 for a short hop then swinging left to descend to Frampton Mansell. From there it was an easy route to Daglingworth and Stratton (an impatient motorist at the roadworks there) and on into the centre of Cirencester to Café Fora at 11:04 where we found Malcolm and Neville already enjoying elevenses. 30 miiles from the Square.
6 riders continued on for a (liquid) lunch stop at the Kings Head in Kingscourt, braving the slight headwind via Oaksey, Culkerton, Cherington, Hampton Fields, Minchinhampton and Amberley then swooping down to the tiny lane to Kingscourt. The pub took some finding, with 3 riders missing the turn but these miscreants thankfully brought back by the Captain. The final lane (The Street) to the pub was, I’m sure, was even narrower than Bagpath Lane!