On April 18th, three of our mob were involved with the Torbay Cycle for Peace (TCP for short – the sponsored gargle), which was held in Paignton. They raised nearly £20 between them for the Ecology Party at the expense of some very valuable attendance points – well done all of you!

The rest of us met at Dart Bridge, Buckfastleigh for our ride to Scoriton Down. The weather was superb as we set off up the hill to Cross Furzes, and it wasn’t long before everyone was removing items of clothing – we usually aim to go down Wallaford Road, not up it! A little way past Cross Furzes we turned left down the track to Hayford Hall – Stephen and Mark were pointing earnestly at something the bush behind the dead-end sign, but I never did establish what it was! We were mauled by several dogs as we passed Hayford, and just when we thought we’d escaped, another one appeared a bit further along the track. Fortunately its owner managed to control it in time, and we were on our way once again.

At the end of the stony track was a gate, and on the other side of the gate was … grass, ferns and open moorland! We pretended it was a tarmac road and sailed across the heath and down the hill. As we approached the bottom we discovered a beautiful glade beside a pool: that would most certainly do for lunch, so coats were laid out under the trees.

After a while, Yours Truly through it would be a fine idea to take a few photos. So far so good, but the best place to take the photo was on the opposite side of the stream. I got a foot-full of water from the soggy moss, but eventually I made it and perched the camera on a conveniently-situated tree. Ah, thought I, what a good idea, I’ll set the camera to automatic and be in the picture myself! Well, I thought I could make it back across that stream in ten seconds, but several wet feet and muddy jeans later I had a good set of marathon photo-finishes!

Whilst we were enjoying the peace of the district, an enormous explosion ripped through the air and brought us all to our senses rather abruptly. On investigation it turned out that John’s rear tyre had burst rather dramatically, so Messrs Sheppard, Downer, Morton and Jones amused themselves by exploring the extent of the footpath leading away from our lunch spot. It disappeared down into the woods, but at the bottom there was a clearing by the river and we spent a good hour throwing stones into the river from opposite banks – simply to get each other wet, you understand! Just when we were in full battle, along came a group of Welsh hikers who settled down under the trees to watch the entertainment. They planned to camp there that night, and I must say I was a trifle envious – it was a lovely spot.

When we finally got back to the others, Colin had almost finished reading the paper and was just contemplating going to sleep! It really was getting on though, so we forced ourselves back onto the bikes and made our way over to Scoriton. We finished off a lazy day by wandering through the lanes to Denbury, feeling thoroughly content.