We Went To Cornwall in SEPTEMBER

Last September we flew to Cape Town. It was Springtime down there. This year we went to Cornwall. It was Autumn. If one could afford an annual migration to the Southern hemisphere in the Northern winter it would be a no-brainer.

View Home - Bristol in a larger map.

Six of us old MotoMates arranged to rendezvous at a hotel in the centre of Bristol. My start point was Duffield near the city of Derby. An old airforce mate had invited me to call in for lunch sometime. He and his lovely wife live in the Cotswolds so a short diversion from the country road would work well.

We had decided to overnight at Bristol. The RV was at the Premier Inn at 16:00. When I had parked my motorbike next to three very familiar machines on the roof carpark and got to the bar at 16:05, TE, BG and GW were halfway through their first well-deserved pint. They had had a very wet and very traffic-jammed motorway ride from Staffordshire - Newborough and Hill Ridware. Still to come was MF who had the longest ride of all of us to the RV. He lives in Ilkley, West Yorkshire, and is one of our septuagenarians. He rides a Honda CB1000F. Maybe he is phoning to say he's going to be late - again!

MF made it. He was only 1 hour late. He did well considering the conditions. There was a beer waiting for him in the bar. It was only slightly flat. I think that GW had his eye on it.  But I was watching him.  Now we had five out of a possible six. Just AM to make the RV. 

Dr AM (of the Dental Surgeon persuasion and from Makeney) was not able to leave his practice until around 16:30, but by 16:35 he was on his BMW 1200RT braving the rain and headlights via the M42, M5, and M4 to the rendezvous. Here he is:

AM

He also did remarkably well. He arrived at 19:10 having filtered for about 150 miles - ... and God said, 'Let there be filtering' and we filtered and it was very good. And the hours became minutes.... Too bad AM has to work and couldn't leave earlier. But somebody has to work. How else does the government get tax £s to pay for pensioner bikers? Anyway we only invite AM along to get our average age down to about 67. He says that he has more fun hanging with us than with kids his own age.

Bristol is a brilliant city especially on a Friday night. When we had downed a few beers and some whiskeys we headed for an Italian restaurant that had been booked ahead. It was good fun. Good food and good wine. What's not to like?

 BG - JM - AM

GW - TE - MF

GW says, "I drink to make other people interesting!"

After a fun evening we wended our way back to the hotel. We didn't cause any trouble. We were as good as gold.

We eventually found the hotel. It was more or less where we left it. After a good sleep and a decent breakfast we set off from the roof of the Premier Inn (£39 per room for the night - not for the roof, actually in the hotel) for Cornwall. Unlike the day before, the weather was: SUNSHINE.

The plan was to keep off of the motorway and hug the north coast as far a possible. I'll try and insert another Google Map here:

 
Bristol to Lynton Note: All of these Google Maps can be clicked and dragged and zoomed in and out as required.

At about 11:00 we pulled into Porlock for a cuppa and a bacon sandwich. There was a convenient car park opposite a very pleasant little coffee shop. I left my helmet, gloves, and GPS on the bike. I am sure that Porlock is an honest town particularly when one can see one's motorcycle from the cafe.

Left to Right: AM, GW, MF, TE, BG, JM

The ride was very picturesque. We rode off the beaten track to look at the pretty harbour in Lynton. Motorbikes can get to places that cars cannot. We rode where we shouldn't have. We parked where we shouldn't have. A parking attendant ran up to tell us off.  Mike totally disarmed him by asking him to take this photo. What a nice jobsworth chap.

 GW's stickers. He is a true World Rider.

We stopped to consult the map. Straight to Barnstaple or via Lynmouth?

We opted for the climb into Lynmouth first, but had to negotiate a very tricky sharp and steep right hand turn first (sorry Barrie!). The sun was still shining and we were all enjoying taking our time and wending southwest. Here is yet another map:

Lynton - Boscastle - Tintagel - Newquay. Click and drag as required.

The sun continued to shine. We rode through Barnstaple, Bideford and Bude and diverted from the A39 for a brief look at Boscastle and to indulge ourselves with tea plus jam scones and clotted cream at Tintagel. This had taken us around Camelford but we rejoined the A39 for Wadebridge and Newquay.

At about 17:30 we arrived in Newquay and quickly found our B&B: Tir Chonaill Lodge Hotel 016 Mount Wise 01637 876492.
More coming if I can be @r$*d.

Bus Passes or Bikes?

Q. What do retired guys do when they are not riding a free bus to collect their pensions or shuffling down to the post office with their zimmers?

A. They use the internet to check the weather forecast and consult Google Earth to organise a rendezvous and email to communicate and make it happen.

The Midlanders, from Rugeley, Nottingham and Duffield, have arranged to meet at a convenient RV at 09:15 for a departure at 09:30. The first two TE and JM are here ....... (obviously one of us has to take the pic!) .......

Soon joined by number three ..... TG. Two Beemers and a Triumph. Which reminds me of the World Cup 2010. Honda doing very well. Mobilette and Aprilia have been sent home. BMW v Triumph on Sunday at Bloemfontein 3PM.

TE and TG on the way to the RV where we have arranged to meet the heathen Northerners who are invading Lincolnshire from Ilkley, Holmfirth, Hull and Beverley. Note the poppies in the field!!

At 10:52 we arrive at the rendezvous 53 25 50.8N 001 01 57.2W. We seem to be the first here.

I was hoping to get some pics as the others arrived, but we waited in vain. We chatted amongst ourselves. I kept my mouth shut even though I had nothing to say!

BUT, we did meet up soon enough and all together there were 7 motorcycles ridden by 6 OAPs and 1 honorary OAP. Here are 6 of the 7 bikes. Aprilia Tuomo, Honda CBF1000GT, Honda CBF1000, BMWR1200GS, BMWK1300GT, Triumph Sprint ST1050. BMWR1150GSA out of picture. Riders: CE, RH, MF, TE, JK, TG and JM out of shot.

We had a good ride with a very good leader (not me!). Having visited the Lincolnshire Aviation Museum for a light lunch in the N.A.A.F.I, we rode to Bolingbroke (click) which has a 13th century castle, where, in 1366 King Henry IV was born. The link does far more justice to the castle than my camera can. The village of Bolingbroke has a great looking pub and some pretty cottages and lanes.

This is a pic of TE and JK posing on their steeds by the ...........

......... yup, you guessed right AGAIN ....... The Black Horse Inn!

Dr JK - a late-comer to the motorcycle ball. He thinks nothing of doing 450 miles a day, which is impressive in UK traffic. I seem to only manage about 250 miles a day and then I need a lie down.

A pretty cottage in Bolingbroke.

Another pretty cottage.

Another angle PLUS hanging baskets! We are aesthete hard bikers. Yes, I said, "aesthete."

This is a nice gaff. These pretty village images are mainly for the benefit of my S.A readers. Apologies for the lack of bike pics.

Maybe I could afford this if I sold my place?

I took this pic of some Bolingbroke geese for you. After Bolingbroke we went to Skegness for an ice-cream and to check out the talent. Didn't see any, but then we didn't check the bingo halls.

On the way back to the Midlands, we took the A17 and I noticed a signpost to the village of Heckington. I left my two mates to peel off and have a look.

Heckington has a famous windmill which was once owned by the grandfather of a South African friend of mine - (Hi Brown Bear!)

Taking a decent picture was not easy - so I didn't manage it!! The sun was behind and I couldn't make this any lighter with PhotoShop. The bike at the base gives an idea of the size of this beautiful structure.

I walked around to the west side - into an old disused coal yard - and took this angle.

This says it really!

Finally, I made it home at 18:30 after 255 miles and a good day riding. It was still very sunny and warm. I had a sundowner (although the sun didn't set until about 21:35 and it wasn't dark until 22:05) and sat down to watch Denmark v Japan. Result 1:3 (Keisuke Honda was Man-of-the-Match). Not a bad day in the life of an OAP!

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Overnight at Greystoke, Cumbria

I looked out the window and, yes, it was raining. Well it was only the 8th of June and this is England! Only one thing for it - go motorbike riding and head for somewhere even wetter. Cumbria and the Lake District both sound quite wet. Let's go there!

Notice the rain gear! Also note the camping gear on the bike. Time to go!
The time is 09:45. I have to refuel and it is a 2h30m ride to the 12:30 rendezvous where I will meet up with my Yorkshire mates.

Here we are near a place called the Buttertubs which are fluted limestone columns and potholes on the road between Wensleydale and Swaledale. The potholes are not on the actual road on this occasion. Click here for the link.

Actually we (JM, MF, Dr J and CE) met up at Leyburn Railway Station. N54 18 28.48 W001 49 19.76 and then continued the ride through the beautiful West Yorkshire dales. We rode through Aysgarth and Hawes and then Thwaite and Keld.

Riding in the rain is okay. Provided that you have the correct gear on it is actually quite pleasant. There are advantages too; it is comfortable (not too hot) and there are no bugs committing hari-kari on your visor. I'm such a positive person!!

This is a river-side camping site near Keld. We stopped to check it out for future possibilities.

Yep; it looks fine!

At Tan-Hill Inn we stopped for a hot chocolate. It was run by two pretty maids. The location is The Causeway overlooking Teesdale at Reeth near Richmond.

Then we continued via Kirkby Stephen (a very attractive little town) to Appleby. Appleby is famous for the annual Horse Fair. In fact we came across numerous horse-drawn gypsy caravans on the adjacent roads. At around 17:30 we arrived at Greystoke Castle.

This is where MF and I planned to stay for the night. Here is the link and the coordinates:

N54 40 19.41 W002 52 14.08

Having established that the B&B was good - and it was - we booked in and then went to visit Dr J's daughter and son-in-law at Caldbeck. This was about 10 miles further northwest.

We rode through some very picturesque scenery on the way.

Having spent an hour at Dr J's outlaws and having had a nice cup of coffee, we headed back to Greystoke for a very good meal in the village pub.

The Boot & Shoe pub in Greystoke village, a 5 minute walk from the accommodation. It was good! Then, at 21:30, Dr J and CE, and having had zero alcohol (good guys) rode home to Hull and Beverley respectively - a three hour ride. Why? - because they had commitments the next day, like golf and building work. These OAPs are tough.

MF and I had enjoyed a few drinks in the pub the night before. We slept well, had a very nice breakfast, and then set off to have a brief look at the lake district. This and .............

......... also this, is Lake Windermere.

A pretty farm lane opposite the lake.

The bikes performed well. The next 'leg' was via Staveley and the A65 and Kirkby Lonsdale (coffee stop) to MF's home at Ilkley. Bonnie provided us with a lovely lunch and then I had to set off for the two hour ride south to my place.

It was a good trip and I'm glad that we went even though it rained a lot!! Notice I didn't actually camp!!

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