Sunshine is promised for the spring Bank Holiday, so the Ordnance Survey one day Cycle Tours for Bristol, Somerset and Wiltshire (Nick Cotton) that was a Christmas gift, is brought off the bookshelf and there was a choice to be made from two “EASY” ride sections, one covering the Somerset Levels south of Wedmore and the other, River Valleys and canals near Marlborough.
Accommodation suitable for cyclists and car parking is a consideration and a youth hostel is always a good choice. YHA Street, which is a delightful turn of the 20th Century Swiss 
Alpine Style Lodge once owned by the John Lewis Group, was unfortunately unable to accommodate us, so the choice had to be The Wiltshire route and a B&B! Studying the cycle route closely, we googled B&B’s and found The Manor at Upavon http://www.themanorupavon.co.uk/ a charming, thatched 17th Century Manor House with pond (and fishing), a great store for our bikes and a beautifully cooked and served British breakfast.
Having set off in heavy rain and arrived with wet cycles, we were delighted to be greeted with a fine day for our adventurous 35 mile “easy” cycle ride. Having checked our tyre pressures, we set off for 
the start of our ride at Woodborough, a charming village overlooked in the distance by a delightful chalk white horse. Soon we were peddling through Pewsey and the route took us down onto the Kennet and Avon canal. Signs of spring were all around with ducklings paddling behind mother duck, fresh leaves bursting from sticky buds and creamy cow parsley along the banks. Recent rain made the tow path slippery so I was keen to push rather then end up wet for the rest of the day. Crofton pumping station was starting to fire up its Cornish beam engine to delight Bank Holiday week-end visitors and pump the water into the canal to keep the craft afloat. Lovely coffee and homemade cakes on offer here. From here we cycled on to Great Bedwyn and then decided that as there was an ominous bank holiday week-end dark cloud on the horizon and the breeze started to stiffen, that we would cut a corner off the prescribed route and take a short cut through Savernake Forest.
There were all sorts of lovely paths to follow and we thought that we were following the Wiltshire Cycle way path but I think the sign might have been turned around as we found ourselves in the beautiful grounds of Tottenham House, now empty with prancing deer leaping out of our path, probably rather alarmed by our high viz jackets. We tried to carry on our direct route but ended up being hemmed in by high security fencing and warning signs of 24 hour security! The wind started to blow a bit harder and I was reiterating the merits of sticking to the recommended route as we turned back on ourselves and retraced our steps heading nearer to the noise of passing vehicles!
It was one of the best days out and we still have the pleasure of doing the bit we missed out. We will be googling more B&B’s around Marlborough or book early at the Youth Hostel for another “easy” ride.
Anne Twitchett
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