the 3 cafes ride

the 3 cafes ride, a photo by rOcKeTdOgUk on Flickr.

a day off can only mean one thing, ride! basking on 30 degree sunshine i headed over the Lickeys, on to Waseley for the first cafe stop, this was never going to be a high performance ride and after a refreshing cuppa i carried on to Clent, the climbs made tougher by the oppressive heat and stopped for an eccles cake,another tea and a sit down in the shade. Then dusty loose trails around clent before decending inot the village and heading for Wollaston, the Stewponey and the stourport canal. From kinver to stourport is a long stretch and the sun was reflecting off the hard backed towpath making it even hotter. it was also very dusty and the combination of this mixed with sweat and sun cream turned the front of my legs black in just a few miles, must have looked a bit odd when i stopped at the 3rd and final cafe of the day. The couple who run it were lovely and this was at about mile 30 and the ham and cheese sandwich i had tasted fantastic, all washed down with, yes you guessed it a cup of tea, proper tea this time, no bags and a tea strainer, pure luxury! the remaining 15 odd miles we at an even more sedate pace as it was past midday and the temperature was at its peak. sensibly i had taken suncream with me so there was no danger of sunburn and all the tea and drinks i'd had kept me hydrated. i did need a solero to cool down at the end though
ride 86
50 miles
total 1759
july 114
commute 817