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Glorious Bike Rides

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Reviews

“Lost Lanes West is a joy” – road.ccc

“Beautifully produced… lovingly researched” – Podium Cafe

“The most beautiful guide to cycling in South East England” – London Cyclist

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Spring in the lanes

Spring in the lanes

Am working on the next Lost Lanes book. It's going

Am working on the next Lost Lanes book. It's going to cover Central England - all the way from Lincolnshire to the Welsh Border. And for anyone who thinks this is flyover country, or lacks spectacular landscapes and brilliant places places to ride a bike, then maybe this photo from the top of the Wrekin looking south towards the Shropshire Hills may persuade you to reconsider. This was last week and about half an hour later I was on my way down to Ironbridge and being pummelled by hailstones.

#lostlanes #shropshire #thewrekin #clouds #cycling #roughstuff

With a bit of help from Google Maps satellite view

With a bit of help from Google Maps satellite view and @wahoofitnessofficial I found the Chartist Cave on Mynydd Llangynidr. In a snowstorm.

Here in 1839 was where the Tredegar Chartists made and stashed the pikes and other weapons before they marched to Newport and caused almighty havoc for a few days, in the cause of democracy. They wanted to give working men a say in lawmaking: they would be able to vote, their vote would be protected by a secret ballot, and they would be able to stand for election to the House of Commons. Naturally the authorities came down like a ton of bricks, around twenty protestors were killed in the streets and the leaders tried for treason and sentenced to be hung, drawn and quartered (though this heinous punishment was never carried out and they were transported to Australia for life instead).

The track from the Trefil quarry road is a bit over a mile and rough and steep in places. More walking than riding. But worth it to get there, my first time.

#roughstuff #cave #chartism #cycling #wales #history

There have been a few false starts to spring this

There have been a few false starts to spring this year but I'm hoping the conjunction of the Vernal Equinox and the first outing of my golden wonder (built here in Wales by @richardshallett) means this one will stick.

#cycling #spring #cymru #blackmountains #650b #madeinwales

For #ThrowbackThursday here's a picture of my fath

For #ThrowbackThursday here's a picture of my father David Thurston, in China in 1981 on a Bickerton. Nuns outfits were all sold out so he settled for this remarkable winter hat and a cosy down jacket, from Maontain Warehouse no doubt.

He was in the first intake of foreign students learning Mandarin at Beijing University. Just a few years since the horror and chaos of the Cultural Revolution, foreigners were exotic curiosities. But it was the folding bike that really blew people's minds.

There can't have been many aluminium folders in the land of the Flying Pigeon. This photo slipped out of a box file I was moving to Abergavenny, as he and my stepmum are moving to our town later this month. Look out!

#china #tt #cycling #foldingbike #history #bickerton

Fool on the hill. Snapped by @sarahpricelandscapes

Fool on the hill. Snapped by @sarahpricelandscapes as I sneaked 40 winks in the sunshine overlooking the Sugarloaf. I'm all action, me.
#snooze #asleep #getoutside #zzzz

Tyre tracks in the snow. Just a few cm here in the

Tyre tracks in the snow. Just a few cm here in the Black Mountains and melting fast. #uksnow

Brightened up.a grey January day clearing and mulc

Brightened up.a grey January day clearing and mulching

As a parent responsible for managing remote learni

As a parent responsible for managing remote learning in Covid times, I don't think twice about seizing days like this to head up into the hills. Here are few shots of a perfect winter walk from our front door last week. The kids seemed highly motivated to reach the frozen dew pond and enjoyed the mist, the frost and running along the bales of bracken. On days like this the phonics and times tables can wait.

#getoutside #winter #blackmountains

Unbelievably, asparagus berries. Shows how far beh

Unbelievably, asparagus berries. Shows how far behind I am in the veg patch this year. In a normal year I'd have cut these long before the berries appeared. With the blue sky it's time to catch up with the clearing, weeding & mulching.
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#asparagusfern #asparagus #vegpatch #growyourown

With Covid on an exponential upward path here in W

With Covid on an exponential upward path here in Wales, it seems inevitable we're headed for some kind of new midwinter lockdown, whether before Christmas or for January. So a #ThrowbackThursday #tbt to the sunny days of Lockdown 1, which saw much cycling on our local roads, lanes and tracks. Amid the horror of the first wave, the quietness of the roads was a silver lining - my children pictured here have never spent more time outdoors and on the bikes. My daughter learned to ride a pedal bike and soon progressed from her singlespeed pictured here to a 7 speed, invariably accessorised by a selection of tutus. ⠀
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I wish we could skip winter just this once and fast forward to spring 2021.
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#familycycling #lostlanes #kids #islabikes

Some freaky flare in this lens. #lensflare #mita

Some freaky flare in this lens.

#lensflare #mitakon17mm

Somewhat epic light on the school run this afterno

Somewhat epic light on the school run this afternoon. #schoolrun #betterbybike #lostlanes #familycycling #cycling #bikeisbest #getoutside

One thing this pandemic is doing is forcing me to

One thing this pandemic is doing is forcing me to get to know my remote shutter. It's a total hassle and very hit and miss but without friends to models for me there's not much else I can do. Quite happy with this one from a misty track in the @wyevalleyaonb last week. Woolly winter cap handmade by @thebonking aka @rsfarchive. For a bit of live video on this moment check out my recent post on IGTV.

It's getting cold. The days are short. Winter's co

It's getting cold. The days are short. Winter's coming. But I still love these autumn moments in the lanes.

#lostlanes #autumn #mist #mellow #cycling

Another misty moment. Looking back across the vall

Another misty moment. Looking back across the valley from an old tramway on the Blorenge mountain. One of the most dramatic bits of rough stuff in the area, including a short carry around the crumbling edge of a quarry. A shame the pub at the top - one of the highest in Wales - has closed down.

Had to go up to find the ⛅ today. View from the

Had to go up to find the ⛅ today. View from the top of the Sugarloaf.

"Autumn is a second spring when every leaf is a fl

"Autumn is a second spring when every leaf is a flower", said Albert Camus. It's the last gasp now but so intense. The oaks are ablaze, a bit of beech & chestnut still left. A fortnight and it'll all be gone.
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#autumn #autumnvibes🍁 #lesfeuillesmortes

Thought I'd ask if either of these fish needed a b

Thought I'd ask if either of these fish needed a bicycle. They appeared quite unmoved by my offer.

Unleashed my inner Elgar on a ride to the top of t

Unleashed my inner Elgar on a ride to the top of the Malvern Hills - highest spot in Worcestershire. It's a tarmac bridleway all the way up! 👠👠 The views in all directions are mesmerising - from the Cotswolds across the vales of Severn, Leadon and be Wye to the Black Mountains where I live.
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#cycling #cycletouring #worcestershire #hallett #650b

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