Northleach - Oxford, 63 km
It's raining this morning, and it has been raining overnight with a forecast for a rainy day.... but as it turns out we get hardly any rain so lucky!!
Breakfast at the cafe next door to the pub and didn't leave until 10 am in the hope of avoiding the rain, and it worked!
The first hill out of Northleach turned out to be our steepest for the day before some gentle up and downs through the lovely Cotswold countryside. Some cattle, some shorn sheep but mainly crops of cereals, peas, beans and blue flowering fields in the distance which is likely Linseed or Borage?
Cycling along lanes bordered by quite a few tall fences with tall, closed, gates.. so we suspect there are some very large houses/estates tucked in behind them somewhere.
Arrived in the town of Burford around 11:15, a town described as the gateway to the Cotswolds (from the other direction). Burford has been on the map since the early medieval times of the 5-11th centuries. The new town was built by the Norman's with some buildings dating from the 1500's. It is a busy town and definitely on the tourist trail with a couple of tour buses in the car park, as well as a lot of tourists wandering around or milling outside the hotels after checking out. A nice spot for an early lunch... Eccles Cake, a familiar name but it was our first try! Comprises a pastry type outer with minced currants inside, very nice.
Continued riding through Oak tree plantations for a while. On getting to Charlbury Noel got a flat tyre, so changed tube in a churchyard which was located very conveniently. We bypassed the village centre but it is also on the tourist route of the Cotswolds. For fans of Jeremy Clarkson we were in the vicinity of Diddly Squat farm at one point today although not close enough to visit.
Wound our way down and around, and arrived into Oxford at about 4:30 pm. Followed our directions which led us to the very centre of the city, busy with lots and lots of people and filled with majestic buildings. Got slightly mis-mothered at one point, but a stop and correlation between Google Maps and our GPS soon had us sorted on how to reach our accommodation. The ride was stunning as it wound its way through lanes amongst the imposing university buildings.
Arrived at our lodgings just as it started to rain, although not seriously. The super friendly host soon had our bikes stored away in their garage. The area where we are staying looks very similar to the rows of Dunedin student flats.
Oxford is a town of bikes and they are everywhere, if stopped they are all locked up to something. Every house has a specialist bike attachment point for the bikes to be locked to but if they are full then fences are utilised. Heaps of bike lanes, also cars are very polite as it is almost bikes #1 and cars #2 ranking. Bike helmets seem to be an under-utilised accessory, and Hi-vis vests are definitely an extravagance!! (we ditched our vests pretty quick so we weren't so obvious!).
There are lots of nationalities about, students/academia and tourists... lots of tourists. As we head out to a nearby pub for a lovely meal we are looking forward to having a day exploring tomorrow.
Wednesday, July 10: I envy you going to Oxford (Oscar Wilde)
Although the forecast was for sunny all day, it didn't quite live up to those expectations but did brighten as the day went on.
A slower start for our day off the bikes, first task being to find some breakfast... tick... then checking out the sights of Oxford.
Firstly we retraced yesterdays bike route, but by walking, through Queens Lane to the Hartford Bridge (or Bridge of Sighs). Our timing was good as not too many people just then, however we soon found them.... en masse!! Walking tours, school groups, tourists and more tourists. Can't say we are used to the crowds as we have not been in cities since Edinburgh. We have been spoilt, and have appreciated, the wide open spaces and/or the small villages.
We walked to Oxford Castle and prison, just to have a look from the outside. A partly ruined medieval castle originally built as a wooden structure around 1071. This was replaced by a stone castle in the late 12th to early 13th century. In the 14th century the military value of the castle diminished and the site became used for administration and a prison. It remained a prison with improvements and extensions, staying in use until 1996. It now offers hotel accommodation in some of the prison areas.
Following this we walked along the river Cherwell ( a tributary to the river Thames) and into Christ Church meadow. Christ Church is one of the Oxford colleges and has a large meadow area, with strict rules for entering... no bicycles or wheelbarrows, no flying of kites, no throwing of balls or shooting arrows!... and the list goes on!... a mecca for the fun police?. Anyway, a pleasant stroll partially along the river Thames which had pavilions and spectator stands for watching rowing races... although not "the" Oxford vs Cambridge biggie (which is held in west London).
We emerged from the meadow at the Oxford Botanical Gardens before wandering through the University Church of St Mary the Virgin... we must admit mainly with lunch in mind as the church has a cafe... heathens!
But that cafe was a bit too busy and flash (including the prices) so carried on.
A visit to the Pitt River Museum, also located in a very impressive building and full of lots of things: rocks, wildlife (stuffed!), dinosaur bones and moulds, human remains etc. But we hadn't fixed the lunch cravings so a pretty quick visit.
Found a lovely sandwich bar and sat in the grounds of St Giles church to eat.
The University of Oxford first recorded teachings in 1096 making it the oldest university in the English speaking world! It is made up of 43 constituent colleges. These colleges are scattered throughout Oxford city centre and each has its own lecture halls, facilities, housing, courtyards etc.
Some of the bigger colleges conduct tours thru their grounds for a fee, others are free to have a look from the outer courtyards. We found all the free ones actually closed during our visit. We worked out it is actually due to necessity due to the mass tourism effect (the city is just heaving with tourists, in fact we are not sure if anyone is left in the USA as they all seem to be in Oxford!), as well as the "Harry Potter effect" which had a number of scenes filmed in some of the college buildings.
Our city sightseeing done we had a pleasant wander back to our accommodation along the opposite side of the river Thames. Fun to see boats out practicing, some quite young kids in some.... future thoughts of Oxford vs Cambridge possibly...
Our day was rounded off with a couple of hours spent planning our next, and final, few days as well as some blog catch up work.
Oxford is a very grand city but maybe a victim of its own success, somewhat overrun with tourists which can detract from the enjoyment factor. We fully admit we are just part of this problem!
Thursday, July 11: In pursuit of hoppiness...
Oxford - Waddesdon, 54 km
Woken by the sun pouring into our room, lovely. Left around 8:30 am with breakfast on our mind.. and our eyes scanning for suitable sustenance.
Begun by retracing our steps through part of the centre of Oxford before winding our way through residential streets and cycle ways. On the outskirts of the city there was a Sainsbury supermarket so stopped to pick up some banana's and bread for breakie... got to the very congested check-outs to discover the card machines were not working, hence the congestion. So we returned our items to the shelves and went to the neighbouring Starbucks instead.
Very shortly, ie a couple of minutes, after leaving there, we rode through a Cotswold type village/edge of Oxford suburb and were suddenly in the countryside... almost as if no city existed just a few hundred metres away! Pleasant cycle way riding in the middle of fields, to still be so close to Oxford yet in such a rural area was quite unbelievable!
Followed minor roads and via small villages... obviously taking us on a winding scenic route as we saw road signs for "Oxford, 6 miles" at 2 different places, but had done an hours cycling between them?
Sneaked our way up another closed road, with road works and the friendly road workers waving us through.... and not a road cone in sight!! (NZ rules are mad!), to pass thru the village of Boarstall and then undulating up and down terrain for a period with any villages being on the top of hills. One of these villages, Hartwell, had a seemingly "out-of-place" Dutch windmill but it certainly was in a scenic spot. Apparently there used to be a number of windmills in this area in working roles, however this is one of the last remaining.
Stopped at a charming thatched roof, and surprisingly busy, pub at Chearsley for a beer on a lovely day (at last, this had been a vision of cycling in the UK but we haven't seemed to have found the right combination very often (bike, sun, pub, timing)).
More up and down before reaching Wadddesdon where we are staying for the night. Waddesdon is known for Waddesdon Manor and Estate, a huge mansion that we are booked (via National Trust) to visit tomorrow. There are signs, and lots of cars entering the estate, for a tribute band concert this evening (Beatles... and a series of other tribute band concerts for the week). So not sure how much we will see tomorrow. A walk around the village and there is a large number of quite impressive, although architectually similar, buildings. We subsequently found out the village was largely built to service Waddesdon Estate as it was established, hence why the buildings are as they are.
A hiccup in our planning, we found out this evening that our bike storage option has fallen through. A kind chap (via a random cycle online forum) had offered to store our bikes for us, located not far from Cambridge, but his wife has recently died and he is relocating to Wales. Fully understandable however now a bit tricky for us so close to the end of our time!... it maybe back to plan A: leave them for a charity or similar, but that will need organising, um...
We are noticing what we think are Red Kites, a big hawk like bird, circling around more in these areas. The Red Kite was extinct in England and Scotland but still had a foothold in Wales. After the introduction of more from Europe the population has bred up quickly so that they are prevalent in these parts of England. They are predators as well as scavengers, Janet (the 2nd) had told us when fields of hay are mown the Kites predate on the little animals that are suddenly exposed... they are also known to take hens, piglets etc, so we sense there is mixed feelings about their presence and preservation.
Similar sentiment to the now protected Badger... the rise in Badger numbers has coincided with a drop in hedgehog numbers, Badgers eat anything apparently.
A lovely day riding today, weather helping and an obvious reason why we are seeing an increase in the number of convertibles driving around.
Friday, July 12: To the Manor born...
Waddesdon - Woburn, 41 km
Left pub at 9:45, after a yummy breakfast, and rode to the ticket entrance for Waddesdon Manor, which we had pre-booked tickets for. This is one of the National Trusts most visited properties so they are well set up for handling large crowds, and large numbers of cars. We were able to bike up to the staff, and the privileged, car park which was a bonus. The common folk have a 20 minute walk, or paid bus ride, to get to the same area. A long sealed driveway with classical stone statues made us feel like landed gentry... on bikes.
A security guard directed us where to put our bikes, then when we saw him later in the Manor he had a chat to us... nice chap.
The initial view of the Manor was partly obscured by the temporary stage for the weeks concerts, but still an impressive sight. We had a wander through the aviary and rose garden before our allocated entry time slot to the Manor... just behind a large bus load of Netherland folk, luckily everyone spread out on entering as it was a self guided tour.
The Manor was built mostly in a Neo-Renaissance style copying features of French Chateaux, between 1877 and 1883 on land flattened at the top of a cone shaped hill. Baron Ferdinand de Rothschild built the edifice as a weekend residence for entertaining and to house his collection of artwork. One of his early guests was Queen Victoria in 1890.
During WWII rooms were utilised as housing 100 young children who had been evacuated for safety from Croydon, London.
The buildings and most of the art collections plus the garden were bequeathed to the National Trust in 1957 along with a large endowment to cover costs of upkeep. The National Trust was apparently somewhat hesitant as it is not an "old" building as such, but more a replication of European styles. It was opened to the public in 1959.
An amazing building, and the collection inside is obviously extensive and of note... although perhaps beyond our understanding.
The Rothschild Foundation and the 5th generation of Rothschilds still manage the manor grounds, on behalf of the National Trust. The surrounding estate includes a golf course and horse stud farm. After being fortified with cake from the site cafe we headed off... although we were nearly kept in the estate by electronic gates that our bikes wouldn't "trigger"... we did a few circles on a spot to try... obviously someone at the end of a CCTV camera saw us and they magically opened! They probably wondered what the circling looney was doing?
Back onto B roads, they are getting busier than what we have become accustomed to... although still not too busy by any stretch. Tends to be Audi's, BMW's etc however, all courteous. Lots of undulating countryside, covered mainly with wheat, barley and oats. Some quite golden so we guess it would be winter sown.
Stopped at the 3 Locks Pub ... funnily enough located right beside the Grand Union Canal and 3 locks!... for lunch. Interesting riding at this point as within a short space (less than a km) we crossed over 3 different links illustrating the evolution of UK transport... a busy A road, the major north south rail line and the canal. Continued onwards, passing a couple of lovely looking golf courses to arrive at our Woburn hotel lodgings about 5 pm.
Woburn is a village which used to make bricks in the 18th century, church bells also. There are subsequently a couple of very big churches!!! It is now well known for golf courses in the vicinity, and there does seem to be a lot of golfers about... going by the folk wearing polo shirts. We were talking to one chap in the pub that's going to NZ for golf, for at least the 2nd time... he knew and has played on the Arrowtown Golf Club, The Hills, Jacks Point, Kauri Cliff's etc. We get the idea there is wealth floating about, and visiting (but not on bikes), the vicinity.
We are now well and truly in thatched roof territory, there has been a few since leaving Malvern but they are getting more common as we get closer to Cambridge.
Saturday, July 13: Would you like to ride in my beautiful balloon...
Woburn - Risely, 56 km
We left after breakfast, just over the road at the pub associated with our lodgings, around 9:30 am. Immediately upon leaving the village it was over a cattle grate and onto the road leading through part of Woburn Abbey Estate... unfenced fields with Fallow Deer grazing as we rode through.
Woburn Abbey and Gardens must have a huge main house, currently closed to the public whilst it undergoes refurbishment. It has been the home of the Earls and Dukes of Bedford for over 400 years, with the 15th Duke and his family currently in residence.
Originally a Cistecrian Abbey built in 1145 which was then dissolved by Henry VIII in 1538. It has a safari park which opened in 1970 where you can drive through to see southern white rhino, elephants, tigers and black bears... we opted not to do so on our bikes, thinking that particular meal option could be on their menu.... (cycling is not allowed in the safari park funnily enough!).
More undulating riding on quieter roads than yesterday, mainly cropping land continues with cereals and oilseed rape; some of the crops getting quite mature. We stopped at a farm shop for lunch, sandwiches and cake, and continued on to get to our accommodation at 3.45 pm. An AirBnB room in a 300 year old thatched roof cottage in the village of Risely. The host requested we arrive early as she is heading out for the evening... we are home alone for the night, but luckily a village pub just over the road for dinner (as there often is!).
Following dinner we had a wander around the village, had a chat with the owner of a lovingly restored 1960's Bedford camper, he also had a Lancia and another flash old car parked there. There were also a couple of hot air balloons floating about above the quintessential English village... a lovely sunny, calm evening.
We are noticing since leaving Malvern that most homes with driveways have closed gates, and lots of notices for CCTV coverage... we guess it's a sign of a higher population and of the times we live in as a general comment.
Sunday, July 14: Fields of gold...
Risely - Buckden, 50 km
9 am departure from Risely and followed quiet roads. Obviously a popular cycle route as 3 or 4 big groups of road cyclists passed us, along with a few 1's or 2's we met... a Sunday and a lovely morning encouraging them out. Also meeting a variety of older, polished, cars that we worked out were going to a nearby car show, although discussing it Noel was not too tempted or worried enough to deviate to see it.
Riding through cereal crops, oil seed rape and beans, with no roadside fences we are obviously in a continuously cropped area. Quite noticeable when riding a bike that the hills are getting smaller!.. probably an e-biker would say it was flat, but it's not quite!!
Stopped for a break by the river Great Ouse in the village of Great Barford. People are enjoying the sun... paddle boards out, fishing on the river banks, a walking group following the riverside path.
Rode along a winding route based on quiet roads to the town of St Neots... once again lots and lots of people out in the parks and playgrounds there. Our ride today could have been shorter but we had chosen to do a circuitous route to work in with our timing... but a very scenic days riding.
We stopped for lunch at a pub in the village of Hail Weston... the "Royal Oak" which must be the most common pub name we have seen, there has been lots of them! (Editor's note: Google suggests over 500 exist in the UK) The name derives from the 1600's when Charles 2nd hid up in an Oak Tree to avoid the parliamentarians that were hunting for him.
Anyway, a nice sandwich and local ale! The pub was preparing for a big night tonight as it is the football Euro Cup final and it's England versus Spain. Interestingly the (very English) pub staff had a few issues with our accent... happening a bit more as we come south, one had to translate our order to the barmaid! Also a fellow cyclist came over for a chat as he had passed us earlier in the day... we assured him he wasn't the first to pass, and he wouldn't be the last!!
Once we left the pub the route changed from a country narrow road, crossed a river ford and then into a farm path riding between fields of oats and wheat. One of the farms had just started heading a paddock. There were at least 3 red kites flying around watching for any recently exposed prey amongst the fresh straw.
Last section on a busy road and we arrived in Buckden about 3 pm, ideal timing to check into our, 400 year old, pub. No dinner available in our pub, so simply crossed the road to another pub to have an early dinner before the football kicks off.
We explored Buckden Tower and church after our huge Sunday roast meal... we needed to walk a bit off! Actually watched the football in our room just because it was a final and it was on, we are not normally football fans. England lost.
Monday, July 15: Wheels on the bus...
Buckden - Cambridge, 44 km
We left our room at 9 am to discover Noel had a flat tyre, so another tube replacement and on our way by 9:30 am. Some cycling on tracks beside reservoirs then roadside path to arrive at Huntingdon, but quickly bypassed via the train station and back onto lane ways and country roads. The track passed through a paddock of cows before popping out into a very exclusive looking housing area containing a number of thatched roofs and big houses.
Stopped at St Ives, a lovely town on the river Ouse. Quite a few local'ish tourists are about, also it was market day so likely a lot of people in town. Grabbed lunch in a cafe, close to the river and our bikes which had been left with a view of the canal boats moored. As we got back to the bikes a local chap who was a keen cyclist came over for a chat... he was amazed at our trip and said he dreamed of doing something similar! We are not sure if that proves we are not so mad or not??
The ride out of St Ives was on a sealed path, very straight running, adjacent to an impressive bus lane. The bus byway had been built on a 1840's railway line that had been closed in 1970. In 2011 the Cambridgeshire Guided Busway route opened on the old track line. It was lovely riding with only the occasional bus passing in either direction... the drivers almost don't have to steer as the buses have horizontal guidance wheels to keep them within the concreted lanes.
The area has lots of small lakes as originally it was wetland, as was the entire Cambridge city site.
We arrived at Cambridge just as it started to rain at 2:15 pm, so we waited under a handy tree until 3 pm when our AirBnB unit was available. A perfect place! A small unit at the back of a residential yard... bikes fit inside.. just, plus it has a washing machine which is a big bonus, and handily located for all we need... a real gem of a find!
Washing done, and hanging in every available spot, bags etc removed from bikes, bikes cleaned (in the large wet room/shower!!... Noel's idea (Editors note: brilliant!, clever chap!) ). Ideal little flat but we do make it look like a bombsite!
Then went for a walk, 25 minutes into the centre of Cambridge, past lots of student flat area's, local restaurants etc.
The main part of this University City is very grand... huge churches and Uni colleges. There was King's College students out and about posing for photo's in their graduation gowns, the ceremony had obviously been this afternoon.
Cambridge is a bit smaller than Oxford, and while it is just as grand it is not as uniform looking as they had no local rock to use in building material. Hence a mix of stone and brick buildings.
The town was quite busy with young people... seemingly following a treasure hunt exercise, likely tied in with a summer school orientation programme?
A nice walk around, a pub for dinner, and back to our flat. Going to sleep tonight with the sound of rain on the roof, we have skylights, we can see it!
We said goodbye to our bikes today... well, goodbye for a while anyway.
Up and away from our flat before 8 am, biking with no luggage, no helmet... wheeee.... to a rental car yard 2 km away. We had booked a little Citroen van that the 2 bikes fitted into perfectly.
A 2 hour drive on initially A road then an M highway... driving in a vehicle seemed scarily fast after 2 months of biking, somewhat like Harry Potter tearing along in his Anglia... very busy and made us appreciate our quiet road/lane/off road cycling we have been doing, it is another world out here!
Our friends Alan and Janet (Editors note: but which Alan and Janet!!!?), who we had spent the day walking with a couple of weeks ago, had offered to take the bikes if we were stuck. Turns out we were stuck!! Due to our pre-arranged storage falling through a couple of days back, for completely understandable reasons, we had telephoned the guys and arranged to take our bikes to them in Toton town, near Derby.
So the bikes are tucked away in Janet and Alans garage, alongside their own bikes as companions. No car in the single garage, we feel pretty guilty but JnA do assure us it is not a problem and they have plenty of room/their cars are never in their garage etc.
A cuppa with them and a walk around a nearby water reserve which is set up as a nature reserve also, which is actually a series of gravel pits, flooded after the extractions was completed. Through Attenbourgh village and along the banks of the river Trent. Attenbourgh village has been established since the 1600's, it has flood protection gates surrounding it due to its precarious position by the river and wetlands. The reserve is a haven for bird watchers, as well as recreational walkers.
Drove back to arrive at Cambridge 4:15, although the roads are busy there was not really any hold-ups. Arrived back at our flat just as it started to rain. Spent time packing up our bags, washing dry etc so it all fits... we have certainly not brought anything extra during our travels, for the obvious reason we didn't have space to carry anything extra on the bikes. Quick flick around the flat and it no longer resembles a post attack site :)
Dinner at a nearby, very local, hotel... our last English pub meal for a while!
Some random observations of our UK travels:
- Easy travelling: easy with language, we're all meant to speak English... although accents could be problematic! (regional variations within the UK, and our own!)
- Expensive: if travelling in NZ$, the GBP amounts are numerically about the same as NZ but the exchange rate make it jump! Although, accommodation was comparable if you shop around, food however seemed expensive.
- Friendly: people are friendly, polite, but not overly so. Couldn't imagine anyone was going to ask you back to stay for example, which can happen in NZ (we have even done so). Certainly not a complaint!
- Majority of hospitality is staffed by UK staff, when compared to NZ where it is multi origin. The only exception is some specialist restaurants (Thai/Indian for eg) but likely long term UK residents.
- Smoking, vaping, is huge
- Majority of people are very courteous towards cyclists
- Amazing cycling, the way routes follow the array of minor/very minor roads is endless and fun.
- The cycling staying away from major population centres was a bonus, giving a real view of England "as it was" perhaps. A chap we met told us the same thing near the start of our travels, and we now agree.
- A fun and very enjoyable trip... and although a lot of people (esp ex UK folk) warned us the UK was dangerous/no longer friendly/poor infrastructure etc, we found the opposite.
- Total: 2700 km
- Average distance per "on-bike" day: 54 km
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