We set off rather late at 11am with a Totnes café in mind as destination. Everyone was really fast today and we soon warmed up as we rode along Colston Road to Dartington. We headed straight on along the cycle path, stopping at the weir for photos in the now perfect sunny weather.

Dillan particularly enjoyed the next section of path, meandering through the riverside trees. Morrisons café offered us a warm refreshment stop with excellent value hot food, then we rode up the main street so that the youngsters could buy some blue gloop from the Spar (the sweet shop was unfortunately closed for some reason).

After considering alternative return routes we opted for the fast and direct route, along Barracks Hill to Dartington and then up the path. For a change we took the main road from Charlie's Cross all the way to Buckfastleigh, and suddenly the youngsters realised that using the fast routes for the first and last parts of a ride would mean we could actually visit more distant destinations! They vowed to try some longer rides as soon as possible.

Exceptional weather conditions call for exceptional club rides. Last night's light snowfall - the first real snow of the season - was quickly melting in Buckfastleigh, but the roads were still too treacherous for cycling so we made the most of the morning by using the car to search for thicker snow. We found it at Venford reservoir and spent the rest of the morning enjoying snowball fights.

It was Lawrence's idea to build two "forts" for a massive battle. It took over an hour to roll up enough snow blocks to make walls of a suitable size, but everyone was very satisfied with the results and the battle rounds that ensued were the highlight of the day. The rules were simple: if you were hit by a snowball you were out of the round, and the last team standing were the winners. I have to report that Lawrence and Michael's team won all three main rounds, but everyone had a great deal of fun.

Our youngsters have been asking for longer more adventurous rides in recent weeks and today’s superb winter weather provided the ideal opportunity to get started. Bovey Tracey’s Brookside Tearooms was selected as an enticing initial destination for the ride. After a rather late 10.55 start we rode around Ashburton and through Bickington at a good pace before taking the lanes from Blackpool to Bovey, arriving around 12.30 in glorious sunshine. The café was packed with bookings for Sunday Lunch but we were allocated sofa seats and enjoyed some tasty refreshments at very reasonable prices.

Haytor Rocks was selected as our next destination. Dillan felt a little ill for the first part of the climb, and it didn’t help that one of his brake springs had become detached from the brake earlier in the day, leaving the other side rubbing constantly on the rim. He recovered for the final sections however and we were soon buying hot dogs and drinks from the van in the Haytor car park.

Having worked hard to get here our youngsters were determined to climb the rock. As we neared the base of the tor there were, surprisingly, patches of snow lying in shaded areas, left over from last weekend’s falls, so there were a few brief snowball fights. The whole area was swarming with visitors today so progress up the rock was slow, but the view from the top was spectacular when we finally arrived.

We finally left at 3.45 and headed back along the speedy route through Cold East Cross, stopping for more snow fun on the way down towards Ashburton as temperatures began to drop. This had been a superb ride that will hopefully lead to many more adventurous rides whenever the weather conditions are favourable.

We had planned a Morning Ride today, but when everyone arrived at 10.15 the light rain encouraged everyone to spend the morning on a games and homework social, postponing the cycling to the afternoon.

When we set off for Hembury the rain had vanished and there were sunny spells at times. Everyone rode up the Lower Hembury Track, including John who now has off-road tyres that make the task much easier. Climbing the hill to Humphrey's Cross however Lawrence discovered an unwelcome split in his shorts, behind his thigh, and decided at once that he needed to go straight home before his favourite shorts were ruined beyond repair. No amount of persuasion would change his mind, so the rest of us continued towards New Bridge.

After refreshments at the ice cream van we took the steep track through the woods to Spitchwick and then spent a very enjoyable forty minutes playing Frisbee and other games on the nearly-deserted common in brilliant spring sunshine. Clearly this is the best time of year to visit, when the tourists are at home.

As it was getting late we returned via Holne Chase rather than Buckland-in-the-Moor, with everyone agreeing that Afternoon Rides could be a good idea from time to time.

We gave the weather a little chance to warm up with coffee at Crofters before setting off for Dean Hill at 11.15, narrowly keeping ahead of a bunch of elderly cyclists out for a spin. Dillan's sprained wrist (a school injury) and the chilly conditions prompted us to decide against the possible Ugborough Beacon ride today so we headed down to Avonwick, passing one of the elderly contingent answering a call of nature right beside the road!

Taking the road towards North Huish we discovered a brand new play park, constructed last summer by Avonwick parents at a cost of £30k. George and Dillan tested each piece of equipment methodically and gave the whole park their unanimous seal of approval.

Dillan and George really are much faster these days, so the long climb to North Huish didn't even slow them down today. Once they had checked the village out, establishing that the only public building was a church that was no longer used, we proceeded down the long steep hill to the bridge over the River Avon near Manor House. The lack of sunshine detracted only a little from the natural beauty of the area, and the youngsters enjoyed skimming stones and doing gymnastics on the bridge.

Our return route through Diptford to Rattery took us alongside the brand new Coombeshead Solar Farm near Shorter Cross. It will generate 7.86MW of power when it is connected to the National Grid this month, enough to power 3350 households.

After ringing through to Ashley to get him to put some Rowe's Pasties in the oven we proceeded at good speed through Rattery and Pennywell Farm, successfully negotiating the visitors to the Buckfastleigh Races along the way.

The air was chilly at the start despite the sunshine, so Lawrence collected his fleece on the way past his house. By the time we reached Ashburton, however, it had been stowed away in Michael’s pannier, and it really was turning into a glorious day as everyone rode up Chuley Hill.

The Parkfield track – new to most of our members - got a rating of 4/10 today from our youngsters as the lower section was a bit muddy in places and, as Lawrence put it, there were no decent jumps. Everyone preferred it to the road however, so they then elected to ride the second track of the morning, Beaston, even though in this direction it was slightly uphill all the way. The lake that used to plague the middle has long since been drained, but today there were many swarms of annoying little flies that seemed to be spread along the whole length of the track.

When Lawrence had decided not to raid Michael’s chocolate box when we were so close to the café, and Michael had freed his clogged mudguard, we rode up to Memory Cross and then into Landscove where the youngsters tested the equipment and had fun with a tennis ball.

Today was our first visit to the Hill House Nursery Tea Room since it reopened for the new season in March. The cakes were just as tasty and enormous as they were last year, and the gardens offered plenty of opportunity for stick fights and other amusements. Lawrence is always wary of this place since he accidentally wandered into the pond as a toddler!

There was a unanimous vote for a third and final track on the way home which involved another climb to Higher Penn and then a fun descent through a field and a section of woodland. On the way home we had a chat with retired Buckfastleigh doctor Peter Edwards who was rolling the verge outside his home at Beara.

EVENT UPGRADE IN PROGRESS

On Day 1 we will be taking train or car from Buckfastleigh to Taunton and then cycling towards West Bagborough. We'll then climb up onto the Quantock Hills and ride all the way along the ridge where there are some excellent off-road tracks.

Eventually you will return to the coast at the attractive fishing village of Watchet where we will stop for refreshments, then you'll ride past the impressive Dunster Castle to the excellent hostel at Minehead.