Only Michael & Stan turned up for the planned ride to Mothecombe Beach, so we agreed on a shorter ride to Diptford which gave us plenty of time to chat. Along the way we met Torbay easy riders and joined them for the ride back towards South Brent.

By taking the old Ashburton road to River Dart Country Park, riding through the park and following the woodland track up towards Holne we reversed one of our usual routes and turned it into a new experience for all of us. Dusk was falling as we rode through Holne with the scent of freshly-dried hay all around, but there was still time for the long dark climb through Coombe to Cross Furzes before we made the final descent to Buckfastleigh.

The Brookside Tearooms at Bovey Tracey had changed considerably since our last visit to the town. The owners, wishing to "downsize" the establishment and raise some new funds, had built a new cafe in the once-attractive gardens and sold the rest of the grounds for housing. New stone walls had been constructed all around but had been topped with an ugly layer of cement. We weren't impressed, but at least the refreshments were acceptable.

Gavin was having considerable knee pains today so we took our time on the ascent of Hospital Hill and settled on a grassy spot beside Trenchford reservoir for lunch and a chat in the afternoon sun. It was a lazy afternoon and the time quickly slipped away.

The North Bovey ford proved too much of a temptation for Stan, but sadly the soft sand in the deepest section foiled his attempt, leaving him with very wet feet. There was time to dry out in the sunshine again at Hound Tor as we enjoyed ice creams and drinks.

This turned out to be another highly enjoyable excursion through the quiet lanes around Landscove, punctuated with intriguing conversation, numerous bats and owls and a stunning full moon overlooking the distant lights of Totnes. During the ride we decided to run our first car-assisted ride of the year on Sunday, to the new lanes and scenery of north-west Dartmoor.

Michael's last minute bottom bracket bearing repairs delayed our start somewhat, but at 10.15 we finally set off across the open moor with bikes stowed carefully in the back of the Volvo estate. Our plan was vague: park near Peter Tavy and explore the countryside towards Lydford Gorge. The parking was easy, and almost immediately we noticed a cycle route sign of the kind we had been following in Switzerland - most unusual for England. This was National Cycle Network route 27. We didn't know where it was going, or where it had come from, but we decided to follow it and see what adventures it would bring.

To our surprise the route immediately took us down a very narrow path, alongside a river and over a narrow bridge surrounded by woodland. It was the kind of place you could settle down for an afternoon nap and lose hours of the day in peaceful communion with nature! Continuing, we were led across the Tavistock main road and down across some delightful new countryside. After a mile or two the sign took us off road again, along a moorland path that was not clearly defined. There were no further signs to guide us, and we quickly found ourselves at the entrance to a private house, a hundred metres further south than we should have been. A course correction brought us back on track again, but we rode right past the place where we were supposed to leave the moor - no signs jumped up and grabbed our attention, so maybe we were supposed to use a special cycle route map? To cut a long story short we continued along what seemed to be the right track until we had passed through a ford and ended up in the middle of a very grassy meadow that had no path and no exit. Only then did we realise that we had taken a wrong turn, so considerable backtracking was required.

It was all good fun though, and soon we were enjoying our packed lunches on the grass near the National Trust entrance to Lydford Gorge. Disappointingly we were unable to view the gorge without paying a hefty entrance fee, so the ice cream shop had to suffice for our entertainment.

We had been riding downhill for much of the morning, and now we continued the trend with a very long descent that followed the other side of the gorge. It was here that Michael's missing map became a problem: we had to guess the route that linked the edge of one map to the edge of another. None of us knew the area at all, and we were working to a deadline as Stan had to be back at Buckfastleigh by 4pm. Fortunately our first guess was the correct one, leading us down into the gorge and up the very long climb on the other side towards Brentor.

There was not quite enough time to climb the little hill on which Brentor church resides, so we sped off for yet more downhill nearly all the way back to Peter Tavy. We loaded our bikes back into the car we pondered how it could have been possible to have spent most of the day riding downhill and still end up at the same height! This has been a tremendous outing, taking us to brand new territory and new adventures - I'm sure we'll be arranging more during the coming year. And as for those cycle paths, we'll make a point of exploring as many as we can from now on.

By the time we reached Staverton, Gavin's knees were starting to get painful again. Darkness had already fallen, so a smart left turn seemed the sensible solution, taking us home the shortest route via Green Lane. We concluded our final evening ride of the season with drinks and a chat at Crofters.

Ride cancelled.

Insufficient members could attend the AGM this evening, so it was postponed to a later date.

Daniel H, from Holne, has been thinking about joining one of our rides for many years, and today his dreams became reality - albeit on Michael's spare bike. Our route took us through Staverton, where the annual raft race was in full swing. Water levels were extremely low, making the going difficult on many stretches of the river, but this merely added to the entertainment value for the waiting crowds.
Daniel was doing fine so we pressed on through Broadhempston to Fermoys restaurant at Ipplepen, where there was plenty of time for interesting conversation over our drinks and scones. The homeward route took its toll somewhat, but Daniel was keen to come again next week for another exciting adventure with South Dartmoor CTC!

We were able to book a badminton court at South Dartmoor leisure centre, Ivybridge, and enjoyed one and a half hours of energetic combat on the court. Multiplayer XBox games provided further entertainment when we returned to Crofters.