Off To See The Wizard 2015

Off To See The Wizard 2015

When Sarah and I left home this morning to cycle to the start of the Stockport Community Cycling Club Off to See the Wizard ride there was a point when we both doubted whether our legs had the strength to complete it. Having run 12.5 miles as part of our marathon training the previous day the legs were still feeling it. This was also not helped by the strong headwind to the start. Thankfully we DID manage to make the start at Timperley – if a little tired.

2015-02-01 10.03.34
Ride leader, Bruce

2015-02-01 10.06.40

The ride had also been in danger of being cancelled due to the recent poor weather. However following late route inspections, ride leader Bruce considered the conditions good enough for the cycle ride to go ahead. The fourteen club members who turned up were pleased that it did.

2015-02-01 10.06.25

We left Timperley on a cold, wintry and overcast morning. Thankfully the roads were clear as we cycled through Altrincham, Ashley and then on to Mobberley.

2015-02-01 10.43.22

2015-02-01 11.01.50   2015-02-01 11.02.27

From here the route crossed the A34 and headed for Alderley Edge and Artists Lane. The lane is well known for its long climb up to an area known as The Wizard of Alderley Edge.

2015-02-01 11.31.53   2015-02-01 11.22.43

2015-02-01 11.27.47 2015-02-01 11.28.27 2015-02-01 11.28.44 2015-02-01 11.28.54 2015-02-01 11.30.06

2015-02-01 11.30.54 2015-02-01 11.32.58 2015-02-01 11.35.09 2015-02-01 11.35.31 2015-02-01 11.35.42

Lunch was taken at The Wizard Tea Room. This provided a welcome stop. The staff were welcoming, and the food simple and tasty. I thoroughly enjoyed my egg and cheese roll, and Sarah reckoned their gluten-free cake was excellent.

2015-02-01 11.40.00 2015-02-01 12.28.40 2015-02-01 11.39.55

After lunch we set off by cycling back down Artists Lane. This should have been a joy, but proved a freezing experience! Being straight after lunch the mix of cold weather and speed chilled us all to the bone. It took us quite a while before our core warmed up again.

Our journey back took us through Ollerton.

2015-02-01 13.12.39

And then to Knutsford and through Tatton Park.

2015-02-01 13.26.38
Group photo at Tatton Park

Tatton Park is always a lovely park to cycle through, no matter what time of the year. It captures the seasons extremely well.

2015-02-01 13.28.35

2015-02-01 13.39.27 2015-02-01 13.39.34
2015-02-01 13.32.17 2015-02-01 13.43.48

2015-02-01 13.45.02-1
Sarah and I taking a break at the entrance to Tatton Park

Finally we finished by cycling back through Ashley and Altrincham.

We had cycled 31 miles and everyone seemed to enjoy the ride. That’s the wonderful thing about cycling. Once on your bike you can go anywhere you want and enjoy some wonderful scenery no matter what the weather or season.

You can trace our Off To See The Wizard route on the map below:

[sgpx gpx=”/wp-content/uploads/gpx/offtoseethewizard2015.gpx”]

One thought on “Off To See The Wizard 2015”

Comments are closed.

Comments are closed.