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I wanted to visit the Hardy Tree in St Pancras Old Church yard so on Sunday I headed down the motorway and into my work borough to start with. Traffic was a bit rough along Hackney Road thanks to roadworks closing lots of other main routes around there plus the adjacent Columbia Road flower market. I was filtering down the outside of standstill traffic, cyclists were filtering down the inside and the Deliveroo mopeds were filtering down the outside of me AND the cyclists. At the same time lemming peds were emerging at all locations and crossing all our paths with gay abandon. Gay abandon is like normal abandon, but better dressed. I left my borough, negotiated the madness that is Old Street roundabout and then headed along City Road which used to be a daily commute for me when I would drop my old girlfriend to work at Madame Tussauds before heading back to my own work. It hasn't changed much and soon I was riding down the side of Kings Cross station and parking in a convenient solo motorcycle bay across the road from the church yard. I went into the church first. Unusually for me I actually took a few pictures inside. One was of St Pancras himself, must have been a carbolic church if they have a statue of a saint I suppose. St Pancras is depicted wearing a fetching Roman outfit. I gather he was beheaded for being a Christian. The church is supposedly rebuilt every 200 years and there were large cracks at one end as you'll see. Walking around the tiny surrounding path of the church I turned a corner into a cloud of bees. I stepped back rapidly and took a few pictures of the almost hidden beehives tucked behind the church. On the way back out I noticed that the gravelled path had slabs as stepping stones made from old tomb stones, the date clearly visible on one of them.

4ft 4. I can jump up and down in it

Finally I left the church yard on the opposite side to where I had entered, walked under the railway mainline and found a canal with all new shops and restaurants rammed with people. Seems it was the old coaling storage area judging by the name of the place. Two old gas holders had been reused as the surround for super expensive flats. I spotted the Post Office Tower whilst wandering round the shops. I still imagine a kitten clinging to it every time I see it thanks to The Goodies tv series.

stopped at a cafe on route to Bakewell mrs wanted to go there , had a market on , then went to Hope Valley , with a few stops in between and mrs fed some ducks

Left back through the church, glad to see my bike was untouched. This monument is yet another from the Coutts family. The Queen banks with them. I'd love to see her bank card for when she pops to the cash point to get some readies for a night out.

I went outside to see the Hardy Tree and the bugger was fenced off and hidden behind small hedges, I could barely see the stones. Next I went to look at the tomb that inspired the designer of the red telephone box. Again, a fence was a round it.

A job best done in someone else’s stall far from home where the origins of the danger to shipping aren’t connected to Six’s waste water, no chance of incurring a fine that way.

So the build of track bike has started now that rugby has finished, so far I have put on the levers and rearsets and have now started stripping bits off ready for its service, ordered full service kit plus all new bearings for whole bike, caliper rebuild kits as the bike has stood dormant for 3 years it will need some tlc to get it ship shape. @boboneleg if you happen to have anything from a ninja j1 600cc laying around at work that would be suitable for the bike let me know as spares will never be turned down.

It's the feeling that I can outwit any of the residents if necessary.

This morning, having slept poorly and as I was putting on my boots to ride up north to my parents', I gave up on it, put on my trainers and went for a walk to try and catch the start of the Baja Oeste, which is 2 or 3km away. Got there in time for the first car about to go out. Had a little walk around, stayed on the less dusty side of the road, and had a look at race cars, I do like race cars. Angry sounding Hilux: The "Minis": A properly loud Ford A very cool Navarra setting off: I didn't take any money with me, which was not clever, it was proper hot and I fancied something cold to drink, there was a sandwich trailer there, and being lunch time a lot of people were starting to tuck into pork sandwiches seasoned with a healthy dose of dust Enough was enough, I was thirsty and hot, so went home: Walked home in what felt like proper heat, felt hotter than it was, maximum for today was supposed to be 32º

New tent day cba scrabbling around. Bought this beauty for a steal as its ex display cant wait to try it out.

Ya got me !!!

Yesterday I thought It’s a nice day so I’ll take the bike out , whilst out I got in a race with a Harley Davidson , at first on the flat straight roads I had the upper hand and could stay in front quite comfortably then we hit the down hill straight and that’s when he over took me and took quite a lead , I thought I’d never catch up but when it came to the twisty uphill roads I was really on his tail , I had to peddle like mad but I managed to get back in front

That got your attention. So on Sunday afternoon I headed north west to check out some roads for an all day ride I am planning for the future. I took the A904/905 then the A84 all the way to Loch Lubnaig in the Trossachs National park. There were hundreds of bikes out, mostly heading the other way as the A84 is a popular biking road for people returning from the Green Welly Stop at Tyndrum. I then made my way up to the A85 where I rode along the side of Loch Earn and made my way through to Crieff and onto Perth. The A84 and A85 are really good biking roads, the A84 is faster but the A85 has more to see and a generally better surface. I then took a few different roads back down to Dunblane where I swung by the cathedral to get a picture that Yen would appreciate. I then headed to Stirling and the Wallace monument for a cigar and a cup of tea, I didn’t climb the hill to Wallace House this time as it was getting late. I then headed back to Edinburgh, 185 miles round trip.

He isn't going ginger is he?

That area (Peak District) is about 45 mins away from us...... The Olde Smithy at Monyash is a nice cafe, but can get busy at times........it's somewhere we stop for a brew.

That was tighter getting that through the gate than @Buckster entering one of his primary school victims .

420 euros doesn't sound out of the way for a comprehensive service, I suppose it depends what they did . What say you @mawsley

Van just out of shot yet again.

All he seems to have done is take a dump! Don't they have any bogs in Kent?

Hollywood shows up you;;;re the star, Pedro is doing the catering for the crew.

At least Slowly looks good doing it. Bald round people arnt so photogenic to be honest.

Exactly. Retire and still send the missus out to work! That's how it's done!

When we were in the UK at Easter we stayed a night in a nephew's house in Dartford. It's a nice terraced cottage, 2 bedroom near the middle of the town, but it doesn't have any parking, except on the road, and there's regular arguments with neighbours about the parking. Anyway, he bought the place a few months back and we discovered that he paid the same for it as our place here cost! So, we're not posh, you just get more bang for your buck here!

Spent most of the weekend cleaning the pool and getting it ready for the few months of summer where we can use it! Looking a lot better than when we took the winter cover off!

Cheeky fecker I've been out walking with the wife this afternoon tried to loose her taking a short cut through the forest but she kept up LOL finished off with a couple of shandy's in the Brynffynon listing to classic rock Here's some photos of the area https://www.google.com/maps/@51.6507589,-3.4025784,3a,75y,190.56h,106.53t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1s1HHRjkZ9Wv_CkWdDdQGX7Q!2e0!7i16384!8i8192

Forgot, an Opel ... Corsa?

I need a light tent as trail-riding with lots of extra weight is incompatible. My two man tent is 2.8kg , that's a good compromise for me .

I think I found that tent online @gymwitch and it is 1.25m tall so I guess you can stand up in it.

Love it here Clive … the roads for the bike and all the little towns and villages scenery . your lucky living here

My wife likes to feed chips to the trout in the river......but the Ducks usually get there 1st. Glad you had a nice day.

Got a scooter rally soon so definitely going to that. I think they said kendle. Im dog sitting again next wed until 22nd so pretty stuffed for camping. Could throw it up at allotment though and stay there. Might do that. The dog im looking after belongs to the guy who has the land i have allotment on.

I don’t think I could eat that much oil

Oh im sooo jealous !!!

Ah hah !! the plot thickens. You've sending DM's to @Six30 haven't you

Another example of how you've got your retirement all wrong

I did 185 miles today, I will sort out a ride report tomorrow. I wonder what it is like on those serious forums where they do regular ride reports?

Get a go back to poland bag up for them, butt wipes,MRE's, chemical/biological face masks,water filtre straws, nuclear masks, iodine pills...sack of potato's.

Saturday saw a ride out to the Pentland Hills and surrounding countryside. Only about 100 miles in total but it was a good wee jaunt. I went up a military road that led to a firing range. Then I left the bike and walked up to Castlelaw hill fort and earth house. The earth house is actually a storage cellar and was in use in the 2nd century so is nearly as old as Pete. @Pedro this is what the bracken is looking like now, I remember you commenting on a previous ride about it looking dead. You can go into the earth house, the construction is pretty amazing considering it is likely built at a time when our Lord Jesus was fulfilling God's prophecy over Israel. I didn't crawl through to the additional rooms, but there some accessible for the more adventurous. Looked like the kind of place you could get bummed by dago midgets. I took a circuitous ride home after this which included popping into Morrisons for fuel where they would not activate the pump unless I took off my open face helmet, I told them to fuck off and went to my local Jet station instead.

I met Maria in Germany when her boyfriend at the time was a chief mechanic for XRaid, that builds those Minis and all BMW "derived" offroad race cars, at the time they were building the X5 for the Dakar and bajas like these. I had a nice look around the shop, there were several parts equal to an X5, the indicator and windshield wiper stalks, for example The engine for several applications was based on a road one, though.

There again, the Dacia is equally embarrassing.

Struck gold here , lovely place

That was a few years ago it looks much better now after the treatment