Cycle ride to Heydon, Sunday 12 July 2009

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Where we are going

Heydon, a village about 13 miles south of Cambridge, boasts a magnificent pub, The King William IV (www.kingwilliv.freeuk.com), winner of the Booker Prize for Catering Excellence, and three times winner Vegetarian Pub of the Year. The impressive interior is richly decorated with rustic 'items of days gone by', including various utensils and tools, and many tables hanging on chains rather than supported by legs. The owner - if we are fortunate to meet her - takes great care to ensure that the guests have the most satisfying eating experience, and never fails to impress with her looks either (she is sometimes referred to, but only fondly, as the 'Witch').

I have booked in a group for dinner at around 7:00 pm. This will be self-paid, and the menu options can be looked up at: http://www.kingwilliv.freeuk.com/page4.html

Arrangements for the cycle ride

If you want to join the cycle ride to Heydon through great countryside, join me outside Trinity College, Great Gate, at 5:30 pm on Sunday 12 July 2009.

The cycle ride to Heydon will likely take us a little over an hour, but should not take longer than 1.5 hours. Our route is mostly flat, going up the hill only slightly, for the last section of the way (see below for an elevation diagram). However, this means that after dinner we will be riding down the hill (and we will probably take less time, i.e. about an hour). We will be leaving Heydon at 9:00-9:30 pm, so back in Cambridge shortly after 10:00 pm.

If you are not bringing your own bike to Cambridge, please see the 'Bike rental' tab for information about where to hire a bike in Cambridge. Before the Heydon trip, please ensure that you have new batteries in your bike lights, as we will be coming back after dark on unlit country roads. If in doubt about the strength of your batteries, please bring spare batteries for both your front and back lights.

IN CASE OF RAIN:  A local taxi company, A1 Cabco (01223 525555), have given me the best quote for a ride from Cambridge to Heydon: a normal saloon taxi (for 4 passengers) costs £22 one way, and a multiseater taxi (for 6 passengers) costs £33 one way.

Once I know the weather forecast (closer to the date) and the number of people, I will order taxis to pick up the group from outside Trinity College, Great Gate, at 6:30 pm. The journey to Heydon by taxi will take about 25 mins. The return to Cambrige by taxi will be around 9:30 pm, though we can have some flexibility.

The cycle ride route

Our scenic route to Heydon will take around 30 miles in total (there and back). I've done it a few times before, taking different routes, and it's a great trip. Few things beat the feeling of cruising down the hill after having had a very satisfying dinner.

A link to the 'Map My Ride' website showing the proposed route for our cycle ride:
http://www.mapmyride.com/route/gb/cambridge/281124420489643133
This map can be enlarged and dragged around with the mouse to get the correct view.

Three pdf pages showing the route:
  Map A
  Map B
  Map C

Three corresponding pdf pages showing a satellite view of the route:
  Map A satellite
  Map B satellite
  Map C satellite

An elevation diagram for the whole route:

Contact

If it looks like the weather won't allow us to cycle to Heydon, I will contact all confirmed participants in the ride by e-mail, or (if already in Cambridge) via their college accommodation, if I know it.

If in your online registration form you've selected 'Don't know yet' in answer to whether you'd like to take part in the cycle ride, I will need to receive your confirmation ideally by Friday 10 July. If you don't e-mail me with your confirmation, I will assume that you are not taking part in the ride.

Please e-mail me if you have any questions.

If you need to contact me with a last-minute change of mind after you arrive in Cambridge, and you don't have access to e-mail, please leave a message for me in Trinity College Porters' Lodge in the Great Gate.

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