Photos from last years ride
Report from last years ride

Join Lewisham Cyclists for this Essex Lanes explore. It's a short hop from Liverpool Street to Bishops Stortford. It's only a 46 minute train ride ride leaving lots of time to cover the shortish distance.

The route goes north from Bishop's Stortford, through Manuden (tales of withcraft), Rickling Green, Quendon, and Widdington before reaching Saffron Walden. From Saffron Walden it's south through Arkesden, Hll Green, Clavering, and the Pelhams back to Bishop's Stortford.

Pub lunch.

A rolling ride.

Suitable for any bike.

Report

There were six of us on the ride today – Nick, Agatha, Lois, Ian, Jurec and Anil. 

Out of Bishop’s Stortford its 1.5 miles up the B1383, which is busy because it’s the road to Stansted airport, and then you turn and cross the border from Hertfordshire to Essex and enter the quieter countryside.  The ride described as an Essex Lanes explore is actually and Essex and Hertfordshire ride as we cross the border between the counties several times. Between Manuden and Rickling Green the road narrows significantly and any annoying traffic is displaced by pongy, manured and freshly ploughed fields. Welcome to the countryside! Rickling Green is deserted. One day we’ll ride through here in the summer and savour the leather on willow of village cricket that these expansive village greens no doubt show case.

Into and out of Saffron Walden, past Audley End Station where Agatha calls it a day and then the lovely descent into the pretty village of Arkesden. The Anchor and Compass has another food award to its name and this time it’s National Food Pub of the Year 2007. The prices reflect the high standard of the fare. My Chicken Supreme was £13, but worth every penny – delicious. As Lois said you don’t have the opportunity to eat somewhere with such a good reputation every week.

The pace picks up after lunch and we zip through Clavering, past another nice looking village green with a thatched pavilion, zip through the Hertfordshire Pelhams of Brent, Stocking and Furneaux and before we know it are back at the station in Bishop’s Stortford with 3 minutes to spare to get on the right platform and catch the 14:28 back to Liverpool St.