Wednesday 18th April 2012

Nine intrepid cyclists assembled at the car park at Bakewell to cycle the Monsal Trail. It was John Allen’s idea to have a car assisted mid week ride. Unfortunately, the weather wasn’t on our side and there was a persistent drizzle all day. The trail is well signposted and easy to find and, being an old railway line, not hard to cycle along being relatively flat. The trail is about 8 miles long. After about a mile we came to Hassop Station which has a welcome tea shop. After refreshments, we meandered along the track enjoying the scenery and the tunnels. John is clued up on the history of the local railways and explained the many features including the impressive tunnel buttresses. At the end of the track we turned back and repeated our visit to Hassop Station. This time, I sampled a Bakewell pudding with cream while the others tucked into bacon cobs and custard tarts. Then it was back to the cars and home. It was a thoroughly enjoyable day and our appetites are whetted for the next outing (Waterhouses perhaps?) - Ray