Friday 30 July 2021

Photo Scavenger Hunt July #5 :: Bike

Hi there everyone πŸ˜€

The theme for Astrid's photo scavenger hunt today is ... bike.

Now, like most kids, I used to ride a bike all the time when younger ... I distinctly remember a particularly nasty incident involving a lamp post from many years ago ... but have been pretty much bikeless for the majority of my adult life.

Back in 2012, on the back of the Olympics held in this country ... and probably along with half of the population ... Martin and I decided it would be a good idea to get ourselves some bikes. I was hankering after a snazzy Victoria Pendleton design but ended up with something less snazzy but more comfortable.

I wouldn't say we were ever regular enthusiastic cyclists but from time to time since then we have ventured out locally or even stuck the bikes on the carrier and ventured a bit further afield. The bikes haven't really been out of the shed much over the last couple of years but I've had a dig through the archives to see what I could find ...

This first photo was taken at an old priory quite close to home. We can cycle there either along the local canal or via cycle routes and these were taken on our first local bike rides ...

It's quite funny really that my first photo would be from this location as this is the spot where Martin and I took our very first photo together ... no selfies back then ... this was on the self timer on the camera ...

It's only six years ago but we look sooooo young and lots slimmer πŸ™ˆ

The next photos I could find were from a week's stay in The Peak District in Butterton back in 2015, where we took the bikes and did a ride along the Manifold Trail and here we are ... not looking particularly athletic, but definitely riding our bikes ...
We were then out and about riding along the canal over the Easter break in 2016 ... I think we may have been checking on our Geocaches ...
In May we loaded up the bikes and took them with us to Yorkshire, where our holiday cottage was just a stone's throw from 'The Cinder Track' ... a disused railway that had been converted to a cycle track ... that just happened to lead us to a very nice tea garden at the old station ...
The cottage we stayed in here was amazing ... it even had bike washing facilities ...
2016 was clearly the height of our cycling adventures as here we are again ... this time in The New Forest in September ... trying to avoid the local traffic ...

... avoiding hazards ...
... and stopping for lunch ... 

There then seems to have been a big gap in our cycling adventures as the next photos I could find are from 2018, when we had a ride round the National Trust estate at Calke Abbey ...



In 2019 we spent Valentine's Day on our bikes at another National Trust property. This time we were at Clumber Park in Nottinghamshire ...

Sadly ... I think that's about the last time we went on a cycling adventure. We didn't even get the bikes out during lockdown ... I actually feel a bit ashamed of myself for that. I think this year we really need to try and get back out there and have some new adventures πŸ˜€

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8 comments:

  1. What a lovely selection of bike photographs. We both had bikes when we returned to the UK in 2000 but found the traffic just too much for us country bumpkins so gave up even though there is a converted railway track nearby but it seemed to be rather perilous in parts. Love your first picture of you both.🚲🚲🚲

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    1. I must admit neither of us like riding in the roads much … but we do tend to look out for off road tracks and paths … that are flat πŸ˜‚

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  2. Gosh you do take a lot of photos, just as well as you always seem to have a good selection for the photo hunt. I did like the photo with the cattle in the way! You certainly get out and about.

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    1. I always seem to be the one taking photos … I get taken fun of a bit sometimes for using a camera, whilst everyone else just uses their phone. We do love exploring the UK … very rarely will we go abroad, we just love staying in a cosy pretty cottage in the middle of nowhere and exploring the local countryside … though it doesn’t always turn out to be as idyllic as it sounds πŸ˜€

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  3. I have a pashley bike - I used to ride it until I damaged my knee. I've tried it once or twice since and have relegated the bike to the back of the garage - my knee does not agree with bike riding any more πŸ™„

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    1. That’s a real shame Kate. Martin struggles with knee and ankle pain and sometimes finds bike riding is less painful than walking. We must dig the bikes out of the shed πŸ˜€

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  4. You've got some great bike photos and some lovely places you were able to ride! I love the one of your first photo together, so sweet. Maybe you've taken them out again by now? Or has it been too hot?

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    1. I’m afraid I can’t really blame the weather but no they’ve not been out as yet … still languishing under a cover in the shed πŸ™ˆ

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Thanks for taking time to comment on my blog. I love to hear what people think about what Martin and I have been up to.