Three years ago a group of us rode from Ashurst in the New Forest on a Saturday evening down to the ferry at Lymington, crossed to the Isle of Wight and then rode to Sandown on the other side of the Island for a midnight kebab. We then spent the early hours riding back to catch the 7am ferry back to the mainland and got back to Ashurst in time for breakfast. With a few ‘refreshment’ stops on the way it made a rather good night out.
A few of us are keen to repeat that night out this year. There was none of that bivvying malarky although we did have half hour sat down in a hollow up on St Catherines Down to argue about whether it was getting light yet or not.
If enough people show interest in joining us I’ll set a definite date and see about group discounts on the ferry and getting one of the local pubs or cafes to open early for breakfast orders.
The ride distance was 80 miles with some of it hilly and some of it quite flat. We went at the end of May and if the weather smiles on us again this year it will be a very scenic if not particularly technically challenging ride. The start at Ashurst has plenty of car parking, a railway station and a campsite nearby.
