Mileage: 5-6 miles – to Pulloxhill and back
Why: Just wanted an early evening roll-about
Food: None en-route, but came back to salmon en croute with goat’s cheese and artichokes, chocolate fondants and Cava…
You wouldn’t have thought it possible to take the wrong turn in a village with a high street and not much else, but that is exactly what we managed on our spur-of-the-moment ride. A small hill later and we found, to our astonishment, that we have a lovely, little hamlet on our doorstep.
Not that Pulloxhill itself was a surprise, since we knew it was there, rather it was the fact that it was so picturesque. Fields, wildflowers and munching horses to both sides, everything bathed in a hazy golden light, quaint cottages and The Chequers, a pub which includes a shop, of all things.
It was like we’d stepped into a set of Midsomer Murders, an idea further reinforced by the two old codgers who came tootling past in a golf cart. Even the obligatory Chav Who Nearly Rammed Us Off The Road drove a sweet car. The word ‘hill’ in the name was a give-away, I suppose, but the views really were fantastic.
And that’s really the best thing about cycling; exploring, finding new places, ideally by accident, seeing old ones with new eyes and happening upon that sweet, little pub or beautiful view.
Summer evening in Bedfordshire
