No ride to Barnet; Nonsuch Beginners on Guy Fawkes Day

 Paul writes

Saturday was a grey and pretty miserable day and this leader was just not in the mood.  Eleven of us turned up at Nonsuch Park and luckily it included four registered leaders; Steve, dependable as ever, to lead a longer ride, Lynda wanting to go somewhere shorter, Tony, who was down on the rota to lead a short ride up to the Smallholdings, and Diane.  Because it was on the rota we had agreed to meet Roger and Anna, who were also not in the mood, at the Smallholdings.

Steve went off to Eight on the River, taking Diane and John.  Tony needed a haircut, though, and we all decided that we preferred tea and coffee and cake to sitting and watching him in the barbers, so I agreed to do his ride and off he went to have his barnet beautified, and Maggie and Matthew and little Thomas came with me through Sutton and up Carshalton Hill.  We left Lynda and the others mulling.

It is years since we did this route, because it is so short, and I had forgotten that for Beginners it is quite hilly (though none of us were Beginners anymore).  It was a pleasant enough ride, and when we got to Flitton's R & A were there already and we all went into Blossoms cafe.  "There is always time for coffee" says the friendly sign, but it was contradicted by the sign on the door which said they closed at four and further so by the lady behind the counter who had watched with horror as we came through the door and greeted us with "You know we close at three thirty".  It was just after three.  Still, the tea came and the other staff were friendly so we had a half hour chat before making our different ways home.

On the way we passed a new coffee place, called Naturally Thinking, on the Telegraph Track going down to Boundary Road.  We might be trying that next time.  If it's open.

The whole experience was so thrilling that we forgot to take a picture, so here is one we took from the car on the A23 early on the wettest Sunday morning in recent history while driving our grandson to Stansted Airport.  (It was the annual London to Brighton veteran car run).