Westerham in the fog

Our bikes resting against Churchill's statue on the green at Westerham. Andy
took this shot.

Sunday 30 May 2011: No rain, but grey skies and a thick fog on the higher reaches of the B269 and Clarks Lane. There was a dampness in the air, but the fog cleared as we made our descent into Westerham, where it tried to rain, but didn't.

The last time we were here, it was bright sunshine as the Rotary Club erected stands on the green for its fete, but today the green was empty, bar a mother and child on a couple of those stainless steel scooters.

We parked our bikes against the statue of Churchill and sipped our tea while gazing across the green at a mansion house with standard lamps in it's downstairs windows and table lamps in all the rest. We figured the house would cost upwards of £1.5 million on the open market – out of our price range!

The idea of opening our own bike shop surfaced again, not that we'll ever do it. We looked at shopfronts in Westerham and decided that we didn't want a store with access via steps – bad news if you've got a bike shop. I mooted the idea of a bike shop and caff combined, like the place in Seattle I wrote about a few posts ago.

As we headed out of Westerham, the fog still clung to the surrounding hills, but the roads were clear until we reached Botley Hill. I decided to risk a puncture and cycle off-road on the basis that a flat tyre I could handle, a road accident I couldn't; remember, my bike has no rear brakes and a loose (ish) nut on the front wheel (something I'd forgotten about earlier as I hurtled down the hill into Westerham).

Andy and I parted company half way along the B269 and, as I continued towards Warlingham, the fog lifted so I hit the road again.