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| Only three miles to Sevenoaks, it always seems longer. |
I remember once riding to the sign that read "Sevenoaks" and then turning back. The thing is, it's always bugged me, not riding into town, so at the weekend just past I decided, kind of on the hop, that I would ride all the way and stop for lunch. When I say 'kind of on the hop' I mean that when I set off, while a longer ride was sort of on the cards I was still thinking along the lines of riding into Oxted and chilling with a book at Caffe Nero, accompanied by an apricot croissant. It was, however, later than usual, gone 1030hrs when I left the house so when I reached the crucial point, just past Botley Hill (do I ride down the hill to Oxted or head in the direction of Westerham?) I hesitated for all of a few seconds and then headed towards Westerham; and as I sailed down Clarks Lane I remembered the Velobarn, so I hung a left on to Pilgrims Lane and rode straight there. Miraculously it was open, much to my surprise, so I decided to chill with a cup of tea and an almond croissant before continuing my journey, but where to? I couldn't very well ride into Westerham (all of 10 minutes) and then have ANOTHER tea. So I pondered my situation briefly and crossed the road into the continuation of Pilgrims Lane. It's rare, I have to admit, that I venture this way, normally to visit Longford Lake, and it did cross my mind to go there and possibly have lunch in the Harvey's pub facing the famous lake. But no, there was always Malabar in Dunton Green or perhaps I could ride all the way into Sevenoaks, past the sign and into town. After a while, as I rode along Pilgrims Lane and followed the country lanes that paralleled the motorway I knew I had to give Sevenoaks a chance. The ride from the sign into town wasn't at all bad, a hill, yes, but not a bad one and soon I found myself in the bustle of a fairly busy town, so busy that I'd have to dismount and walk myself and the bike to my destination, which was Soprano's, a cafe I know and love and a place I have visited many a time. I was a little worried about leaving the bike unattended, even if I did have a padlock, but fortunately there was a table outside and the weather was fine so I left the bike leaning, unpadlocked, against a wall opposite the cafe and enjoyed the sunshine. I ordered a glass of sparkling mineral water and something called a Jerzy Piadina (at Soprano's most things involve cheese and this was no exception, it was chicken and cheese between two flatbreads with a pleasant little salad. People passed by, young couples, older couples, humanity of all sorts and I decided to push the boat out until I realised that Soprano's doesn't do desserts, it offers cake in a few varieties and instead I ordered another sparkling mineral water and took in my surroundings. The sun was shining brightly, this was a summer's day in late April if ever there was one and I found myself remembering swimming in the sea at Lyme Regis back in April 1984. I also remember snow in April 2008, which I think is documented somewhere on this blog, it's certainly been mentioned before, but remember, the blog didn't start until September 2009, over a year later.
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| A Jerzy Piadina at Soprano's. |
Now, for some, cycling a 35-mile round trip to Sevenoaks for lunch is excessive, although it was a decision I made on the hop; for others (like Andy) 35 miles is a piss in the ocean (he rode over 100 miles on the same day I was basking in the sunshine outside of Soprano's). For me, 35 miles was a good distance and the worst bit, of course, was the sudden realisation that I'd have to cycle home. I can't say I was looking forward to it and there was no way I would be taking the train home. I set off with a happy heart and rode downhill towards Riverhead and it was there that I decided to take the A25 rather than the country lanes on the other side of Dunton Green. It was certainly busier in terms of cars, but fairly straightforward and it wasn't long before I found myself in Westerham where people were sunning themselves on the green. I was thinking of making a stop to take on board water and possibly another cup of tea and I thought I'd head for the Velobarn as it was only around 1500hrs so I figured it had to be open: it wasn't. Next stop, Botley Hill and the Sheep Shed, but when I got there I thought it best to push on and get home and so I did, along the 269 all the way to Sanderstead and when I reached home nobody was there. I sat and watched television drinking tea and a large glass of water but I felt good and I'll certainly be doing it again soon.
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| The Velobarn around 1500hrs – closed! |
