Hunmanby to Driffield
We felt sad to leave the Old Lodge this morning. It was a super stay. We were nevertheless excited about what today would bring.
What a truly lovely day. The weather forecast predicted heavy rain from 1.30pm onwards, so we got up very early, had breakfast and were on the road by 8.30am. It was glorious cycling weather… clouds and sunshine and very little wind.
So....in our tour notes for today the route was described as taking us through rolling hills and picturesque, traditional Yorkshire towns and villages. It also said that there were some “cheeky climbs". But more of that later.
We passed through Settrington village where there was a ford crossing the road. We were astonished to see just how deep and fast flowing this was. I guess there has been a lot of rain over the past few weeks. We chickened out of going through it, preferring the safer option of an attractive little footbridge. A couple of hundred yards further on we met the first of the cheeky climbs!! It was just over a mile in length and had a gradient of 17%. Now Bob is a much stronger cyclist than myself so to him it was indeed a cheeky little climb. However, to me it was a “you’ve got to be joking” sort of a climb!! My heart sunk. Even though we have superb electric bikes it is still a real workout to get to the top.
Our Oxygen electric bikes are unusual as the have 21 gears, unlike most Ebikes, so I set out on high power and middle gears. … and get to the top I did ….eventually ...on the lowest gears possible ....with my little legs rotating as if there was no tomorrow! I made it! I was thrilled. Honestly, I cannot describe just how good it feels when you reach the summit of really steep hills (That is when you have stopped panting and gasping for breath!) I felt euphoric.
We carried on going slowly upwards for a few miles. At the top the 360 degree views of the countryside were outstanding. There followed a dramatic 12% descent down into Duggleby.
We stopped for coffee at Sledmere House, a gorgeous country manor set in the rural countryside and met a group of 17 cyclists doing a 59mile round trip. None of them were youngsters either. The average age must have been about out 65+ I am full of admiration for these people who get out and about on long trips on ordinary bikes.
The ride continued with a couple more “cheeky” climbs and several fabulous descents and we arrived early at our accommodation in Hunmanby.
We are staying at Wrangham House Hotel and all we could say when we saw it was “WOW”…”WOW” and “WOW again. Wrangham House Hotel is a unique Georgian country house in the pretty village of Hunmanby, a few miles inland from Filey on the Yorkshire coast.
Peter and Stacie Devos came here in 2005 and promptly set about transforming Wrangham House to its former glory. As with old properties, it's an on-going process and currently boasts 12 en-suite bedrooms, a stunning restaurant a warm and cosy well-stocked bar and a delightful lounge. Their goal is to welcome guests into a home from home atmosphere without any of the hard work. They could not have been kinder or more accomodating to us.
Peter is a Michelin trained chef and takes great pride in his menus, using fresh, local produce whenever possible, so we stayed in to enjoy a totaly delicious meal and an equally lovely breakfast before we left this morning. We were sad to leave.
We will have to post this blog tomorrow as we have no internet connection tonight.
Fond wishes
Annette & Bob