Today’s guest picture comes from my Welsh correspondent Keiron. This is one of his cycling routes.
I had a topsy turvy day today. Since lockdown started two years ago, I have got into the habit of having a quiet morning in, usually with the newspapers, the crossword and some sociable coffee, and then trying to do something more active in the afternoon. Today, I was up early, off and away, and I found myself in Carlisle before the time when I am normally having breakfast.
The reason for this unusual behaviour was the need to get a service and an MOT for the Zoe. The receptionist at the garage reckoned that the process might take about three hours, so to while away some of the time, I went for a stroll.
In the end, thanks to stopping for a hot chocolate and two slices of toast and jam in the middle of the walk, and scrambled eggs on toast with a cappuccino at the end, I managed to fill in the time very neatly indeed.
The garage is at the end of a very long street that leads into the centre of town, and rather than walk all the way up, I turned off half way along, passed the golf course at Stoney Holme . . .
. . . crossed my first bridge of the day over the River Eden . . .
. . . and came into Rickerby Park.
It was peaceful beside the river.
At the end of the park, I came to the Eden Bridge, which carries the main road from the north into the city.
I walked under the fifth arch and passed the cricket club on a path that took me up to Etterby Scaur from where I was able to walk back down and cross the bridge to visit the centre of town.
Once over the bridge, I admired the gorgeous weeping willows in Bitts Park, visited a cafe for my chocolate and toast, walked through the cathedral grounds and came down under the main railway line and crossed a car park to the banks of the River Caldew. I crossed that on a footbridge laid on top of an old railway bridge.
I followed the Caldew up stream, adding another bridge to my tally and using a bike path which is part of the National Cycle network with decorative gates to prove it. The high walls beside the path are part of Carlisle’s flood defences put in after two catastrophic floods in recent years. At the end of the path, there is an interestingly octagonal house.
I walked on past the weir that figures in today’s header picture . . .
. . . and walked in a loop round a bit of the water meadow beyond.
I recrossed the Caldew on yet another footbridge (Carlisle caters well for pedestrians and cyclists when it comes to crossing rivers) . . .
. . . and headed back towards the car, stopping only to record the framework of an old gasholder which used to store gas but now stores storage.
I pottered back across the centre of the town and then by back streets to half way along the long road to the garage. I had just enough time to eat my scrambled eggs in a cafe neat the garage before the receptionist rang me up to say the the car was ready.
I don’t know how things could have worked out better. A little sun perhaps would have helped, but I was grateful for a dry day. The car had no problems passing the MOT test, and I drove home in a very contented state of mind. My cheerful mood was enhanced by finding out that I had inadvertently walked nine and a half miles on my tour of Carlisle and its rivers. It is wonderful how easy walking with no hills is.
I had a quiet afternoon, reading the papers and doing the crossword. We tested the car by driving down to Canonbie to post a parcel, as our intermittent post office wasn’t available today. It worked very well and when I charged it up afterwards, we got a promise of 200 miles, the best mileage we have had since we first bought the car.
I had a walk round the garden, where the amelanchier has come out to join the tulips and muscari . . .
. . . and a look at the birds where the goldfinches were back in force.
A Zoom with my siblings and a second go of the slow cooked lamb stew rounded off a very satisfactory day.
The flying bird of the day is goldfinch looking one way and going the other.
Tootlepedal's Blog 
Toast, hot chocolate, scrambled eggs, a lovely walk, an electric car that takes an impressive charge. How, indeed, could it get better?
I don’t want to sound ungracious but another 50 miles on our car’s range would be perfect. 🙂
I understand.
I hope the people who live there never see water flowing through all 5 arches of Eden bridge.
The weeping willows were nice to see. Nice to see on someone else’s lawn anyhow. They’re messy trees.
That was a nice trip with lots of great views and interesting things to see.
They have, probably three times in the last twenty years. It is hard to get a picture of it because where I was standing would be underwater.
You made the most of the longish wait for the car and saw some interesting sights. I liked the views of the weir and the weeping willows especially.
So nice that you could combine the car maintenance with a hike in the neighbourhood. Thanks for the many impressions I got. You realy live in a nice place full of nature.
There are a lot of good pedestrian paths round Carlisle.
Well done for walking so far and giving us so many interesting things to look at, plenty of bridges too.
As you have shown, it is always good to focus on something new
It was fun to come down out of the hills for a walk for once.
A well planned day fitting it a loong lovely walk around some very interesting places. The rooms in that octagonal house must look an odd shape! Love the views along the river banks and the tiered weir is pretty.Carlisle looks a good city to visit.
I like Carlisle though as always when I am visiting towns and cities, I am struck by how much car pollution I am breathing in.
We drove up to Bristol last week and amazed at the tailbacks and huge numbers of cars on both sides of the road!! We whizzed back home and pleased that the traffic became lighter and lighter even though cars numbers around here are rising now!
Hi tootlepedal, Great to see my canal bridge in your post. It’s right in the middle of Neath itself, if you look carefully, you can see part of Neath Castle in the top right hand corner. Destroyed by Cromwell and his roundheads. Cheers.
Cromwell was responsible for quite a lot of damage.
Was that a fleet of bridges? All crossing water? Cheers.
Perhaps a flock. 🙂
You made good use of the time the Zoe was in service, and produced a very lovely set of photos. Your flying chaffinch of the day is probably looking for a pesky siskin to sneak up on him.
I expect that you are right about why the chaffinch is looking round. 🙂
Wish I had room for such beautiful weeping willows.