Westbury Wheelers Isle of Wight Trip 2024

Westbury Wheelers Isle of Wight Trip 2024

The decision to offer a higher standard (than normal) accommodation proved popular and made the booking quite easy. The manor house near Yarmouth certainly looked very nice and with it’s rustic historical appearance it felt like we were going to stay in a National Trust property. With 10 bedrooms we had quality accommodation at very reasonable cost for such a beautiful place. Within days all the payments were made and the property booked. Alan Blandford kindly assisted and booked the ferry for us all and booked the restaurant which was almost in the garden of the house.

On June 16^th we set off from the Market Place and headed through the Wylye Valley through Salisbury and on to Downton for refreshments at The Borough Café. The weather was good and we sat outside enjoying the sun.

On through the scenic New Forest we made good time to Lymington and we were able to take the earlier ferry across to the island.

I think we arrived at the accommodation within about 20 mins and then I was relieved, in fact delighted that everyone appeared very happy with the rooms I had to quickly offer to each of the group. After exploring the manor house and gardens I believe everyone was very impressed with the facilities. We had a decent meal in the adjacent burger restaurant and prepared for the ride on the island the following day and watched a bit of England struggling to play football in the European cup.

The ride down was 65-70 miles so some of us were not feeling very confident that we would enjoy a full tour around the island with the return trip the next day. We agreed to form 3 groups – a full on, faster group and a slightly less rushed group each cycling around most of the island, and another group of 4 of us aiming to explore and enjoy at leisure. Each group enjoyed doing exactly what they wanted to do so it proved to be a good decision. The faster guys did almost 80 miles and almost 6000feet of climbing on their circumnavigation. The next group did almost that, with a bit more taking in the sights, I believe. Our group climbed up to the viewpoint at The Needles before heading to the centre of the island on a 46 mile trip on the backroads in the sunshine. Making some food in the well equipped kitchen we each enjoyed a sunny evening at the house.

I planned a more challenging route back and after the ferry we headed to Fordingbridge for a coffee stop and then over the hills to Chalke Valley then the Nadder Valley and then the Wylye.

All went well and everyone seemed to enjoy the trip. It was one of those trips where the routes, the weather, the accommodation, the group and the scenery all made for very happy memories.

Thanks to the club for the contribution towards our meal.

Ian.