London Cycling Diary

A cycle through the cherry blossom streets

Today I did a quick lunch-time cycle around the streets of Barnes and Fulham, taking in the Thames tow path and crossing the river at Hammersmith Bridge at one end and Putney Bridge at the other.

It was another fine sunny day for cycling. I didn't see many fellow cyclists on my travels but I certainly saw a lot of women pushing babies in prams, and, at Fulham Palace, where workers have been busy regenerating the park and playground area, there were children everywhere. Some of the new facilities, including a mini skateboard park, have been opened — it all looks great, but I hope they remember to reinstate the cycle lane which seems to have been subsumed by the construction work in recent months.

And I have to say that the residential streets of Fulham, which aren't the most attractive, look lovely right now: they're all lined by cherry blossom trees, which are in full bloom. Some streets are white, some are pink. Next time I'll remember to bring my camera.

Total distance: 6.49miles (10.44km) | Ride time: 40min and 04sec | Average speed: 9.7mph | Top speed: 17.9mph

Another quickie!

With a busy afternoon/evening scheduled involving lots of book-related engagements, I decided to squeeze in a morning cycle instead of pottering around the house.

I did a quick trundle to the other side of the river and back following the exact same route I did on Monday. Hardly a soul about and the traffic on Castlenau Road was practically non-existant.

I couldn't say the same for the bumper-to-bumper traffic heading into Hammersmith on the Hammersmith Bridge. The tailback stretched for almost a mile. Poor buggers. Wouldn't happen if they were on a bike!

Total distance: 6.45miles (10.37km) | Ride time: 35min and 43sec | Average speed: 10.8mph | Top speed: 16.4mph

A quick morning trundle after a lazy lay-off

My bike has been much neglected in recent weeks owing to the weather — snow, ice, wind, extreme cold — and my inability to motivate myself. This time last year I was cycling at least 10 miles a day, but that was in sunny Australia, where the only thing that put me off was the heat!

But here in wintry old London it's too easy to find excuses to stay indoors and hibernate. As a result, I've notched up the grand total of about 50 miles since the start of the year.

This morning, however, I was keen to start the week on a positive note. I dragged myself out of bed and did a quick 6-mile trundle, taking in the Thames tow path, Putney Bridge and the back streets of Fulham — all before the families on half-term break started clogging up the streets with prams and dogs and kids.

It was exhilarating to be out and about, but the ice-cold wind made my eyes pour with tears. And by the time I got in the door my hands were numb. By contrast, my feet, wrapped up in extra-thick woollen hiking socks, were cozy warm.

Total distance: 6.45miles (10.37km) | Ride time: 37min and 02sec | Average speed: 10.4mph | Top speed: 17.5mph

Jon Snow's manifesto for safer cycling

Channel 4 News presenter Jon Snow calls for urgent action to boost cycling safety in London. The video above is accompanied by this well argued piece on the Channel 4 News website. Let's hope the government and the transport planners listen.

First ride of the year

The first (much delayed) ride of 2012 yesterday and it was glorious.

While the blue sky quickly vanished before I'd even cycled a mile, it was still pleasant being in the great outdoors. And cycling by the river, its mercurial surface lit up like diamonds, was such a treat, especially with the smell of warm malt from Fuller's Brewery in the air.

The only downside was the maniacal vehicular traffic through Barnes town centre — it was lunch-time after all — as cars pulled in and out of parking bays, or made turns without using indicators, but once in Richmond Park it was all behind me.

The park was very quiet — and devoid of colour. The trees have all finally lost their leaves and all the lush, green bracken fern has died off into withered clumps of brown or sepia-toned detritus. This makes the Tamsin trail feel more open, more exposed.

The highlight of my trundle was seeing a huge herd of deer, some of which were engaged in antler-to-antler combat, gathered near Martin's Pond. I witnessed one stag chase a female deer across the road and when others looked to follow suit I made my escape as quickly as I could, lest I get flattened. They are absolutely beautiful creatures, but you wouldn't want to get on the wrong side of one, as it were.

Total distance: 15.47miles (24.87km) | Ride time: 1hr 29min and 49sec | Average speed: 10.3mph | Top speed: 19.6mph

A round-trip to the Wimbledon Tea Rooms

After a couple of days slobbing around, eating and drinking, sleeping in and watching TV and DVDs, it was time to venture into the great outdoors for a bit of fresh air and exercise. So, with bikes at the ready, we headed to the Wimbledon Tea Rooms, via Richmond Park, for a late lunch.

The getting to Richmond Park bit was fine — I swear I could do it in my sleep, although it might not be wise on the back of a bicycle — but the finding the tea rooms was a little more tricky. In the past, I've gone cross-country, via Wimbledon Common, but with mixed success: the paths here are too rough and ready unless you're on a proper mountain bike.

Today we opted to cycle along the A3. There's a shared pedestrian/cycle path completely separate from the motor traffic, but the noise of the road didn't make for a pleasant, nor peaceful experience.

As soon as we could, we crossed over to the common via a subway near Putney Vale Cemetery. Unfortunately, we had to walk the bikes for a mile or more, because cycling is prohibited along the paths in this section of the park. Not that it mattered — even if we could have cycled it would have been too wet and muddy for my bike to handle.

Eventually we reached Queensmere, which is an attractive man-made pond just a stone's throw — or quite a steep climb away — from the tea rooms. (We didn't know this at the time — it was kind of a fluke. To be honest, the common is so massive and so forest-like, it would not take much to get totally lost.)

According to the Wimbledon and Putney Commons website, before the pond was created, the area "acted as the focal point on the Commons for a number of duels until, in 1838, a man was shot dead and thereafter duelling was prohibited". The things you learn!

Anyway, after our delicious lunch of baguettes and chips, we made our return journey via main roads and suburban back streets in a race against the dying light. Typically, I hadn't bothered bringing any lights with me and I was worried it would get dark before we got home. But we needn't have worried: we were back in the door just before 3pm, a little over two-and-a-half hours since we had set off. It was a fine way to spend an afternoon on a dry — and mild — winter's afternoon in December.

Total distance: 13.76miles (22.47km) | Ride time: 1hr 24min and 08sec | Average speed: 9.8mph | Top speed: 20.2mph

A mission in the rain for 'Hamlet' tickets, breakfast, elevenses, books and take-out sushi

Dull, grey, drizzly. Oh yes, let's go for a cycle!

Oh, and while you're at it, do it during morning rush hour — and head for Waterloo, so that you have to negotiate all the traffic along Kensington High Street, Parliament Square and Blackfriars Road.

But there was method to my madness. Or a reward in mind, at least.

I wanted to be in line for tickets to see Hamlet at the Young Vic when doors opened. That's because tickets to this production are all sold out, but each day the theatre releases up to 20 "gallery only" tickets for £10 a pop. The only catch is you have to buy the tickets on the day you want to attend, and the seats, which have a spectacular view, are just stools, no backs.

By 9.45am I had my two tickets, so then it was time for a treat  — coffee and a muffin in the Young Vic bar (very good food, service and atmosphere at that time of the morning) — before getting back on the bike and heading to the West End.

I parked up on Lower Regent Street, met my Other Half for "elevenses", then wandered up to Waterstone's on Picadilly for a browse (which turned into a book buying feast) and tried to ignore all the stares I got from fellow shoppers and tourists. So what if I was wearing my cycling kit and had helmet hair, anyone would think they'd never seen a woman in a night-vision jacket before.

Afterwards, I bought some take-out sushi from the Japan Centre and then got back on the bike for the 4.5 mile journey home.

It was a brilliant little "errand run", although I could have done without the drizzling rain. And the crazy lunch-hour drivers down Ken High doing illegal U-turns and double-parking in dangerous locations. But it would have taken twice as long if I'd done it by tube — and half a day if I'd caught the bus!

Total distance: 12.65miles (20.35km) | Ride time: 1hr, 16min and 14sec | Average speed: 9.9mph | Top speed: 19.9mph

Mild November weather, perfect for cycling

Hard to believe it's late November and I'm only just donning my "proper" cycling longs — the fleecey Altura ones that have seen better days. (Note to self: must buy a couple of new pairs to see me through the winter.)

But it's still so mild, there's no need to wear fleecey tops just yet. In fact, I'm just wearing a long-sleeved t-shirt under my cycling jacket. And this evening, I was so toasty warm, despite the darkness and the damp roads, that I had to undo the zip on my jacket to let some cool air in!

I'm not complaining. It'll be winter for long enough — if it ever decides to arrive.

Note this photograph was taken last week while taking a stroll around Westminster, but this is the usual view I have every morning as I cycle through Parliament Square. No need to check my watch at this point; I just let the Big Ben clock face tell me the time!

Total distance: 10.72*miles (17.24km) | Ride time: 1hr, 14min and 08sec | Average speed: 8.6mph | Top speed: 18.2mph

* This doesn't sound right — it should be roughly 14 miles.

A Sunday trundle — with snaps

What is fast becoming a weekend habit, the Other Half and I went on a Sunday morning trundle.

We left the house at around 10.30am and cycled a big loop, beginning and ending in Hammersmith, via Barnes, Richmond Park, Ham and Richmond.

To begin with, the weather was cool but dry. The overcast skies would occasionally break into moments of bright sunshine. But on the whole the conditions were pleasant for cycling — not too cold, not too warm, no wind and no rain.

The only tricky conditions were the mud and puddles along the tow path near Ham — thanks to what looks like a high tide that had washed up lots of flotsam and jetsam.

But we rewarded ourselves with a cuppa and a small snack at Tide Tables Cafe, by the river at Richmond, so all was well with the world.

Rather than bore you with the detail, here's some random snaps that I took on my camera phone along the way:

Inquisitive ducks — they were rooting around the leaf cover for creepy crawlies to eat

The pond near Ham Gate in Richmond Park

Ham House, a National Trust property built in 1610

Sail boats on the river

Herbal tea and a strong coffee to revive us

Bust of Bernardo O'Higgins, Chilean independence leader

A riot of autumnal colour

Total distance: 19.35miles (31.13km) | Ride time: 1hr, 54min and 55sec | Average speed: 10.1mph | Top speed: 21.7mph

A week's worth of cycling: a new seat cover, a stoning, a near miss, lots of soldiers and much more!

For the first time since going back to work in late June I managed to commute by bicycle five days in a row. My Monday journey set me up for a good week, as did the fine, unusually summery, weather that lasted right through the next four days. And come Friday, despite the aching legs, I felt like I'd achieved something, a personal milestone of sorts.

At 5.45pm on Friday, I was also rather chuffed to collect my bicycle from where I'd locked it up for the day to find I'd scored a free BRIGHT PINK seat cover — as did the dozens of other bikes parked up nearby. Okay, so it was a marketing ploy, but a rather clever and inspired one, given it was advertising secure bike parking facilities!

But I was less chuffed when I was stoned by a 10-year-old kid as I cycled past Bernie Spain Gardens about 10 minutes later! The missile hit me in my ribs and I was so surprised by it — I yelled "ouch" in what must have sounded like a hugely comical voice — that I didn't really process what had happened until I was about half a mile down the road. Then I started to join the dots... the group of kids hanging out by the gardens... the giggling and carrying on...and me flying past for target practise. The thing is, I don't know if I was deliberately targeted or whether they were fooling around and throwing things at each other and I just got in the way. I'm only grateful that they didn't aim it at my eye.

Some other things that happened during the week:

★ I saw a guy riding like the clappers down Constitution Hill on possibly the world's rustiest bike. His back wheel was either seriously buckled or very loose, because it had a very dangerous wobble. I don't know how he didn't know something was wrong. I planned to tell him when I caught him at the next set of traffic lights, but when he flew through the red light, scattering pedestrians in his wake, I decided that if his wheel fell off then he probably deserved it.

★ I came within inches of hitting a pedestrian near the Royal Albert Hall. She was standing on the kerb and about to walk out into my path. But then she spotted me coming and stopped. We made eye contact and I smiled to thank her. But just as I was level with her she decided to step out anyway. I couldn't believe it. I had to swerve so drastically that I almost fell off. I honestly don't know what she was playing at, but you should have heard the curses coming out of my mouth! No, I wasn't very happy.

★ By contrast, another pedestrian smiled and thanked me ... when I stopped at a red light. I smiled back. But it did make me wander why he was so appreciative. Maybe he's just never seen a cyclist stop at a red light before?

★ I spotted one cyclist, a guy in his late 20s, on Friday evening cycling very tentatively near the curb. At the traffic lights he had a nervous disposition. He just generally looked uncomfortable with the whole cycling in traffic thing. I wondered if it was his first time out. I wanted to tell him that he'll only kick the nerves by practise. You never lose the adrenalin rush, but the nervousness goes — eventually.

★ Two mornings in a row I saw the King's Troop all dressed up in their uniforms and spiffy gold hats trotting their black horses around the riding arena near the South Carriage.

★ One morning I saw the guards at Wellington Barracks, on Bird Cage Walk, practising their drills. They were wearing green uniforms and bearskin hats. And the tourists were gawking at them through the fence, cameras at the ready. I do love cycling in London!

Total distance: 49.07miles (78.95km) | Ride time: 4hr, 12min and 18sec | Average speed: 11.6mph | Top speed: 22.3mph