Salisbury 🇬🇧

The sun was shining and the day clear and warm (11 degrees 😂).

I took the doggies for their walk around Old Sarum castle and the views on such a clear day were fabulous 😊

I took my borrowed mountain bike to try out a section of The King Alfred's Way route that a friend let me know crossed the road only a mile away!  

I set off down the main road outside the house and then turned into the single track signed route.  The single track climbed up hill and was a mix of either mud or slippery chalk 😂.

The bushes were a bit overgrown and so ended up with some blackberry thorns in my hands 😂.  I had to get off a push at times.  I was loving it though as I was outdoors and riding and exploring 😊. 

At the top of the hill the route crossed a road and straight into a farmer's field with a signed route access arrow.  The field was very boggy but doable to ride and after that field, through a couple of gates into the next field and the mud switched up a dial 😂. Deep muddy tractor tracks made it near impossible to ride as they were deeper than my pedal clearance.  I managed to find ways to get up the long hill while slip sliding away.

Then at the top was time for some downhill through a beautiful forest with slippery tree roots and mushy autumn leaves 😂.

Then out into an easement where dog walkers were making the most of the fine day.  I rode on till I came to a windmill (apt for Australia Day) on 'Windmill farm' 😊.

I tried to go down the next bit of path but just way to muddy and so turned back.  Had a slip at one stage and as I fell, reached out and realised just in time that it was a barbed wire fence and pulled back!

It was a 13km ride that ticked a lot of adventure boxes and just as I pulled into the driveway, realised I had a flat tyre 😂. For most this wouldn't be a fun afternoon, but weirdly for me it was 😂😂

Nice big walk with the dogs and caught the sunset on our return.

Fun in the sun but the temp dropping and already 2 degrees.