We had decided to make an early start this morning, so we set the alarm for 6am. When it went off, I got out of bed, stopped it, got in again, and we both fell asleep until 8am. Downstairs I found my tyre flat again, and before breakfast I repaired it. At last it had got to 10.30 when we made a start for nowhere in particular, but somehow or other we made for Cheadle. From here we decided to trace that elusive short cut to High Lane, which would be of great advantage for a dash into (or out of) Derbyshire, and so, with a definite object in mind, we started on the correct road. As usual, we got mixed up near Bramhall, and after some horrid map-reading, we found ourselves on the Wilmslow road at Handforth. Proceeding now to Wilmslow, we stopped at the old church, but as a service was in progress inside, we had to be content with a look round the graveyard.
Some old graves were seen, the oldest dated 1635, but beyond that there was nothing of major interest. Running through the town, we came to Alderley, and a mile further on, we stopped at Powell’s for lunch. After lunch we decided to have a change, so, armed with sugar bags, we made a successful sally on a horde of blackberry bushes, picking three pounds of fruit in one hour. Hiding it, we had a walk through the woods towards the Edge. Wandering into some private land, we discovered a beautiful dale, in which were four entrances to the copper mines, half hidden in deep foliage. An oak tree of great thickness, and about four feet in height, aroused our interest. We discovered that it had been cut, and small branches had sprung up from the trunk, making a complete miniature oak. All was very pretty in its autumn garb. Coming to the Wizard Temperance Hotel, we took the road to the Edge, but finding that the mist obscured all prospect of a fine view, we returned to Powell’s for tea. Several Manchester DA members were having tea there, including a Boltonian of my acquaintance. Starting back at 6.45pm, we three soon reached Cheadle where Tom left us and the two of us left continued through Stretford. Beyond a little rain, it was a grand ride home for 10pm.
48 miles, 9.5 hours
