I was woken early the morning after the Sundown 60, by the birds. The smaller birds were quite tuneful, but then the bigger ones joined in with their noisy squabbles. CAAWWWWW!!!! ARRRKKKKKKK!! CRAAAARRRRKKK!!!! And to put the icing on the cake, the pigeons turned up. Woo-Hooooo-Hooo-Hoo-Hoo! Not what you want at four o'clock. Still, it sounded like the wind had died down. I managed to get a bit more napping done, although at one point I was woken by the sound of rain on the tent. I finally got up around half seven, at which point the tent was rattling with the wind (outside, not in!). I went and got washed, then set about taking the tent down. This was fine until I came to fold it up, at which point I decided to put up with a rough fold and sort it at home, given the wind was making it difficult. Finally packed up, I left the brewery and headed to Redcliffe Farm Shop, where I'd made a breakfast reservation. There was only one choice to be had really - I went for the Full English! I'd planned a forty mile ride to Flamborough to make the most of my time back in Scarborough, although the weather and my legs from the previous days ride made me wonder if I was doing the right thing. The breakfast was definitely the right thing though, it was as tasty as it always was. After breakfast, I kitted up, got the bike out of the car and set off. I rode on familiar roads past Lebberston and Killerby, turning left in Cayton where I flew to Folkton with the strong wind behind me. After Folkton though, I knew there would be a stiff test, as the route I'd planned took me to Hunmanby up White Gate Hill. This is just over half a mile long, with an average gradient of nearly 9%, but varies. I managed to get up the hill ok, then enjoyed the long descent down into Hunmanby with the sea stretching out in front of me. Entering Hunmanby I took a right and climbed gently up to the road for the Wold Top brewery. After a short while I turned left to head towards Burton Fleming, which after a short bit of gentle uphill turned into a good downhill for a couple of miles. At Burton Fleming I turned left, heading east towards the coast on an undulating roller coaster of a road. The scenery again was lovely, and the road fairly quiet. The road dog legs through Grindale, and just before entering the small village the road surface was very rough, necessitating a quick trip on the wrong side of the road. After a couple of miles the road joined the A165 Bridlington Scarborough road, and I turned right to head into Brid, going over a new roundabout that is so new it didn't exist on my computer map! Entering Brid, I took the Flamborough road, which went on for far longer than I was expecting, then at Flamborough I took Lighthouse Road to get to the lighthouse (surprise surprise), again travelling much further than I was expecting. Although the forecast was for showers I'd been lucky to this point, and hadn't needed the rain jacket I was wearing, but because of the strong wind I was very glad for it. At the lighthouse I bought an ice cream and sat on a bench overlooking the sea, contemplating the battle I'd have into the wind back to Redcliffe Farm. Thinking doesn't get you anywhere though, so I remounted and set off back. At Flamborough I turned left, heading north west and into the teeth of the wind. As well as fighting the wind, I had seven miles of uphill road to contend with. Fortunately the road undulated a little so there were times when the going was a little easier. Eventually I reached Speeton, after which I turned into Reighton and went through the village, downhill to cross the A165 towards Hunmanby. Even though I was going downhill I was still having to pedal to keep my momentum. Heading into Hunmanby I passed the Piebald Inn, I'd been there before and they do the best pies, lots of different varieties, well worth a visit, but not for me today. I rode through Hunmanby and out towards Muston, where they used to hold an annual scarecrow festival. From Muston I cycled back to the A165 and headed into Filey, where I made my way to St Mary's Roman Catholic church to pay my respects to Margaret, our old neighbour in Scarborough, who has a rose bush planted there in her memory. From there I rode through town and out to pick up the A165 again. I rode along this to the next rounadbout where I spotted a path running alongside the road by the opposite carriageway. At a gap in the oncoming traffic I nipped onto this, feeling much safer now I was off the busy A road. After a while the path turned away and put me out on the road to Blue Dolphin Caravan Park, and from here it was a short stretch to road Redcliffe Farm was on, and I finally rode up to the car slightly tired. All told, it was another good ride, and I missed any showers that may have fallen, so can't really complain.
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