The first cold ride of the year

I left before the town woke up, which is the only way to have the road to yourself. The descent on the far side is narrow, with one blind corner that I always take too carefully. There was a headwind for the whole second half, so I stopped looking at the speed. A clean chain makes an old bike feel new, and it takes ten minutes.

The climb is not steep, but it goes on for longer than the map suggests. The cafe at the halfway point was closed, as it has been every time I counted on it. The saddle needed a few millimetres of adjustment and then it disappeared, as a good one should. I took the gravel track along the river instead, and did not regret the extra hour.

Wider tyres at lower pressure changed the bike more than any other part I have bought. Nothing about this route is remarkable, which is exactly why I like it.