The pastoral pleasure of a summer evening bicycle ride through Forest and St Pierre du Bois
May 25th, 2011 by Richard Lord
Fifteen bicyclists participated in the first of the Guernsey Bicycle Group's summer evening rides (click image to expand - ©RLLord)
Francis Paul, Guernsey Bicycle Group Chairman, led bicyclists through parish lanes of Forest and St Pierre du Bois.
He stopped at regular intervals to show parish landmarks and explain parish history.
The bright blue sky and cool early evening air was perfect for a gentle bicycle ride along parish lanes.
Red campion grows in The Forest Rectory Wild Spot (click image to expand - ©RLLord)
The Guernsey Bicycle Group stopped by the lower Forest Rectory garden, which has become a Wild Spot with its profusion of red campion. A bench in the glade allows one to contemplate the serenity of this beautiful oasis, which is maintained by the Forest Floral Group.
The bicycle ride gently meandered along Forest parish lanes (click image to expand - ©RLLord)
The Guernsey Bicycle Group descended down the side of coastal valleys with towering trees on either side (click image to expand - ©RLLord)
In the darkness of the forest, Francis Paul showed us the statue of a young lady overlooking a duckweed filled pond (click image to expand - ©RLLord)
Soon emerging from woodland into the sunlight we passed banks of flowers at Le Variouf (click image to expand - ©RLLord)
We bicycled through coastal farm land filled with cows and crops (click image to expand - ©RLLord)
We bicycled passed fields of crops casting shadows in the evening sun (click image to expand - ©RLLord)
Foxgloves grew out of granite walls (click image to expand - ©RLLord)
We passed weaners or small pigs that were a cross between an Oxford sandy and black sow and a Gloucester boar (click image to expand - ©RLLord)
Climbing gently up the side of a coastal valley, Francis Paul showed us a stream by the side of the road that used to see European eels from the Sargasso Sea swim up it (click image to expand - ©RLLord)
We followed the south coast passed La Corbiére and the German observation tower (click image to expand - ©RLLord)
We headed north away from the south coast (click image to expand - ©RLLord)
While cycling between some fields .... (click image to expand - ©RLLord)
... we were observed by a cat (click image to expand - ©RLLord)
The smell of honeysuckle drifted in the evening air (click image to expand - ©RLLord)
We passed some beautiful farm cottages including La Forge (click image to expand - ©RLLord)
.... another cottage we passed on our journey (click image to expand - ©RLLord)
Francis Paul showed us numerous old wells and two old pumping stations managed by Guernsey Water.
Guernsey Water pumping station number 5 (click image to expand - ©RLLord)
We passed a Monterey pine that Francis Paul told us had been used as an observation tower during World War Two. The Germans had hammered metal spikes up the side of the tree trunk to use as the rungs of a ladder. As the tree continued to grow the spikes grew further and further apart.
Francis Paul showed us the number "10" painted on the side of a building, which was a German road sign that had been left over from World War Two (click image to expand - ©RLLord)
Bicycling through Guernsey’s idyllic countryside is one of the pleasures of living on this lush and picturesque island.
The Guernsey Bicycle Group summer evening rides are a wonderful way to explore Guernsey's beautiful countryside and make new acquaintances (click image to expand - ©RLLord)
For a full schedule of Guernsey Bicycle Group summer evening bicycle rides please click here.
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1 Response to “The pastoral pleasure of a summer evening bicycle ride through Forest and St Pierre du Bois”
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rosie dorey
What a fantastic record of one of GBG’s summer bike rides. Thank you for sharing the super pictures showing Guernsey at its best, and seen in the best way….. from a bicycle seat!