Cambridge - Great Gidding - Cambridge

97km
I wanted to go to Burghley House, which is just north of Peterborough, this week-end being the last occasion before spring (they close in winter). So, fueled by excellent bengali chicken and kheer from the previous night (thanks Eshan and Parth), I got up early and was ready at 8.30.
My bike wasn't, though. Its rear wheel was punctured...

Reparing in Blue Boar Basement... Well, still better than on the road.

Half an hour to repair, late start. Then I began cycling, following Regional Route 24. I saw beautiful and unknown berries.

Much thatch.

It's very sunny after all those misty days. It is also very cold and my hands are numb and my feet ache. I had some tea to keep warm. (I have to find better gloves).

An then I had before me the autumnal splendor of Cambridgeshire. This tree was so beautiful that I wanted to congratulate its owner, but I found no one.

Colours

And in Godmanchester, an old bridge jouxting a smaller one for bikes

The Great Ouse! One day I will follow her to the sea.

The Great Ouse

The wind has been blowing against me since the beginning, but it's getting stronger. My pace is not very fast, about 18km/h, and there are gusts of wind. In Huntingdon, before taking National Route 12, I eat a sandwich which makes me more hungry and another sandwich which makes things better. There's a nice church there. It's also the birthplace of Oliver Cromwell...

All Saints Church

Wind blowing stronger and stronger. A nice ford:

Notice the bike on the right

It's ok when I'm more or less in town, where the wind is somehow checked, but soon I'm riding in the open, and I realize it will be very difficult to get to Burghley House before the end of the afternoon, because with that wind I ride at 10km/h pushing quite hard. After ten minutes of hard work, I stop and ask, why all this toil and trouble? I did 50km with the wind in my face, why not do 50km more with Aeolus' benediction?
So, on this road, I did a U-turn and it felt so good to reach suddenly 40km/h on flat land...

Here I decided to keep Burghley House for next spring. You can't really see the wind on the picture, but it's there.

And then it was paradise for some time, wind in my back and sun on my head. That was before the rain... I guess my new raincoat needed to be baptized.

Cows sharing my sorry plight

Rain/sun/rain/sun, "British weather,", says another cyclist. "It's ok I'm used to it".

I'm very wet but such sights comfort me.

 Dazzling things

Back to Green Street's cobbles. My bike and I are very muddy. It's back in te basement, and I should wash it now... Muddy crusts... Hum I will wait for some sunshine.