Cycling and Polo

May 4:  We got to enjoy the countryside at a faster speed today.

Has Spring finally arrived?

Crossing the Long Walk

After a hearty breakfast, we rode past the Windsor Great Park, through Old Windsor, uphill past impressive estates and downhill and east to Egham.  Betsy had seen a reference to a special garden in Egham, which proved to be a bedroom community.  The garden, when we found it, was attached to a four-star hotel called Great Fosters.  The main building of the complex was built in 1550 and is a great example of Tudor architecture.  The gardens are in back of the buildings and unfortunately are off limits to "non-residents" or the public.  However, we walked into the main lobby and peeked at the gardens.  They are formally laid out with pruned yew hedges and a knot gardens.  The interior was completely wood paneled in English oak with what looks like a coffered, tin ceiling.  It is molded plaster that has a bronze tint to it from wood smoke.  The building has a tentative connection with Anne Boleyn but was definitely used by Henry VIII and Elizabeth I as a hunting lodge.  Betsy says maybe a visit to celebrate our 40th anniversary if we come back - it would be like a night in Downton Abbey.

The main building

A side building showing some historic timber framing

A beautiful espalier

Henry VIII used this as a hunting lodge

We next rode into Virginia Water, the village, where Bill Bryson had his first employment in a mental hospital (for those who know who he is and what he writes).  We saw a large neo-gothic building which might have been the hospital.  Then we went by a impressive array of private drives (access restricted to residents) with large homes - one might say mansions - on the way to Virginia Water Lake.   We re-entered Windsor Great Park at this point and spent the rest of the ride inside on its little used roads.

Five Arch Bridge over Virginia Water

We rode by the Guards Polo Grounds, after looking up when the afternoon matches would be held.  Then we rode to the Village, a residential area established for park workers.  We crashed a General Store, which was actually closed but getting deliveries, and the proprietor allowed us to get  ice creams and a soda.  The day was bright, warm and sunny; we rode in bike shorts.

The Village General Store

We next rode up to the Jubilee Statue of the young Princess Elizabeth on horse back.  It is the top of the another 2+ mile straight path to Windsor Castle,  designed for equestrian users, i.e., no paved sidewalk like the Long Walk (the first, walkers only route).  We rode back to the Guards Polo Grounds to view the first of 3 matches being held today.  We watched pretty much the whole game, which is comprised of 4 7-minute chukars.  We came home confused by the rules, and after reviewing them on the web, we are amazed the two referees can apply the rules equitably in such a fast moving support.  The rules involve "rights of way" and "line of the ball" and are designed for safety to the horses and riders.  In short, the player on the line of the ball gets the right of way and fouls occur when another player passes too close at the 'wrong' angle.







On our ride toward home we passed two more fields where matches were underway.  We watched another chukar with more active/aggressive players and more scoring.

We had an exhilarating ride, mostly downhill for over 2 miles, back to our flat on a separated, dirt path, part of the National Cycle Network, trail number 4.  Total distance today was just over 26 miles.