Map reading under an English Oak tree

Mell Fell

Sunny Sunday morning in Cumbria.
Fill up with high octane petrol, what shortage?
Ride on to Ullswater, passing a farm training quad bikers.
Then a boathouse launching kayakers.
Check map under a sprawling oak.
Ride on to Lowther Castle, that William Wordsworth called a majestic Pile.
Passing Penrith, ride up racy Hartside, more bikers than cars.
The summit cafe is shut. Where now, we chat?
We find them: Keswick Filling Station is busy.

More photos: Sun’s out: bikes out. Ullswater, Lowther, Hartside, Keswick

Exploring around St. Bees Head, the most westerly point of the Cumbrian coastline.

Quick spin on my Ninja Z250 to check new kit that I’ve brought back from Marseille. Also to forage for fuel and keep the battery happy as the bike’s been in the garage for a month whilst I’ve been in Marseille. It’s a nice bike for the little roads round here but a bit worrying on mud and gravel wash-outs after the rains. Still thinking of a trail / rally bike.

• Test ride: Honda CRF300 Rally 2021
• Test ride: Honda CB500X 2019
• Corsica 2: Stand up and enjoy the sights

A day at the races at the Circuit Paul Richard at Le Castellet, between Marseille and Toulon. Pascal and I went for the final hours of the 2021 Bol d’Or, the 24-hour endurance motorcycle race.
The sound of screaming engines first hits you in the checks at the gates - passe sanitaire required as well as ticket - and then becomes the soundtrack to the day, with the sunshine and the breeze of the Mistral.
The bike of each team rides the whole race, it’s the riders who switch, mostly they are teams of four riders. The racing continues through the night so the bikes have headlights although this was also a nearly full moon.

More photos: Bol d’Or 2021