Nick and Rachel organised the April ride for the Taunton Group which started and finished in the centre of Taunton. 11 tandems and 1 solo took the Bridgwater and Taunton canal towpath passing parts of the town the busy motorist never gets to see: the back of Screwfix, the rear aspect of Taunton Part Worn Tyres, and the local dump. It was refreshing when we reached the countryside. The day was cold and dark with low cloud, but the fields of oil seed rape glowed, as did the high vis yellow line of cyclists. We turned off the towpath to go through North Curry and then climbed some challenging ridges that emerge from the Somerset levels. We had a wholesome lunch at Monks Yard near Ilminster then took a ridge road back towards Taunton with views to the Bristol Channel and the distant Mendips. The sun emerged for a brief surprise visit and the skylarks rose and sang at full volume. A pub called the Farmer’s Arms manifested itself in the middle of the countryside. We dived in, warmed up again, and generated an atmosphere of good cheer. No one seemed to want to leave. Then it was downhill all the way back, so much descent that I am still convinced that Taunton got itself lowered by 200 feet or more of altitude while we had been away. We finished with a formation tandem circuit of Vivary Park. Great company making a very happy day.