그레이트 쉘포드 교구 최고의 사이클링 경로

This one has been the talk of the city for a couple of weeks. Still be careful by bike as cars are not really used to the bike priority. A second one is already under discussion.

Gone are the old times when you could fly directly into Cambridge. While the airport is still operated for private aviation the surroundings get transformed onto residential areas more and more in the recent years.

The Windmill at Fulbourn stands on an outlier of the Gog Magog Hills 4 miles east of the City of Cambridge. Low chalk hills run to the south of it; northwards the Windmill overlooks the Fens which are at most only a few feet above sea level. The cap of the Windmill rises to 160 feet above sea-level and from it there is an uninterrupted view of the roofs and towers of Ely Cathedral. It has long been an outstanding landmark in the south Cambridgeshire countryside. It was the enclosure of the parish for the improvement of cultivation that led to the building of the present Windmill. Much of the land in the north of the parish was low-lying and waterlogged and needed draining to convert it into profitable arable land. Fulbourn Fen was a peat fen only 20 feet above sea level over which the Great Wilbraham River spread its waters in times of flood. The Act of Enclosure for Fulbourn was passed in 1806 and the Commissioners completed their work two years later. The drainage of the parish reduced the level of water in the upper reaches of the Great Wilbraham River on which the manorial watermill was situated. The loss of power brought to an end the life of a mill which had first been recorded in Domesday Book. In 1808 the machinery of the watermill was put up for sale. A new mill was therefore needed and the Enclosure Commissioners allotted one acre on Mill Hill, on which to build a mill and miller’s cottage, to John Chaplin, a considerable landowner and farmer. He used copies of Old Moore’s Almanack as a diary, entering personal events and business notes in the margins of the calendar. In 1808 he recorded against 11 July, ‘I laid the first brick of my mill’; 22 November, ‘Mill sails put up’; 15 December, ‘Began grinding’. It is a large octagonal smock mill with a brick base and wooden superstructure. Its outline is squat with a shallow conical cap. The fantail, as usual in Cambridgeshire mills, is close against the cap. The mill holds three stones, one of French burr and two of Derbyshire stone. With floors 24 feet in diameter, there is exceptional space for working the mill. (https://fulbournwindmill.org.uk/history.html)

Turn around for a nice shot of the water tower (pictured)

As you go past the water tower, turn right (straight is Rivey Lane) down the gravel access road onto the Icknield way. Keep heading straight. After the woods on the left you'll see a small farmer's field, and a path on the left taking you down to Linton.

A nice peaceful towpath ( if it’s quiet) runs from Chesterton, past Milton and ends at Clayhithe bridge.

A good place to cross the river Cam, makes a good short cut from Newmarket Road to Chesterton.

A pleasant ride along the river Cam, cycle paths are smooth and fast flowing, look out for cows, they have a habit of hanging out near the gates!