This was a re-run of a ride we did on a Wheelers weekend based at Brantham Hostel a couple of years ago. It can only be done between Easter and the end of September, as it depends on seasonal ferries, so this was the last weekend for this year.

We started with the 08:00 train to Manningtree, weather warm and sunny. From there the road to Harwich follows the Stour estuary with great views – it’s  a B road, but fairly quiet and a pleasure to cycle on.

Harwich old town is worth a visit on its own, with some fine Georgian buildings, Britain’s oldest cinema and great views across to the port of Felixstowe, where some of the world’s largest ships dock. You can catch the ferry to Holland from here, which is highly recommended for some quality cycling. We skipped that, and caught the rather smaller boat to Felixstowe, which has room for 12 passengers rather than 1200.

The wind was 15mph from the east, which led to a fair amount of spray over the front, and over the bikes, so a bit of hosing down was required after this ride. At the other side, you are deposited on the beach, but since I was here last, a cafe and visitor centre has appeared. Unusually for Wheelers, we passed on without stopping (except for the only puncture mending of the day), and pedalled off through Felixstowe.

NCN route 1 takes you to Felixstowe ferry, which is a kind of end-of-the-world village with a fine pub, places to buy fresh fish and an excellent cafe, which seems to have been refurbished since we last visited. Before, the food was great, but we couldn’t work out how the building stayed up, but things are better now. But this time we didn’t stop here either, and went straight to the quay where the next ferry awaited, and a small child and her dad were catching an extraordinary number of crabs, daughter beating father by about 4 to 1.  This ferry, across the Deben river is even smaller than the last, and it needed two trips to get us all over. On the other side, you land opposite to the boat house cafe, and resistance finally cracked, so we stopped for lunch, with a balcony seat in the sunshine and a fine view along the river.

The next leg of the journey is to Woodbridge, and quiet lanes take you across the heathland and woodland of Rendlesham Forest. Last time I rode here, a large herd of deer crossed the road ahead of us – a fine sight. We weren’t so lucky this time, but it’s still a great section of the ride.

In Woodbridge, we stopped for a little while to look at the Tide Mill, and to wander along the river front enjoying the fantastic light – the tide was out and the sunlight reflecting off the mud with the array of classic wooden boats created some great photo opportunities. After a while, we headed off, by-passing the Woodbridge station tearooms, surprisingly (highly recommended as one of the best station cafes in the country).

On to Ipswich, and a surprise – in the past we’ve approached Ipswich from Woodbridge via some rather busy roads, but this time we followed the cycle route signs, and discovered a great traffic free path, which took us a long way into the town. In Ipswich, we headed to the docks, now re-developed as a Marina, with tea and cake opportunities, which we didn’t pass by.

The final leg, for a round trip of about 55 miles was back to Manningtree, There’s a pleasant B road across the Shotley peninsula, which gives some fine views. And we arrived back at the station for a quick visit to the Manningtree station cafe (again highly recmonneded) before heading back to London

Riders: 7

Miles: 55

Punctures: 1