If the way to the shops involves cycling past them and a loop of Hyde Park.

I couldn’t decide what to do for my Janathon exercise today.  Excuses and stay in my PJs, walk and do the shopping or go out for a cycle.  My bike easily won because we hadn’t been out together since Wednesday.

I normally avoid Kensington Gardens and Hyde Park at weekends unless it’s very early because there are too many obstacles to cycling at more than walking pace.  (Tourists, people taking selfies in the middle of the path, dogs, small children on scooters, kids with balls, Boris bikes on the wrong side of the road ,to name a few)  Today due to lack of imagination and time to plan an alternative and a lot to do with auto-pilot my bike and I ended up in that direction

It wasn’t too bad.  It was already getting late towards 3pm and had been gloomy and cold all day so few people were out.  Even the last day of Winter Wonderland didn’t make the park as overcrowded as I have seen it in the past and I made good progress.  I enjoyed the  weekend closure of South Carriage Drive and a long stretch of empty road to enjoy my relatively new bike and test out going up and down the gears and a bit of speed as far as I could dressed in skinny jeans. I didn’t see many other non Boris bike  cyclists about,  they had either been and gone early or were sensibly staying away until winter wonderland is dismantled over the next month  Even speakers corner wasn’t a complete jam today. (Why they put the cycle lane straight through it baffles me, but that’s another rant).

After half an hour my poor feet were getting cold.  (Time to upgrade from Converse as my cycling shoes of  choice.) So I headed back towards home and the shops remembering to stop and fill my panniers in Waitrose with something for supper.

Janathon day 4  8.4 miles cycled.