DOWN TO THE RIVER CAM

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My daily routine for the blog seems to be one post dredged up from the archives, one from the day’s exciting walk in Cambridgeshire.

Yesterday’s excursion to Sheffield was one of the easiest drives I’ve had in many years, but I still felt exhausted last night.  Inactivity is the real killer.

Today Mrs RM sought my company on a local walk, but since she’s only left the house three times in three months I couldn’t do my usual “But I HATE Cambridge“.

Just an hour’ stroll, from Chesterton into Mill Road and back with a quick shop at an empty Sainsbury Local (the queue for the Tesco Extra still goes round the block).

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St Andrews – default starting point for all Cambridge walks
Chesterton
Staying away from the greenery

Cambridge didn’t look a lot different to normal, whatever normal is now.

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Chimney of the Industrial Museum

Plenty of walkers, joggers and cyclists along the River Cam.

Mumsnet and Daily Mail readers will be horrified to hear that everyone was being entirely sensible and maintaining their social distance while keeping fit.

I suspect we wouldn’t have been the only ones interrupting their fitness regime with a pint of murk in the beer garden (aka biergarten) in the Industrial Museum if it had been open.

Mrs RM was only wearing two layers so Summer must be here.

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Silent cranes

I’d guess a third of the shops in the retail parks along Newmarket Road are open. The biggest queues were for B&M Bargains, presumably they’d seen Mudgie’s tweets about Bombardier and Banks’s Original on special.

In the warren of streets that make up Petersfield, a few pubs are doing takeouts or setting up food carts, but it’s eerily quiet.

The streets are commendably clean, but there’s nothing sadder looking than a closed pub.

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The Geldart
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Flowers nicely watered at the Petersfield
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Now home to Hot Numbers

I wondered why it all seemed more beautiful than ever.  Perhaps it’s the light, but I suspect it’s just that the streets are that much quieter and you’ve less risk of being mown down by cyclists.

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Somewhere near the Youth Hostel, Flemish style

I thought I might pick up a jug of beer for Mrs RM, but understandably the pubs are only opening limited hours, and mainly as a public service.  A few were doing “basic food boxes” for collection.

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Once owned by CAMRA Investments

Finally, today’s quiz is next to impossible.

Which pub was this ?

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A famous pub

I spent Christmas Day lunchtime 1990 here playing pool with a mate from Fen Ditton.  Unless you were that mate, that will be no help to you at all.

Published by retiredmartin

Retired NHS, doing long walks around UK and the world to record the great bits. Focused on Good Beer Guide pubs and live music.

35 thoughts on “DOWN TO THE RIVER CAM”

  5. “…she’s only left the house three times in three months…”

    Good that she is observing the “lockdown”.

    I haven’t been out since Sunday 22 March 2020, and do not intend to venture out until both :-

    1. this bug that is going around is sorted out, and

    2. the local branch of ‘Spoons re-opens.

    I bet that the latter tries to slip a price increase under the radar !

    i read on a blog earlier that the smart money is on pubs re-opening on 1 April 2024.

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    2. Unfortunately Fred, some of us have to leave the house in order to go to work. If we didn’t all the food, goods and essential services that you are consuming in the comfort and security of your home, just wouldn’t be there.

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      1. T’other Paul,
        I wish I was still working instead of being stuck at home bored out of my mind and even tempted to go on that CAMRA Discourse.
        Five years ago it was agreed that I would go from a five day week to three days on a job share but it never happened by the time my knees failed three years ago and I had to take medical retirement.

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  8. A delightful read, as always. If the government allows pubs to reopen, do you reckon you’ll be right back in there? Or will you have to evaluate if the decision was made on the basis of science/medicine vs political expediency?

    (Don’t mean to say the gov’t would do things on the basis of political expediency– I think we’re in uncharted territory these days, in both your country and mine, and no one’s 100% sure of what will be driving the decisions in the months ahead!)

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    1. I’m really loathe to speculate on anything to do with the virus, Mark, I’ll leave that to commentators like Pub Curmudgeon and the Tand.

      Best just look on the positives of life and press on rather than thinking too much !

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      1. Yes indeed, “thinking too much” never did anyone any good.
        There’s more harm in that than drinking too much.

        Liked by 2 people

      2. Come on Paul.

        I’m glad that the likes of Isaac Newton and Charles Darwin could be bothered.

        But it did get Galileo into a spot of bother, certainly, as it did Socrates too, on the other hand.

        You might figure out a few things that the powerful would rather that you didn’t 😉

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      3. Etu,
        But in discovering gravity and evolution Isaac Newton and Charles Darwin only told us what in hindsight is blindingly obvious – and we would still have gravity dispensed Draught Bass in the Star at Bath if Newton had never lived.
        Maybe George Stevenson and IK Brunel were of more use in that they’ve greatly helped us get round the country to imbibe in some proper pubs.

        Liked by 1 person

      4. Yes, Paul, when you look at the fact that countries such as Greece and New Zealand – along with many others – have kept down fatalities from this damned contagion to just a few, then other things become blindingly obvious too, and you don’t need hindsight either do you?

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  9. PS, I think that Newton’s invention of the calculus, and the formulation of his laws of motion might have taken the odd moment of reflection on modern man’s part too 😀

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  10. You have my sympathies there, with the knees, Stafford Paul. My wife has a bit of trouble in that department, so she will know how you feel. I am looking to switch to a three day week when I reach state retirement age next April, so will have more time for Proper Days Out.

    I have to say it’s quite nice coming to work at the moment. There’s only about a third of the normal compliment of staff in, which means plenty of room for social distancing. It’s also good to get out of the house and get to chat with other people.

    I’ve never been on the CAMRA discourse forum, and from what I’ve heard, I’ve no desire to either! Take care, and let’s look forward to enjoying a few beers together, once all this is over.

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