Croydon and Wandle Trail, Beverley Brook to Pembroke Lodge in Richmond Park for lunch and back on the train from Richmond

Ride with us to the august Georgian mansion Pembroke Lodge in Richmond Park for lunch in the tea rooms and on the Belvedere with its spectacular views over the Thames Valley. We will take the Wandle Trail to Colliers Wood then on side streets and cycle paths to ride the Beverley Brook Walk in Wimbledon Common, then through Richmond Park to our lunch stop. While there we can visit Pembroke Lodge's gardens. After lunch we ride a further two miles to Richmond station for the train to East Croydon.

The route is 17 miles, 2h 30m relaxed cycling. Road bikes are good for this ride. Start from Queens Gardens CR0 1GY at 10am. Lunch from 12:30. Trains from Richmond to Clapham Junction are frequent on Sundays. Journey time to East Croydon is 35-40 minutes. I lunched in Pembroke Lodge on a recent Saturday and thought the tea room prices quite reasonable given the prestige of the location.

Please bring a water bottle. You will need to keep hydrated. Also an inner tube. If the valve on your tires is Schrader (short and thick, same as a car tire) you will need a pump too. There is bike parking in the Lodge car park and it should be possible to walk a bike to the terrace in front of the tea rooms.