The first WI bike ride took place on what proved to be a lovely sunny day!

It started at Garden Needs, a lovely quaint outdoor offshoot of our home the Angel Centre. Garden Needs has built a fantastic local and very sustainable garden centre for the entire community that provides anybody that has or is experiencing mental or emotional distress with training, volunteering, and employment opportunities.

We all arrived at Garden Needs where Kaz and Emma had kindly sorted bikes from the Health Improvement Team. So after a bike check, a wobble and bounce off the bike from Josie who we recruited on the day (who had only popped in to buy plants!), we got on our way to Drinkwater Park. We were most impressed with Peggy’s new bike box on the front of the Emma’s bike…impressed and jealous that Peggy got to rest!

When we got to the car park at Drinkwater Park, it was the WI to the rescue. As we rode past the skate park, a young lad came off his scooter and cut his head open. Emma, Joanne, Caz, Steph and Josie managed to bandage him up and luckily Josie’s friend was in the car park and gave the lad a lift home- great community spirit! So after a bit of first aid, we were off around Drinkwater Park!

There were trails to try out and conversations and giggles to be had. Emma efficiently led the way and we rode to a pond for a well deserved cake stop. With Emma’s homemade flapjack, Becki’s rocky road and Kate’s Olympic cupcakes, we were well catered for up to our usual WI standards. Peggy provided the entertainment as she took a swim in the pond after many attempts of trying to rescue the pieces of wood and water bottles!

After a rest, we were back on the bike with the wind whooshing through our hair. We stopped off to see a great view of the River Irwell. Kate, Emma, Josie and Isobel were brave enough to jump on to the bridge to see it and take a photo for the rest of us! It was then back to Garden Needs for a coffee, cake and a chat. A big thank you to Kaz and Emma for sorting the bikes and introducing us to the wonderful world of Garden Needs.