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@BringMeMyFix
That shit's fucked up. I'm acutely aware of the risk of this sort of thing happening when doing night/dusk rides alone. Not something I plan to do often. I was racing to make the most of the daylight last night, which is quite motivating :)
The climb's one of those that isn't as bad as it looks on the map. I took a wrong turn and started heading south 'one road early', but that did give a fantastic view of one of the steepest of the Barton Hills. Was kind of hoping the road would be like that (I'm sick in the head that way), but Gravel Hill was pretty easy. I stood the whole way at a cruising cadence.
There are some shorter sharper undulations, but otherwise it's a bit of a fast and open route. Welwyn Garden City is weird, and it took me 10 minutes to find an entrance to the train station that wasn't shut... but missing a train probably meant I missed the worst of the rain in London.
The train out was only 4 carriages, but there's the option of joining at Finsbury Park. I'm also considering the option of a ride less far out, starting from Potters Bar, and taking in a lot of the North Road Hardriders time-trial course. It's around 'Little Switzerland', which is the section of Herts between Potters Bar & Hertford. That would give the option of a ride out/back for North Londoners... and purple_mj ;)