3000 views!

Wow, I can hardly believe it. I have just looked at my SATs and I have had 3000 views of my humble blog. I haven't looked at the SATs for a while and I am very pleased.

Thanks for viewing - you know who you are.

The highest point in Southern England - Leith Hill Tower on a Brompton?

The view from the car park which wasn't easy to find but the view  gave a hint of what was to come/

Today we decided to head out of London and go somewhere different.  Our inspiration came from an excellent little book, 'Adventure Walks For Families' by Becky Jones and Clare Lewis. One of the adventures listed the highest point in Southern England. Better still it wasn't too far from the smoke. We were intrigued and decided to head off.

Finding Leith Hill Tower wasn't too hard but beware that a Sat Nav will take you up some poor unfortunate persons private drive. The site is National Trust and the car park was free and provided excellent views to what was to come as you can see from above. (I have provided lots of details of how to get there at the bottom of this post).

Leith Tower on a hot summers day.

Yes I admit we did take the Brompton's and child bikes as we had heard that it was very popular with cyclists. It didn't take long to realise the Brompton's and child bikes weren't really going to cut it up 45 degree gradients and off-road territory. This was soon justified by all the very expensive mountain bikes with copious gears huffing and puffing up towards the Tower.

The Tower stands over 60 feet.

Leith Hill Tower was the brainchild of Richard Hull. He decided that he wanted his hill to exceed 1000 feet. It was built in 1765 and at a height of over 60 feet he was able to achieve the magic 1000 feet.

The stairs up to the Tower.

From the top of the Tower on a clear day one can see St Paul's Cathedral and even the English Channel! As you can see form the photos it was a really hot day today, so our view didn't extend that far.

The highest point in Southern England.

Hull was actually buried under Leith Hill Tower and some say that he was buried vertically - head first! What a way to go.

The view from the top.

Another view. St Paul's is somewhere in the distance but it was too hazy to see that far today.

At the foot of the Tower one can buy postcards, drinks and ice creams - all needed after the 3/4 mile walk from the car park. To climb the Tower costs £1.30 for adults and 70p for children. For that you also get a free quiz leaflet, pencil and telescope token. Cheap at half the price.

We had a great time there and our children thoroughly enjoyed the walk. There is a vast amount of wildlife on offer and we spotted Buzzard, Hobby, Sparrow hawk and kestrel. Unless you have one of those butch mountain bikes, don't bother brining the Brompton.

Location: 1 mile south-west of Coldharbour village
	Bus services Arriva 21 Guildford to Dorking (passing close Guildford  and passing Chilworth  and Dorking), alight Holmbury St Mary, 2½ miles, not on Sunday or public holidays
	Cycling many rights of way. View local cycle routes on the National Cycle Network website.
	By road 1 mile south-west of Coldharbour A29/B2126
	By train Holmwood, not Sunday, 2½ miles; Dorking 5½ miles
	On foot comprehensive network of rights of way, including the Greensand Way National Trail
	Ordnance survey reference 187:TQ139432

Brompton Aluminium Telescopic Seat Pillar

Being about 6 foot 1ish the standard Brompton seat pillar was never going to be comfortable. When I originally bought my Brompton I opted for the basic extended seat pillar, which was served me well. I have longed for the aluminium telescopic seat pillar for quite a while and today it arrived in the post.

The before with my extended steel seat pillar. It does stick out a bit.

I ordered the new seat pillar from, 'Brilliant Bikes.' As usual for anything at I have ordered from them, it arrived rapidly - in this case the next day. They are as their name suggests, brilliant and sell all sorts of Brompton spares and all number of bits and pieces. I have bought quite a bit from them in the past and have always found them to be efficient, friendly and usually offering items at a more competitive price. Check them out at http://www.brilliantbikes.co.uk

The aluminium telescopic seat pillar.

The aluminium version is normally only available if you buy the titanium version of the folding wonder. You can of course get it as an after market purchase as I have done.

I wanted this seat pillar for a number of reasons. Being a taller rider I definitely need the extra reach it affords. In addition the telescopic seat pillar when folded down doesn't really protrude a great deal. As you can see in the picture above of the original, it does.

When comparing the weight of the two seat pillars, there really isn't much difference. This is great as I can adjust the ride height to my hearts content and not add too much weight. I could have gone for the steel version and if you are on a budget it would serve you well however there would be a noticeable difference in weight. (Why are Brompton geeks always going on about weight saving etc???)

Almost fitted.

When I took the bike out for a test ride I was very pleased. With the old extended seat pillar I simply had it up as far as it went. With this new seat pillar I can go beyond that maximum height. I may well only be increasing the ride height by a few millimetres but this proved telling  as I found my Brompton more comfortable and on an extended cycle I would really feel the benefit. This will greatly enhance my chances at the BWC to get under that golden time of 30 minutes.

Doesn't stick up as much. Would be even lower if I put the saddle rails on the bottom of the penaclip.

I am very pleased with this purchase and if you are like me and over 6 foot, I can really recommend it. If you can stretch (no pun intended) to the cost of the aluminium seat pillar over the steel version you won't be disappointed.