By kazimladimeji 
After completing the Selsley Hill (Tour of Britain, Stage 5 KOM 3 – 2016) to Coaley Peak we continued on past the top of the iconic Frocester Hill, down Crawley Hill.
This is an exhilarating descent, (where Matt clocked 60 km an hour), into Uley and took on the Lampern Hill Climb. This climb is represented by two similar segments on Strava named Lampern Hill (158m and 1.83 km versus Stouts Hill (1.6km and 150m) which starts a couple of hundred metres later.
Before you get to the Climb you’ll pass Uley Brewery on the right, which could be worth a stop if you are inclined, and the Vestry Cafe on your left which is a well-rated cafe within the Prema Art Centre that serves good coffee and home-made cakes.
Up Lampern Hill
The official name of the road/climb is Lampern Hill and this is signposted and Stouts Hill, (which is also signposted), does not refer to the road, it refers to the 18th Century Gothic Revival House in the adjacent field which usually catches my eye over my right shoulder, as I start up Lampern Hill. I have always been curious as to what this building is. I now know that it was until recently a holiday resort, but it has changed ownership and the current status is uncertain. Between 1935 and 1979 it was a private boys prep school, attended by Stephen Fry, who references it in his autobiography, Moab is my Washpot.
Last Sunday 16th September was was my fourth attempt on Lampern Hill, which is a tough but quite enjoyable climb up a reasonably wide road (1 and a half car widths) through gentle woodland, which means it can be a little dark. You’ll need to keep your wits about you as cars have a knack of appearing out of nowhere as you’ll in the video.
The first part of Lampern Hill drops downhill at -1 or -2% gradient for a couple of hundred metres and then is pretty flat for a couple of hundred metres with the majority of the hard climb taking place in the middle km or so, where it averages about an 8-9% grind. As I said earlier, a lot of the climb takes place in a kind of hedge tunnel/tree tunnel type of environment, which gives a good sensation of progression even when you are weaving left and right at a snail’s pace.
But, the reality is that there is no hiding place on this mid-section, I just put my head down and grind and think fondly of the shallower 1 or 2% final 200 to 300 metre stretch of the climb which will greet my burning legs in a few minutes, not before negotiating the preceding, steep switch-back corner though!
The view from the top was lovely today.
