Three days in cornwall... advice needed

Lovely, thanks guys. So - basically - route 1 is a go, route 2 will be grim? Back to the Bikely drawing board...

Im off there next week. Also looking for some good routes if anyone has any. North cornwall to anywhere within 60miles and a train back to somewhere recognizable

I go to the Launceston area a couple of times a year and try to work out routes from the map before I go.

For me the big issue is that there seems to be a choice of either single track roads with grass in the middle and a ton of cow shit (it always rains in North Cornwall!) plus gravel and pot holes or bloody fast A roads. Quiet good condition B roads are around but not necessarily in a nice loop.

For that reason I generaly take my mountain bike. This is not such a bad idea as the area is extremely lumpy. A 50mile route generaly gets about 2k of climbing.

This is quite a nice route around Bodmin North Moor (easy enough to work out) though fog can be an issue.

http://connect.garmin.com/course/675451

Also it's possible to take the Camel trail down to Padstow from quite far away.

The narrow lanes are bounded by what look like hedges but are in reality stone walls covered in green. That blind corner at the bottom of the 15% descent might have a rushed tractor in harvest or a lost 4x4 with howling kids so take care.

For all that it's a great training area!

+1 to all the above, the B roads can also contain some of the gnarlier hills too but hey you are in Cornwall so there are always hills.

The King Harry ferry is now free for bikes and has a little 'spares' box with tubes, cables and snacks on it. There is also a lovely swoopy downhill run to the ferry from the Roseland side, just be careful in the wet.

Route 2 should be OK, you can stretch it a bit to take in the Lost Gardens for a coffee and some excellent cake. I quite often ride to St Austell on the 'main' road without any problems but once you get into the Roseland expect lots of ups and downs rewarded by some stunning scenery.

haha, that bar used to be my mums pub, the nelson. she had it for about 8 years, great beach. had a few music charity events on the dunes.
blimey, must be over 20 years ago.

Actual csb. SAS have done their summer ball there I think.

Good vibes in that place.

Did this loop with my girlfriend when I was last down that neck of the woods. Some slightly hairly off-road sections, but generally nice grippy roads with sea-views and not much traffic. If you do follow this, be aware that the 'road' marked on the map out of Madron is in fact a bridleway/footpath - complete with lots of mud and some steps

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/160755037

ah, last proper holiday, last summer, was gloriously sunny few days alternating walking and cycling in cornwall. surprisingly I didn't plot any of the routes, I thought I would have done... must dig out the maps we used. Mevagissey (visited nearby lost gardens) - Falmouth (via some beautiful beaches and St Mawes ferry) - St Ives (did a nice route across rather than around, not many A roads).

We were B&B-ing so hauling our luggage, me on MTB, partner on a road bike, neither of us used to hills in the slightest so we took it nice and easy. the one day we slightly misjudged was visiting Marazion and walking back to St Ives along a european pilgrimage trail thing, we didn't carry enough food and it was getting dark... really fantastic time though. what a beautiful country.

OK, I've tweaked the second possible route to avoid some larger roads. None of these I'm posting will be too rough for a road bike will they? Any further refinements much appreciated!

http://www.bikely.com/maps/bike-path/another-possible-cornwall-route

Couple of dead-ends, but nothing too bothersome. Lovely, quiet roads - but full of pesky hills. Lovely afternoon. Thanks for help with the route.

http://app.strava.com/rides/14356758

Have a few days riding and camping in Cornwall planned - doing St Austell /Falmouth/Lizard/Zennor/St Ives/Truro - anything I shouldn't miss. Based on this thread planning on going to lost gardens of heligan, helford passage and northern coastline. Anything else I should be looking out for?

I'd check out Trebah gardens if you're near Falmouth, it's really quite magical, especially the walk through huge Gunnera leaves and Bamboo, its sub-tropical and it feels like a different country (like many parts of Cornwall I guess). Also the beach has the remains of a concrete jetty built to launch some of the U.S forces on D-Day..definitely worth a look.
http://www.trebahgarden.co.uk/garden

Nathan Outlaw - amazing local chef.

The Minack Theatre is pretty ace on the right evening.

Oooh, sounds fab- thanks!

Think it is going to be more pasta shells on the trangia, but next time ...

Eden Project up near Snozzle is definitely worth a visit.

If your heading to the Lizard check out Kynance Cove for sure. My favorite place regardless of the weather.

And if you're going as far as the Minack then the Telegraph Museum in Porthcurno is supposed to be excellent. It's where the first transatlantic telegraph cables were pulled ashore.

down in cornwall at the moment, loving getting aquainted with riding up hills again as well as an awesome 5k swim from Port Quin to Port Isaac.

been mixing some of Sharps finests with a few erdinger alkoholfrei to ensure i can actually wake up in the morning, and eating several tonnes of fish, mixed with some nice bits of Lamb!

Amazing few days in Cornwall. Missed out on some of the recommendations here (& there were only so many coves I was prepared to cycle down into to cycle out again) but favourites were Helford Passage, Cape Cornwall, Zennor Cove, Mount Bay & the Roseland Peninsula. Really disappointed by St Ives (other than the Barbara Hepworth garden). Stayed at Ash Farm Campsite behind Marazion for a couple of days. Very simple but nicely done, with a great owner (who follows Emily Chappell on twitter - we talked about the Transcontinental Race)