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I did a quick blast to visit family in Utrecht this summer: London - Harwich; overnight ferry to Hook; Hook - Utrecht; then back in reverse. Hook- Utrecht is ~100-110km; If I were touring in a more leisurely fashion I'd have broken the journey halfway near Alphen a/d Rijn. Stena Line are having a sale on their ticket prices until Sunday - 20% off crossings and cabin bookings IIRC. Dunno whether this makes it competitive with the Eurostar, but if I were going again I'd be thinking about getting the train to Harwich after work in time for the evening sailing.
I love touring in NL - I know the cycle paths aren't everyone's cup of tea, but I find cycling there incredibly calming. The infrastructure removes the psychic weight of having to be subconsciously on the lookout for traffic that I don't even realise I'm carrying when I'm out for a ride in the UK. The landscape is flat, but not devoid of interest; IMO the big skies make up for the lack of hills, and the quality of the built environment is streets ahead of the UK. The only drawbacks are the occasional headwinds, and the lack of rises to get out of the saddle on (apart from the odd overpass/bridge...).
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Blackdown hills.
Start from Taunton.
Look at @turnpedal 's routes for inspiration. -
https://www.strava.com/athletes/322656
Have a look through, he has a few.
this looks particularly enjoyable...https://www.strava.com/activities/1666232404 -
If you're prepared to train it as far as Amsterdam, you could train it down to Lyon, or even Valence, both are about 6 hours in total from St.Pancras (changes at Paris or Lille, but all included on the ticket from Eurostar), and can be done for £150-£200 return if you book a few weeks in advance and avoid peak weekend times).
From Lyon you could pick up the ViaRhona cycle route down to Valence (127km). From there you could carry on the same route to Montelimar (+74km) or Avignon (+164km) for the second day, and then on to Sète/Montpellier (+166km from Avignon) for the 3rd day, then get a train back to Lyon (about 2.5hrs from Sète, or about 1.25hrs from Avignon).
Alternatively, from Valence or Montelimar you could loop around the Ardeche, pick up some of the l'Ardechoise routes, and cycle the along the gorge to Vallon Pont d'Arc, as they did for Stage 14 of this year's Tour de France.
Or go the other way from Valence or Montelimar, direction Grenoble. Either through the Vercors mountains, which include the amazing Combe Lavale, and the Col de Rousset, or go around the Vercors, Valence/Montelimar to Gap (about 135km), and then Gap to Grenoble is about another 100km. From Grenoble there are local trains back to Valence or Lyon, both take about an hour, and bikes walk on for free.
And the weather is good for cycling in September, mid 10s in the mornings, mid 20s in the afternoons...
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I was staying in a Gite not far from Lisieux
This is the route from the Ferry to where I was staying, it shows the way out of the Ferry terminal and inland.
https://cycle.travel/map/journey/62391These are circular routes we developed whilst we were there:
https://cycle.travel/map/journey/62398
https://cycle.travel/map/journey/62397
https://cycle.travel/map/journey/62395
https://cycle.travel/map/journey/62394
https://cycle.travel/map/journey/62393To be honest you could probably set off in any direction, it was all pretty good.
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Some internet-scavanged pictures of routes noted ^^^.
First up, the Vercors...Pics courtesy of :
CR02 : Cols Cyclisme (Col de Rousset, Vercors)
CL02 : Michelin Voyage (Combe Laval, Vercors)
CL03 : Ph Mo (Combe Laval, Vercors)
CL04 : Merlin (Combe Laval, Vercors)
VC01 : Drome Tourisme (Vercors)
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And across the other other side of the Rhone, pics of the Ardeche:
Pics courtesy of :
AR01 : Sortiesvelo (Ardeche)
AR02 : Sortiesvelo (Ardeche)
DV01 : Privas Centre Ardeche (Dolce Via, Ardeche)
CH01 : Simon Bugnon (Dolce Via, Ardeche)
DV02 : Atalante (Dolce Via, Ardeche)
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Did a little overnight out of Paris a week ago towards the closest Champagne region out east. Set off once the kids were asleep and I was all sorted out - a little before 11pm - and rode until I felt I was nodding off sometime around 3am and 80km in. Bivvied down, set off again about 6am for the other 80km towards Chateau Thierry. Nice countryside and a nice day for it. Quick train back after and in time for a late lunch.
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Lovely.
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After ideas for a short ride from Portsmouth in any direction. Considering to ride out in the afternoon, wild camp, ride a bit next day and catch a train back to London.
Going to explore the obvious choice of venturing into South Downs first. Cheers -
Not sure what the first leg (s'ton to Portsmouth) is like as haven't done it, but Poole and across to Swanage and round there is lovely. Nice and remote on studland and Swanage with plenty of places to bivvy!
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Cheers Andy, been to Poole and Swanage for some offroad riding and camping, some of the best memories. Definitely on the "explore more" list.
However, for this week's trip I'm looking for something closer to Portsmouth, a true S24O format.
Thought about Isle of Wight after posting that previous message. Perhaps will take a ferry in the afternoon, ride, find a beach to camp - never been, but photos so far indicate loads of sandy beaches? - sleep and do the reverse. -
Head out towards Arundel? You can use the reverse of this route: https://cycle.travel/map/journey/49948
It worked pretty well for me and was a nice route, lots of lanes and quiet roads.
The route from Arundel to London is also pretty scenic until you get closer to town: https://cycle.travel/map/journey/49947 to be honest, I'd probably hop on the train at somewhere like Tadworth. -
Priory Bay on the NE corner of the island is my favourite beach in the UK. It almost feels Caribbean with the trees and foliage coming onto the beautiful white sand. It's notionally a 'private' beach but you'd be fine sleeping out, I have many times, although expect lots of dog walkers in the morning so you'll want an early start. Plenty of material for a small fire in the evening, but would advise against going anywhere near the Priory Hotel to collect it as they could get tricky, just stay close to the beach edge and you'll be fine.
The Old Fort in Seaview is a great pub for a nice evening meal too.
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Great. I suggest:
- Divert to do Abergavenny to Hay-on-Wye over Gospel Pass, one of the most scenic climbs and descents in the UK?
- Stay in Lluest Cwmbach Bothy, just west of Rhyader
- Be prepared to cancel the ride at the last moment if the forecast is really bad, as lots of this route is very exposed (I did it in Storm Doris, it was horrible)
- Divert to do Abergavenny to Hay-on-Wye over Gospel Pass, one of the most scenic climbs and descents in the UK?
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I did the Whistable Winder over the w/end coming back after sleeping in a field along Sustrans' Thames route. Pilgrims Way was stunning given the weather. Likely to be a bit uncomfortable on a traditional road bike on a couple of sections given the use of tracks which were pretty rutted in a few minor sections and a fair bit of gravel particularly on the return leg via Sustrans route.
Found it pretty cold bivvying and actually set off around 3am as figured it would be warmer in motion than lying down given the dew point.
Pictures from the trip here https://www.instagram.com/p/BoW7vlcFhnU/?taken-by=unraveller
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@M_V
Interesting, we could also use Poole (ferry/train timetables allowing) and go Caen/Cherbourg as a point to point ride. If you have any routes along those lines, would certainly be interested, thanks!