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furious_tiles
Glad after all this time I finally made it to Camber Sands.
The last few years leading rides I have at times felt like a bus driver. Going somewhere on a route I didn't know was the perfect way to close off my distance riding in this country.
The reason for lighting out directly down through Dartford was to avoid all those lumps behind south London prior to hitting the unknown section after the Medway.
I was suprised how useful the paths along the motorway were. Mostly fine and quick but I'd recommend leaving early if you wanted to ride this in the day. For full-on countryside prior to the Medway you could follow the first half of the Herne Bay route to the M2 bridge.
Three of us, all with the route plugged in meant the last few hours I could happily trail along. The density of the fog down by the coast was something I'd never seen before in the UK and the fight between it and the sun rising behind us was truely magical.
Fixed on 25c was equally exhilarating and terrifying on some parts of the Pilgrims Trail with a few bumpy climbs and heavily rutted descents. Most people would probably prefer gears and big tires.
All of the hills on the route were managable. The one before Hastings though, must be 'easy' on a road bike but absolutely not on fixed! Blasting down the otherside made it worthwhile though.
After that we had a picnic on the beach and a quick hassle free train back to town.
This is the best ride I have been on in a couple of years.
Strava route