Piece of piss. Paddington is almost on the city road, which is where St Pancras is. If you're coming in from Wales, you'll probably hit platform 1. Halfway along the platform is an exit to the taxi rank. Follow the taxis up the ramp, out to the road and turn left. Follow your nose in that direction as far as you can for as straight as you can. That'll be all backstreets, so quieter traffic-wise but they run parallel to the city road, with is a feffing great six-lane highway that'll be a few hundred yards to your left. If in doubt then, turn left a bit and you'll hit the big road. Cross over to the far side, and carry on the direction you were first going. You'll pass Baker Street tube, Great Portland Street, Euston Sq, Euston and then you'll find St Pancras on your left. If you see Kings Cross, you just missed it.
St Pancras to Victoria
Go back up the city road the way you just came. Filter off left just after you pass Euston, it'll bring you round the face of Euston Square tube (it has entrances on both sides of the road) and you'll head down Gower St. It's quite a long road, if you're worried you've gone wrong, make sure you're going ever-so slightly downhill BTW - that's good, it means you're heading for the river. At the end of Gower St is Royal Mile Whiskies on your right (stop, if you like a drop, booze heaven) then you'll find a mad junction where loads of roads meet. Follow all the traffic around to the right a bit. That'll bring you out just at the top of Trafalgar Sq. Ride around there (taking your life in your hands) and under Admiralty Arch (that's easy to spot - it's the arch-shaped thing) it's on the far side of the square from where you came in. You're now on the Mall. Enjoy the views, ride to the end where Buckingham Palace is, wave to Queenie, and you're now half a mile from the station, so you'll find signs from there. If in doubt, go right of the palace and left at the roundabout with another big archy thing in the middle. If you get too Victoria Coach Station, you've gone just too far.
Victoria to Paddington
This one's trickiest, cos you can start off in the wrong direction. Come out of Victoria station, on the pavement (no riding yet), go left til you hit a big road (about 50yds), turn to your right and that's the direction you want to go but you're on the wrong side of the road, so cross and head off up there. It's slightly uphill and in a few hundred yards, will bring you aout at Hyde Park Corner (the archy thing). Cross over into the park (there'll probably be a few other cyclists going that way) and get onto the cycle path that runs along the bottom of the park (over to the left slightly). It'll run past the rose garden, then go slightly uphill and come out at the top at a road (stop at the Diana memorial down to your right if you like). Cross the road and carry on on the other half of the cyclepath, past the Serpentine Gallery and a small lake with geese and you'll hit a t-junction with a REALLY WIDE path through the park. Turn right, to the end of the park and Paddington is about 400 yards ahead of you, the other side of Bayswater Road. The little side streets kind of lead right up to it but just cross over and head up that way past the big hotel and ask someone, if you don't want to navigate by zen.
London cycling tips..? Watch the black cabs, they turn left and they stop without indicating, as soon as they see a fare. But they're unlikely to kill you, just be an annoyance. Place yourself "assertively" at junctions - make sure you are seen. Occasionally people get the arse. Fuck 'em. The one place to never ever be is starting off against the kerb if you are going straight on. Plonk yourself right in the middle of the road til you are past where anyone can turn left across you and squish you. And on places like Trafalgar Sq etc, definitely be in the middle of the lane, not tucked in the edge.
Despite what everyone thinks, it's not that bad riding in London, at least the car drivers are getting used to bikes now, so it seems to "work".
Piece of piss. Paddington is almost on the city road, which is where St Pancras is. If you're coming in from Wales, you'll probably hit platform 1. Halfway along the platform is an exit to the taxi rank. Follow the taxis up the ramp, out to the road and turn left. Follow your nose in that direction as far as you can for as straight as you can. That'll be all backstreets, so quieter traffic-wise but they run parallel to the city road, with is a feffing great six-lane highway that'll be a few hundred yards to your left. If in doubt then, turn left a bit and you'll hit the big road. Cross over to the far side, and carry on the direction you were first going. You'll pass Baker Street tube, Great Portland Street, Euston Sq, Euston and then you'll find St Pancras on your left. If you see Kings Cross, you just missed it.
Go back up the city road the way you just came. Filter off left just after you pass Euston, it'll bring you round the face of Euston Square tube (it has entrances on both sides of the road) and you'll head down Gower St. It's quite a long road, if you're worried you've gone wrong, make sure you're going ever-so slightly downhill BTW - that's good, it means you're heading for the river. At the end of Gower St is Royal Mile Whiskies on your right (stop, if you like a drop, booze heaven) then you'll find a mad junction where loads of roads meet. Follow all the traffic around to the right a bit. That'll bring you out just at the top of Trafalgar Sq. Ride around there (taking your life in your hands) and under Admiralty Arch (that's easy to spot - it's the arch-shaped thing) it's on the far side of the square from where you came in. You're now on the Mall. Enjoy the views, ride to the end where Buckingham Palace is, wave to Queenie, and you're now half a mile from the station, so you'll find signs from there. If in doubt, go right of the palace and left at the roundabout with another big archy thing in the middle. If you get too Victoria Coach Station, you've gone just too far.
This one's trickiest, cos you can start off in the wrong direction. Come out of Victoria station, on the pavement (no riding yet), go left til you hit a big road (about 50yds), turn to your right and that's the direction you want to go but you're on the wrong side of the road, so cross and head off up there. It's slightly uphill and in a few hundred yards, will bring you aout at Hyde Park Corner (the archy thing). Cross over into the park (there'll probably be a few other cyclists going that way) and get onto the cycle path that runs along the bottom of the park (over to the left slightly). It'll run past the rose garden, then go slightly uphill and come out at the top at a road (stop at the Diana memorial down to your right if you like). Cross the road and carry on on the other half of the cyclepath, past the Serpentine Gallery and a small lake with geese and you'll hit a t-junction with a REALLY WIDE path through the park. Turn right, to the end of the park and Paddington is about 400 yards ahead of you, the other side of Bayswater Road. The little side streets kind of lead right up to it but just cross over and head up that way past the big hotel and ask someone, if you don't want to navigate by zen.
London cycling tips..? Watch the black cabs, they turn left and they stop without indicating, as soon as they see a fare. But they're unlikely to kill you, just be an annoyance. Place yourself "assertively" at junctions - make sure you are seen. Occasionally people get the arse. Fuck 'em. The one place to never ever be is starting off against the kerb if you are going straight on. Plonk yourself right in the middle of the road til you are past where anyone can turn left across you and squish you. And on places like Trafalgar Sq etc, definitely be in the middle of the lane, not tucked in the edge.
Despite what everyone thinks, it's not that bad riding in London, at least the car drivers are getting used to bikes now, so it seems to "work".