Weekend Away - Which direction to head?
Discussion
The stars have aligned and somehow a free weekend has opened up in just a few weeks time allowing me and mate to get away on the bikes for a couple of days, but we could do some some suggestions on which direction to head!
We're both Midlands based, so fairly central, lets assume Birmingham as a starting point.
Bikes consist of an RS660 and a Street Triple, so we're ideally looking for decent tarmac and sweepy flowing roads rather than battered single/track adventure riding.
We could either head;
a) North, up through the Peaks, Yorkshire Dales and into the Pennines
b) East, towards Peterborough, Norfolk and Lincolnshire
c) South, through the Cotswolds and then either off towards Exmoor/Dartmoor or the opposite way towards North Wessex Downs/South Downs
d) West(perhaps the more obvious choice?) into Shropshire and Wales for some sort of Wales circular
Any experience/recommendations?
We'll be travelling light, probably just a rucksack with a change of clothes and an ideally any overnight accommodation will include cold beers and hot food!
I'm thinking we should be aiming for no more than 6-8 hours of riding at the most on each day (Saturday morning start, overnight stay, Sunday return home).
We're both Midlands based, so fairly central, lets assume Birmingham as a starting point.
Bikes consist of an RS660 and a Street Triple, so we're ideally looking for decent tarmac and sweepy flowing roads rather than battered single/track adventure riding.
We could either head;
a) North, up through the Peaks, Yorkshire Dales and into the Pennines
b) East, towards Peterborough, Norfolk and Lincolnshire
c) South, through the Cotswolds and then either off towards Exmoor/Dartmoor or the opposite way towards North Wessex Downs/South Downs
d) West(perhaps the more obvious choice?) into Shropshire and Wales for some sort of Wales circular
Any experience/recommendations?
We'll be travelling light, probably just a rucksack with a change of clothes and an ideally any overnight accommodation will include cold beers and hot food!
I'm thinking we should be aiming for no more than 6-8 hours of riding at the most on each day (Saturday morning start, overnight stay, Sunday return home).
Given the weather outlook (and being slightly biased) I would say go east!
I would head towards Peterborough, then on towards Wisbech via Thorney. Head for Downham Market then Swaffham.
The next day head south towards Thetford but skirt off towards Brandon. Then Ely to Huntingdon. You can then pick up the A14 homewards, or pick and choose some more smaller roads.
Do you have a Garmin/sat nav to keep you off the very biggest roads - or are you not that fussed?
I would head towards Peterborough, then on towards Wisbech via Thorney. Head for Downham Market then Swaffham.
The next day head south towards Thetford but skirt off towards Brandon. Then Ely to Huntingdon. You can then pick up the A14 homewards, or pick and choose some more smaller roads.
Do you have a Garmin/sat nav to keep you off the very biggest roads - or are you not that fussed?
dukeboy749r said:
Given the weather outlook (and being slightly biased) I would say go east!
I would head towards Peterborough, then on towards Wisbech via Thorney. Head for Downham Market then Swaffham.
The next day head south towards Thetford but skirt off towards Brandon. Then Ely to Huntingdon. You can then pick up the A14 homewards, or pick and choose some more smaller roads.
Do you have a Garmin/sat nav to keep you off the very biggest roads - or are you not that fussed?
Ideally we'd like to keep off any motorways or dual carriage A-Roads, but if its just to link up parts of the route or significantly speed up getting to somewhere good then it is what it is. For navigation I'll be using my phone and Quad Lock mount. I typically use Waze religiously whenever riding anyway for the alerts.I would head towards Peterborough, then on towards Wisbech via Thorney. Head for Downham Market then Swaffham.
The next day head south towards Thetford but skirt off towards Brandon. Then Ely to Huntingdon. You can then pick up the A14 homewards, or pick and choose some more smaller roads.
Do you have a Garmin/sat nav to keep you off the very biggest roads - or are you not that fussed?
Seems like Wales is almost unanimously winning this battle.
I've driven and mountain biked around the Ffestiniog area and remember it being particularly scenic with nice roads.
As pointed out, the nice advantage of heading West is quick access to decent roads, which basically start from the moment you get West of the M5.
Wales does seem like an easy one to make some sort of circular route out of too, rather than a same-way-there-same-way-back type thing.
I've driven and mountain biked around the Ffestiniog area and remember it being particularly scenic with nice roads.
As pointed out, the nice advantage of heading West is quick access to decent roads, which basically start from the moment you get West of the M5.
Wales does seem like an easy one to make some sort of circular route out of too, rather than a same-way-there-same-way-back type thing.
I'd find accommodation in a few areas and plan routes for them. Then only book a couple of days before when you can see the weather forecast. I've been to stay with friends for biking holidays in Devon twice in the last three years (both times in September), and both times the weather has been bad (absolutely horrible the first time, raining so hard you couldn't see 40ft in front). The West Country and Wales can cop the worst of it off of the Atlantic whilst other parts of the country are OK. Flip side is the roads are great there if you can find the right weather, so a shame to miss out.
Maybe plan for Wales/West Country, Yorkshire, and East Anglia....you can get to any of them pretty quickly from the Midlands and it's more important to enjoy your time when you get there.
Maybe plan for Wales/West Country, Yorkshire, and East Anglia....you can get to any of them pretty quickly from the Midlands and it's more important to enjoy your time when you get there.
A little 145 mile route to/from Denbigh https://maps.app.goo.gl/uJcvpDDBsJvvqiMP8
mac96 said:
Absolutely , I wasn't suggesting otherwise, plenty of alternatives. Just mentioned as it was specifically recommended earlier .
Sigh. Pistonheads eh ! I wasn't suggesting anything either, other than if that road is closed it really doesn't alter the fact that the location is a good one. My comment didn't take aim at yours in any wayGassing Station | Biker Banter | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff