This page was last updated Mon 02 August 2010.

Contents: Tours (37)    Trails (3)    Sites (8)    Cycling info pages (4)    Organizations and clubs (12)   

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UK (local)

This page lists all reports that for UK only that do not involve other countries.
Click here for a list of all reports involving UK.
All descriptions are in English, unless otherwise noted.

Tours

**** Land's End to John O'Groats at 'Randonneur' pace
by Andrew Cornwell, tour started June 2010, submitted 28 June 2010
Europe: UK
language: English

The classic 'End to End' ride in seven daily stages of over 200 km, under the rules of long distance cycling association Audax UK. Crosses many of Britain's finest landscapes including Dartmoor, the Somerset levels, Wye Valley, Lake District, Scottish Highlands and Caithness coast.

Setting off from Land's End, 8 June 2010
Rating: 4.0 of 5, 1 votes.        If you followed this link, please rate the page:       Not helpful Very helpful
West Coast by Recumbent Trike
by Richard, tour started May 2010, submitted 2 June 2010
Europe: UK

A 650-mile trip connecting the westernmost with the northernmost tips of mainland Britain, following the western and northern coasts as closely as possible. All of this on a Scorpion fs recumbent tadpole trike.

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***** Solo Lands End to John O'Groats
by Dan Hargrave, tour started June 2008, submitted 6 October 2009
Europe: UK

A 12 day unsupported ride from the most south westerly to most north easterly point of Britain. I also passed through the most southern point, Lizard Point, and the most northern point, Dunnet Head. I covered 1074 miles passing through some of the most beautiful parts of Britain.

Rating: 5.0 of 5, 3 votes.        If you followed this link, please rate the page:       Not helpful Very helpful
Tandem cycle tour in Scotland: Mull, Skye, Ardamurchan, Black Isle
by Robert Saunders, tour started June 2009, submitted 18 June 2009
Europe: UK

In 2009, we took our trusty tandem out for the usual cycle tour in Scotland. This year we rode a circuit that encompassed Loch Tay, the Isles of Mull and Skye, and the Black Isle. We had fabulous weather, fabulous food, fabulous scenery and above all fabulous fun!

Loch Tay, from the road along the north side.
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Bicycle Kicks - A Season in the Saddle
by Si Hood, tour started August 2009, submitted 19 May 2009
Europe: UK

I'm cycling to every York City league match next season, home and away.

Follow the lows and lows of a season in the saddle following a fallen minnow at www.bicyclekicks.co.uk

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***** Outer Hebrides - North to South
by Marcus JB, tour started August 2008, submitted 1 September 2008
Europe: UK

11 day trip from Inverness, onto Lewis, up to the top and then all the way down to Barra. Fantastic places including the legendary St. Kilda.

Camping at Kneep
Rating: 5.0 of 5, 1 votes.        If you followed this link, please rate the page:       Not helpful Very helpful
A cycle tour through the Outer Hebrides from Vatersay to Lewis
by Paul Ashton, tour started July 2007, submitted 6 August 2008
Europe: UK

Reading Calmac's `Explore' brochure on the ferry from Claonaig to Lochranza rekindled my desire to visit the Outer Hebrides. My Mum and Dad had taken the boat to Barra during their courting days and forever regaled us with tales of rough seas where everyone on board including the crew were sea sick apart from them. Then when queuing for the boat at Brodick, I watched as lots of fully laden pannier clad bicycles disembarked.

I'm not getting any younger and the rucksack no lighter so a bike seemed the best way to carry the weight whilst sparing my vertebra. I resolved to take the boat from Oban, cycle from Barra to Lewis and return on the Stornoway to Ullapool ferry. The final details, including the logistics of getting self and bike to Oban and back from Ullapool seemed the least of my problems. Oh, and I needed a bike!

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Western Isles of Scotland
by Bike Hippies, tour started April 2008, submitted 27 July 2008
Europe: UK

Ten day tour of the western islands and coast of Scotland - Skye, Outer Hebrides, Mull and Ardnamurchan. Beautiful beaches, mighty headwinds and plenty of sheep.

Rocky bay on South Harris
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Short tour of South Devon, Dorset & Somerset
by Bike Hippies, tour started September 2007, submitted 31 October 2007
Europe: UK

A short and rather hilly round-trip tour of Dorset, South Devon and Somerset, including portions of the spectacular Jurassic Coast.

View over Ladram Bay towards Sidmouth
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Scotand - from Newcastle to Oban
by Stephen Martin, tour started June 2001, submitted 17 October 2007
Europe: UK

This tour was from the north east corner of England to the west coast of Scotland and included a few day on the island of Arran. We travalled with full camping gear but becasue the rain stayed a several B&B's.

Several of the B&B were very memorable and are detailed in The Daily Log and Useful Links page.

Route maps are included - much the route followed the National Cycle Network.

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***** John O'Groats to Lands End
by Mark Fenwick, tour started June 2003, submitted 9 September 2007
Europe: UK

My first tour and the reason the web site was set up in the first place. The site's original purpose was to help raise sponsorship for an unassisted charity cycle ride originally called the 'Anglo-Swiss Charity Bike Ride', after the nationalities of the two participants.

It was an unforgettable trip of a thousand miles on a pair of poorly equipped mountain bikes that raised over £1,500 for the National Autistic Society.

Sunset over Oban
Rating: 5.0 of 5, 1 votes.        If you followed this link, please rate the page:       Not helpful Very helpful
Great Britain June 2007
by Blanche, tour started June 2007, submitted 18 June 2007
Europe: UK
language: en,, dutch

In June 2007 I have joined a few members (20) of my worldcyclist-club to cycle a week in Great Brittain (De Wereldfietser). On my webspace you'll find information of the route and pictures to tell the story.

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English Lake District road rides
by Allan Nelson, tour started 2006, submitted 6 May 2006
Europe: UK

Some road rides in the English Lake District (will be added to). Includes the (in)famous Fred Whitton Challenge route. A demanding ride which takes you through some of the most stunning scenery the Lake District has to offer and includes the major passes of Kirkstone, Honister, Newlands, Whinlatter, Hardknott and Wrynose. If your touring the Lake District try to fit this ride in - it can easily be split into 2 days.

Looking back toward Cockley Beck and Hardknott Pass from Wrynose Pass
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***** Cycling the Heart of England
by Bob Lucky, tour started July 2003
Europe: UK

I just completed a bike trip through the heart of England, starting in London and following the Thames to Oxford and Stratford-upon-Avon using the National Cycle Paths. From there I curled down through the Cotswolds.

It's probably a general rule of life that things are never quite what you expect. My expectations about cycling are based on my experiences in the United States, and I discovered in two cycling trips in England that things there were often different and surprising. After my recent trip cycling mostly on the National Cycle Paths in England I made my own list of the points that I would make to someone planning a cycling trip there. This advice is intended for people outside the UK, as I'm sure that UK citizens would know much more about cycling in their country than I would. However, they wouldn't see the cycling through the eyes of a foreigner to their country. So as a foreigner to England, here's my own list of advice and surprises. It will rain, so be prepared...

Passing over small bridges
Rating: 5.0 of 5, 1 votes.        If you followed this link, please rate the page:       Not helpful Very helpful
Whisky, Dudelsack und Nessie - unterwegs in Schottland
by Hans Jürgen Stang, tour started March 2001
Europe: UK
language: de

Die Warnungen von Freunden und Bekannten bezüglich des dortigen schlechten Wetters erschreckten mich nicht.

Die Landschaft ist von Bergen, Seen und Hochmooren bestimmt und das bedeutet für den Radler: alles andere als flach. Kurze, kräftige Steigungen sind die Regel. Doch ich gewöhne mich schnell daran und die Ausblicke, die sich bei diesen Berg- und Talfahrten ergeben, sind vielfach faszinierend.

Ich mache zum ersten Mal Bekanntschaft mit den schottischen Mücken, midges genannt. Sie sind winzig klein und treten teilweise in Massen auf. Heute Abend hilft nur noch die Flucht ins Zelt.

Die Jugendherberge in der Armadale Bay liegt idyllisch in einer Bucht. Regen und Sturm am Abend rauben der Idylle jedoch ihren Mythos. Am nächsten Morgen regnet es immer noch, als ich mich in der Jugendherberge herumrücke und auf Wetterbesserung hoffe. Ein älterer englischer Radfahrer klärt mich bei seiner Abfahrt über die Wetterlage auf. The weather is better than it looks gibt er mir mit auf den Weg. Also - das Wetter ist besser als es aussieht.

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End to End by Tandem
by Ken & Linda Hardy, tour started September 2000
Europe: UK

We can't remember where the idea originated, but we'd been thinking about riding the length of the British mainland for some time. For one reason or another we had never actually got around to doing it until, towards the end of 1999, Linda said that ``if we don't do it this coming year, we probably never will''. So that's how it started!

In the following pages you will read of our epic journey. Looking back on it now it doesn't seem half as big an undertaking as it seemed at the start. When you are stood at Land's End looking at the road leading away to the north you wonder why on earth you are doing this. Are we really going to cycle all that way? Can we really do it? Will the bike be up to it? What if we have a breakdown? What if we get into trouble amongst the traffic?

We now know that it can be done. We know that, although the distance is great, it's not impossible. If each day is taken on its own it's not really such a big task. We aimed for around 60 miles per day, based on the fact that that's roughly what we are capable of doing as a day ride in the Peak District National Park which is situated almost at our doorstep. We figured that if we could do that in the hilly terrain of the Peak District, we could do at least that in the less hilly terrain we were likely to encounter much of the time on the End.

map
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Cycling from Land's End to John O'Groats
by Bernard Naylor, tour started September 2000
Europe: UK

With very detailed route description, maps, and pictures.

Why are we doing it? Hard to say really. There are many answers -
Because it's there,
To mark the Millennium,
To achieve an ambition,
To see if we can do it,
As an incentive to get fit,
To enjoy the scenery,
To get to know a bit more about our country,
To raise money for charity,
For the same reason as the other thousands of people who do it every year,
As a follow on to the C2C etc.

As it says on the CTC Web site. To cycle from the far South West to the far North East of mainland Britain is an ambition which many cyclists fulfil each year.

Cheddar gorge
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Land's End to John O'Groats
by Peter Seaman and Martin Cockersole, tour started August 2000
Europe: UK

Includes maps, and plenty of pictures. One cannot make a 1000 mile bicycle trip such as this without a few amusing incidents. At Bettyhill on the final day we met a lady in a cafe where the following conversation took place Lady: ``So you are cycling. Have you come from far?'' Martin: ``No, not really. Only from Land's End''.

Route around Slaidburn
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* C2C (Coast to Coast)
by Michael Bowers, tour started June 2000
Europe: UK

Another report of a Coast to Coast ride. Very nicely laid out, and illustrated with black-and-white pics.

Rating: 1.0 of 5, 1 votes.        If you followed this link, please rate the page:       Not helpful Very helpful
Lands End to John O'Groats
by Alan and Pauline Lord, tour started May 2000
Europe: UK

1014 miles in 16 days - a photographic diary.

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Western Isles and Highlands 2000
by Andrew Clark, tour started 2000
Europe: UK

Ever since I bought my first ``proper'' touring bicycle I'd liked the idea of touring the Outer Hebrides and Western Highlands of Scotland. I'd done a limited amount of walking in Scotland before and had spent a few days travelling around Skye by car but I wanted to see more and a cycle camping tour seemed the best way of doing it.

[In 2000] I booked three weeks off work and bought a rail ticket from Liverpool to Oban and a ferry ticket that would allow me to travel from Oban to the islands of Barra, South Uist, Benbecula, North Uist, Harris and Lewis and finally back to Ullapool on the mainland from where I planned to cycle to Cape Wrath, the most North Westerly point of the British Isles.

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a""Land's End to John O'Groats"
by Martin Wittram, tour started June 1999
Europe: UK
language: en, de

Travelling by bike in England, Wales, and Scotland. Another fine and very nicely illustrated report from the impressive collection of Martin Wittram.

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Scotland - Hebrides and Western Coast
by Jacqueline et Patrick Huard, tour started 1999
Europe: UK
language: fr

An excellent report, with lots of practical information. Even if you don't know French, look at it for the beautiful pictures.

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England by Tandem
by Joe & Carolyn Stafford, tour started November 1998
Europe: UK

Taking three weeks off to tour England by tandem was the trip of a lifetime. Great riding, good weather, and lots of help from friends along the way made a truly memorable experience for us. We planned relatively short mileage days and allowed several days off the bike for some typical ``tourist'' days.

The riding in England was superb. The route we planned took us to some of the most scenic and pastoral settings imaginable. Except for London, riding in cities, towns, and villages posed no problems for a tandem. Using England's trains for covering long distances was relatively easy, but required some planning ahead to be sure space was available.

© 1998 by Joe & Carolyn Stafford
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Edinburgh-London
by Angelo Bandini, tour started September 1998
Europe: UK

Total luggage weight was about 15 kilos, of course I had no sleeping or cooking gear. My beloved mount is an early 80' racing Vicini with Columbus SL steel frame and Dura Ace. Gearing is limited to 52/39 up front and a six speed rear cassette ranging from 13 to 23. Blindly overestimating my level of fitness I didn't even bother adding a 25 cog. At the time I thought that England was mostly flat...

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Outer Hebrides (Scotland) Cycling Tour
by Patrick Fox, tour started July 1997
Europe: UK

After lunch I coasted back down the hillside and took the southern fork along Luskentyre bay. This led me on round the west coast of Harris, a superb landscape of broad sandy bays, interspersed with black rocky points and all backed by the rugged mountains inland. I made my gentle way along here, pausing in particularly attractive spots to study the geology or write a postcard.

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Visions of Snowdonia
by Milosz Wisniewski, tour started June 1997
Europe: UK

Cycling in the Welsh hilly land.

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P.J.'s Cycling Scotland Pages
by Peter Josef (P.J.) Meisch, tour started May 1996
Europe: UK

The splendidly organized (Ha, the Web!) report of an extensive tour of Scotland. A must-see!

Balloch, Lochearnhead, Oban, Glenfinnan, Sleat Mountains on Skye, Portree, Shiel Bridge, Inverness, Loch Lochy, Kingussie, Elgin, Fraserburgh, Aberdeen, Aboyne, Bridge of Cally, St. Andrews, Edinburgh, Galashiels, Gretna, Parton, Ayr, Johnstone.

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Riding the Waters - A promenade in the Inner Hebrides and Loch-Ness
by Jean-Pierre Jacquot, tour started 1996
Europe: UK

Family cycling at its best!

These pages are a little recollection of the holidays we took in the Highlands during 1996 summer. The main part of these Scotish holidays was a tour of the Hebrides and the Highlands. On our way down to France, we also made a stop to the Isle of Arran.

It was a leisurely tour: about 650 km (400 miles) in 14 days. Certainly not a great feat for Martine and me, but more so for Nicolas, who was 8 and rode all the way. [...] I've always found that planning a route is very easy, as soon as an organizing idea has been decided. For our first trip in Scotland, I settled on ``riding the waters'': ferrying to the islands, musing along lochs, and paying a due visit to the most famous of all. We don't regret this choice. We are now specialists in ferries (from liners-like to pedestrians-only) and it was fun to see Scotland from the sea also.

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A tour of Scotland
by Piaw Na, tour started May 1995
Europe: UK
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Cycling Tour Central England
by Bas van Oudheusden and Maria Salomons, tour started July 1994
Europe: UK

Our tour took us through several of the rural areas of central England, and we experienced very pleasant and relaxing cycling on the B and unclassified roads. This may come a bit as a surprise regarding that the area crosses the central urban and industrial belt stretching from Greater London to the Midlands (Birmingham).

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Land's End to John O'Groats
by Peter Seaman and Martin Cockersole, tour started April 1992
Europe: UK

Includes maps, and plenty of pictures. One cannot make a 1000 mile bicycle trip such as this without a few amusing incidents. At Bettyhill on the final day we met a lady in a cafe where the following conversation took place Lady: ``So you are cycling. Have you come from far?'' Martin: ``No, not really. Only from Land's End''.

Route around Slaidburn
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Wheels and Rainbows Through Scotland
by Judy Colwell, tour started July 1991
Europe: UK

Menlo Park, London, Inverness, Aberlour, Aberdeen, Montrose, St. Andrews, Edinburgh, Yetholm, Rothbury, Once Brewed, York, Sherwood Forest.

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Land's End - John o'Groats, An East of The Pennines Route
by Ian & Steve, tour started June 1991
Europe: UK
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The Rough-Stuff Fellowship
Europe: UK

The Rough-Stuff Fellowship is a cycling organisation dedicated to the pursuit of cycling on bridleways, byways, drove roads and tracks. The RSF was formed in 1955 and now boasts over 1000 members nationwide with local groups scattered around the country.

The Rough-Stuff Fellowship have a limited selection of off-road routes. These include: Eastern Alps, Central Alps, Western Alps, Massif Central, Pyrenees, Picos de Europa. These routes are listed in greater detail with maps descriptions of the route including exact position of the start and finish of each route. These routes have been compiled over the forty or so years the RSF has been in existence. It is important to note that the these routes have been completed by RSF members mostly using camping equipment and standard touring bikes, not mountain bikes.

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Cycling in Scotland - Munros, Ferries and Suicidal Sheep
by Jan Kuchel
Europe: UK

The travelogue of a cycling trip in the Scottish Highlands and Islands.

Time for a new haircut
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Ireland Diary
by Myra VanInwegen
Europe: UK

This has been a difficult trip, this touring in Ireland. Every day I've gone out on my bike, regardless of the weather. I've struggled against headwinds, winched up slopes that went on for miles. I've gotten wet a great deal, and gotten chilled quite a few times, only getting warm again by adding more layers and pedalling harder. I was really looking forward to this ferry ride back: a chance to relax and stay warm.

Farewell to the land of rainbows
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Trails

Wales Diary
by Myra VanInwegen, tour started July 2000
Europe: UK

I took a long holiday to explore bits of Britain by bike. Since I like off-road cycling at least as much as on-road, I used my old Trek hardtail. I put skinny slicks on it to cover ground quickly by road, and put knobblies on it for off-road use. [...] My first destination was Wales. I left from home on July 9th, heading towards Cardiff, stopping by the Forest of Dean on the way. I stayed at the Neuadd Arms Hotel for a week, and I participated in the Mountain Bike Bog Snorkelling Championships. From there I headed north on the Lon Las Cymru (Welsh National Cycle Route and Sustrans Route 8).

Bridge
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The Lakeland Loop
by Alasdair Arthur, tour started 1996
Europe: UK

The story of a cycling trip around England's Lake District: Bowness-on-Windermere, Patterdale, Bassenthwaite, Buttermere, Boot, Whitehaven, Boot to the coast and back Boot to Bowness-on-Windermere.

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Offroad Adventures
Europe: UK

An excellent site with many good trail descriptions in Great Britain, with some excursions to mainland Europe and Africa

This site is for all Mountain Bikers who love the challenge of an Offroad Adventure. Offroad Adventures - Online is an online resource packed with a collection of full ride reports, routes guides (some including maps), preparation tips, equipment, images to inspire and practical advice.

To get the most from Offroad Adventures - Online you will need to spend time to read the many articles written by Real Mountain Bikers, the equipment reviews and the advice given by riders who have ridden epics in the past.

© 2003 Offroad Adventures
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