Interesting Rides
A selection of interesting rides carried out by club members, individually or in a group, and published in our newsletter or blogs. The most recent rides are at the top.
Ged navigated round the King Alfred’s Way gravel trail over five days, using the Cycling UK guide book. (Ged Lawrenson in 2021, published in 2022)
Visiting hidden rivers which are mostly buried underground, and finding some which were previously unknown. (Simon Lambourn)
A group of 40+ riders, on-road and off-road, spent a weekend enjoying the roads and trails around Salisbury, venturing to Stonehenge and the New Forest, among other places. (Steve Gordon & Ann Bath; write up by Simon Lambourn)
Martin and his daughter Lara cycled King Alfred’s Way but ran into several unexpected difficulties along the way. (Martin Gandy)
Clive went cycle-camping in France for a week or so in France, trying out Voies Vertes, local campsites and of course, local cuisine. Read Part 1 and Part 2. (Clive Janes)
Every year the Sou’Westers invite cyclists to see some of the well-known Surrey hills up close in a 50km route. There is a blog report with many photos, and The Sou’Wester contains a compilation of different riders’ views. (Dave Vine, Christina Berkley and others)
Diane went from cycling 100 miles a month to 100 miles in a day, riding the Ride London 100 mile Essex event. (Diane Porter)
Mike took a group of friends with very mixed cycling ability on a nine-day tour of Sicily, and they are still friends! (Mike Reynell)
A ride round the coast, which started in 2013, continued this year along the hills, valleys, and more hills of South Wales. (Simon Lambourn)
Sue finally got to ride all the way to John o’Groats, having missed out due to injury in 2021. (Sue Foster)
An annual trip to the seaside; some rode back too, to make a 100 mile ride.
A group of friends explored Norfolk for a few balmy summer days and pronounced it not flat, but “crinkly round the edges”. (Roger Parsley)
Every three years, riders are invited to ride 100 miles, 100 km or 50 km along the Surrey Cycleways, interspersed with eating cake.
A tempting looking gravel route provided excellent cycling for a ride from Pontypridd to Swansea. (Mark Gladwyn)
Every year a large group of Sou’Westers spend a weekend in Dieppe with many other cyclists on the Randonée des Trois Vallées. This was the 2022 event.
A veritable history lesson tour of west London involving some off-road tracks along canals and rivers, to see the massive Tithe Barn at Harmondsworth together with many other interesting sights. (Steph Wyatt)
Following the cycle tracks of mediaeval pilgrims, to re-visit the Pilgrims’ Way to Canterbury. (Mark Gladwyn)
The most challenging Audax ride: ride 1,500km in about five days, trading riding time versus sleeping and eating time. Neil loved it so much the first time, he did it again. (Neil Crocker)
A group of beginners and not-so-beginners rode from near Croydon to Greenwich, back through Brixton and Merton Abbey Mills for a day full of sightseeing and (mostly) quiet roads. (Paul James)
Gill and Sue wanted to try an Audax ride, (a self-supported ride with a time limit), so they rode the “Brace of Bramleys” ride, accompanied at times by several other people with previous Audax experience. Surbiton to Surrey, Hampshire and Berkshire, 209 km in a day of cycling. (Sue Foster & Gill Holder)
Tony led a regular Sunday ride (on regular bikes) to Hillingdon cycle track, to watch a fascinating event of Ordinary (i.e. Penny Farthing) Racing. In addition to several photos in the ride report (linked above), there’s also a video here. (Tony Hopkins)
A series of short trips and mini-tours through the year to work out how to do wild camping without the worry; visiting a few nearby places and also discovering new delights in Wiltshire, Oxfordshire, Bedfordshire, Sussex and Kent. A Sou’Wester article describes why: the individual trip reports are here. (Simon Lambourn)
Kathmandu, Lhasa, and Everest Base Camp while immersed in local culture, food, traffic and gorgeous views - worth a read. (Ken and Paul Day; ridden in 2006 but written up in 2022)
A river bank quest to find The London Stone marking the eastern boundary of London on the Thames made for an interesting ride. Then Mark discovered there was another one… (Mark Gladwyn)
Clive and two sons ride the cycleway from Ravenglass to Newcastle, with tents: Part 1 and Part 2. (Clive Janes)
Blue skies, empty roads, spectacular views, hills … (Dave Vine)
Mark went to find the new Leith Hill Greenway, and discovered it goes to Leith Hill … and beyond. (More here) (Mark Gladwyn)
Was it the undulating Leicester countryside, or was it the pork pies that attracted 25 riders to have a few days away? (Pam Jones)
Sue attempted to ride from Lands End to John o’Groats in just nine days. Was she mad? (Sue Foster)
Brian headed north, roughly following Offa’s Dyke enjoying the Welsh scenery and weather. (Brian Greenwood)
A few days away, following quiet roads and cafe signs. (Janice Dawes)
Following ancient trails from Salisbury in search of the Hovis Hill. (Mark Gladwyn)
Janice and friends rode across southern England between sunrise and sunset, because they could. (Janice Dawes)
Exploring parts of the new off-road route, and parts of the military areas of Salisbury plain. (Mark Gladwyn)
A different take on King Alfred’s Way, along the Test valley and down a Bunny hole: back in time for Evensong at Winchester Cathedral. (Brian Greenwood)
Helen led the Beginners on an outing to Fulham Palace, where there was a scandal. (Helen Tovey)
Mark’s Coast to Coast trip was rudely interrupted by Covid at the Severn Bridge in 2019. This is the conclusion of his scenic trip through south Wales. (Mark Gladwyn)
Visiting some ancient hill forts in Surrey and Sussex. (Mark Gladwyn)
Paul’s intricate, scenic and historic Beginners ride. (Paul James)
Dave rides a 200k Audax to Newhaven and Brighton, and explains what it is and why he does it (Dave Vine)
A look back at a family cycling holiday and a comparison with a return trip in 2010 (Brian Greenwood)
Dave stayed local (and sane) during lockdown by riding the bounds of Merton, discovering some less-well known parts of the borough and also some improvements in cycling provision since a similar trip in 2010 (Dave Vine)
Beating the Bounds used to be a thing, but since corporal punishment is now forbidden, Ged discovered a better alternative. (Ged Lawrenson)
What to do in Lockdown? Ged’s solution involved Football … (Ged Lawrenson)
Inspired by Tony’s ride to the commonly-accepted source of the Wandle, Mark did a bit of digging, and then a bit of riding, to discover some other sources. (Mark Gladwyn)
It was Covid, everything was closed, but it was summer and Arwyn felt the urge to cycle south to north through Wales Part 1 and Part 2 (Arwyn Morgan)
Czar Paul leads the B-group proletariat on an adventure in the Surrey Gulag. (Paul James)
A duo London ride with two riders and two palaces (Dave Vine)
Steve’s Solo Sycle ride to the Seaside (Steve Duffin)
Pick a gap in lockdown, and cycle from San Gimignano to Rome. (Mike Reynell)
Following green threads through London along disused railways and riverside parks, from South London to Greenwich and back via Brixton and along the river Wandle. (Paul James)
A much-replanned trip to the wild side of Scotland finally happened. (Dave Bartholomew and Simon Lambourn) Blog articles here. Sou’Wester article here.
One canal, one castle, one Roman city, four fords, all in 37 lumpy miles. (Graham Hill)
Fourteen riders in three groups rode from Cheam to Walton and back (Paul James)
A hot day’s ride via Richmond Hill, the Isleworth Plague pit, and the Grand Union Canal to Osterley Park. (Tony Hooker)
A solo ride in the rolling hills of Wiltshire. (Mark Gladwyn)
Re-living the Tri-Vets 100 mile route, plus a bit. (Janice Dawes)
Our annual group ride wasn’t possible this year, so Mark Gladwyn did it as a solo ride.
Where to go for a lockdown ride? Ged’s inspiration was blue plaques, and this led to a series of rides celebrating nursing, sport and literature. (Ged Lawrenson)
Annual event to ride many of the big hills in Surrey. This year reported on by Ged Lawrenson and Paul James in the Sou’Wester. Also a post-event report by the late Mike Morley, and some photos from Ged
A rare tour in South Africa for Stephen Hickey, reported in the Sou’Wester
An unguided ride around the commons of Wisley, Ockham, Fairmile and Littleworth (Simon Lambourn)
The hot dry weather encouraged Terry Lowe to try some of the old unpaved roads.
Empty roads in the sunshine made for enjoyable, if hilly, cycling. (Ged Lawrenson)
Another sunny solo ride, this time off road near Chobham (Simon Lambourn)
Daily exercise and beautiful scenery for Terry Lowe.
A gentle ride with an unco-operative Garmin turns into a hilly ride (Janice Dawes)
A local loop including plenty of off-road on a sunny day (Mark Gladwyn)
Ken Day’s two-week tour in Sri Lanka
A wet and windy weekend for Ged Lawrenson
A longer route, Kent to Wales, that takes more than a weekend. This year Mark completed two sections, Reading to Marlborough and Marlborough to the Severn. (Mark Gladwyn)
(Sept 2018): Only seven riders turned out to the rescheduled event, which was postponed from March to September due to bad weather (Paul James)
(Aug 2018): Cycling UK’s annual get-together, this year in Stafford drew a dozen Sou’Westers as part of 300 riders who shared a varied programme of rides over several days (Steph Wyatt)
Part 1 A self-guided tour through northern Italy with a less-keen cycling partner; Part 2 Coastal roads to Trieste, and then through Slovenia to Croatia, with an unexpected end (Janice Dawes)
(2016-2018) Continuous riding for 100km, 200..300...600km??? (Neil Crocker)
A two-week ride through Kerala and Tamil Nadu. (Mike Barrett)
Twenty riders, mostly Sou’Westers, embark on an unforgettable trip with water buffalo, paddy fields, tropical winter warmth and friendly locals. Photos. (Terry Lowe & Gill Finlay)
68 riders took on the best of the Surrey Hills: 2700 feet of climbing in around 33 miles, and raised £650 for charity. (photo) (Mike Morley)
Through many interesting points and parks in South London, with connections to Jurassic Britain, the Kray twins and the Mayflower, to Rotherhithe (Ged Lawrenson)
Following rivers and canals from Nonsuch Park (Tony Hooker)
Steve Gordon’s two-day ride to Canterbury: Apple blossom, Crab & Winkle for the pilgrims on the way to Canterbury, Pete Beyer’s Saturday ride to Hythe: deserted Kent lanes, a micro-brewery, oh, and a lot of hills, and Steve’s Sunday ride to Herne Bay: a sandwich in Sandwich but avoiding a hernia in Herne Bay.
Mark’s account of a sightseeing tour of Exmoor, in the mist and cold wind. (Mark Gladwyn)
From Nonsuch Park via Beddington Park, South Norwood Park, Greenwich Park and returning via the Waterlink Way (Harry Cole)
A spring trip in southern Spain with several days of beautiful but challenging cycling (Karen Cochrane)
A ride to the seaside and back (Janice Dawes)
The seventh year of this trip around the coast, this time starting from Warrington(!) and visiting the Isle of Man before tackling the north and west coasts of Wales. (Simon Lambourn)
Three ride lengths: three reports: 100 miles in the fast lane by Janice Dawes; 100km: a more leisurely ride with time to relax and chat over lunch from Sue Bellamy, and the 50km ride, more like a regular Wednesday ride, with elevenses, lunch and tea as usual! (Paul James). Plus some photos.
Simon Lambourn’s account of a warm welcome in Dieppe with a hot ride on quiet roads along the coast before the 140km ride on Sunday, while Paul James and ten other Sou’Westers rode the 100km route through the lovely Normandy countryside, and for Pip Mott, on holiday from New Zealand it was “Come and join us for a ride in Dieppe”.
David & Jennie’s “Notes from a Large Island” as they cycled the length of it.
The annual ride to the seaside and back, this time with added rain (Neil Crocker)
Via Shoreham and a bit of the new DownsLink, and returning by train (Tony Hooker)
Mark’s ride along the South Downs, in the heat of summer.
Nonsuch Park to Harmondsworth via Kingston, the river Crane path, Pevensey Nature Reserve and Hounslow Heath (Steph Wyatt)
Christina Berkley and Sue Bellamy rode the 100 mile event, both for the first time, while Roger Parsley with three other Sou’Westers rode the 19 mile course on his Yellow Peril bike with knobbly tyres and “quite good” brakes.
About a dozen Sou’Westers joined 400 riders for several days of organised rides and socialising near St Neots (Mike Morley)
Legendary ride: 1300km in 4 days and nights (Neil Crocker)
Riding from Bristol to Reading along the canal (Ray Youlden)
Via Kenley Aerodrome, with an extension to Redhill before returning to Banstead (Tony Hooker)
Not a ride to the coast, but a coast-to-ride. (reports from the A group - Janice Dawes and B group - John Austin)
Margate to St Davids, in stages: Margate-Carshalton. Carshalton-Reading .. more to follow in 2019 (Mark Gladwyn)
40 cyclists spend Easter in the Isle of Wight (Mike Morley)
Three cyclists on a group tour in Germany, after googling “Cycling for Oldies” (Roger Parsley)
“London is Open” to cycling one day a year (Roy Flowers & Karen Cochrane)
At least 11 club members entered this famous group ride, or the shorter variant. Four of them report on their experience: (Ged Lawrenson, Mike Morley, John Austin and Janice Dawes)
A ride from along the Regents’ Canal to Limehouse Basin, returning to the Imperial War Museum for tea (Tony Hooker)
All-day ride, accompanied by harmonica (Tony Hooker)
Another all-day ride, on a wet day (photos here) (Tony Hooker)
A tour of some of Joseph Bazalgette’s great works in London including the “Cathedral of Sewage” at Abbey Mills pumping station. Photos here. (Graham Hill)
A family outing to India, on a CTC tour, with a slideshow and video! (Paul Day)
A CTC tour to Iran (photos) (Ken & Paul Day)
An overnight ride along the North Downs Way. Off-road. In the dark. (Mark Gladwyn)
Winnie-the-Pooh and friends and relations go for a bike ride.
A ride without pedalling (photos, more info) (Terry Lowe, or should it be Ed Sharp)
Autumn sunshine. And hills. (Mark Gladwyn)
Winders Hill, near Godstone, Wray Hill, Box Hill, Ranmore, White Down, mostly off road. (Mark Gladwyn)
Train assisted ride, into a gale. (map) (Hans Formella)
A journey of 500 miles, told in about 30 instalments (Mike Barrett, Ged Lawrenson, Simon Lambourn, Dave Bartholomew)
Postponed due to bad weather in March, the event was run in September (Mike Morley)
On folding bikes.. (Mark Gladwyn)
A ride with a picnic for about 40 (Gill Finlay)
Admittedly by a Victorian explorer, not one of our members (Mark Gladwyn)
Brighton to Eastbourne. Another similar off-road ride here (Mark Gladwyn)
Five go to the seaside (photos) (Terry Lowe)
An extra-curricular Wayfarers ride along the South Downs Way (Mark Gladwyn)
30+ Wayfarers joined another several hundred British and French riders for a cycling weekend around Dieppe (photos, photos, photos, more photos(yawn), photo, photo, photo, photo, photo) (Paul James)
Wayfarers abroad in Normandy (Terry Lowe)
Out to Winchester, and train back (photos, and a variation of the route by Mark Gladwyn) (Mike Reynell)
That’s 100 miles, more or less depending on where you start from (map+relive) (David Vine)
A newcomer to Mallorca (and another outing here) (Mark Gladwyn)
Even more Gravel, this time from Bath to Salisbury (Mark Gladwyn)
Continuation of a ride round the coast, this time from Glasgow to Warrington (Simon Lambourn)
Wayfarers London to Cambridge ride, via the Essex Alps (Mark Gladwyn)
An ode to the B Group (Tim Court)
A variation of the Hilly 50k challenge ride (Mark Gladwyn)
A ride into London, via Crystal Palace and Greenwich back to Clapham Common (Simon Lambourn)
A description of the C&M’s annual Easter Tour, with a group of about 30 on- and off-road cyclists. Two days touring in the Cotswolds and Gwent, plus another four days to cycle there and back. (Mike Morley) (also here)
Cycling round Route No.1 in Taiwan: 1150 km in 11 days. (Robert Tolley)
A week cycling round the Danish countryside, including a trip to Sweden. (Lynda Barrow or Sonia Broome?)
A group of three didn’t quite follow the Avenue Verte route from Dieppe to Paris (David (or Jennie?) Jackson) [also on the blog here]
A Beginners group ride from Ware (where?) along the bank of the Thames into London. (Tony Hooker)
Other Beginners All-day rides in more traditional territory are described on the Beginners blog.
Another Beginners group all-day ride, this time to Greenwich. (Tony Hooker)
An autumn weekend cycling in and around Burnham beeches. (Brian Greenwood)
The annual downhill no-pedalling competition. (Terry Lowe)
A group spent a week and a bit cycling and sampling the food in Brittany. (Francoise Humphrey)
Pictures and a short report from a group that joined this event in the Cotswolds (Steph Wyatt & Tony Hooker)
A short ride exploring an alternative to Ditchling Beacon, which seems to be even steeper. (Mark Gladwyn)
Several of our members rode this event, and this is Mike Morley’s account of his day out. (Mike Morley)
Seven people, seven days in a gite before joining the Dieppe Raid cycling weekend. (Terry Lowe)
A cautionary tale of a night-time audax ride in Dartmoor. (Mark Gladwyn)
A one-way ride to Oxford, catching the train back. (Simon Lambourn)
A regular favourite - a pilgrimage to the coast and back, 100 miles in a day. (Dave Vine)
An exploration of the Lee Valley cycle route (Tony Hopkins)
Sort of, in sort of 24 hours … (Mark Gladwyn)
...from Oban to Glasgow, via several islands, plenty of cafes and a lot of hills. (Simon Lambourn)
Six riders spent a few days on the island. (Terry Lowe and Tim Court)
The A group rode the Pilgrim’s Way from Caterham to Canterbury. (Mark Gladwyn)
More pictures here.
The annual London Ride, which was sadly overshadowed by the Westminster terror attack on the same day, and very close to where we were. (Hans Formella)
This annual challenge event covers many of the climbs in the Surrey Hills within 50k of cycling. (Mike Morley)
One of the most adventurous rides, Neil Crocker’s London-Edinburgh-London audax attempt, is not included as there’s no write-up, but it is worth mentioning this amazing effort.
A group of nine toured the mountainous region near Santander in Spain. (Tim Court)
Mark Gladwyn re-discovered and rode the centuries-old Pilgrim’s Way, or at least part of it, from Titsey to Canterbury, (and subsequently led a Wayfarers ride along a shorter section)
In the glorious summer of 2012, Simon Lambourn left London to ride up the East coast for two weeks. It became an annual event and he’s now somewhere in the west of Scotland.
Eight cyclists spent a week staying in a gite and touring Normandy prior to the Dieppe Raid (Terry Lowe)
About twenty club members travelled to Dieppe for a ride in glorious French countryside with several hundred other cyclists. (Geoff Gregory)
SW London staged an event as part of the CTC’s series of Triennial Veterans rides, with rides of 50k, 100k, or 100 miles, against a common enemy of torrential rain and cold (Mark Gladwyn & Simon Lambourn)
Paul & Maggie James braved the excitement of local roads, and local guides who didn’t expect them to cycle much. Part2 Part 3 Part 4
Mark Gladwyn entered the sportive along the route of (and the day before) the professional ride. Hills and cobbles: great fun.
Mark Gladwyn discovered a way to multiply the hilliness of the biggest hill in Surrey, as part of a regular Wednesday A group ride. (more here)
Dave Vine led a large group of riders into the heart of the city on a wide-ranging scenic tour (more here and here)
Ten riders mostly from the Wayfarers B group organised a cycling trip southern Spain with hills, sunshine and ice cream (Francoise Humphrey)
Ged Lawrenson and Mike Barrett joined a 600 mile CTC tour in South Africa. (More here and here)
An annual event, made more adventurous than usual by a snow storm (Mike Morley). (more photos are also available - see the links on the right of the article)