NE of Birmingham - ride ideas?

[Marco Stefano]

Camping at Kingsbury Water Park (NE of Brum) from 30th July to 3rd August for family to see some Commonwealth Games action. Apart from rugby 7s at Coventry on the 30th, I am not attending anything apart from driving wife & daughter to some events or to train connections, so am relatively free for riding but know nothing about the area.

So, can the forum suggest rides (say, up to 50 miles) or places to visit in the area by bike, please? That includes good tea / coffee / cake / beer stops as well... And if anyone would like to meet up for same, that would be great.

Thanks.

[nikki]

I seem to remember a pleasant forum ride up to Fradley Junction at one point.

There are audax routes starting from the Pretty Pigs in Tamworth which might suggest some lanes and pit stops.

If you like bridleways and can get up to Cannock Chase there's a nice mix of forest, riverside and heathland can be had around there. Various cafés and visitor centres to choose from.

[Blade]

Market Bosworth, Barton marina, National Memorial Arbouretum all have cafes and are quite interesting to visit.

Posh cafe at The Deer Park opposite Hoar Cross Hall.

Lichfield is pleasant to ride through.

Chasewater, North of Cannock is pleasant to ride around, with several railway platform cafes.

I'm afraid that I'm not too familiar with the area to the East of Kingsbury.

By the way. At Kingsbury water park there's a cycle hire centre that has KMX recumbents to hire by the hour.

[Flatbar Steve]

I camped at the water park - make sure you put on the insect repellent. I got some huge bites from something there... I guess because they like being near water.
If you do cycle into Birmingham the canal is good and much nicer that the road

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[Kim]

I camped at the water park - make sure you put on the insect repellent. I got some huge bites from something there... I guess because they like being near water.

Seconded.

HK and I both got bitten by something nasty (as well as the usual midges) there at the ALC AGM meet back in May.  The working theory is Blandford flies.  Whatever it was caused me to wake up at bladder o'clock and wonder why I had a forearm like Popeye.  I believe HK ended up on antibiotics.

If you do cycle into Birmingham the canal is good and much nicer that the road

Yeah, that stretch has a reasonable surface, and you get to see Spaghetti Junction from the underside.  Beware broken glass, the Aston ASBO geese and recreational pharmacists on the way into the city centre.

All other approaches to Birmingham from that direction involve some mix of main roads (pick them carefully), convoluted back roads (pick them carefully) or confusing Sustrans routes (you *will* get lost).


Also second the suggestion of plagiarising the Tamworth and Shenstone audax routes for inspiration.  Loosely following the Trent is reasonably flat.  It gets lumpier to the south.  Best avoid crossing the M6 unless you actually want to visit Birmingham.

And of course you could always ride to Sheepy Magna, the Marsh Gibbon of the North.

[giropaul]

I seem to remember a pleasant forum ride up to Fradley Junction at one point.

There are audax routes starting from the Pretty Pigs in Tamworth which might suggest some lanes and pit stops.

If you like bridleways and can get up to Cannock Chase there's a nice mix of forest, riverside and heathland can be had around there. Various cafés and visitor centres to choose from.

Cannock Chase will be closed at times for the Mountain Bike event.

[JonBuoy]

There is some pleasant cycling countryside in that area.  I would go for a route something like this: https://ridewithgps.com/routes/40244477  This takes in both Sheepy Magna and Sheepy Parva, vaguely follows parts of the Battlefield Line, passes the Bosworth battlefield site which has a reasonable cafe and goes through Market Bosworth which also has decent cafes.  Sutton Wharf cafe and Harvey's Coffee Cabin at Twycross are not far off the route and are also recommended.

You can probably route through the Water Park to get to the start and back from the finish but be aware that the track past Kingsbury church has some steep steps. 

[pineapple bod]

Cannock Chase will be closed at times for the Mountain Bike event.

The closures are limited to the roads between Rugeley and Hednesford.  There are other tracks and fireroads galore to go at (which TBH I prefer to the official MTB trails)
https://www.birmingham2022.com/getset/cannock-chase

Aside from that, the lanes around Blithfield Reservoir are very pleasant for random pootling.  And if you want to throw in a bit of culture, Lichfield is an interesting little city.

[Marco Stefano]

Thanks very much all,

I do fancy some visiting of places rather than 'just a circular ride', so there is plenty to go at. Plagiarising audax routes is something I hadn't thought of at all, that's a good call. I need to go to the library this week for map borrowing (I am mostly analogue when it comes to direction finding) and do some homework.

Warning on insect life duly noted...