Author Topic: Route Request - London to Bristol!  (Read 1899 times)

Route Request - London to Bristol!
« on: 21 June, 2019, 01:25:00 pm »
Riding from London out to Bristol to visit family next week, but I'm struggling to found a nice route that doesn't hug canals and rivers - I'd rather avoid tow paths after a grueling ride along some canals last week.

bludger

  • Randonneur and bargain hunter
Re: Route Request - London to Bristol!
« Reply #1 on: 21 June, 2019, 03:01:36 pm »
Riding from London out to Bristol to visit family next week, but I'm struggling to found a nice route that doesn't hug canals and rivers - I'd rather avoid tow paths after a grueling ride along some canals last week.
you could part-adapt Will's full fat festive 500 route. I did it in late December, really nice riding, no towpaths or any other nasties. That would do you for bristol-oxford.

Email will and ask him for the route I'm sure he won't mind http://www.aukweb.net/events/detail/18-507/
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Ban cars.

Re: Route Request - London to Bristol!
« Reply #2 on: 21 June, 2019, 03:02:47 pm »
Riding from London out to Bristol to visit family next week, but I'm struggling to found a nice route that doesn't hug canals and rivers - I'd rather avoid tow paths after a grueling ride along some canals last week.
you could part-adapt Will's full fat festive 500 route. I did it in late December, really nice riding, no towpaths or any other nasties. That would do you for bristol-oxford.

Email will and ask him for the route I'm sure he won't mind http://www.aukweb.net/events/detail/18-507/
Thanks!

I'll do that

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Phil W

Re: Route Request - London to Bristol!
« Reply #3 on: 21 June, 2019, 03:05:58 pm »
or ride the reverse of London Wales London to Severn Bridge. Means you'll need to head north a bit first.

Cudzoziemiec

  • Ride adventurously and stop for a brew.
Re: Route Request - London to Bristol!
« Reply #4 on: 21 June, 2019, 04:05:13 pm »
Once you're west of Newbury, the fastest, flattest and simplest route is to follow the A4 (which is pretty quiet at most times of day in this section) as far as Chippenham, then the A420 into Bristol. But you probably could have worked that out for yourself! And while not bad (certainly a lot nicer than it sounds), there are far nicer ways.

So, again starting from Newbury (can't you help you between there and London, sorry) go through Kintbury, Hungerford, cross the Thames in Hungerford and take the B4192 towards Chilton Foliat. After something like a mile and a half on a right hand bend with a house on the inside corner, turn left – visually straight on – to a minor road. A mile later where the road bends left you turn right into the grounds of Littlecote House (country hotel) (it's a public right of way and I've never had any trouble riding through even though it looks private). Follow the drive through the grounds and where it turns sharp left you go straight on following a track, quite rideable. This brings you onto a road at the bottom of a steep hill to your left: you turn right into Ramsbury. L at T, follow the road through Mildenhall (not that one!) into Marlborough. Coming into the town go straight on at the first X-roads then left at a T. This brings you into the town centre / market place. Turn right and follow the A4 for a few miles.

In West Kennet, before you pass the long barrow or Silbury Hill, turn right onto the road that leads along an avenue of standing stones into Avebury (expect many hippies at this time of year!). In Avebury take a left by the clump of trees just before the Red Lion, follow the road and some tracks (a bit bumpy but perfectly rideable on a road bike) through Yatesbury into Cherhill. Follow the lane out the back of Cherhill and then a bridleway past some gravel pits into Calne. From Calne there's a cycle route 403 on a disused railway line, pretty decent, taking you into Chippenham. Then through Biddestone and Colerne, down Bannerdown into Bath and Bristol-Bath Railway Path.
Riding a concrete path through the nebulous and chaotic future.

Re: Route Request - London to Bristol!
« Reply #5 on: 21 June, 2019, 04:08:08 pm »
Once you're west of Newbury, the fastest, flattest and simplest route is to follow the A4 (which is pretty quiet at most times of day in this section) as far as Chippenham, then the A420 into Bristol. But you probably could have worked that out for yourself! And while not bad (certainly a lot nicer than it sounds), there are far nicer ways.

So, again starting from Newbury (can't you help you between there and London, sorry) go through Kintbury, Hungerford, cross the Thames in Hungerford and take the B4192 towards Chilton Foliat. After something like a mile and a half on a right hand bend with a house on the inside corner, turn left – visually straight on – to a minor road. A mile later where the road bends left you turn right into the grounds of Littlecote House (country hotel) (it's a public right of way and I've never had any trouble riding through even though it looks private). Follow the drive through the grounds and where it turns sharp left you go straight on following a track, quite rideable. This brings you onto a road at the bottom of a steep hill to your left: you turn right into Ramsbury. L at T, follow the road through Mildenhall (not that one!) into Marlborough. Coming into the town go straight on at the first X-roads then left at a T. This brings you into the town centre / market place. Turn right and follow the A4 for a few miles.

In West Kennet, before you pass the long barrow or Silbury Hill, turn right onto the road that leads along an avenue of standing stones into Avebury (expect many hippies at this time of year!). In Avebury take a left by the clump of trees just before the Red Lion, follow the road and some tracks (a bit bumpy but perfectly rideable on a road bike) through Yatesbury into Cherhill. Follow the lane out the back of Cherhill and then a bridleway past some gravel pits into Calne. From Calne there's a cycle route 403 on a disused railway line, pretty decent, taking you into Chippenham. Then through Biddestone and Colerne, down Bannerdown into Bath and Bristol-Bath Railway Path.
That's incredibly helpful, I've got a fairly decent looking route into Newbury (near enough) but then the A4 seemed to be the only route aside from the cycle route that didn't just wiggle around.

I had intended to avoid it as I figured it'd e horribly busy but if that's not the case then super!

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Cudzoziemiec

  • Ride adventurously and stop for a brew.
Re: Route Request - London to Bristol!
« Reply #6 on: 21 June, 2019, 04:17:10 pm »
For a route without any tracks, try something like Rogerzilla's route to Oxford but stay a bit further south. If you head for Abingdon (but don't go into Abingdon) then East Hanney, West Hanney, Uffington, Shrivenham, Highworth – or cut Highworth and the climb out by going through Sevenhampton then then Stanton Fitzwarren – Broad Blunsdon, Purton, head for Great Somerford a few miles east of and south of Malmesbury, cross the A429 at Stanton St Quintin, through Grittleton, turn right onto the B4039 then left where it bends to the right just as you leave Burton, follow that road in a straight line, cross the A46 by the pub (the Crown?) and down Hinton Hill. Turn right as soon you get into Pucklechurch, up a short hill past the Star pub, left, right, left after the Rose and Crown, down the hill and left before the railway bridge takes you onto the cycle path (tarmac!) and into Bristol.
Riding a concrete path through the nebulous and chaotic future.

Cudzoziemiec

  • Ride adventurously and stop for a brew.
Re: Route Request - London to Bristol!
« Reply #7 on: 21 June, 2019, 04:19:35 pm »
Once you're west of Newbury, the fastest, flattest and simplest route is to follow the A4 (which is pretty quiet at most times of day in this section) as far as Chippenham, then the A420 into Bristol. But you probably could have worked that out for yourself! And while not bad (certainly a lot nicer than it sounds), there are far nicer ways.

So, again starting from Newbury (can't you help you between there and London, sorry) go through Kintbury, Hungerford, cross the Thames in Hungerford and take the B4192 towards Chilton Foliat. After something like a mile and a half on a right hand bend with a house on the inside corner, turn left – visually straight on – to a minor road. A mile later where the road bends left you turn right into the grounds of Littlecote House (country hotel) (it's a public right of way and I've never had any trouble riding through even though it looks private). Follow the drive through the grounds and where it turns sharp left you go straight on following a track, quite rideable. This brings you onto a road at the bottom of a steep hill to your left: you turn right into Ramsbury. L at T, follow the road through Mildenhall (not that one!) into Marlborough. Coming into the town go straight on at the first X-roads then left at a T. This brings you into the town centre / market place. Turn right and follow the A4 for a few miles.

In West Kennet, before you pass the long barrow or Silbury Hill, turn right onto the road that leads along an avenue of standing stones into Avebury (expect many hippies at this time of year!). In Avebury take a left by the clump of trees just before the Red Lion, follow the road and some tracks (a bit bumpy but perfectly rideable on a road bike) through Yatesbury into Cherhill. Follow the lane out the back of Cherhill and then a bridleway past some gravel pits into Calne. From Calne there's a cycle route 403 on a disused railway line, pretty decent, taking you into Chippenham. Then through Biddestone and Colerne, down Bannerdown into Bath and Bristol-Bath Railway Path.
That's incredibly helpful, I've got a fairly decent looking route into Newbury (near enough) but then the A4 seemed to be the only route aside from the cycle route that didn't just wiggle around.

I had intended to avoid it as I figured it'd e horribly busy but if that's not the case then super!

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It is horribly busy again between Chippenham and Bristol. As for the A420, depends on time of day of course, but it can get pretty busy between the A46 and Bristol. The route through Biddestone and Colerne is nice, if a bit steep in places.
Riding a concrete path through the nebulous and chaotic future.

Martin

Re: Route Request - London to Bristol!
« Reply #8 on: 21 June, 2019, 04:41:35 pm »
I was also going to suggest the LWL route as it's a nice quiet parallel to the M4, probably as far as Badminton,

although wouldn't that involve going up Streatley Hill?  :'(

You'd probably want to pick it up in Bourne End in which case there's a nice route from near Hounslow through Cranford and Sipson North of Heathrow (the London-Oxford BHF type ride used it) then through Datchet Eton and Dorney

Andrij

  • Андрій
  • Ερασιτεχνικός μισάνθρωπος
Re: Route Request - London to Bristol!
« Reply #9 on: 24 June, 2019, 09:45:23 am »
I've done it once.  Very, very early start (I'm in East London): A4 to Chippenham, A420 toward Bristol, then hopped on to the Bristol-Bath cycle route as I was aiming to Temple Meads Station.

Getting out of London was as expected, Reading was a little busy, but overall not that bad - if you don't mind bashing down A roads.  And the route makes for easy navigation. :)
;D  Andrij.  I pronounce you Complete and Utter GIT   :thumbsup: