Routes in and out of London from Chelmsford area...

[jiberjaber]

So my plan of a relatively peaceful ride across London with train assist has been thwarted by them PIA train track maintainers...  Original plan was to ride to Shenfield, Oyster to Liverpool Street, then a saunter across and up to Carshalton... a comfortable and reversible 45km to finish off my Festive 500km...

Now thanks to rail bus replacement, I am facing either driving or a longer cycle of 80km.  I've done a few ways in to London and then across before, but was content with the train assist as it cut out a chunk of none scenic urban pot holed roads...

I'm hoping to give my new single speed a run out, so an often used route down to Tilbury and then ferry/Kent lumps and North Downs isn't high on my list.  I've done the Blackmore/Navestock/Noaks Hill rout a few times before including COR, I've also done the Brentwood-Warley Hill route. I'm keen to avoid the Romford ring road of hell plus a long slog along the A13 CS3. 

I think I'm fine with the central London bit along Embankment etc and I don't mind a bit of a slog up CS7 but I'd like to avoid the misery along the various congested high streets... The blue lanes are great until you hit the shopping bits and it becomes a parking lane!

So looking for pointers on suggestions please? 

TL;DR:
Looking for suggestions/improvements on a Chelmsford to Carshalton route which is single speed friendly where I won't be stabbed or ran over and has some interesting view other than row after row of terrace houses on pothole roads... 

The two routes I've come up with so far are:

Not as nice a start and via Brentwood: https://ridewithgps.com/routes/18188384

Nicer start via Blackmore: https://ridewithgps.com/routes/18192350

[psyclist]

Your routes both go through Gidea Park, where I grew up. From there to the City no route will be particularly nice.

Two suggestions. Firstly you could route via Loughton from Blackmore, and then either head towards the centre using the reverse of the Dunwich Dynamo route, or into Chingford and pick up the N1, an offroad but solid path alongside the River Lea. If the latter, I can give you my commuting route that'll get you into either the City or the West End.

Secondly, you could head down to the Greenwich foot tunnel. That'll then give you multiple options to pick a nicer route south of the river, but it will be more undulating so perhaps not your preference given the bike choice.

As an aside, are any of your Festive 500 rides at around 200km? I'm looking to do a couple over the period to kill 3 birds with one stone ... Festive 500 badge, start a third RRtY 2 months before the end of my second so that I can align my double RRtY rides to the Oct-Sept year for next year (without riding 3 x 200km for 5 months on the trot), and build my fitness.

[Jurek]

Greenwich foot tunnel  to Coulsden can be pretty much hill free, thusly:
Greenwich High  Street, Brookmill Road, Friendly Street, Wickham Road, Crofton Park, Brockley Rise, Cranston Road, Perry Hill, Bell Green Lane, Kent House Lane, Thesiger Road, Green Lane, Croydon Road, Penge Road, Selhurst Road, Sydenham Road, Dingwall Road, George Street, High Street and then the A 235 all the way to Coulsden.

Its a route I ride regularly (to my sister) .
If you PM me an email addy, I can send you a gpx file.

[jiberjaber]

I'm trying to take a rest from Audax over the Xmas break and stick to daylight where I can, so max distance is 130km... there all up North too as that's where I am so hoping the wind will die down tomorrow else it will be a long 80km as I turn in to it to head back to where I started... 

I only need about 75km on Friday to make the 500 (assuming I don't get blown in to the North Sea tomorrow - plus I get out Xmas & Boxing day!)

I've done the Greenwich tunnel as well as the Woolwich ferry before.  I think the foot tunnel ride routed me along the hell of the A13 CS3 in to a strong SW with a lack of hedgerow when required (comfort stop!)

Chelmsford to Carshalton Woolwich Ferry edition
https://www.strava.com/activities/458143256

Miserable version
https://www.strava.com/activities/234150523

This was a Cambridge to London ride Adam Bell put on last year which I think has the route you mention on it (a bit of DD plus something similar to your commute) ? https://www.strava.com/activities/448615192

[jiberjaber]

Greenwich foot tunnel  to Coulsden can be pretty much hill free, thusly:
Greenwich High  Street, Brookmill Road, Friendly Street, Wickham Road, Crofton Park, Brockley Rise, Cranston Road, Perry Hill, Bell Green Lane, Kent House Lane, Thesiger Road, Green Lane, Croydon Road, Penge Road, Selhurst Road, Sydenham Road, Dingwall Road, George Street, High Street and then the A 235 all the way to Coulsden.

Its a route I ride regularly (to my sister) .
If you PM me an email addy, I can send you a gpx file.

Thats quite a lot of road names to trace out, a GPX would be splendid, PM sent 

[Jurek]

GPX sent to email addy.

[psyclist]

This was a Cambridge to London ride Adam Bell put on last year which I think has the route you mention on it (a bit of DD plus something similar to your commute) ? https://www.strava.com/activities/448615192

That route veers off the River Lea footpath soon after Tottenham Hale. You can continue much further on the path. Indeed if you are heading for the Greenwich foot tunnel, it'll take you most of the way there. Plenty of hedges along the way too

To get to the West End, I would head down to Victoria Park and then follow the Regents Canal to Angel, from where there's a quiet route that is part of the London Cycle Network that'll get you to Oxford Circus. Alternatively to get into the City, I would leave the River Lea at Lea Bridge Road, and use side streets and London Fields to get into the City. My route from the M25 to the City involves just 4 traffic lights, which gives you a feel for how few major roads are encountered. Happy to create a GPX for this part of the route, once you're settled on the broad route.

[bobb]

It would be great if someone could come up with the "Ultimate way into London from the east". I've done it loads of times, but I've always just headed in the general direction of London. Inevitably, I always end up on one of the main roads. I'm sure with careful planning a more pleasant route could be found....

[jiberjaber]

GPX sent to email addy.

Thanks for that.  I would need to circumvent Stab City (Croydon) though either across it or before it to get to Carshalton.  I think I rode something similar through Stab Village (just South of Grenwich, Ladywell) which was a bit hairy!
https://www.strava.com/activities/275376814

This was a Cambridge to London ride Adam Bell put on last year which I think has the route you mention on it (a bit of DD plus something similar to your commute) ? https://www.strava.com/activities/448615192

That route veers off the River Lea footpath soon after Tottenham Hale. You can continue much further on the path. Indeed if you are heading for the Greenwich foot tunnel, it'll take you most of the way there. Plenty of hedges along the way too

To get to the West End, I would head down to Victoria Park and then follow the Regents Canal to Angel, from where there's a quiet route that is part of the London Cycle Network that'll get you to Oxford Circus. Alternatively to get into the City, I would leave the River Lea at Lea Bridge Road, and use side streets and London Fields to get into the City. My route from the M25 to the City involves just 4 traffic lights, which gives you a feel for how few major roads are encountered. Happy to create a GPX for this part of the route, once you're settled on the broad route.

I've just glued together the Cambridge and my present through London bit, there's still some lumps at Theydon Boys plus I do remember not enjoying the Dalston bit on wards - so that quieter route you mention might be useful.  I was trying to make this a bit minimalist in terms of distance - it seems to be growing legs!

https://ridewithgps.com/routes/18195838

It would be great if someone could come up with the "Ultimate way into London from the east". I've done it loads of times, but I've always just headed in the general direction of London. Inevitably, I always end up on one of the main roads. I'm sure with careful planning a more pleasant route could be found....

Yes - that would be great! 

[Jurek]

It would be great if someone could come up with the "Ultimate way into London from the east". I've done it loads of times, but I've always just headed in the general direction of London. Inevitably, I always end up on one of the main roads. I'm sure with careful planning a more pleasant route could be found....

I admire your optimism, Bobb.
Albeit I'm not an E Londoner (Sarf East- FTW!) I'm not sure that there is a kushty route in / out from the east.
You could probably cobble something together using canal paths, but that would be lugubrious and, frankly, a pain and not exactly progressive.
Ham, Jo, Andrij, Mr. L and one or two others from the east london massive may be able to come up with something more useful as it is more their patch than it is mine.
G'luck.

[Wowbagger]

Auntie Helen rode from Colchester to London as the final leg of her Brandenburg Gate to Trafalgar Square trip of a few years ago. I was one of the outriders and I have to say that the bit of the ride which involved the Bow Interchange was an unmitigated pain in the arse.

[Jurek]

@Wowbagger - indeed, I haven't forgotten being an escort on that ride - totally doable, but not one for the faint-hearted.
It isn't one you are likely to add to your list of 'Rides I have enjoyed'.

@ Jibber Jabber - your stab fear of regions south  of the river is mostly folklore and unfounded.

[jiberjaber]

In the particular one referenced above (Ladywell) it was a close thing! Before Essex I was a resident of various South London areas.... Of which some I was quite comfortable in, but there again, I do come from Middlesbrough

[Jurek]

Ladywell, these days, is a sea of chi-chi cafes serving more coffees whose names don't include the word 'coffee' than you can think of.

[jiberjaber]

Ladywell, these days, is a sea of chi-chi cafes serving more coffees whose names don't include the word 'coffee' than you can think of.

It was only March in 2015... it looks like the google car couldnt make it in to the place I am talking about (Slagrove Place) but there was an excellent photo opp there with a big home made sign asking residents not to flytip in the street, under which someone had then flytipped - it was too dodgy to get my phone out to take the picture due to the gangs and staffy dogs there.... maybe there's been a bit of a clean up since then, after all I can remember the Roundshaw estate being cleaned up in a couple of years!

[αdαmsκι]

I don't often ride into London, but here's the route I take when escaping the smog from near the Greenwich foot tunnel to Blackmore and beyond. I've ridden it on my fixed gear bike countless times. The roads are a combination of residential streets and decent larger roads, with an escape to the country as quickly as possible.  After 5+ years of practice it's my default route.

Click for the route. (I realise you won't be starting in Cambridge, but I couldn't be bothered reducing the route.)

[Jurek]

^
With one or two minor deviations, that would be my route of choice

[bhoot]

It would be great if someone could come up with the "Ultimate way into London from the east".

We have this problem too - like Adamski we are usually trying to escape out of London, from the Isle of Dogs and often heading to Essex, and the possibly returning. Actually outbound (if early enough in the morning) isn't too bad really as there isn't much traffic around. I have tried several of the routes shown in this thread and all have their advantages/disadvantages, although generally we don't use the Lee Valley outbound as it does tend to feel slow. In practice it might not be as bad as it feels as there aren't too many traffic lights!
We often try to return at least part way by train, Shenfield is my favourite for optimum combination of train journey time/cost and reduction of dreary riding. However when we do have to ride all the way back in, unlike Jiber Jaber, we don't mind the A13 route too much as it's probably the least bad option, and also works OK if coming from a bit further east, eg Maldon/Billericay. However rather than follow all the way through to Canning Town we tend to go down via Beckton and then along the dock past Excel which is nicer but a bit longer. I also commute out to Rainham this way one day per week so I know it quite well.
Now if we had infrastructure like the Netherlands none of this would really be a problem.....

[jiberjaber]

So, I've been blending again, latest take is the following taking some of the existing, some of Adamski, some of Andrew and (although I will probably regret it!) some following the Wandle up to Carshalton.  I'm sure I did that last time and I was in the dark and up to my eyes in mud!

https://ridewithgps.com/routes/18199223

Anyway, bonus marks for mid way stop Victoria Park cafe if required