Today i was medically banned from driving for some 6-8 wks. Just cancelled my week’s Snowdonia riding trip as getting there/around looked a real hassle. So where is a great riding area (i like hard techy stuff)for a week centralised around a train station – considering i ride the Surrey Hills is this the place i’m looking for? But i need somewhere new i.e. a holiday.

Fort William?

The Surrey Hills is not the place you’re looking for.

Peak district has several train lines, one right through the heart of the dark peak (Edale, Hope, trivially accessible from Manc or Shef). A lot more than a weeks hard riding there.

It wouldn’t be my choice for a holiday in the traditional sense – although it’s lovely I find places like the Peaks and the Lakes too busy. But if you’re talking about a pure MTB holiday it would be great.

I did a week-long Peak District loop aided by some great trains. You can get to Edale cheap from Town off peak.

Fort William once the lift opens- OK so it’s a long way, but the train journey is superb.

Train to barmouth,lots of Band Bs,and caravans, then Coed Y Brennin, at Dolgellau a ride down the old railway line.

Peak District is incredibly easy, you can be on proper trails 5 minutes from Hope station, then the world is your oyster.

There are loads of options in Scotland. Aviemore is a great option for number of routes from a single base.

What did you get banned for?

Try queen elizabeth country park. Get the train to petersfield and ride to buriton, then up the hill. There has been a lot of work done on the trail there lately and it is going to be officially opened in may. The orange loop there is looking great 🙂 only one days riding though

Lake District. Stavely, Windermere & Penrith all have stations with epic rides within a mile or two.

What did you get banned for?

A couple of “funny turns”, so 6-8 wks for investigation/tests etc. Not good considering i drive for a living…

Be handy if you said where you lived…

+1 for the Peak. The Hope Valley line is what you want, great riding from most of the stations, and there are some nice places to stay too.

APF

Be handy if you said where you lived…

Oops, SW London – that’s why i ride the Surrey Hills primarily. The more i look into this train malarkey, the more i learn – didn’t know that i can take a fullsize bike on selected Tube lines for example. So Paddington/Euston/KingsCross is accessible theoretically… 😀

Garry_Lager – Member
The Surrey Hills is not the place you’re looking for.

He’s right. It’s just rubbish. Don’t come…

An option that might not be as techy as the SH but might be an alternative for train from SW London is Waterloo to Woking and then about 7 miles along the basingstoke canal gets you to a good point to enter the Tunnel Hill area.

Look at the 7 miles as a warm-up/warm-down…

double-post – oops

Paddington/Euston/KingsCross is accessible theoretically…

That gives you some pretty wide options then! West coast to Lakes or Peak’s via Manchester. Midland mainline (St Pancras) to Sheffield and the Peaks. If you time it right you can get to Hope from St Pancras in less than 3 hours..

Or do they still run the sleeper to Fort Bill? That would be a cool option.

Since you are London, for a day out just train out to Tring/Wendover/Princes Risbrough etc and ride around – loads of riding in the Chilterns. Or down Goring way and onto the Ridgeway to Swindon.

See this thread link here

For a day trip you can take the train to Poole and ride Purbecks, extend it a bit with rides in New Forest and over to IOW via train/ferry to Lymington, over to South Downs (e.g. Chichester or Ardundel). For a week though that’s a lot of time on different trains. I think Peak district is a very good recommendation.

For starting a useful thread (I don’t have a car and there’s a Lon Mid sale in April!) PM me if you want to pop up to the Chilterns, I live next to a station a nice ride away from Aston Hill. It’s not techy, but it is lovely riding.

Off to look up cost of trips to Hope…

paddington gives direct access to Port Talbot and Afan is just up the valley,

Tickets are cheap to Glasgow central. Right outside there’s a cycle route takes you straight to Loch Lomond. Back roads, ferry’s campsites, hostels, more cycle-paths, Ben Lomond, pubs, fish n chip shops, etc.

Train out to Cardiff/Port Talbot gives you access to Afan Argoed but there’s loads of natural riding round Cardiff area:
http://singletrackworld.com/trailguide/uk/wales/between-trail-centres-south-wales/
and further west still
http://singletrackworld.com/trailguide/uk/wales/the-gower/

Can base yourself in Cardiff for the social aspect and easy riding right from the city centre but still get trains from there out to Port Talbot and on to the Gower.

Alternatively, the Peak District has to be one of the most accessible decent MTB areas by train, easy from both Sheffield and Manchester with enough trails to last you months.

Combining the narrow gauge lines with national rail network you can get round most of Snowdonia. Agreed it could be a bit of a hassle moving kit and bikes.

Best lines in the Peak to ride from:
Sheffield Manchester line through the Hope Valley or Buxton to Manchester line. Macclesfield station gives you good access to the Macc Forest / SW Peak.
Rugeley / Cannock stations for Cannock Chase
Church Stretton for the Long Myndd
Craven Arms to Llanelli Line for quite a lot of mid wales riding.
Settle Carlisle Line for Yorkshire Dales
Aire Valley Line for S. Pennines and Dales
Calderdale Line for S. Pennines

Lot of the new v-graphics guide book rides for South Pennines seem to have station starts.

Esk Valley Line (to Whitby) for North Yorkshire Moors. Link with North Yorkshire Moors Railway to get to Dalby etc.

Thinking about it a bit more the Peak probably is the best call as you can then catch the train out to other areas. South and West Pennines both reasonably easy to access via Manchester. Reasonable trans peak rides can be done to or from Macclesfield / Sheffield / Chesterfield.

All good stuff, folks! Provisionally settled on Oxenholme to get to Staveley/W’mere, but the engineering being done on the mainline from London is really worrying me – a bus replacement service wouldn’t take my bike. So i need to get to the ticketoffice tomorrow to clarify things – here’s hoping…

Typical… can get a good fare on the train to Oxenholme, and bikespace BACK, but no space THERE. Nuts. Look for somewhere else now.

I don’t drive so I rely on trains. The peak district is ridiculously accessible by train from Sheffield or Manchester. The ticket guards are very bike friendly as well even helping me get my mud caked self and bike onto busy commuter trains when I have got my timings wrong.

That’s a shame about the tickets, I was going to say Kendal/Staveley would be my first choice.

Peak District would be good too though, trails looked like this a week or two ago when I stopped off for a day…

I’m sorted – eventually! Went into Town on the Tube as a testrun (no probs…), and the Virgin Desk at Euston was super-efficient. Reserved the bike on the train the phonebod said i couldn’t (?) and as a bonus the price was the same as the internet one!! Result (after a faff about)! 😀