Hi, I’ve joined to ask about any cycle routes between Bristol and Bath, that are off road. I know about the old railway path, but I’m hoping to be able to do a loop from Bristol to Bath and back, along a different route, if possible. Does anyone know of a good route? Not too difficult, as I’ll be carrying panniers.

Thanks

Most of the bridleways (certainly around Bath) are pretty rocky and rugged and would not suit panniers. They would also make your journey quite long. There is a route that goes out from Stockwood towards Queen Charlton and then Timsbury that you could eventually loop back to Bath via Newton St Loe, Wilmington, Englishcombe but it would be quite a trek!

You don’t say if this is commuting or leisure.

There are some good lanes and nice villages to cycle through if you want to go ‘on-road’

The New Kelston road cycle paths been open for a while now 🙂

Have to take the bike up some steps but other than that rather pleasant change.

Agreed My Doom, posted some pics on this thread:

Kelston

Thanks, I’ll have to research those places. What I had in mind was to come back along the Avon, as much as possible, and avoid roads. Doesn’t seem to be particularly easy, without at least coming back along the ralway path. Was just wondering if there’s a cycle-friendly alternative.

There are some nice paths along the Avon but they are mostly footpaths….

When you say ‘footpaths’, is cycling possible on them? Or just too much hassle? i’m quite happy to ignore silly ‘rules’ if there’s no real negative impact on other users.

If you incorporate the old railway you can put in a very nice loop with some very quiet country roads, not off road but perfect for what you want and very enjoyable.

When you say ‘footpaths’, is cycling possible on them? Or just too much hassle? i’m quite happy to ignore silly ‘rules’ if there’s no real negative impact on other users.

I could not advocate riding on footpaths but, the paths along the river are not used very much…

Keynsham to Bath has some reasonable paths, you may want to look at a map to get the best route. Look at the paths from: Willsbridge, Keynsham, Swineford, Saltford and onto Bath on the Avon rowing club side of the river. There are several places where you can hop onto the old railway path when you are out for your walk!

It’s only a dozen miles between the city centres, so if you avoid the railway path it will mean much of the journey is spent in city streets.
Yes, there is a footpath by the Avon from Bristol to Swineford but it gets very muddy indeed, and there are stiles to heave across.
If you don’t have the OS map, use Bing maps to plan- there is an OS option.

Thanks, that’s useful advice re the paths. I imagine they’d be inconsistent in turms of surface, so perhaps not ideal for my ride. The Sustrans site indicates that he Avon path is suitable for cycling from Hanham, but I’d like to find a route for the rest of the journey if possible.

There is a access along the river from St Anne’s through Avon Valley Woods right along to Willsbridge/Bitton where its quite easy to get on the cycle path at Bitton Railway. The path is technically a footpath between Checkers and Willsbridge and there are gates to negotiate. The surface wouldn’t be ideal for a commuter with panniers though. Quite bumpy and very muddy in wet weather. You could in theory put in a loop running one way right along the cycle path into bath then back through the kelston route mentioned above, on to Bitton then along the river right back into Bristol centre via the Feeder Canal.

I used to row along that stretch of river and I wouldn’t ride it – In several places, it’s muddy, overgrown, narrow, blocked by fishing rods and just not much fun on a bike.

As above, as much as it’s in the country, the main routes that are rideable are fairly focussed on the cities or towns. IMO, the best route is still the railway path unless you want to add a lot of extra miles (In which case there are some nice routes).

The plan was, to get into Bristol then ride to Bath and back, in time for my meeting in the evening. A loop would be more interesting, but it seems the best option woud be to simply return along the railway path. It’s a pity the Avon path hasn’t been better developed for cycling relly. I’d like to avoid roads as much as possible.

How are you getting to Bristol?
Why not take a train to, say, Bradford or Trowbridge then ride back?

There’s no reason to develop the Avon path for bikes, as it duplicates the cycle route and winds a lot, as rivers do. Look at the geography, the river & railways follow the valley between hills to the north & south. So avoiding the obvious routes means diverting into the hills.

I’m getting a train from Paddington to Temple Meads, but will have a few hours to kill, as my meeting isn;t until the evening. I’m coming in early to avoid the staggeringly expensive train fairs (£159!).

I’ll probably just use the railway path both ways. If the weather isn’t great, I might just get off at Bath and ride one way into Bristol.

You could change at Swindon, take one of the rare trains to Melksham, cut across to Bradford then ride to Bristol.
But its probably easier to backtrack from Bath on the train to Bradford – that’s a nice ride of 30 miles back to Bristol , much along the canal path.

I’m in Bristol so do Bristol to Bath most Sunday’s. It’s OK but tarmac. The bit from Bradford on Avon to Bath is much better, tow path and then you can go via Two Tunnels (brilliant) Devizes to Bradford on Avon is narrow and muddy. I did it on a fixed road bike on slicks, but it’s OK and the bit up the side of the locks is pretty darn good.

I did the railway path boh ways on Friday, and I have to say, it’s a fantastic route! Helped tremendously by the excellent weather! I got chating to a Sustrans campaigner, and will check out the other routes available in that area. The twin tunnels route sounds great.

Oh, and some of the commuters on the way back were lightning fast! At times it was like a bike race!