Looking to ride this end of the month, but wondering what’s the best way to navigate? I don’t want to (can’t be arsed) upload GPX route to Garmin 800, so quite happy to follow a paper map (I can use Garmin as a backup). Would like to be pretty relaxed route and stop where I feel, rather than having to ride set route every day. Anyone got any real world experiences?

I did this many years ago (17-18 to be precise) before sat nav etc.

Although i didn’t get involved with the route planning, i know the planner got hold of the route off of the British cycling club

We did 1013 miles in 13 days and it was great, planning on doing it again next year

I did LEJOG before owning a GPS…

I bought a super-scale road atlas, tore out the relevant pages, and marked the rough route with a highlighter. I put the maps in a waterproof holder on my bars. Worked a treat, and I don’t recall ever getting lost.

CTC now Cycling UK used to have a dedicated Lejog forum and offer advice for cyclists organising tours like this, would be worth giving them a look.

Doesn’t Sustrans do a route map?

Yes, a book, here: http://www.sustrans.org.uk/shop/route-maps-guides/end-end-cycle-route-lands-end-john-ogroats

Actually a cycling pal of mine rode from Lancashire to Cornwall and back using Google Maps; he just inputed the postcode for the day’s destination YHA or hotel, asked for a route, turned off the screen and stuck an earphone in his ear. He says it took him down some lovely, unexpected routes.

We used a combination of the torn out pages of a big scale road atlas and google maps on my phone. We tended in the end just to plan day by day, fairly often within the day. Most days required very little in the way of directions anyway and when there were a lot of junctions we tended to be on google maps.

Using Google’s “on foot” route planning option for shorter sections can be a good way to pick nice direct routes on small quiet roads. Poor mobile reception was no problem because we had a paper map backup, but in the end I don’t remember it coming to that.

We reckoned our route was pretty much exactly 1000 miles, via Arran, keeping off A roads as much as possible, and with a couple of small detours to stay with family/friends en route.

A30 , M5, M6, M74, M73, A9.
Ask for directions at Inverness.

CTC have a dedicated LEJOG forum board

Road map suggestions is the best. Have a look through the various maps, pick one without all the pointless speed camera crap then mark the route on it in highlighter, tear out the pages and maybe write out some town names to stick to the bars/stem. That way you can still go off-route easily without a Garmin beeping at you.

Asking Google maps to give you quiet roads, tracks etc will often work out quite well but watch out that it doesn’t direct you 8 miles along tracks simply to avoid a mile of road.

a cycling pal of mine rode from Lancashire to Cornwall and back using Google Maps;

That’s not gonna work in the Scottish Highlands