Another moon-on-a-stick question, if you don’t mind!

Not on too many main roads, but not too slow either, and not too many hills, as my cassette’s not turned up, so I’ll be on 48-16 the whole way.

Could handle some limited off road if it’s essential to the plot.

West then South, or South then West?

Hmmm, via Windsor? Not easy at all! Or pick up the Basingstoke Canal somewhere?

Not easy to pick a route, or not easy to cycle it?

I’m struggling a bit. I think I’m going to have to settle for more dual carraigeways than I’d like, or more towpaths than I’d like.

Yikes! Not nice.

Aha! Grand Union Canal to West Drayton, road to Weybridge for Basingstoke Canal. Safer surely?

That wasn’t the response I was hoping for, allthepies!

I’m thinking Richmond – Weybridge – Woking direction at the moment.

c_g – Sounds good! I shall take a look!

Well you can canal towpath it from Weybridge -> Tunnel Hill and then over the ranges to Ash 🙂

Or I did plot out a road route from Heathrow -> Ash, I’ll try and dig it out.

I used to ride along the A30 from Egham to Frimley, then down through Mytchett. That wasn’t so bad, from memory. I could put that on the end of the GU route.

atp, if it’s good and you can find it, that would be great!

Cheers!

I might try the GU Canal on the way back, but I can’t take too long getting there. Thinknig this at the moment, unless anyone has better suggestions for sections or wants to tell me about godawful hills I’ve forgotten about:

N4 to GU12

London won’t be the nicest ride ever, but should be quiet at 6am.

Edit – clickthrough code doesn’t work, but copy pastey does, if anyone fancies a look.

What’s the purpose of the route? Do you just need to go from A-B or do you want to ride a nice route so would consider A-C-B? If so why not get the train through/out of London and miss out all the crap? You could get the train to High Wycombe, Newbury, or Crawley for example and pretty much guarantee yourself some lovely country lane riding.

Don’t know about HW, but Newbury to Ash would be relatively flat, Crawley to Ash could take in the Surrey Hills and get a bit hilly.

I guess if you’re leaving that early you might not have the option…

I’d get on the A316 at Chiswick, all the way to Hanworth, then round the back of kempton park cross A308 and take Thames street on N bank of river through to A224 Nr Shepperton, then S over Walton bridge and down to Weybridge.

From Weybridge there’s well surfaced tow path all the way to Pirbright, in fact the tow path route isn’t much slower than road and far more pleasant

More A-B really. I need to be in Ash by 9, to help my brother redo my mum’s garden path. Nice idea though, I’ll have a think. Thing is, though, the ride’s more for the sake of doing it, and I’m prone to taking the easy option. If I get to the station, I’ll just end up getting a train straight there, and once I’m stood at the ticket machine, a return’s the same price as a single…

hilldodger, I’ll have a look at that. You sound like the kind of guy whose advice I should be following!

If you want to cut out the least well surfaced bit of tow path, then from Weybridge to Woking via West Byfleet and get on the canal there.
Woking westwards is all Sustransed up with a well drained hardpack surface which rides well.