...er, ask the STW hive mind.
Got a free day tomorrow. Cannot face the local Chilterns bog-fest but want to get the mtb out. Given the local ground conditions and works being carried out, which is the better option?
Sorry mtbfix, but what is QECP?
In regards to Swinley...As long as my bike is delivered in time myself and a friend are driving to Swinley on Sunday, you're more than welcome to join us.
QECP = Queen Elizabeth Country Park. Down Portsmouth way.
Half of Swinley is shut at the moment
I live 10 mins ride from QECP (Queen Elizabeth Country Park) and know it well enough to be pretty sure It's plain not worth it with the recent weather.
The chaps have done some amazing work there recently but the geology is still the same and it's bloody hard work this time of year.
Swinley will have coped much better and drains easier so I would go for that personally.
Half of Swinley being shut is an issue as I know it little enough. QECP also being wet is less appealing than getting filthy from the front door. Must it be a road jaunt then?
What about the Surrey Hills? They seem to be holding up pretty well to the recent weather
Rogate works well in the wet if you fancy a play on some short dh tracks, good fun last time i was there (a couple of years back now though).
You can string a good XC route around Rogate, and include the DH at the end. QECP will be muddy, but if you are prepared and happen to know the area well, then there is plenty of less muddy trails in the vicinity.
Don't know the area that well these days. Used to ride there a lot but that was in another life over a decade past.
QECP every time. It knocks spots off Swinley and the food in the cafe is loads nicer 😀
My memories of the cafe were a not insignificant lure, I must say.
As it transpires everyone in the house has woken up with a cold so bike activities may be limited to a trip to the lbs to pick up spares to fix a neighbour's bike.
Me and Superfli will be riding at QECP tonight, Really looking forwards to riding the same route as last week as we didn't get muddy. Heavy rain over the weekend to washout the steeper trails and a couple of dry days, just have to avoid the flat bits 🙂
If you're going to travel anyway I'm with Stiggy. Surrey Hills were pretty dry last week - way drier than anywhere else in the locale. It's obviously rained since but they may be a good bet on a drier-than-the-rest-average basis. And top tea and grub at Peaslake village stores too. 🙂
Swinley was horrid last night!
Did QE a few weeks ago. It was a bog. Hard going at best. No Fun. In the end we went off for 40k of the South Downs Way.