i'm at a loose end this saturday - the gf's working, i've got the car and i can't drum up any riding buddies. i want to get out on the bike somewhere proper, and i'm considering setting off early from north london, riding the summit at Afan for the day and then driving back afterwards.
all in all i'll probably be lucky to keep it to 7 hours of driving for less than that on the trails when i get there. what do you reckon - is it worth it? if not, where would you suggest that will reduce the driving time but still be worth the effort?
Personally, I wouldn't! How about asking on here for someone to meet for a North Downs blast?
once i have a working combination of knee and car its pretty much how i intend to spend every weekend (ohh the joys of being single) !
s'pose it really depends on what you consider to be a long drive - I regularly do that on a daily basis for mettings etc. so wouldn't bat an eyelid at it
I agree with Dez, jump on the M25 go east and head towards to Leith Hill\Holmbury Hill area (junction 8 ) - it took me 1:15 each way from Hackney last weekend...
I wouldn't do it, but then I don't have to. 😛
Anything over a couple of hours drive I would want to stay over and do something the next day too to make it worthwhile.
I quite often do Afan on a day raid from that London's famous London. Best if you have two or three people on board to share the fuel costs and driving, as well as to keep you company.
Leave at about 0700, and with a decent run, you can be on the trails not long after about 1030. Tidy.
oooh, tricky - good points by one and all. i do like the north downs, but the thought of a more epic adventure does appeal.
haha - how, captain? what's occurring? tidy.
ok, any more options or proposals than the north downs or the wales?
Yes, its ridiculous. Buy a road bike and go out on a ride from your doorstep.
that's very tempting but i think anything that involved buying another bike would mean that the girlfriend would not last long...
[i]finbar - Member
Yes, its ridiculous. Buy a road bike and go out on a ride from your doorstep.
[/i]
Gagh! Spit! Thats for the winter! That suggestion has changed my mind, do it, get in the car and hit the mountains.
I have often driven from Yorkshire to Coed for a day's riding by myself (don't like riding 'natural' by myself in case of incident). I would do it 🙂
i'm really leaning towards just going for it. bit of an adventure.
obviously if anyone wants to meet about 10.30ish and ride the summit trail then they're more than welcome to get on board. 🙂
Not quite sure how driving for several hours to get to a trail centre qualifies as an adventure.
send out an apb for stw'ers to rendezvous at high barnet train station and drum up some new chums to ride with, there must be somebody in the dirty old town keen to go with.
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Not quite sure how driving for several hours to get to a trail centre qualifies as an adventure
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Driving anywhere alone is an adventure for me. I always get lost.
Not quite sure how driving for several hours to get to a trail centre qualifies as an adventure.
i've never even left london before, i'm pretty nervous 🙂
Head up to Afan friday evening, B&B for night ride all day sat then drive back to the smoke sat evening....sorted!
Never left London before! LOL! 😆
Personally, i don't like to drive for longer than i ride, so 6 or 7 hrs in the car for a 3 or 4 hr ride is the wrong equation for me.
I'd be more tempted to do chilterns, north downs or Swinley forest.
Enjoy your day's riding whatever.
Leave Friday night, sleep in the car in the carpark get up early and have a full day on the trails.....or get yourself on the train down to Winchester and head for Brighton on the SDW (further if yoiu have the legs) and the train home...
I've done Birmingham to Glentress and back in a day a couple of times. I'd rather do that drive than Brum - Afan and back any day
Leave friday night and bivvy.
I've done Birmingham to Glentress and back in a day a couple of times.
Bloody hell! Thought cycling was meant to be an environmentally friendly sport! 😛
Is it?
Indeed, I thought it was about riding bikes, not some eco-statement.
Bloody hell! Thought cycling was meant to be an environmentally friendly sport
What? - with all those fancy imported components?
Nah not really - cycling to work instead of driving probably is though.
It just seems completely nuts to me to drive that far for a day trip, but then I would never live in Birmingham and it's only 30 mins to Staveley in the Lakes for me. 😀
Yes - ridiculous.
Instead, spend the day working out how you can move house, find a new job and live somewhere where you can ride from your doorstep.
Or, if you can't face that - take a train. From N London you can have a nice day out in the Chilterns without wasting too much time traveling. You could get a train to somewhere like Wendover, do a big southerly loop and end up somewhere like Great Missenden and catch the train back. Lot of nice pubs for lunch in places like Monk's Risborough, Fingest, Christmas Common, Bryant's Bottom etc. Go buy yourself an OS map of the area today and you can spend a happy hour or two planning a route between now and the weekend.
It has the [i]potential[/i] to be relatively low impact if practised sensibly. I reckon that's about all you can say. 🙂
Personally, the idea of sitting in a car for 7 hours to get a few hours riding in at a trail centre strikes me as completely and utterly insane. There is no way, absolutely no way, I would do it. But hey. 🙂
You asked for a different plan. I'd take the train down from Waterloo to Leatherhead on Friday night, then ride from Leatherhead out to Tanners Hatch YHA on the edge of Ranmore and stay there, either haul supper stuff and a few beers up with me or walk into Westcott for supper. Up good and early Saturday, ride down off the hill in the morning and do a huge Surrey Hills loop finishing up in Dorking. Train back to Waterloo. Travelling time of about 2 hours, tops.
Instead, spend the day working out how you can move house, find a new job and live somewhere where you can ride from your doorstep.
easier said than done, although i am addressing this!
BD, it's a fair point...
I agree with Dez, jump on the M25 go east and head towards to Leith Hill\Holmbury Hill area (junction 8 ) - it took me 1:15 each way from Hackney last weekend...
Did you not have to stop for an extortionately overpriced breakfast at Clacket Lane, first?
Something tells me you've gone and bought a silly, fast car, too.. 🙄
Swinley? Failing that, my preferred plan for Afan is to head up there the night before, stop in a cheap B&B/ hotel (Holiday Inn Swansea works for me if you can get a cheap rate), then do a couple of rides and head back home for 8pm.
Bish bash, and indeed, bosh.
That is a days driving with a tiny bit of biking thrown in to break it up. If you hardly get out of London then I can understand you wanting to go, but if it was me then I'd stay over night. Get yourself in a B&B or a Hostel, that would make it more of an adventure.
Or ride closer to home. You have a full free day, make the most of it by maximising your riding time. I'd rather ride a mountain bike on the road than spend all that time sitting in a car!!
interesting proposals and even an offer of some beers with BD! decisions decisions...
I thought London was the best place in the country for mountain biking anyway - Rudeboy?
Two hours on the train from Euston:
[url= http://www.lilybankfarmcottage.co.uk ]www.lilybankfarmcottage.co.uk[/url]
I can promise epic rides!
oooh, tempting NDT - do a free intro day and i'll come back on here and tell everyone how good it was! 🙂
Go on then! When do you want to visit?
really? er... this saturday? let me just check how i'd get there!
If you come by train I can pick you up from Stockport. Although I bet all the cheap tickets will be gone by now.
how long a ride can we do?
edit - do you or does anyone else know the deal with taking bikes on those trains? the online form doesn't list details about whether/how you pay extra...
Depends on how long you stay for! Anything between 5 minutes (great little loop from the front door!) to 8 hours+. I would recommend about 4 1/2 hours since it is very hilly but don't mind longer. All of it great stuff if you like steep rocky riding! Got Saturday free so you can choose.
ive been to afan, rode the long route ( is that the skyline?) amd back on a horrible rainy, cold cant see more than 20 metres in front of you, wind blowing you backwards kind of day.. And my mate was on a Sx trail. I live just north of london...
So of course you can do it...
RB yeah it's silly and fast...
Basically you get a ticket (it is free) for the bike when you buy the train ticket and the only way of doing it properly is to go to the station, don't think they will do it online (definately not Trainline).
ok, NDT - how about we say i get the train to stockport for about 10, get out and do a 5 hour sort of effort and then i get the train back at 17:43? the techier the better!
No problem. Send me an email with the times and I'll pick you up. 17.43 is pushing it since you won't have time for a nice after-ride pint without feeling a bit rushed. But if that is the time you have got then it is definately doable.
blimey, well sounds like a plan then. let me just double check the trains and i'll email you. there we go, an adventure! 🙂
STW = win! Brilliant!
Much more of an adventure and much better plan that spending the best part of a day in a car on your own.
😀
wow, well i've bought the tickets so i hope you're being serious!
i'll email you now with the details. 🙂
Have you ever seen that film Hostel? 😛
Of course I'm serious!
(Grumm, shhh...don't spoil the plan!)
Don't you just love it when a plan comes to together? (or gets completely changed and ends up being better!)
Have a good one. This has been the most enjoyable thread of the day 🙂
Edit: yes. even nicer than Ton's poo thread (ergh, poo thread)
I think this is the [s]only[/s] most positive thing that's ever come out of this forum.
I'd better make sure he has a nice time now since otherwise it might spoil this fantastic thread!
i'm sure i will! hope the weather's like it is today! 🙂
Can I come too?
[i]i'm sure i will! hope the weather's like it is today![/i]
Oh bugger
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I could just about get driving to Afan for a day in the Winter, when local riding is so shite, and road riding is just too cold and miserable to be contemplated, then and only then could you perhaps justify the time and energy to get to Wales from London. But this time of year? when all around you are dusty hard packed summer trails?
Sure Rudeboy, of course you can come. Can only do one pick up and drop off at the station though.
Weather forecast shows a bit of sun and 24 degrees....maybe too optimistic!
RB - Three's a crowd 🙂
DezB - Memberi'm sure i will! hope the weather's like it is today!
Oh bugger
getting better!
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it will sort itself by the weekend 🙂
well i made it safe and sound with bike on train thanks to my diversion to euston to sort out ticket on fri.
had a cracking time, was chauffeur-driven from stockport station by dave and then had a brilliant day! my guides for the day were both excellent, well up on all the quality local routes, lots of rocky climbs and descents with some suitably steep ups and downs. both of them were very skilled and quickly made me realise that everyone who regularly rides around those parts can not only ride a bike properly but is also ridiculously fit. i have since re-evaluated my fitness levels!
on top of that, emmy's b&b is in an amazing location with testing (as i found out!) descent right to the front door and miles and miles of trails starting and finishing right outside. the perfect base for mtbing and excellent care was taken of me from start to finish, including super cake as a mid-ride lunch treat and a generous (dave-portion) feed at the end of the day. cool dog as well!
great stuff and thanks again to both the hosts of my last-minute excursion!
Glad you enjoyed our local trails theflatboy. I'm not as fit as NDT. yet even I have a go.
I can even vouch that the cake is superb.
Don't tell everyone though 'cos they'll all want to come. Lol.
It was quite funny because at the start of the ride I was about to say how relatively undiscovered the area is but I'm really glad I didn't since as it happens we saw probably 30 other mountain bikers (out on an Evans event I think) and 50 (!!!) horses on a special outing! Never seen the area so busy!
Glad you enjoyed it Andy, and hope to see you again, there are plenty more trails out there. No need to get any fitter!
Dave