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If you're working around Westminster (Marsham St?) do yourself a favour and get yourself here for a breakfast or lunch: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Regency_Caf%C3%A9
I worked in that area for seven years and its got a few good pubs and Victoria St has improved greatly but more of the fun is to be had elsewhere in the city. Don't discount Waterloo or London Bridge bound trains as its a nice walk/cycle across one of the bridges to and from work.
I preferred South East in terms of quieter more normal vibe and more affordable but others love north of the river. I guess you end up liking where you live.
You'll have days, weeks and months of loving/hating the place and it can be lonely despite the crowds. Having said that you'll never be bored and will pinch yourself sometimes.
Try and avoid going into the city centre every weekend just because it's there as the crowds might get to you. Try and do what you'd be doing now if that makes sense e.g. chilled weekends riding trails in the countryside etc.
Enjoy.
For local clubs you've got Addiscombe CC, Dulwich Paragon, Bigfoot Bikes....
If you end up in Clapham, give me a shout and I'll take you out on some Croydon trails. I think there a couple of localish forumites so we'll see if we can get a group out.
For actual rock climbing/bouldering Harrison's Rocks in Kent is good.
Im in SW1V the other side of a big road, for climbing the vauxhall climbing centre would be handy if you are commuting brixton/ clapham area, a stop on the way.
Yeah, take copious amounts of valium so Londoners don't make you so angry that you shoot up a bank.
Get some noise cancelling earphones surgically implanted in your head so you can live entirely in your own bubble as though you are the only human being in the universe. Practice your tube travelling skills by putting your feet up on your furniture and dropping your trash on your carpet rather than in the nearby bin. If you are interested in art, get some good books so you can look at the paintings that you didn't see in the gallery because 10 million other people were standing in front of you.
TheBrick - Member
Cycling in London is always worth it. 90% of the time it's significantly faster. It's cheaper. It's more pleasant. It's gives you freedom. It exercise built into your day.
This ^^
Get some noise cancelling earphones surgically implanted in your head so you can live entirely in your own bubble as though you are the only human being in the universe. Practice your tube travelling skills by putting your feet up on your furniture and dropping your trash on your carpet rather than in the nearby bin. If you are interested in art, get some good books so you can look at the paintings that you didn't see in the gallery because 10 million other people were standing in front of you.
Or ignore all that ^ stuff and explore. London is one of the greenest cities in the world, 38.4% green public space, compared to say Paris, where it's only 9.4%. Sure, if you go to the Southbank on a sunny Saturday there will be a lot of people around, but that means that there's nearly always something going on there, from Christmas markets and foodie festivals to music or comedy. If you want something quieter you can still go and explore the remoter parts of Richmond Park, Hampstead Heath or Walthamstow Marshes. And if there are too many people at the Tate Modern or the Science Museum then try the White Cube or the Horniman Museum, or one of the thousands of independent galleries. If you like beer, don't sit in a crowded central London pub, but go to Bermondsey and visit 5 or 6 microbreweries in one afternoon. If all the tourists at Borough Market get you down then head for Maltby Street or Brixton Village instead. That's the great thing about London, there's always another (often better) option to be explored, there's something for nearly everyone if you look hard enough.
And if you want to get out, it's about 20 minutes from Crystal Palace by road bike until you're in country lanes, and another half an hour or so until you're standing on the top of Ide Hill, looking out across the Weald of Kent.
Don't get wound up about how other people ride their bikes, you're not there to be everyone's policeman. Conversely be prepared for 'helpful advice' about how you ride your bike- too fast, too slow, using a bike lane, not using a bike lane etc etc delete as appropriate. You'll see it all eventually. You are sharing a city with 7 million other randoms, some of them are going to be jerks
Mortlake or Sheen? Great transport links, easy ride into SW1. River, Richmond Park, great pubs 🙂
I'm in Barnes - it's ace.
Some good links to various clubs here:
Always something going on, never a dull moment.
SW1P = only tip is to use [url= http://www.caskpubandkitchen.com/ ]Cask[/url] as your local
Londons full of interesting sights and acitvities beyond the usual tourist traps, make time to explore there's so much more to do and see
(for example the Huntarian Museum)
I used to stay in Wandsworth - without a tube, it was much cheaper, and handy for the west. Pay close attention to your cycling routes - avoid the main roads and pinch points and you'll wonder what all the fuss is about. And you'll see amazing stuff.
I'd be tempted to get a dynamo for my bike with fixed lights, a frame bag for my lock, and a rack with some kind of shoulder back that fixes to it to make things as seamless as possible. I find myself locking up and hopping in and out of places a lot, so improving this process saves a lot of faff. Also a decent bell really helps - a loud one, not the crappy ping ping thing you normally get.
Oh and when cycling, don't get carried away. Lots of riders, both old and young, are very aggressive (in terms of riding) so are weaving in and out of cars and other cyclists - for an example, try Chelsea embankment/Grosvenor road at hometime. You can still ride fast but it's worth backing off when things get tight, imo. You don't want to be a statistic.
As a follow up to @molgrips, have friends who live in Wandsworth and commute via the overground train although OP your Westminster work location isn't so convenient for that. Easy bike ride in from there. My daughter lives in Peckham and cycles in via the superhighway (note she says other agressive cyclists are her biggest danger, so take care and if you do want to ride fast remember someone else's child may not)
Chapeau @nick/hans for the number of bikes 🙂 I kept one in a duffbag at the back of a big wardrobe and was pleased with myself - modest standards obviously.
Climbing, have an ex colleague who is a big climber, used to practice on a wall under the Westway/A40 I think. Loads of mates ride road bikes, London Dynamos, and do regular rides out and and round Richmond Park before work. If you don't know Surrey Hills look at some shop rides from say Nirvana in Westcott (my LBS), Pedal and Spoke in Peaslake or the facebook group London's Calling. For bits and work in London I used the excellent Soho Bikes.
used to practice on a wall under the Westway/A40
They turned that into a full-on and rather large climbing centre many years ago:
http://sports.westway.org/climbing
Rents tend to very geared to public transport links, you can therefore rent in some areas, which have poor transport links, but are pretty central relatively cheaply if you are depending on a bike for transport. If depending on public transport I would focus on South London as trains going directly into Victoria are what you want - avoiding the bunfight at Clapham Junction to change from Waterloo trains to Victoria trains. This would rule out the SW such as Putney, Barnes, Richmond etc, which are lovely, I live there, but expensive for relative inconvenience.
Croydon was mentioned earlier. The transport links are fantastic and the trains run all night. There is biking from your doorstep and it must be a lot cheaper than living in town.
You can always hang out with the MBR lot too. 😉
@molgrips, I think I was underselling it the as my ex-colleague is quite a serious climber
Oh and when cycling, don't get carried away. Lots of riders, both old and young, are very aggressive (in terms of riding) so are weaving in and out of cars and other cyclists - for an example, try Chelsea embankment/Grosvenor road at hometime. You can still ride fast but it's worth backing off when things get tight, imo. You don't want to be a statistic.
This.
Ignore RLJs and students wobbling through junctions with their headphones on. There's no shortage of rat runs either. Bizarrely I felt safer riding in zones 1 & 2 than further out. This was a few years back tho, so please don't treat as gospel.
@molgrips, I think I was underselling it the as my ex-colleague is quite a serious climber
Ah.. well it used to be literally just a wall, outside under the underpass.
Bizarrely I felt safer riding in zones 1 & 2 than further out.
The small roads are safe, it's the big ones that are mental. Edgeware Rd, as an example.
Definitely look to cycle.
Here's me and a bunch of others spaffing on about how marvelous it is:
http://singletrackworld.com/forum/topic/commuting-by-bike-a-happy-3-year-adds-up
my other tip would be to ignore the doom mongers and naysayers who visited once and who’s sole experience of the city is madame tussauds and a Hagen-Daz ice cream from Leicester square.
it’s whatever you want it to be. i’m mostly sat in my home office looking out at the trees or the pair of peregrine falcons on the transmitter mast or nipping out for a ride in quiet country lanes, or going the other way for an inner city food/culture fix.
wherever you live first it will probably not be where you end up as you will eventually gravitate towards an area that suits your needs.
Many people will be recommending the more 'desirable' parts of town (I see Clapham, Battersea, Richmond etc as examples), but if you set your sights a little wider, you could end up with something a lot nicer, for the same sort of money. Certain areas will come with a premium, as everyone who doesn't really know about London will want to live there. And everyone wants to live in that beautiful victorian/Edwardian townhouse in a nice leafy quiet street, or in a s****y new development, but if you're brave enough, you could venture into a council estate somewhere less 'desirable', and get a lot more for your money. You might even get a place just to yourself. And the truth is, that such areas are nowhere near as bad as they used to be, or what some people think they are, these days. You could even get somewhere that's really well located, just because it's not on the radar for most folk. And in London, I'd say somewhere a bit 'ethnic' will probably be a bit more interesting and varied than a white suburban enclave. And as soon as there are more black and brown faces around, the prices seem to drop.
Best tip I can give you, is get a Brompton. This will help open up loads more possibilities, as you'll not be so confined to finding somewhere near transport links etc. Plus if it's pissing with rain at the start/end of the day, or you're going for a meal/drink after work, it just gives you more options. Mine has become indispensable.
As for the likes of Croydon; better value for money, but they start becoming a bit of a mission if things don't run too smoothly on the transport front. Might only be 15-20 mins or so from central London, but get a problem on the network, and it could end up taking much, much longer to get to work/home. Base decisions on the worst case scenario, not on ideals.
I have to say, I'm enjoying pottering around on a Brompton - recently aqcuired about 3 weeks ago. For being able to pop into a shop easily, or a pub or somewhere else without needing to find somewhere to stick it, and more importantly being able to jump on the tube or train with it (done all of these this week), it's absolutely brilliant
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I'd be tempted to get a dynamo for my bike with fixed lights, a frame bag for my lock, and a rack with some kind of shoulder back that fixes to it to make things as seamless as possible. I find myself locking up and hopping in and out of places a lot, so improving this process saves a lot of faff. Also a decent bell really helps - a loud one, not the crappy ping ping thing you normally get.
Dynamo - not yet, too pricey and USB charging lights have been fine for me
Frame mount lock - check
Rack - check
Rack pack that slides onto rack in 5 seconds - check
Proper bell, old school honker - check
Commute into London on a lovely path, though this is a slight detour from my normal route, and inside zone 3, check
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@molgrips I am sure you are right, he's been going for years so when he was talking about it it was probably just the wall.
Also agreed on the small vs big roads, I am very uncomfortable in traffic but was happy enough on a 10 min Boris bike commute as it was 95% back streets
@benp 🙂
Other bonus of Wandsworth (including Putney, and the right streets in Battersea/Clapham area), is that the Council Tax is pocket money compared to several other places.
Used to be the cheapest, or 2nd cheapest in the whole country when I lived there, and that's including the extra charge for Putney Heath upkeep. Unlike Lambeth, which was well in to 4 figures.
I used to live at the Putney Heath end of the borough. Greenery (Putney Heath, Wimbledon Common and Richmond Park) was 1 street away. And A3 dual carriageway for a quick escape from town the same distance.
Go to Torture Garden, BEST NIGHT OUT OF YOUR LIFE
dress code is strict though
I was born in London and spent the first year of my life there before my parents headed for the (alleged) idyll or rural north Oxfordshire.
I missed a chance to live and work in London in my 20s, instead spending 10 years living and working in Manchester. I love Manchester, but time in the capital city is something I feel I missed out on.
These days I live in rural West Lancashire and spend half the week working in London (usually staying 2 or 3 nights a week).
My observations are thus:
- Work and play are often closely linked - this is often due to (incorrectly) perceived travel hassle. Don't just socialize with work people near work.
- Travel is an important subject of conversation for London dwellers - always remember that however busy it is, it is materially better than anywhere else in the UK. And it's incredibly cheap - use it!
- Ride a bike - I'm seriously considering a Brompton for this summer. I'll be able to leave safely at work when I'm back at home and then use it when in London to explore better in the evenings.
- Pubs are generally pretty good with wide choice of beer.
But most of all: don't take yourself too seriously - there are some seriously joyless ****ers in London!!!!
I'd argue that you're office isn't really that central, it's a bit South and West, but it's definitely not out the way
Eh? We are talking London, England, yes?
The small roads are safe, it's the big ones that are mental. Edgeware Rd, as an example.
Agreed. I trialled a commute in down Mile End Road once (this is back in 2001 - is it a cycle super highway now?) - never again. My Lee Valley Road commute was better, but best of all was the canals and parks option, sadly very dodgy during the winter.
As for the likes of Croydon; better value for money, but they start becoming a bit of a mission if things don't run too smoothly on the transport front... Base decisions on the worst case scenario, not on ideals.
Agreed. I moved out to Colchester and my commute went from 50 minutes to 1 1/2 hours, theoretically. I would guess that at least once a week there was a problem, and I had very few alternatives.
+1 for finding a riding route through the back streets - there's lots of signed 'quietways' which IMO are better for peaceful riding than the cycle superhighways.
The CSH have been deliberately built to be highly visible and to get the non-cycling/normal masses riding - so by definition the vast majority of riders on them are new or inexperienced at riding in urban conditions amongst so many other riders... hence the experience people are having.
The quietways are just that, quiet... and you get to see more of the place as you don't have so much going on around you
Eh? We are talking London, England, yes?
CAVEAT - The below, and my earlier comment, is on the assumption that it was in the quiet area in the no mans land between the tube stations. I'm probably wrong 😆
In London terms, not England terms. I doubt many people go through that part unless they have to, rather than the places closer to the West End or the City, where lots more people pass through
I like to walk out of choice, not because I have to!
Worked a a courier on a motorbike in London when I was 19, loved it, went to gigs 4 times a week, parties parties parties 😆 after about 10 months was over it. Hated the place.
Worked there twice since those heady days and really didn't like it at all. Lived in Maida Vale and Dalston. The road in Dalston was lovely but was an oasis in a sea of filth and infamy 😆
Now I think it is a fantastic city, I get quite excited visiting there but couldn't live there unless I was on silly silly money.
When I lived in Dalston used to commute by cycle to Canary Wharf, the route evolved into a real pleasure from what was a grind going through Hackney.
Have mates who live in Ealing and that is nice but the M4 is a pain.
South West or South East would be my choice.
We had 5 happy years in Clapham (ah,the 90's). It seems to be much more pricey these days.Very handy for your workplace via bike.
I'll also second the "back road" options.
We started off in South London , But North London is miles better... 😀 😉
I'm one of the few that doesn't mind a busy road then!
If it has a bus lane, or is wide enough to pass cars then I'm happy. Sometimes the slower more scenic route is just too slow. Works OK in central London, but the minute I'm into zone 2-3 and further out I'm usually on the bigger roads
I'm one of the few that doesn't mind a busy road then!
I quite like them too - unless they have got alot of buses.
If it has a bus lane, or is wide enough to pass cars then I'm happy.
Yes, but it often doesn't. The one thing about London driving or cycling is that everyone and everything is closer together. Of course, out in the burbs it's ok - roads are wide and traffic volumes are much less. But in Z1 it can be hairy on the major roads. Oxford St is one such.
Bear in mind I am generally pretty fearless and assertive on a bike, been doing it for 30 years, but there are places where it's just not worth it when busy. Picadilly circus has a pinch point, Hyde Park Corner is bonkers.. although the latter has a cycleway through it which is worth using.
Re cycle superhighways - not bad during the day, when you get some useful priorities and contraflows etc but when busy they are nowhere near wide enough and the speed differentials can be a problem. Not bad if you are pootling, not good if you want to get somewhere.
Agreed. That's what I meant by works OK in Central London. Quiet lanes are nicer and often quicker, and there are loads of options. Quiet roads are better than cycle lanes to be honest
This is an example of yesterdays ride - rode into work and part of the way home - back to Camden Town, I was on a Brompton so could jump on the tube. Hurt my neck a couple of weeks back so trying to limit riding to save myself for the weekend
Main roads into the edge of Zone 2, then largely quieter roads in Zone 1
https://www.strava.com/activities/572370365
Hyde Park Corner is bonkers.. although the latter has a cycleway through it which is worth using.
Hyde Park Corner is no hassle, although the guy I saw doing a Wheelie round it was a bit more laissez faire than I would have been.
Hyde Park Corner is no hassle
On the road it is, when busy. Unless you're a nutter.
It has got loads of lights - it really isn't that bad, I used to go through it ever day and generally used the road.
Now I think it is a fantastic city, I get quite excited visiting there but couldn't live there unless I was on silly silly money.
+1
Op I haven't read the whole thread but I ride with a London club and several members are advertising flat shares with bike friendly space / storage. There's no ties to being in the club.
If you need some intros drop me a mail - my email is in my profile.
dknwhy - thanks for the offer of a ride. I'll be in touch when I'm over and fairly settled.
Kryton57 - i'll send you an email in a few mos.
Thanks for the climbing tips, all. I'm looking forward to getting back into that.
[i]a little update[/i]
Agreed to take a room between Brixton and Clapham. Good for commuting, getting in/out London (to the South atleast...) and always something going on locally.
Next step is to join a local club/ ride group 🙂