GrumpyGregry
Here for rides.
Can't go wrong eh? I suppose my riding into the K&A doesn't actually count as going wrong, does it.
Canal Route - London to Liverpool
- Thread starter AlEddy
- Start date
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PaulSB
Legendary Member
- Location
- Chorley, Lancashire
Ha! Yes it's a problem. A group of club mates set off to ride the Leeds Liverpool from Liverpool to Chorley New Year 2016. Needless to say it was cold and a number of hostelries were visited enroute.
Fortunately only one of their number actually rode in to the canal.
uphillstruggler
Guru
- Location
- Half way there
hello and welcome @Ghostrider1
I cant help with a GPS file but I do use cycletravel.org for planning routes. its pretty easy to use and download files from.
just a word of warning, the tow path along the canal can be great but in my experience there are quite a few sections between tring and long buckby that can be pretty muddy and cut up if wet and very rutted when dry. progress may not be as quick as you may expect f the weather isn't being nice.
what are your planned stopover points? and what are you planning to do the ride on?
Ghostrider1
Member
- Location
- Liverpool
@uphillstruggler.
I think I have seen cycle travel for routes. Will have a check on there.
Planning on riding on my full susser (Ghost riot lc7). Originally I was planning to do it on my hybrid commuter(pinnacle Cobalt) but I I have been on the Leeds Liverpool and found that a bit wanting on the rougher stuff.
I am by no means a speed merchant. I'm more a heavy weight cruiser. I just go and go...and go...
I think I have seen cycle travel for routes. Will have a check on there.
Planning on riding on my full susser (Ghost riot lc7). Originally I was planning to do it on my hybrid commuter(pinnacle Cobalt) but I I have been on the Leeds Liverpool and found that a bit wanting on the rougher stuff.
I am by no means a speed merchant. I'm more a heavy weight cruiser. I just go and go...and go...
uphillstruggler
Guru
- Location
- Half way there
@Ghostrider1
Just to say it's been wet in Milton Keynes and surrounding area so the tow path between long buckby and berkhampstead will be good in bits but rough for the main.
Slow and steady is the best way along the canal imho, the full sis should be like sitting in an armchair so best of luck.
When are you planning to do this?
Just to say it's been wet in Milton Keynes and surrounding area so the tow path between long buckby and berkhampstead will be good in bits but rough for the main.
Slow and steady is the best way along the canal imho, the full sis should be like sitting in an armchair so best of luck.
When are you planning to do this?
Ghostrider1
Member
- Location
- Liverpool
Its going to be next year. Still planning it.
Hoo Wheeler
Regular
- Location
- Kent
Hi Alicia
I like the sound of your canal trip. Did you under take it and how did you get on? Any advice you can give to others?
I like the sound of your canal trip. Did you under take it and how did you get on? Any advice you can give to others?
I'd absolutely love to do that, and have made (very) half hearted plans at small rides to build up to a London ride. One thing that concerns me (and apologies if someone else has mentioned this on this thread) is the sections of canal with no gravel or tarmac tow paths. I've done Barbridge back to Chester two or three times and it's honestly quite hard work/heavy going riding over what are essentially fields.
Llangollen to Chester should be good, and I fancy Newtown to Chester via three canals over a day or two. The Montgomery canal is stunning, if not dried up in places and well worth a trip.
Richard Fairhurst
Guru
- Location
- Charlbury, the Cotswolds
Llangollen to Barbridge will be hard going once you're past Chirk. The Llangollen Canal towpath is very rural and unimproved. Much of the Montgomery towpath has now been surfaced, though I think the northern sections are still grassy and bumpy.
Thanks, Richard. I've done most of the Montgomery (Newtown to Lower Frankton) when we did the Montgomery Triathlon last year, nothing too fazing there but I don't know if I'm fit enough to get back from Newtown to Chester in a day using Mongtomery/Llangollen/Shropshire Union.
uphillstruggler
Guru
- Location
- Half way there
IaninSheffield
Veteran
- Location
- Sheffield, UK
Hi @Bigal26,
The first bike 'tour' I did, with a buddy, was from London back home to Sheffield (mostly) along the waterways. We were aiming for three days, so a little over 60 miles a day, and distances neither of us were especially used to. It was a ... learning experience!
Having narrowboated, we were familiar with canal infrastructure, but hadn't appreciated how different it could be from the saddle of a bike. Unlike some of my fellow responders on here, I do think the landscape changes and there is plenty to sustain interest. We didn't bother with a map and determined in advance the places we needed to hit and how to negotiate the canal junctions we'd meet. We booked B&Bs for our stopovers, though as other folks have said, the opportunities for (stealth/wild) camping are plentiful if that is appealing. There are canalside cafes and pubs from which to seek refreshment, but it would be smart to know where these are in advance; being rural, some of them are closed during the day.
There were a couple of factors we'd simply not considered and which proved real challenges for newbie tourers. Firstly was the sheer number of obstacles we met which interrupted our pace. In heavily populated areas (for much of the stretch through London and its dormitory towns) there were pinch barriers aplenty meaning you were forever stopping to manhandle the bike around or through them. Elsewhere along the canal, there'd be crossover bridges or locks where staying on the bike was difficult or impossible. It was sapping being unable to maintain an even pace. What was far worse however, was the condition of the towpath on more rural stretches. We were fortunate to be in the middle of a dry spell so the towpaths were rarely muddy as earlier responders have suggested, though having travelled and walked widely on the system, they are definitely right to point out how bad that can be. Our problem was the (literal!) pain in the rear caused by long stretches along uneven terrain, whether tussocky grass or more often, tree roots. These of course also slow you down from trying to avoid the pain, and from avoiding the potential for accidents as others have described. So much was our pace reduced, on two days of the three, in order to get to our B&Bs (no mobile phones at the time), and simply from sheer exhaustion, we <oh, the shame!> caught the train for last ten or so miles. That's a bonus of course; railways often follow the same path as canals.
Don't get me wrong, I love our canal system; as novices, we'd just bitten of more than we could chew. My advice would be to prepare for travelling at far slower average speeds than would be possible on roads. If we'd taken four days instead of three, I think we'd have been fine. Oh, and don't forget chammy butter!
Enjoy!
The first bike 'tour' I did, with a buddy, was from London back home to Sheffield (mostly) along the waterways. We were aiming for three days, so a little over 60 miles a day, and distances neither of us were especially used to. It was a ... learning experience!
Having narrowboated, we were familiar with canal infrastructure, but hadn't appreciated how different it could be from the saddle of a bike. Unlike some of my fellow responders on here, I do think the landscape changes and there is plenty to sustain interest. We didn't bother with a map and determined in advance the places we needed to hit and how to negotiate the canal junctions we'd meet. We booked B&Bs for our stopovers, though as other folks have said, the opportunities for (stealth/wild) camping are plentiful if that is appealing. There are canalside cafes and pubs from which to seek refreshment, but it would be smart to know where these are in advance; being rural, some of them are closed during the day.
There were a couple of factors we'd simply not considered and which proved real challenges for newbie tourers. Firstly was the sheer number of obstacles we met which interrupted our pace. In heavily populated areas (for much of the stretch through London and its dormitory towns) there were pinch barriers aplenty meaning you were forever stopping to manhandle the bike around or through them. Elsewhere along the canal, there'd be crossover bridges or locks where staying on the bike was difficult or impossible. It was sapping being unable to maintain an even pace. What was far worse however, was the condition of the towpath on more rural stretches. We were fortunate to be in the middle of a dry spell so the towpaths were rarely muddy as earlier responders have suggested, though having travelled and walked widely on the system, they are definitely right to point out how bad that can be. Our problem was the (literal!) pain in the rear caused by long stretches along uneven terrain, whether tussocky grass or more often, tree roots. These of course also slow you down from trying to avoid the pain, and from avoiding the potential for accidents as others have described. So much was our pace reduced, on two days of the three, in order to get to our B&Bs (no mobile phones at the time), and simply from sheer exhaustion, we <oh, the shame!> caught the train for last ten or so miles. That's a bonus of course; railways often follow the same path as canals.
Don't get me wrong, I love our canal system; as novices, we'd just bitten of more than we could chew. My advice would be to prepare for travelling at far slower average speeds than would be possible on roads. If we'd taken four days instead of three, I think we'd have been fine. Oh, and don't forget chammy butter!
Enjoy!
uphillstruggler
Guru
- Location
- Half way there
I’m as above, I enjoy the scenery and infrastructure of the canals.
A mate and I wild camped a month or so just off the tow path near Northampton with no issues (see attached image)
You can also get a key that allows you access to water etc from the canals and river trust offices.
As @IaninSheffield says, you will slow down compared to your usual pace but time has stood still along the canal so take your time
If you keep in touch on the forum, before you leave, I’ll let you know the state of play between Northampton and Berkhampstead
Best of luck
A mate and I wild camped a month or so just off the tow path near Northampton with no issues (see attached image)
You can also get a key that allows you access to water etc from the canals and river trust offices.
As @IaninSheffield says, you will slow down compared to your usual pace but time has stood still along the canal so take your time
If you keep in touch on the forum, before you leave, I’ll let you know the state of play between Northampton and Berkhampstead
Best of luck
