Cycle routes - how do you find yours?

[Ming the Merciless]

It's best to bear in mind @ColinJ's point that the wind may turn.

Possible but unlikely in the next 3 hours or so, if not forecasted. Even if it does, you’ll either nearly be home or not far from a train station to get you home.

 

[Ming the Merciless]

You should ride in the fens more.

Again, I have not found it wildly different in the fens to forecast. If it forecasts a strong SW for the next 6 hours, and I ride one way with forevast direction for 3 hours, I get a SW. I yet to see a strong wind turn 180 degrees without warning In such a short period of time.

 

[Dogtrousers]

I rarely pay any attention to wind. If it happens, it happens. Same as rain.

The exception is if there are genuinely strong winds forecast. Then I stay at home or, very occasionally, do a deliberate point to point tailwind ride. I remember once taking the train to Gatwick and riding to Whitstable with a howling westerly wind behind me which was a real lark.

 

[Ming the Merciless]

very occasionally, do a deliberate point to point tailwind ride. I remember once taking the train to Gatwick and riding to Whitstable with a howling westerly wind behind me which was a real lark.

Exactly, great fun, and if the forecast was wildly wrong at start, you just change your plan.

 

[simongt]

Select a destination, work out a rough route to get there, then enjoy any interesting detours or stops I choose to take on the way there & back - !

 

[ColinJ]

I forgot to check the wind direction when planning tomorrow's metric century route which is approximately 50 km south from Barnstaple to Okehampton then 50 km east to Crediton...

Oops...

Never mind - it should still be a nice ride!

 

[mjr]

I yet to see a strong wind turn 180 degrees without warning In such a short period of time.

Well, no, as wind isn't the easiest thing to see 🤣

Today's forecast wasn't too bad. Only about 40° out.

 

[Psamathe]

Today's forecast wasn't too bad. Only about 40° out.

Don't forget Wind shear. Can be a significant factor. Offshore sailing (racing) set sails differently according to shear. And whilst these days forecasters seem "vague" about what their numbers actually are, meterological wind speeds are normally for 10m above ground level.

Ian

 

[presta]

I have planned bike rides up to 225 km long on my laptop screen and would have no problem planning any walk that I would ever do in one day.

OK, so here is how close I have to zoom in on Bing to see OS Explorer mapping, any further out than that and it switches to Landranger which doesn't show the walls & hedges that you need to see for walking:

Just 3.3km from one side of the screen to the other, so to cover the 30km that the paper map does I'd need nine laptops side by side, and presumably a similar number from top to bottom. Even 30km isn't particularly ambitious for a walk, I've done 40-50km on a good day.

This is just one zoom click further out, not only is all the detail lost, but you'd still need five laptops to cover the width:

And here it is taken from my phone screen...

That's about 17 miles from one side of the screen to the other, so you'd need four or five phones laid side by side to see a complete day's ride overall. A lot less practical than a few atlas pages on the table.

 

[albion]

Quick and easy I use a mix of Google Maps and Organic maps crosschecked to OS maps.
Organic Maps is one of the few applications nowadays that supports 100% of features without an active Internet connection.
I checked the map app situation recent and was mildly surprised the highest rated ones are a bit awful. Commercial interests
I assume.
https://organicmaps.app/ is most of what that website claims it is. Noone is pushed to support it, People seldom realise they are commercially pushed.

"
Organic Maps is the ultimate companion app for travelers, tourists, hikers, and cyclists:

• Detailed offline maps with places that don't exist on other maps, thanks to OpenStreetMap
• Cycling routes, hiking trails, and walking paths
• Contour lines, elevation profiles, peaks, and slopes
• Turn-by-turn walking, cycling, and car navigation with voice guidance and Android Auto
• Fast offline search on the map
• Export/import bookmarks in KML/KMZ, import GPX
• Dark Mode to protect your eyes
• Countries and regions don't take a lot of space
• Free and open-source

Why Organic?​

Organic Maps is pure and organic, made with love:

• Respects your privacy
• Saves your battery
• No unexpected mobile data charges

Organic Maps app is free from trackers and other bad stuff:

• No ads
• No tracking
• No data collection
• No phoning home
• No annoying registration
• No mandatory tutorials
• No noisy email spam
• No push notifications
• No crapware"

 

[Falsesummat]

Depends what you mean. For a bike ride of 1 hour up to 5 hours i have a mental picture of where im going and dont mind if i have to take a detour. If going somewhere specific, for example to my daughters place 70 miles away i just head in that direction. I seldom slavishly follow a predetermined route on my cycle gps. The exception might be an audax ride.