London to Liverpool

[RedRider]

Hello tourers!

I've been cycling in a London cocoon for the last 12 years and have decided it's about time I stretched my wings to explore the country and myself.

For my first flight I'm thinking of a personal journey back to Merseyside where I was born and grew up. Having made the journey so many times by coach, car and train I want to feel the distance in my legs, ground it in reality and work out how far I've come since moving down south, both literally and metaphorically.

I'm imagining a July/August scene as with 200 miles behind me, I take the ferry from Birkenhead and disembark at the Pier Head to hugs and cheers from family and friends. As you can tell, it's all very much at the daydreaming stage. This post is my first step in making it a reality.

I'll be using the bike that I have: An aluminium-framed, 8-gear Alfine-hubbed, flat-barred commuting stalwart. Not ideal maybe, but there it is. I have a couple of Ortlieb panniers. I'll need to buy or borrow a lightweight tent and little stove. I plan to do it in three days, four if I get the time. A mate has said he'd like to come with me and that would be great.

This forum contains a wealth of touring experience and I've been reading through old threads for inspiration and advice. Some brilliant stuff to ponder. I was hoping to beg some further wisdom.

Initial thoughts on the route are to head out to Oxford on the first day and stay overnight with friends. Then it's all a bit vague but I'd be looking to squeeze through somewhere between the Welsh border and Birmingham. I know I have to work on that and it's something I'm looking forward to. Does anyone have any pointers or experience of routes we might take from there on in? Roads to avoid?

Hopefully in time, I will be able to pass on the benefit of my own experience.

Cheers and thanks for taking the time to read.

Happy cycling!

 

[Tigerbiten]

If your doing it in 3 days and your staying at a mates house the first night, then think Travelodge around Shrewsbury for the second.
It will give you a ~100 mile second day but if booked early you can get a room for £20-30 per night.
Saves the weight of a tent on the bike, which you would only be useing one night.

Luck ............

 

[greenwoodbodger]

I've found the camping and caravan club site useful for finding campsites (http://www.campingandcaravanningclub.co.uk/siteseeker/aspx/search.aspx). Ok for non-members for an additional fee. Some sites have wooden 'pods' the may save you from having to carry a tent. There's also the yha.

It'd also be worth checking out the sustrans routes. i've found them to be well marked so far and it makes navigation a bit easier. http://www.sustrans.org.uk/map?sear...searchType=search&Search=Find#166100,637320,2


Enjoy the ride!

 

[RedRider]

Thanks for those tips and well wishes! It looks like Sustrans National Route 45 could form the basis of the ride which feels like real progress. I wonder, does anyone have experience of riding it?

I'll also need to look into bridging the gap between Oxford and the Mercian Way (45).

Cheers!

 

[trickster61]

Sounds like a great idea RedRider! I'm from Liverpool too and live on the South Coast. I've always thought about cycling back to Liverpool, even as far back as the 80's, but just never got round to organising it.

It'd be great for you on the final leg to cross the Mersey. The Liver Birds would be there to welcome you... And yeah, wouldn't it be nice if there was a fanfare to receive you as well... I too have the odd daydream!

I remember as kids, me and a few mates cycled from Liverpool to Southport and back (on crap bikes too!).. We were expecting a massive crowd to welcome us back but in reality there was no-one, everyone was just going about their daily business.

I've got no thoughts on routes or accomodation, I'd just like to wish you the all the best...

 

[RedRider]

Cheers trickster ,

It feels a bit like one of those childhood adventures. If it's half as fun I'll be made up!

 

[delport]

If you only want to cycle in one direction,liverpool-london is very cheap on the train booked in advance and they take bikes, i think i paid £12 to £14 for the ticket,it was virgin trains.
They were delayed by a couple of hours on the way down to london but gave every train passenger free travel home by taxi, i just happened to be going to gosport 80 to 90 mile away and got a nice spacious taxi for the bike/panniers and myself and had a comfortable ride home, the taxi meter said around £300.I don't often fall quite that lucky.

The taxi driver said someone had got a trip down to cornwall for free one time from London.

oh, by the way i did do gosport to liverpool cycling, i went the very long way up through gloucester/monmouth/newtown in the middle of Wales/portmeiron [to see the prisoner village]/bangor,then all along the coast to Liverpool.
I had 2 nights in travelodge at £19 each night special offer, and a few nights wild camping.An enjoyable trip, but too many hills in Wales.
I done 60 to 70 miles per day.With 2 panniers on the bike.

 

[RedRider]

Some useful tips there delport and your trip through Wales sounds great. I'll save those hills for another time!

Anyone else have experience of NCN 45 like how rideable the off-road stuff is? Been looking at some old forum threads here and there and there seems to be some scepticism about the national cycle network.

 

[greenwoodbodger]

Some useful tips there delport and your trip through Wales sounds great. I'll save those hills for another time!

Anyone else have experience of NCN 45 like how rideable the off-road stuff is? Been looking at some old forum threads here and there and there seems to be some scepticism about the national cycle network.

I can only comment on my experience using the route 6 from Lancaster to accrington (mostly very well marked but vandalised signs from blackburn onwards, so difficult to follow) and the trans pennnine route (very good). I think they give a very good basis for a route but it's important to take at least a road map along, and ideally the specific trail map if it exists (sections can be printed from the sustrans site but it's a bit of a pain gettting the right bits in the right scale).

 

[garythespud]

Hello Red Rider,

Just seen your thread here as I myself will be cycling London (Isle of Dogs) to Liverpool next month. I'm doing it a. for fun and b. to raise some money for a charity. Have you any tips or advice you could offer? How did the ride go? My route is:

Day 1 - London - Leighton Buzzard (on Grand Union Canal all way - mate lives in LB)
Day 2 - Leighton Buzzard - Worcester
Day 3 - Worcester - Whitchurch
Day 4 - Whitchurch - Liverpool

I'm looking at trying to stay on the NCN 45 from Worcester all the way virtually to Merseyside, but will cut across as best I can on the 2nd day as no NCN route across.

Cheers,

Gary

 

[Collie78]

Hello red rider I'm looking for some help I'm looking at cycling from just outside liverpool to London for our local food bank charity and was wandering if you did your ride up this way? Any tips or advice you can give me would be much appreciated thanks for any help u can give

 

[garythespud]

Hello Collie78,

Just to let you know I completed my ride and it wasn't half as torturous as expected. I did come into Liverpool from Whitchurch via Chester and then the A41 but wouldn't recommend this as a start route. Very traffic-heavy. The rest of the ride was quite lovely and would recommend coming into London via the Grand Union Canal - was lovely even if I did skid off a towpath into a tree. If you want any help with this, let me know. Gary

 

[Collie78]

Thanks gary,really appreciate your feedback. Which way did you come then? Did you plot your own way or use a web site... I was looking at doing this ride over three days? Any advice on routes would be brilliant .. I'm planning this for August to hopefully catch out half an hour of summer:-)) thank you

 

[Onceridden]

My brother, who is coming over from Canada, and I are riding from London to Liverpool in mid to late August. We used to live there as kids so it will be a trip down memory lane. The Grande Union sounds like an interesting option. Someone mentioned Offer Dike to me as a good route to follow. Has anyone done this?
I'll be riding on a reconditioned Reynolds 531 frame but we're not in any hurry and plan to take in some camping. I ride to work most days in London but any ideas on the best way to grt prepared?

 

[Ajax Bay]

How many days do you want to plan to take? Do you want to stay on tarmac?