Touring in Dorset

[davidwalton]

The camp site at Durdle Door isn't bad, good shop for provisions, half decent bar with cheap and ludicrously large portions of grilled or fried stuffs, and the fantastic cliff walks taking you to Durdle Door itself and Lulworth Cove are a few steps from your tent flap.. An impressive bit of coastline if you're going that way.

See http://www.lulworth.com/holiday/holiday_park.htm

For those that like more comfort, you can hire a Holiday home instead of being under canvas.

 

[Kirstie]

Thanks. As we're going in January, it will be sturdy buildings made of bricks and mortar we'll be sleeping in, not flimsy canvas affairs!
So far I've sketched a circular route from Taunton - Dorchester and back again, linking up all of the bits of NCR which are there. I've not plotted it in Tracklogs yet but when I do I'll have an idea of distance and hence where we're likely to stay and indeed whether the route is doable at all. The best places to stay I think will be pubs...owing to the presence of beer, food and a bed all under one roof!

 

[Tony]

Indeed. A CAMRA guide is useful.....

 

[Cathryn]

Corfe Castle is my FAVOURITE castle. It may not be intact but it's just beautiful and so romantic!! Nice tea rooms as well.

 

[NickM]

If you're into geography then Chesil beach is well worth a visit.

Actually, having given this some thought... if you're into geography anywhere is well worth a visit

 

[Stick on a Giant]

If you're staying in Dorchester, Portland Bill makes a good 40 mile 'loop' Head almost south on quiet roads into Weymouth, across the Causeway to Portland, you can go round the Bill itself either way, back across the Causeway and head out west towards Portesham (slightly busier road) before a slight climb and over past Hardy's Monument.

 

[Kirstie]

So...we went last weekend, and it was fab!
We travelled down Friday night in a snowstorm and floods, eventually getting to our start point in Taunton at 1am. We were dreading the terrible weather all weekend, but it didn't materialise. The route went like this:

Day1: Taunton - Dorchester. via Chard...and...well that was the only proper town we came across! We had a tailwind the whole time, the sun was out - I felt it warming up my knees - and had some fantastic views of the glittering sea. This was a mighty hilly day and all in all we rode 100km, finishing with a ride by the Thomas Hardy monument in the pitch black. Much booze in Dorchester followed.

Day2: Dorchester - Midsomer Norton. Again all on back roads, mighty hilly - downland, then chalky stuff. V steep ups and long descents with a monster tailwind of around 20mph. We rode 75K. Midsomer Norton is a dump - don't go there!

Day3: Midsomer Norton - Taunton, the slack way. First we climbed up and over the Mendips and then descended into Wells for a cuppa and some cake. Then over to Glastonbury, via the Tor for lunch. We then headed West across the Somerset levels into a massive headwind, which was pants. And the Canal back to Taunton was a bit patchy in places but turned out OK. All in all we rode 85K.

The whole route was on beautiful lanes and graded tracks. The scenery was fantastic - really contrasting stuff, also interesting archaeological stuff to look at. And we avoided hurricanes, floods, pneumonia and bird flu so we came out on top. Knees are a bit sore today though

 

[Brock]

Welcome back and glad you had fun! Sounds great.