London to Exeter route advice

[spearmint wino]

I'm planning on riding from London to Exeter at some point in the next few weeks, ideally over 2 days.

I'm pretty fit, and will be on my road bike traveling light with just a saddlebag for civives and change of cycling clothes.

I plotted this route: https://ridewithgps.com/routes/14892704 picking up the Kennet and Avon canal at Reading, although this is probably quite a bit slower than on the roads? And also not sure about the state of the surface on 25mm tyres with very close-fitting guards.

Here's another option I did which cuts south before Bath: https://ridewithgps.com/routes/14890563

Anyone familiar with any sections of these? What are your thoughts?

Is there a viable road option? Ideally I'd be avoiding busy A roads if possible, but quietish ones not too bad though.

Any advice greatly appreciated.

[mercalia]

just 2 days

the straight line distance is 160 miles.

the most direct route along non motorways is still 180

the non motor way route in the map is the one I used on my motor bike - is still exposed A roads and dual carriages

so you are thinking of 90+ miles a day. good luck

and if you get a head wind that trip will be the worst moment of your life so far all 200 miles of it

in this map select "Avoid Motorways/Highways?" and click "show"
https://www.freemaptools.com/how-far-is-it-between-exeter_england-and-london_england.htm

[spearmint wino]

2 days a bit ambitious do you think?

I could always stretch it out to 3

[spearmint wino]

Hmm 300km. Yes 100km a day over 3 days does sound a lot more feasible. Give me time to stop for a cuppa now and then.

Any experience of the K & A canal route and how fast / slow going it is?

[mercalia]

why not consider get an advanced rail ticket to cover some of the distance - they can be quite cheap and make the trip all more enjoyable.

I have only ever done a long trip once in my life when I was about 20 - 130 miles or so in one day from London to Lowestoft and I slept the following day and totally exhausted

[horizon]

spearmint wino: we had a similar thread once on here and it didn't come up with anything 100% satisfactory. I take it that since you have a road bike, you cycle on roads. The best route is A30 and a choice between Lyme Regis or Chard. It should be (for you) an achievable 2 day ride along these roads but the last bit does get hilly. Taking the canal towpath would be a different matter. There are other B road possibilities but nothing direct - it would be a nice ride but maybe not for 2 days. The A30 is a good road though (at least I like it ).

viewtopic.php?f=16&t=80562&hilit=exeter

[mercalia]

spearmint wino: we had a similar thread once on here and it didn't come up with anything 100% satisfactory. I take it that since you have a road bike, you cycle on roads. The best route is A30 and a choice between Lyme Regis or Chard. It should be (for you) an achievable 2 day ride along these roads but the last bit does get hilly. Taking the canal towpath would be a different matter. There are other B road possibilities but nothing direct - it would be a nice ride but maybe not for 2 days. The A30 is a good road though (at least I like it ).

viewtopic.php?f=16&t=80562&hilit=exeter

I wonder if fluffybunnyuk who raised that post did it - is she still around here? would be interesting to hear from her

[Richard Fairhurst]

The K&A is not a fast towpath (insofar as there's such a thing anyway). The rural bits are often unsurfaced - even the Sustrans route leaves the towpath for the central section - and the surfaced bits are often busy with walkers. If you're thinking of a two/three-day trip I would stay off the towpath as much as possible, both for the sake of your sanity and that of other users!

Maybe consider taking the train out to (say) Basingstoke and then cycling from there? You'd get to skip all the suburbia, so you start on country lanes without having to hack your way out of London, and it shortens the route to something very doable in two days. http://cycle.travel/map?from=Basingstoke&to=Exeter is one route but there are of course many more possibilities.

[whoof]

160 or 180 miles in two days are definitely doable. Last month Mrs Whoof rode Bristol to Brighton (142 miles) in one day. But as advised above I would consider changing your route. The canal tow path will be slow. I've ridden the section between Bath and Devises quite often but generally with either 28 mm or 1.75" tyres and I wasn't trying to get anywhere fast. The bit between Bradford on Avon and Trowbridge is very narrow and in the interests of everyone's safety of out of courtesy I take this slowly and where necessary (which is relatively frequently) stop and give way to pedestrians.

This is a Youtube video of this section

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H4t3MyPhGHs

I would either take longer or use a different route for this bit.

I've ridden Bristol to Exeter(where I've also lived) and the bit from Glastonbury looks OK but from Culmstock I would continue to Uffculme - Willand and then B3181 into Exeter.

[spearmint wino]

Thanks everyone for taking the time to reply, lots of good info.

spearmint wino: we had a similar thread once on here and it didn't come up with anything 100% satisfactory.

Yes, I've read through that several times when researching - it trailed off and wondered if there had been any developments since.

Good to know about the K&A path being slow. I have been along some of it, around Marlborough, but that was 20 years ago. Where practical, a no-traffic option always wins it for me but this trip is about getting there.

I'm not fazed by riding through London - I do it every day on my commute. Riding back-to-back days of 150km not too daunting either, especially as the elevation gain isn't too much, but 3 days sounds a bit friendlier!

For those that know, what's the A4 like, once you get, say, west of Reading? I could follow that towards Bath cutting south somewhere before through Somerset via Frome (poss overnight stay with a friend), Taunton > A38 > B3181.

Either that or go further south via Salisbury > Yeovil > Honiton?

[mercalia]

160 or 180 miles in two days are definitely doable. Last month Mrs Whoof rode Bristol to Brighton (142 miles) in one day. But as advised above I would consider changing your route. The canal tow path will be slow. I've ridden the section between Bath and Devises quite often but generally with either 28 mm or 1.75" tyres and I wasn't trying to get anywhere fast. The bit between Bradford on Avon and Trowbridge is very narrow and in the interests of everyone's safety of out of courtesy I take this slowly and where necessary (which is relatively frequently) stop and give way to pedestrians.

This is a Youtube video of this section

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H4t3MyPhGHs

I would either take longer or use a different route for this bit.

I've ridden Bristol to Exeter(where I've also lived) and the bit from Glastonbury looks OK but from Culmstock I would continue to Uffculme - Willand and then B3181 into Exeter.

She must be Supergirl?

[horizon]

For those that know, what's the A4 like, once you get, say, west of Reading?

Mrs H and I rode this on our tandem from Devizes (then onto the A4) to Reading. I think it's great but then I like old A roads.

[rjb]

The bridgwater/taunton canal; will be very slow as well. From Glastonbury i would take the a361 and turn off at burrowbridge and follow the minor roads to North Curry (handy community cafe, closed Mondays) then onwards to Taunton and once through take the A38 and the old a38 now called the B3181 to exeter.

[whoof]

160 or 180 miles in two days are definitely doable. Last month Mrs Whoof rode Bristol to Brighton (142 miles) in one day. But as advised above I would consider changing your route. The canal tow path will be slow. I've ridden the section between Bath and Devises quite often but generally with either 28 mm or 1.75" tyres and I wasn't trying to get anywhere fast. The bit between Bradford on Avon and Trowbridge is very narrow and in the interests of everyone's safety of out of courtesy I take this slowly and where necessary (which is relatively frequently) stop and give way to pedestrians.

This is a Youtube video of this section

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H4t3MyPhGHs

I would either take longer or use a different route for this bit.

I've ridden Bristol to Exeter(where I've also lived) and the bit from Glastonbury looks OK but from Culmstock I would continue to Uffculme - Willand and then B3181 into Exeter.

She must be Supergirl?

Well I think she is. In terms of cycling this is the furthest she has ever ridden as she had only ever done 100 miles a couple of times previously. She had back up plans of trains or being picked up. In the end with an early start, late finish, plenty of food stops and a steady pace she made it.

[ossie]

Any experience of the K & A canal route and how fast / slow going it is?

Its slow mate ..trust me I did a whole chunk of it - Newbury - Slough before heading up to Harwich...its 50/60 mile a day stuff. As for Bath to Exeter its just hills and more hills..

However you can cycle for as many hours as you like within reason so the worlds your oyster