Dartmoor route tomorrow

[Jamesh]

Having dropped off my son at Tiverton parkway I'm thinking of driving to Widdon down and riding south across Dartmoor to Tavistock. Return via the railway line to the north of Dartmoor??? 48miles/4hours

Is this a sensible route?

Is the railway line rideable.

Cheers James

[NATURAL ANKLING]

Hi,

Having dropped off my son at Tiverton parkway I'm thinking of driving to Widdon down and riding south across Dartmoor to Tavistock. Return via the railway line to the north of Dartmoor??? 48miles/4hours

Is this a sensible route?

Is the railway line rideable.

Cheers James

So widden down tavistock return to widden down.
The 3260 all the way to oakhampton.
Go over the a30 straight on, do not take the slip on left which will be sign posted oakhampton (like I have done twice )
After getting to oakhampton town centre go left at traffic lights you have to climb up to the railway station, george street then station road then right into parklands before you go under the railway, a short distance and on your left is the entrance to granite cycleway.
Its easy all the way to lydford, but I would get on to the 386 instead of continuing through to lydford over the 386.
Lydford to tavistock on the cycle route is a bit lack lustre, I prefer the main road as its very slick and downhill too.
If you get to lydford on the old railway, just make your way to the 386 and hold on tight

The granite cycleway is good surface and you can easy do it on road tyres.

[Jamesh]

Sorry I wasn't clear I'm thinking of going via two bridges rather than out and back routes?

Got the go ahead so should be fun. On my CX bike with 32mm slicks so going to be a bit slower!

Cheers James

[NATURAL ANKLING]

Hi,
In that case you either go up or down pork Hill.
My preference would be anticlockwise.
So you have to go up pork Hill, but down from warren house house inn to Moretonhampstead which is quite exhilarating especially on a pushbike.
My preference will also be Okehampton to Tavistock as that's quite a slick ride to.

Ah no, I was getting carried away with myself.
Whiddon Down Chagford, You could stay on the 382 for a while if you wanted but it probably wouldn't make any difference.
Just go due south to you coming out on the 3212.
You'll be glad to get there for sure some of the hills are real killer and even though they're only short.
In that case clockwise yes.
But all in all it's probably a toss up which way you go anyway, either you start with some hills or you finish with them
Be a nice ride on a good day good luck

[NATURAL ANKLING]

Hi,

Sorry I wasn't clear I'm thinking of going via two bridges rather than out and back routes?

Got the go ahead so should be fun. On my CX bike with 32mm slicks so going to be a bit slower!

Cheers James

Just pump them up as hard as they can go

[Jamesh]

Thanks for the pointers.

Left Widdon down at approx 1pm ride down to Chagford then post bridge, two bridges up over moor to merrivale for coffee and carrot cake, then right on minor road to Peter tavy and may tavy before getting on the granite way further up only to be heckled by an old codger up a track to the way "you should be riding up thier lad!" It was Ricky and about 25%!

Down into oakhampton and long climb up the Exeter rd to stickpath etc.

Good ride backside sore as haven't been on bike for weeks due to running!!

Pics here

https://photos.app.goo.gl/HAhbeSsrA82Fmb8M6

Cheers again for advice

James

[NATURAL ANKLING]

Hi,
Which track did you go up?
Yeah the Mary Tavy stuff there is an off-road track there on the cycle route.
A few times but normally ignore that way.

[NATURAL ANKLING]

Hi,
You can of course miss porkhill completely?
Is that what you did?
Probably not because that goes through higher and lower Goldsworthy?
Every time I've gone that way I've been chased by farm dogs
there's a gravel track about quarter of a mile long between higher and lower godsworthy.
Looks a bit damp, did you get much rain.

[NATURAL ANKLING]

Hi,
Well if you've got a CX bike I suppose you might as well go somewhere where you can justify using it
So down pork Hill turn right at moor shop, then Peter Tavy Mary Tavy with the track in between.
The last time I did that I was on my mountain bike the admittedly with slicks, Met two guys coming the other way on the track, they were on road bikes complaining merry hell.
I've learnt to expect anything on cycle routes especially national ones.
I'm assuming also you probably went through Lydford then on up the rest of the cycle route?
I'm still curious to where this track was that you had to walk up?

This is my preferred route through that area if you've got semi off-road tires.

[Jamesh]

The track was in southerly 100m past the intersection of the a386 and the granite way as I didn't see an entrance as I cross over it. It was downhill perhaps if I was going slower I would have seen a gate or sign.

Cheers James

[Jamesh]

Hi,
You can of course miss porkhill completely?
Is that what you did?
Probably not because that goes through higher and lower Goldsworthy?
Every time I've gone that way I've been chased by farm dogs
there's a gravel track about quarter of a mile long between higher and lower godsworthy.
Looks a bit damp, did you get much rain.

I came off the moor and clocked the camping site and turned right to Peter Tavy?

Why is it called Peter / MaryTavy btw?

Rain for first half dry after that.

Cheers James
.

[Mick F]

Hi.
Sorry, late to the party.

From Whiddon Down, I would come along the Old A30 via Sticklpath to Okehampton, and then up through the town (steep) to the old railbed to follow it to Lydford, then down south down via Brentor to Tavistock.
Done that ride many many many times.

Tavy is the river.
Peter Tavy, Mary Tavy ........... and Tavy-Stock.

[philvantwo]

Francis Drake was born in Tavistock, was he the first man to sail round the world? No gps in those days though so how did he know where he was?
Mick F, did anything ever go wrong on any of your ships and you didn't know where you were, like in the Bermuda triangle?

[Jdsk]

Francis Drake was born in Tavistock, was he the first man to sail round the world? No gps in those days though so how did he know where he was?

Not the first. But the first to lead a circumnavigation and survive.

He could measure latitude with an astrolabe and a cross-staff. He also had a magnetic compass and sounding leads.

He had acquired an extensive collection of maps, including many from the Spanish, and had interrogated many Spanish sailors. I don't think that much of that is documented.

Plus dead reckoning. Plus asking the locals.

And he only just made it.

Jonathan

[Mike Sales]

Francis Drake was born in Tavistock, was he the first man to sail round the world? No gps in those days though so how did he know where he was?
Mick F, did anything ever go wrong on any of your ships and you didn't know where you were, like in the Bermuda triangle?

Some say that a Filipino or perhaps Sumatran, called by the Portugese Enrique de Malacca was the first to circumnavigate.

Enrique of Malacca (Spanish: Enrique de Malaca; Portuguese: Henrique de Malaca), was a Malay member of the Magellan–Elcano expedition that completed the first circumnavigation of the world in 1519–1522. He was acquired as a slave by the Portuguese explorer Ferdinand Magellan in 1511 at the age of 14 years, probably in the early stages of the Siege of Malacca (1511). Although Magellan's will calls him "a native of Malacca", Antonio Pigafetta states that he was a native of Sumatra. Magellan later took him to Europe, where he accompanied the circumnavigation expedition in 1519.[1][2] According to many historians, there is a possibility that he is the first person to circumnavigate the globe.[3]

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Enrique_of_Malacca

I like the idea that the first was not a famous European, but a Filipino salave.