How hilly is Hadrians Cycleway?

[binka]

Looking at doing this over five days on my recumbent trike. So max of 43 miles in a day. I know I can do this distance as ive biked 45 -50 miles before. But I live in the Flatlands and have never tackled a hill on my trike. They're not the best for climbing. There is a very short 20% hill near me and I have to get off and push. Which is do'able for a few hundred yards but not for miles. Not sure whether to start booking stuff or bottle it and go somewhere flatter!

[binka]

I've done MayMyRide routes and day two looks the worst. 1936ft of ascent in 43 miles, but all the ascent looks to be in the last half of the day. But I have no idea what that will actually equate to on the ground.

To give an examp,e of a typical local route for me, 20 miles and 200 ft of ascent.

[Paulatic]

WoW! That's flat [emoji3]
2000' of climbing for me in every 30 miles usually so wouldn't find it in 43 miles hilly at all. After 5 days you'll be used to them providing youve a low enough gear.

[Mark1978]

Haha I was going to say that. Assuming you're talking about where I think you are ending in Newcastle then it's pretty flat. As flat as it gets around here.

If it's 1000' per 10 miles then it's hilly. Less is just rolling.

[binka]

I'm worried my legs won't be up to it. There's a couple of grade 3 climbs and a grade 5 climb! it says the grade 3 climb is 5 miles long!!! Not sure I can push for that far!

[Mark1978]

Where abouts?

[binka]

The bit from Carlisle to haltwhistle.

[binka]

http://www.mapmyride.com/routes/view/1047850249

Not sure if this will work?

[Paulatic]

http://www.mapmyride.com/routes/view/1047850249

Not sure if this will work?

Just seems to link to your profile
It's fifteen years since I've ridden to Halwhistle ( I used to cycle Moffat -Hexham as a training ride for Audax) and I don't recall any big long hills. ( memory can be a wonderful thing though forgets the bad bits lol ) I recall a sharp one out of Greenhead then after that it's a constant up and down but not long steep bits.
Perhaps someone whose done it more recent can be more accurate.

[binka]

Thanks. I think the hill out of Greenhead is one of the Grade 5 climbs. Have adjusted the privacy settings to public now which should make it viewable.

[Richard Fairhurst]

It's one of the easiest NCN routes I've done - certainly the easiest of the coast-to-coast routes.

The only hill I remember as being gruelling was the climb out of Greenhead on the military road. Other than that you've inevitably got climbs up to the wall after Brampton and Haltwhistle, but that's it. It's a lovely route - very much recommended.

[DaveP]

We took the option to go via Vindolanda. Worth visiting, but there was a bit of a grind on leaving.
I seem to recall that it was compensated by a magic downhill stretch shortly after
We stayed near the Milecastle inn - pie to die for! Mind you, that was about 6 years ago.

[binka]

Thanks for everyone's thoughts, feel more confident about giving it a go now.

[donald.stewart.nj]

Hadrian's Wall is worth the ride. But going east after Greenhead we hiked the middle third. That was worth getting off the bikes.

[iviehoff]

People do react differently to slopes. I did a 200km Audax in Norfolk once, and after we'd been riding 30km or so and someone said to me "hilly today". I replied "It's been completely flat, did you go the same way as me?". The response was something along the lines of "yow bain't be from round 'ere then".

To me, the first part of that Cat 3 climb when you rise 60m in 12km or something is "completely flat". Then there is a moderate slope when you do another 60m but not very steeply. The Cat 5 is a steep hill, but it's only a 100m climb, and has an average gradient of only about 1:10, though I expect it is probably rather worse on the way. You don't get far in Britain without a few of those, unless you live those really flat bits.