In my free Guide to Cycling in London I mentioned two of my friends Dan and Alex who are moving from London to Melbourne in Australia and doing so by bike. Their trip will take 8 months and I’m sure will be the adventure of a lifetime. As I write this they are just a couple of monthly away from setting off and I’m set to join them for the first leg of the journey down to Dover.

It is an incredible trip no doubt and they will soon be exploring far away places such as Cambodia and Japan (they’ve decided on a route that covers additional countries they wanted to see). I’m proud of them as neither are fitness fanatics or even hugely keen cyclists. In fact Alex (The Aussie girl who is stealing our good friend Dan!) hasn’t touched a bike in years. They are a true testament to having a dream for a trip and going for it.

Of course, that’s not to say there hasn’t been difficulties along the way. Finding the money to buy all the equipment, choosing a bike, planning a route, working out Visas and so forth all needs to be considered.

One guide I recommended to them and wanted to also recommend to you is the Bicycle Travellers Blueprint by my good friend Darren Alff. It is a guide that will remove half the hassle when planning a trip like this. Meaning there is more time to dream of beautiful destinations and enjoy the cycling without things going wrong.

It is the sort of thing you have to read before taking a big cycling trip such as this one. Though, I’m not suggesting an 8 month tour is possible for everyone or is even something everyone would like to do. However, perhaps you want to do a 1 month trip around Eastern Europe or a 2 week trip along the beautiful British Coastline.

How to plan the perfect trip

The first necessity is obviously all the equipment. If you, like my two friends, Alex and Dan don’t even yet have a bike that is suitable for a long trip then this is where the guide begins. It helps someone make the right decision as to the type of bike they should buy and also how to transport things on that bike. There is also a number of useful sections in this chapter that discuss the sort of equipment that makes a huge difference but you’ll probably forget to take and how to keep your bike safe while you’re travelling.

One of the most useful sections in this first chapter is the packing checklist. This makes it incredibly easy to get going and not forget any essentials. Having someone with a ton of experience explain what is and isn’t necessary sets you off on the right gear (pun intended). Oh, and while you are out on the road climbing a big hill you’ll be making a promise to yourself to email Darren and thank him on the section about things you can leave at home!

Once all the equipment is done and you know how to pack your panniers like a professional you need a route. This can be one of the most difficult parts of the planning stage but Darren has broken it down beautifully into an easy to follow method. Everything including how to research, find accommodation and create a budget is covered in this second chapter.

You might think that is where the guide ends. However, Darren has then gone on to talk about what it is like to be on the road. This is good for the mental element of the preparation which especially for particularly long trips might be something you didn’t consider beforehand. He also outlines how you can stealth camp – as in camp for free and not be seen while you are touring. A useful skill that you’re unlikely to learn elsewhere.

There is a ton more contents in the downloadable eBook but I hope you get the idea that this is an “all your questions answered” guide. I’ve been recommending it since last year when I was first told about it to anyone who comes to me with questions about doing a big bike tour such as my two good friends who are due to ride Lands End to John O Groats next week as a warm up to their 8 month tour!

Discount until Sunday

Just before sending this I messaged Darren on the off chance he might be interested in doing a bit of a sale for London Cyclist readers. He said he is happy to offer 20% off until Sunday 29th. Therefore the normal price of $24.95 is temporarily $19.95.

If you have any questions about the eBook before you buy then please leave them below. I’m happy to answer them or I can direct them to Darren.

To receive your discount head to this page to find out more and instantly download the eBook to start planning your adventure!

http://www.londoncyclist.co.uk/go/bicycle_travellers_blueprint/

Both beaches offers views that are nothing short of spectacular. Look around you and you will see plenty of gorgeous Brazilians going about tanning, swimming and drinking Caipirinha. (Or Caipis as we affectionately called them). Look a little further and you will see the two mountains called the Two Brothers.

Similarly to when we were cycling in Vietnam, we decided to rent bikes. As we had amassed a decent sized group of new friends we completely cleared out the shop of all the bikes they had available. It soon emerged that I was a keen cyclist in London and so the shop owner trusted me with his personal bike.

After minor adjustments to the bicycles we travelled up to the lake which sits behind Ipanema. The picture above shows this lake from the Christ the Redeemer monument. True to the relaxed nature of the Rio de Janeiro residents we were soon relaxing in a cafe and drinking Guarana. A refreshing soft drink that I’m told can be bought in London as well.

The entire route around the lake is shared between pedestrians and cyclists and is well maintained. There is plenty of opportunity to stop and relax in the shade with a coconut drink. These are available all over Rio de Janeiro. After buying one for a couple of pounds the stall holder uses a sharp knife to create a hole in the top of them so you can stick a straw in and drink the juice.

Aftewards we travelled across the short strip of land that separates the lake from the sea. Along the entire length of both Copacabana and Ipanema is a segregated two lane cycle path. This is well used by locals and everyone cycling along it was very friendly. A couple of times I heard whistles when people wished to overtake and then as they overtook an “oblegado” which is Portuguese for thank you.

We kept the pace slow to enjoy the surroundings. However, I couldn’t resist racing my new friends at one stage on our mountain bikes. After all there is nothing wrong with a bit of showing off.

After cycling around in 32 degrees heat I was desperate to go for a swim to cool down. We locked up the bikes and ran into the sea Baywatch style! This was the perfect refreshment and we completed the rest of the cycling in our swimming gear.

During the cycling we had a chance to chat about cycling in London. Hiren who joined us on the cycling is also a Londoner and had previously worked for a short while at Halfords. He told me about how difficult it was to move a customer from the cheapest bikes to the slightly more expensive but miles better bikes. I told him about how Halfords made the error of putting the front forks on the wrong way round on one of their cheap bikes in the advert and he couldn’t believe it.

Maxi, who was travelling with Hiren, told me the favourite present she had ever received was a shiny new mountain bike but she had hardly used it for fear of the London streets. I told her it wasn’t as bad as everyone says and that I would give her some lessons back in London.

I also met Julie from France who I got along with really well. I have promised to visit her in Lyon and get her more into cycling.

While in Brazil we also took the chance to do a tour of the Favelas. This is where many of Brazil’s poorest residents live and is central to the drug crime that is so prevalent. We went with a group for reasons of safety. On the first day the tour had to be cancelled due to a special police raid on the Favela we were visiting and gunshots being fired. There was a lot of panic in people’s eyes as they told us not to continue on into the Favela so it was a little unnerving. The second day everything was calm so we were able to walk around undisturbed.

One of the sights we were shown is of the illegal electricity pirating. You can see the electricity pylon in the picture above and how it has been modified to provide free electricity to the residents. We were also told that Favelas are actually one of the safest places to be and the banks inside are the only ones not to have been robbed. This was due to the severity of the punishment by local drug gangs if you are caught committing such a crime.

Overall in Brazil the cycling seems very casual. You will mainly see single speed bikes with plenty of baskets for carrying things. The bike is largely seen as a utility vehicle and the majority of roads seem fairly dangerous for cyclists. Far more so than in the UK. However, some people do seem to be switching to bikes to beat the poor public transport and provisions such as the cycle lanes along Copacabana beach are likely to be central to this transition. If you get the chance to visit Brazil I couldn’t recommend it more and make sure while you are there you do some cycling.

See also:

• Chaotic cycling in Vietnam
• Cycling in the most remote part of the UK
• Alastair Humphreys book review – cycling around the world on a tight budget

A bike tour is basically when you explore a country by bike. Up until recently I never thought about doing it but then two things happened.

The first was reading Moods of Future Joys by Al Humphreys. This was an inspiring read because it showed how much more you get to experience a country on a bike. It also showed me that you didn’t have to be some sort of extreme traveller cyclist type to be able to do it. Anyone could do it with a bit of planning.

The second was being recommended an amazing resource which has made planning a bike tour a lot easier. After having read through it I feel a lot more prepared.

In 2010 I’m planning on exploring the British coast . I want to see all those amazing places you see pictures of and think surely that can’t be in the UK? I also want to go further and do a trip around parts of Asia. Possibly starting in Istanbul, though Turkey onwards through parts of Russia. You may have considered taking a similar trip in 2010.

Bicycle Travellers Blueprint

The resource I was recommended that I want to share with you is called the Bicycle Travellers Blueprint. It takes you through everything from the equipment you need to the mentality behind bicycle touring. It is a fantastic eBook that converts a complete bike touring beginner like myself into someone who you would think has done it all before.

It is aimed at anyone who wants to do a bike tour. This includes those of us that are happy sleeping in a hotel and those of us that would prefer to sleep in a tent. I’ll probably try the latter because it sounds like a lot of fun and is very cheap.

What I really liked about the Bicycle Travellers Blueprint is that it is easy to read without compromising on the depth of information. Whilst the author Darren Alff has been bike touring for over 8 years he keeps his writing style accessible to anyone including beginners and those with some previous experience.

The eBook discusses topics such as equipment, finding a partner, how to build up the confidence to go on a bike tour and some of the emotions you will experience. It also has a fairly comical yet at the same time brilliant suggestion of living off your bike for a while before leaving so you can ease your way into it. I would never have thought of doing this. The Blueprint then moves on to creating a plan, doing your trip research and calculating a budget. It pretty much answered all my questions and made me think about things I would not have even considered.

It definitively saved me a lot of time in working these things out for myself. I wanted to recommend it to you as I have found it so useful.

Where to get hold of the blueprint

Click here to find out more about Bicycle Travellers Blueprint

In fact I would say that cycling is the best way to see the Peak District. Not only will you cover more ground but also you are sat in a nice elevated position. You will soon feel bad for walkers who only get to see a small part of the magnificent national park.

The Peak District covers 555 square miles of central England. The sites you will see vary wildly depending on which part you visit. If you hit the south you are likely to see plenty of white limestone where as in the north you will see a harsher landscape with moorlands. There are some very interesting rides to try, including the famous Mam Tor.

Cyclists are well catered for with plenty of bike hire shops and routes designed for cycling. There is something for hardcore cyclists all the way to families with younger children.

It is a place to visit all year round, as long as you bring your waterproofs. When I last visited we had a cold morning, then gorgeous sunshine and finally a wet muddy finish to the day. Which was actually very fun! If you do visit in the winter just be aware of the shorter daylight hours and set off early to grab as much daylight as you can.

Visiting from London

The journey from London takes around an hour and a half by train to Derby. From there you can reach many of the destinations in the Peak District. There are of course lots of different stations you can travel to as the Peak District is surrounded by major cities.

Either way I recommend booking a train ticket in advance on something like the Trainline because you will pay more if you just turn up on the day. When I looked I managed to get about 50% off by choosing a ticket a few weeks in advance.

You may also choose to drive there which takes around 3 hours. There is plenty of parking available if you choose to go by car.

If you have travelled all the way from London to the Peak District then I would recommend getting a hotel or bed and breakfast for the night because there is a lot to see and you will feel rushed. Lastminute as always have some pretty good deals.

Visiting from nearby

If you are lucky enough to live a bit nearer then there are many great day trips to try. I recently went from Birmingham to try out the Tissington Trail and it took just over an hour to drive there.

Tissington Trail

When I asked around this is the one everyone knows. The trail spans 13.5 miles and is completely traffic free. It follows the disused railway line and stops at some really nice small villages along the way.

If you want to try this route you just head to Ashbourne, follow the signs to the cycle hire shop and they will give you all the information you need. Make sure you pickup a puncture repair kit off them and brush up on your puncture repair skills. The route is almost completely flat so nice and easy for anyone.

When I visited we stopped off at a cafe in Tissington and had some of their amazing food.

Cycle hire from here cost £11 each for the day. Though you can see up to date details on this from the Peak District website.

Ashbourne is a really nice town to stay if you are doing the Tissington Trail.

Reservoir Circuit in Peak District

This route is recommended by my good friend Rob from Real Cycling. It covers the gorgeous Ladybower and Derwert reservoir and is over 19 miles long. It is one of those cycling routes that you absolutely must try one day. Put it on your todo list!

View 33 Mam Tor in a larger map

While you are there if you fancy a challenge or just want to see something very strange you may want to cycle up Mam Tor from Hope train station. It follows the route of the old A625 which is slowly crumbling away.

It is not the easiest of routes so will not appeal to everyone but if you manage it you will be rewarded with one of the most amazing views of the Peak District.

Rob has a fantastic write up on this route in his book which I highly recommend looking at. It is also available to download as a sample chapter off his site.

While you are in this area you may also want to visit one of the many caverns. The Speedwell Cavern near Castleton is shown below.

The nearest place to hire a bike is listed on the Peak District website.

For more information..

If you want to find out more about cycling in the Peak District you can head to this site. Alternatively there is some great books out there with cycling routes in the Peak District including Cycling in the Peak District: Off Road Trails and Quiet Lanes which has more relaxed routes rather than tough trails. Rob’s book called 50 Quirky Bike Rides in England and Wales that I mentioned earlier is also available from Amazon.

See also:

• How to find and plan the perfect cycling trip in the UK
• How to choose cycling socks and overshoes
• Cycling from Birmingham to London
• Peak district gets £1.25m to develop more cycling routes

Images via: publicenergy, jiruan, swh, saxonfenken, marcus_jb1973, star-one

Breaking out of London is a London Cyclist monthly series that inspires London’s cyclists to break out of their city and explore the many gorgeous destinations available in the UK. The series provides all the information you will need to make such a trip. This second instalment takes you all the way to the Scottish Highlands and Outer Hebrides. It is contributed by my friend Peter Newell (leading member of Big Foot MBC) who has been cycling for over 10 years and has done everything from XC racing to tandeming.

Cycling in Scottish Highlands and Outer Hebrides

After years of talking about it and months of reading articles it was finally to happen. I gathered 7 mates from my old University mountain bike club and travelled to the west coast of Scotland. This amazing destination was to provide much relief from the years of riding in the congested Surrey Hills and Welsh trail centres. We were after a week of epic wilderness cycling… and boy did we get it!

Our plan, and one that I can recommend, was to ride the Isle of Skye, then jump on a ferry over to the Isle of Harris for a few days, then we would come back and explore the west coast area of Torridon. This would then be topped off with a night’s stay in the remote Glen Affric Youth Hostel.

Getting there and getting wet

To get there involved a gruelling 11 and a half hour car journey from London. As you can imagine we needed a very good nights sleep after that and we got it at the Skyewalker Youth Hostel which I can highly recommend. In the morning we were woken up by heavy rain. This meant 3 hours of cycling into 40mph headwinds and driving rain. We finally saw sense and retreated back to the cars and the Sligachan hotel to dry out by the fire and sample some of the 200 whiskeys on offer – very highly recommended!

First day of serious cycling

The following day feeling satisfied from the whiskey tasting we took the cars and did the 90 minute ferry trip from Usk to Tarbert (Harris) where we had our first day of amazing cycling in the sun. What I will mention about Harris is that it is very rocky and windy. Upon exiting the Ferry you will feel like you have landed on Mars. Fear not, this area has some of the most beautiful, unspoilt beaches in the UK. My advice: don’t miss it!

Torridon

After the ferry back to Skye we then had of couple of days of riding around Torridon on the west coast which offers some really good touring roads if you fancied a road cycling holiday, however we were dogged by changeable weather and decided to take a day out to Applecross (the location of Monty Hall’s recent BBC2 documentary).

Finally the weather came good for our wilderness ride out to Glen Affric hostel which is 10 miles from the nearest road and you have to bring all your own food, sleeping bags and clothes on the bike. This ride and the scenery will stay in my memory for a long time. I’ll stop talking now and let the following photos explain why:

This part of the UK is one of the most remote places left, and during the week we only saw a handful of other cyclists and walkers on the trails.

In summary, I would recommend going to the West Coast to anyone. This was mostly an off-road cycling trip however the area also makes a very good on-road touring holiday due to the complete lack of traffic and stunning scenery. An amazing getaway from city life.

I would consider myself relatively fit cycling several times a week and doing the odd XC race, and the routes we took were hard going at times, but that’s because we wanted a challenge. There are plenty of easier routes to choose from and the area would make an ideal road cycling destination.

Transport

Driving takes a long time (we drove just shy of 1900miles in the week) however there are flights from London to Inverness with Easyjet, or for a greener approach try the Caledonian Sleeper train from London Euston to Inverness (Bike storage is included in the price). You will however, need to hire a car from there.

Routes

We used Bikely for a few routes and a scotland cycling guidebook. Alternatively there are several holiday companies that offer guidance and accommodation such as HandiAdventures if you don’t want to organize it yourself. Finally I can highly recommend getting some Ordinance Survey maps of the area.

Don’t forget:

• Midge (small flies) repellent I found Avon Skin So Soft as a great alternative to the polyester melting market leaders. Your cycling clothes will thank you for it. Don’t worry about not looking macho apparently its the same thing the Royal Marines use
• Full Waterproofs – Unless you are exceptionally lucky it will rain at some point so make sure you bring a decent coat
• Handful of spares Bike shops are few and far between in this part of Scotland so bring brake pads, a spare rear mech hanger and lots of puncture repair patches. It would be rubbish going all that way and not being able to ride because you caught your rear mech on a rock

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Of course our optimistic slightly inebriated minds did not consider the possibility of rough terrain mixed with frequent stopping. Also we were both out of shape. I had just finished a long delicious summer in Greece and Mat was.. well.. Mat.

Anyway, the plan was made and a suitable date was found. On that date we set off early, at 7am and in no time found ourselves in Warwick. The canal path was well maintained, we basically had it to ourselves and we were making great progress.

Things started to go wrong after Napton Junction. Before this junction we had been cycling on grass for a while. This is tiring and slow to say the least but not a problem. However once you get past Napton Junction the path gets very basic and is badly maintained. This is where I got my puncture. “No problem” I thought, “I’ll grab the pump”.  A quick rummage around my bag revealed that the pump was not in-fact here with me but instead was around 40 miles away in Birmingham.

This meant my next 2 hours involved a slow uphill climb to Daventry with my friends bike while he pushed my bike along the canal path. There I purchased a pump and I rejoined my friend after the Braunston Tunnel.

The rest of the journey was without mishaps and I thoroughly enjoyed it but this delay did slow us down a lot. Below are some pictures from the trip:

How to: Birmingham to London along the Grand Union Canal

Right, so you have heard from my experience and you want to give it a go. I don’t blame you – there is plenty of picturesque British scenery, beautifully decorated canal boats and empty flat land to tempt me back any day.

The Birmingham to London canal route map

Birmingham to Milton Keynes

The first thing you need to do is work out a route. I found a good route from Birmingham to Milton Keynes on Bikely which I have also uploaded to EveryTrail.

Birmingham to Milton Keynes Via Grand Union Canal at EveryTrail

This gave me the coordinates I needed to input onto my iPhone using the Trails App which I have discussed previously on the iPhone bike apps post.

If there is one part of the route I would alter its from Napton on Hill to after Braunston Tunnel. Here the towpath is of a bad quality and you will struggle.

Milton Keynes to London

I couldn’t find any routes from Milton Keynes to London so I put together the below one:

Milton Keynes to London via Grand Union Canal at EveryTrail

The second half of the Grand Union takes you past Watford and via the west end of London to Paddington. It’s up to you to decide what you consider the “centre of London” I would say it was Trafalgar Square others would say it is Charing Cross, Westminster. Chances are you won’t care very much by the time you have cycled all that way.

What to take with you?

• Inner tube spare x2 that fit your bike. If you have a bit of spare cash then splash out on the slime tube ones as they self heal and only cost a few pounds more – the best price I found was on Amazon.
• Allen Key
• Puncture repair kit
• Pump
• Waterproofs
• Map – there are two ways to go about it. If you have a GPS device then that’s great you can download the direction I have listed above. Alternatively if you prefer you could buy an Ordnance Survey map.
• Water – you can on occasions fill up using the narrowboat facilities by the side of the canal.
• Bike lock
• Snack food – there are large stretches of the canal where there is nowhere nearby to get food.
• Cycle permit – no one will ask you but it can’t hurt.

Where to stay?

Halfway and at the end your going to need somewhere to stay. The cheapest option is Hostels. I always book through Hostel World. Alternatively if you fancy a bit more comfort go for a hotel. The best choice of course is if you have a friends house somewhere along the route and they will let you stay.

When to go on the Grand Union Canal?

I would recommend cycling during the summer as obviously you have more daylight and better weather. When it rains the trail can get muddy and you risk taking a dip.

Who is it for?

I cycled there with a Hybrid bike and had not cycled for over a month before setting off. I would recommend a bit more cycling than that before hand and also if you have a mountain bike it is better suited. Other than that if you cycle daily then this is a challenge you can do. If you don’t want to push yourself just plan for three days instead of two.

How long will it take to get to London?

This will largely depend on the person but it took me two days, setting off at 7am. Cycling about 12 hours a day.

Anything else I need to know?

As long as you know how to repair a puncture you will be fine. If I missed out any useful information please leave a comment below.

Part of the Breaking out of London series – This is the first post is a new London Cyclist monthly series that inspires London’s cyclists to break out of their city and explore the many gorgeous destinations available in the UK. The series provides all the information you will need to make such a trip.