Grab Your Bike and Explore Your Local Surroundings on This Year’s Holiday
Cycling is a great way to bring your family and friends together on holiday, and with holiday parks located in some of the UK’s most scenic areas, getting on your bike is the perfect way to make the most of your surroundings.
Great Cycling Routes for Beginners
If you’re on holiday in Devon and want a taste of the countryside, there’s no better cycling route that the Devon coast to coast path. The route starts near the beaches and estuaries of North Devon, along the western flank of Dartmoor National Park, finishing on the South Devon coast just south of Plymouth.
It mainly traces the course of old railway lines, making the terrain flat and easily manageable for beginners. What’s more, although the whole route is 99 miles long, it can be joined at any point so you can tailor the route to your abilities or preferences.
Medium-Difficulty Cycling Routes
If you’re looking for a slightly bigger cycling challenge on your holiday, look no further than the Clyde and Loch Lomond Cycleway in Scotland. Beginning on the bank of the River Clyde near the Glasgow Science Centre, the route runs along the River Clyde, past Dumbarton Rock and northwards from the Firth of Clyde towards Loch Lomond.
Roughly 20 miles long, this route is a moderate cycle that will take between 1 ½ – 3 hours to complete depending on your level of fitness. It’s also traffic-free, making it ideal for younger budding cyclists.
England’s Coast to Coast Challenge – The Ultimate Cycle Route
If you’ll settle for no less than the biggest cycling challenge the UK has to offer, then England’s coast to coast challenge is for you. Running Cumbria all the way to Sunderland, this highly demanding route is arguably Britain’s most popular long distance cycle ride and certainly no mean feat. The route combines the back lanes of Cumbria with tough uphill climbs on some of Britain’s highest roads, and at 136 miles cross country it crosses two mountain ranges (the Lake District and the Pennines).
Luckily, the route is very well-signposted, making it pretty hard to go wrong. The record time that the route has been completed in is 10 hours, but most riders take a few days and stay in a B&B between stages. Three to four days seems to be the usual amount of time taken to complete the ride; with most participants cycling 30 to 50 miles per day.
