Day 1
St Pancras International to Gare du Nord Notre Dame Tour Eiffel Versailles
Ten of us met at St Pancras International at 9am on Maundy Thursday, having the previous day delivered our bikes to the station. Out group comprised:Me and Clare, Pat and her 17 year old daughter Becca, Alice and her 13 year old son Alex, Stephen, Mark, Phil and Cate, the adults all being in the 40 – 55 age bracket.
Our train left promptly at 10:25 and arrived swiftly at 1.47pm localtime.
Collecting our bikes at Gare du Nord proved trouble free and the GPS took us to Notre Dame along an odd mixture of main roads and pedestrian centres. Motorists were even more selfish than London’s motorists and pedestrians more forgiving than London’s pedestrians.
After a brief pause at Notre Dame for photos I ignored the advice of the Sat Nav and took the riverside road to the Eiffel Tower. En route we saw a motor cavalcade entering the Ministre Affaires Etrangeres et Europeennes. We paused, gawped, and saw nothing. Soon after I had my first encounter with a French traffic policeman. He was incompetently trying to control traffic at the next junction but seemed to believe that motor traffic should be allowed to turn right across the path of a modest peloton of ten cyclists.
Perhaps more by luck than judegement we made it safely to the Eiffel Tower. Another pause for photos and off we went.
My planned route out of Paris started here. We crossed the Seine and headed uphill to the relative sanctuary from Parisian traffic of theBois de Boulogne. We crossed the Seine again and took minor roads tothe Parc du Saint-Cloud, taking a particularly nifty underpass over[sic] the A13 motorway and under a main railway line. In the Parc du Marnes we first passed a dead end sign, then a no entry sign, and finally a no cycling, except under 13s, sign before being churned outinto some sort of stud farm. Then it was back into woodland to Versailles and our Ibis Hotel. Bikes went into bedrooms.
Clare had done her homework well and led us to an excellent Bistro with a posh restaurant attached. Both Bistro and restaurant were empty; bistro prices were good, restaurant prices were high. As a group of ten we were invited to eat from the bistro menu in the empty restaurant.
Great food. I slept well. My bike I balanced on the window shelf.
Route:http://maps.google.co.uk/maps/ms?hl=en&ie=UTF8&msa=0&msid=208439916005563220555.0004a1c38ef6b46f9f73e&t=h&z=11Profile:http://www.britishschoolofcycling.com/rides/paris2london2011/height1.JPG.kmz file: (for Google Earth)http://www.britishschoolofcycling.com/rides/paris2london2011/day1.kmz
Day 2
Versailles to Gournay en Bray
We left Versailles in good spirits and I promptly got the group trapped the wrong side of a motorway slip road. We had to retrace the second kilometre of our trip to get back en-route, the correct side ofa major dual carriageway. Of course later we had to cross the dual carriageway, and this we did on an odd cycle path alongside the A12 motorway. Then it was once more into forest on roay sounding road names and later ever more remote forest tracks until we were on a winding little path that looked like it would peter out altogether. However, we were finally spat out of the forest at Poissy where we found a little parade of small shops to stock up for lunch and other breaks. We made our final descent to the valley and crossed the river into Triel-sur-Seine.
I had done this trip twice before and knew what was to come. A two mile steep ascent from the Seine Valley to the countryside above. Boy it was hot. I reckon I must have lost a litre in sweat on the longhaul up, leaving a trail of salty water boiling on the tarmac for others to follow. At last we reached the top and saw a curious sign to US Marines.
We followed the sign which led us first to a village called Us, and then to a village (with an excellent patisserie) called Marines. Fromthere it was gently undulating countryside, with a pause in a woodland for lunch, all the way to Gournay. The others didn’t believe my description of gently undulating countryside, and the height profile suggests they may have a point.
I had prewarned them of the long 2 mile haul out of the Seine Valley, shown on the profile at 30km. But had cheered them up with the promise that from then on it was gentle “undulations”. The profile shows a 10km climb between 45 and 55km and an even longer and higher climb between 62km and 79km. However, I would argue that these other climbs are nowhere near as steep as the 170m climb from Triel-sur-Seine, and they only found that one easy because I had prepared them for it.
Hotel le Cygne in Gournay is an excellent hotel, and an excellent example of a family run small town hotel. We could not wish for better hosts, who provided us each with an enormous Plat du Jour of Spaghetti Bolognaise for 6.80 Euros. And, most astonishingly, told us to stock up with breakfast items for our packed lunches. Now don’t misunderstand me, I have no hesitation is purloining small breakfast items from an Ibis or Premier Inn, but would hesitate before surreptitiously tucking a croissant stuffed with ham and cheese into a napkin on my lap from such excellent hosts. But when faced with a monsieur with a handlebar moustache inviting me to steal his breakfast- well, all I can do is offer a handfull of Euros. He refused.
Route: (2 pages)http://maps.google.co.uk/maps/ms?hl=en&ie=UTF8&msa=0&msid=208439916005563220555.0004a2633aea5bb107b50&t=h&z=9Profile:http://www.britishschoolofcycling.com/rides/paris2london2011/height2.JPG.kmz file: (for Google Earth)http://www.britishschoolofcycling.com/rides/paris2london2011/day2.kmz
Day 3
Gournay-en-Bray to Dieppe Dieppe to Newhaven Newhaven to Premier Inn
Stuffed with breakfast we set off. Our route took us along a fairly main road to Forges-les-Eaux. I know the way well, but even so had to pause for a moment to work out the route and gather my memory. A fine lady in her car stopped and asked if we were lost. It turned out that she had lived in England for some considerable time and took a great deal of interest in our adventure. She took it upon herself to show usthe way to the Avenue Verte – “follow me” she bawled, and set of at six miles an hour along the main road. I hadn’t the heart to tell her that I knew the way so we followed. We turned onto the Avenue Verte.
The previous day I had briefed the group about the Avenue Verte. 3m wide flat, pristine tarmac, gentle downhill for 36 miles. “You’ll be cruising at 15 miles per hour and not know how you are sustaining such a speed” I had promised. Well, the start of the Avenue Verte has a modest 10m climb, and with memories of the previous day’s “gentle undulations” fresh in their minds they started taking the piss out of me. “No friggin’ ‘ills ‘e promised”, “more of ’em gentle ‘ucking undulations”, “I’ll bloody undulate ‘im!”
Well, the route profile proves me accurate on this occasion. We cruised into Dieppe at 15mph for 36 miles.
The Avenue Verte follows the route of an old railway line, the same railway I expect I had used on my solo trip to Chamonix at the age of14. It is a cycle path at its absolute best. But once you have seen the first mile, you have seen all 35. It is exactly the same all the way. 3m wide pristine cycle path, with wide grass verges either side and never changing countryside. Still, I love it – it is great cycling, and you get to sustain a great speed. A constant 15mph without even noticing it.
We arrived in Dieppe with 2 hours to spare before our ferry crossing. A harbourside bar waited.
We cycled onto the ferry found the restaurant and ate as the sun set over the English Channel.
We arrived in Newhaven at 10.30, cycled a few hundred metres to the Premier Inn, booked in and slept. To our surprise, bikes went in the bedrooms. They had been forewarned and put us all on the ground floor in accessible rooms with wide doors. English hotels are definitelyimproving!
Route:http://maps.google.co.uk/maps/ms?hl=en&ie=UTF8&msa=0&msid=208439916005563220555.0004a26337669cd1b9e03&t=h&z=8Profile:http://www.britishschoolofcycling.com/rides/paris2london2011/height3.JPG.kmz file: (for Google Earth)http://www.britishschoolofcycling.com/rides/paris2london2011/day3.kmz
Day 4
Newhaven to East Grinstead
A full English breakfast later and we were on out way. NCR2 follows the south coast from St Austell to Dover. We took it from Newhaven to Polgate. It crosses the South Downs at the Cuckmere Valley. We barelynoticed the South Downs, such are the route finding skills of the Sustrans planning team. However, they are a devious bunch, and they led us past a tea garden. We could let such a haven pass us by, we stopped.
An hour later, with coffee cake digesting nicely atop a full English breakfast we continued to Polegate. CUCKOO TRAIL CLOSED – PLEASE FOLLOW DIVERSION the sign announced. Shit.
I needn’t have been so despondent. The diversion was truly excellent. Matting had been laid along the side of a field adjacent to the trail.We passed through one gate, and out through another and popped back onto the Cuckoo Trail. Clearly some sort of pipeline was being laid, but it looked as if the Cuckoo Trail would benefit from the works in the medium term, with a fine new surface. Considerate Construction at its very best. I didn’t resent the temporary inconvieience.
The Cuckoo trail differs from the Avenue Verte. The surface is sub-pristine. Where tarmaced the surface is cracked by tree roots, no wide grass verges here, trees form a tunnel right up to the edge ofthe narrow tarmac path. This gives the cyclist shade from the sun. The Cuckoo Trail is bursting with character. Every bend reveals a different scene. English countryside is so much nicer and more varied than French countryside. We stopped at a Tesco Express in Heathfield. I looked after the bikes and asked Clare to get me a pork pie or similar.
Off the Cuckoo trail and into the trials of the Ashdown Forest. Steep hills and country villages, country lanes and long descents. We stopped by a carpet of bluebells for our lunch. As any good fiancee would, Clare thought of the healthy option and had bought me chicken goujons – great. I tucked in – they were horrible. Not wanting to upset my beloved, I lied: “delicious” I proclaimed. Bad mistake! “Eat up” I was directed. I tried to secretly dispose of the mess, and recalled Mr Bean’s technique.http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C6QqSxmpRMM When the goujons were nearly gone I could bear it no longer and looked at the packet. COOK THOROUGHLY BEFORE SERVING it shouted in bold print. So much for the healthy option. Next time I’ll risk my health with a pork pie.
At Groombridge we picked up the Forest Trail, another truly excellent disused railway line, possibly even more beautiful than the CuckooTrail. This led us to East Grinstead and our hotel. We ate in the local pub.
Route:http://maps.google.co.uk/maps/ms?hl=en&ie=UTF8&msa=0&msid=208439916005563220555.0004a263a3a8a84627950&t=h&z=10Profile:http://www.britishschoolofcycling.com/rides/paris2london2011/height4.JPG.kmz file: (for Google Earth)http://www.britishschoolofcycling.com/rides/paris2london2011/day4.kmz
Day 5
East Grinstead to Greenwich
After another full English breakfast we started the toughest day ofthe ride.
At East Grinstead Station we picked up the Forest Trail again, minus Mark who had gone off to shop for something. 30 minutes later and I got a phone call from him asking the way. I told him to retrace his steps to East Grinstead, find the station car park, the footbridge over the railway, and from there he would fine the disused railwayline. Such is his speed that in a further 30 minutes he had caught usup at Forest Row.
We made it safely to Crawley where we met the only stroppy motorist ofthe trip (the Paris traffic cop was on foot). He hooted and tooted’cos he was delayed for about 30 seconds.
From Crawley we made our way to Gatwick and paused under the flightpath. Then Redhill and the steep escarpment of the North Downs. Boy the hills are fierce. The first steep climb was a rough off-road track to Gravelly Hill. At the summit was a tap – it was off, until a passing cyclist pointed out the stop cock. I drenched my hair, filled my water bottles, as did othes, but it degenerated into a water bottlewater fight. The view from the tap is stunning:http://maps.google.co.uk/maps/ms?hl=en&ie=UTF8&msa=0&msid=208439916005563220555.0004a2641fe83b2b4d199&ll=51.263338,-0.077548&spn=0,0.027595&t=h&z=15&layer=c&cbll=51.263329,-0.077683&panoid=tdSj8Y7YkxbJp0KAbgIOuQ&cbp=12,169.32,,0,20.86
Then country lanes to the North Downs Way and another steep climb and a posh girls’ school at Woldingham. Across a golf course and another off-road steep climb: we all pushed up. It got better. Country lanes to Croydon where we picked up the Waterlink Way which led us home.
Route:http://maps.google.co.uk/maps/ms?hl=en&ie=UTF8&msa=0&msid=208439916005563220555.0004a2641fe83b2b4d199&t=h&z=10Profile:http://www.britishschoolofcycling.com/rides/paris2london2011/height5.JPG.kmz file: (for Google Earth)http://www.britishschoolofcycling.com/rides/paris2london2011/day5.kmz
The total trip distance from Gare du Nord was 233 miles.The cost including Eurostar, ferry, 4 nights hotel accommodation,evening meals and breakfasts was £250 per pers
Tom Crispin May 2011