For many of us our love of touring also gives access to other hobbies and chief among those is cycling. For motorcaravanners it means being able to leave the van on site and explore narrow country lanes and built up urban streets, without worrying about your vehicle’s paintwork or wondering where you will be able to park.
Away from made-up roads cyclists can take to bridleways and byways that go deep into the countryside and in the case of a new route developed by the charity Cycling UK, deep into history.
King Alfred’s Way is a circular route that takes in four existing National Trails – the South Downs Way, the North Downs Way, the Ridgeway and the Thames Pathway – connecting them by upgrading footpaths to bridleways, country lanes and existing bridleways.
The 220-mile (350km) route starts at the statue of King Alfred the Great on the High Street in Winchester and passes through the counties of Surrey, Hampshire, Berkshire and Wiltshire taking in World Heritage Sites Stonehenge and Avebury Ring, and the ancient sites of Old Sarum, the Uffington Horse, and Iron Age forts. The route also passes near the towns of Farnham, Reading, Swindon and Salisbury, so you can use a train to take the strain of returning to your van if need be.
To find out more about the route visit www.cyclinguk.org/king-alfreds-way
Photo by Pannier.cc /David Sear
