North Downs Way: Riding In The Shadow Of The Rat Race

This might be what it feels like to be a rabbit, or a fox, perhaps. Scurrying along the edge of hedgerows, through labyrinths of close grown bushes, darting out into sunlight and across a field, then back into the shade of a holloway. It’s not Watership Down I’m riding along – though with my knowledge of southern English geography, it might as well be – but instead the new North Downs Way cycle route, running from Farnham to Dover.

This is alien geography to me. There are hills – indeed, the first climb out of Guildford (we start here, as it’s where Cycling UK has its office) has me worrying what the days ahead might hold – but I discover that once up, it is possible to ride along for miles, not actually realising you are up until there’s a sudden break in the hedges and a broad vista presents itself. Then, you find yourself looking across broad valleys and small rolling hills until your eye reaches the ridge of the South Downs in the distance (to the south, in fact – even my geography can manage that). It’s no rural idyl though – there’s a constant background roar of the motorways feeding and circling London, and as we ride through the series of connecting snickets and thickets there’s a strong sense of being at play while the rest of the world works.
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We’re all finding our way here – our guides from Cycling UK included. We’re following a route which has been developed between Cycling UK, the North Downs Way trail officer, and the British Horse Society, and aims to provide a rideable – in both senses of the word – off road route to pair with the existing North Downs Way walking trail. Eventually it’s hoped that this will link with other existing and planned trails to form a National Trail off road option for those wanting to ride all the way from Lands End, or Dover, to John O’Groats. It’s been a long process getting to this first attempt at stringing the route together on bikes, and it’s not yet finished. There are still sections of footpath that it’s hoped can be upgraded to bridleway, allowing more true off road use. For now, there is a great deal of overlap between the quiet but tarmac ways of elements of the National Cycle Network.

Our aim is to ride from Guildford, via Canterbury, to Dover, in a broad reflection of the routes used by pilgrims of days gone by. We have three days in which to make the trip, and the plan calls for 60, 40 and 35 miles each day, over the course of the long weekend. On Friday we will bivvy at the stables of one of the horse riders who has been involved with developing the route, on Saturday we must be in Wye for a pilgrim’s feast to mark 40 years of the (original, pedestrian) North Downs Way, and on Sunday we will join locals in climbing to a local view point for 40th birthday cake before riding on to Dover. At least, that’s the plan.

As it turns out, the inevitable inertia of trying to combine wayfinding, photography, public events, and a ride group of bike journos serves to curtail our plans somewhat. What lies beyond Canterbury remains a mystery to me, as our pilgrimage ended there. What came before though should certainly prove of interest, especially to those looking for off road options within easy reach of London.

In my view, the section we ride on the Friday was the best – which is possibly convenient as it’s also the bit closest to London. It’s not really mountain biking as I know it – this is not knee pad territory, and there’s a distinct absence of thrills. But it is more or less off road, and there is delight to be had, wiggling through trails that somehow feel like surely they’re not legitimate. We catch a perfect autumn day, the ground is dry, the leaves are crisp, and there is just the hint of that autumnal smell of summer growth starting to die off and decay. Under a bluebird sky we ride along trails which appear little walked or ridden as the weight of a summer of growing droops stems across our path and whips our legs. Linking them all together is a challenge, even with a GPX file to follow – is it this left, or that left? Do those paths join up on the other side of that tree, or head off in different directions? The sign posts are not helping – there are rotten ones propped up, whose arrows cannot be trusted, and others which have so many arrows on them that they look more like a boy scout’s badge collection that a way marker. This is a part of the process that’s still to come – once the access agreements are all ironed out, there will be the process of properly marking the trail so that it can be followed easily – something Cycling UK hopes to achieve in the future, although that currently seems a long way off. The intention is that this will be an official National Trail, like the Pennine Bridleway, which means there’s a bunch of government department administration to be dealt with first. Good luck to all the poor souls navigating that.

Back to navigation on the ground: don’t let it put you off. In fact, I would urge you to take map and GPX and find your way before the way markers go up. The wiggly, windy, forgotten – or at least secret – feel of the trail as it stands is a real treat. The narrowness and hidden feeling adds to the ride, gives you that hedgerow creature sensation, and completes the impression that you’re off discovering fun while those fools on the motorway miss out. It will be interesting to see how some of the sections of trail fare as the signposting goes up and, presumably, popularity grows. The more ancient hollow ways will no doubt be fine, used to centuries of traffic – perhaps being returned to the busyness that they experienced in their younger days – but I fear that in time some of the singletrack lines through weeds and undergrowth will lose some of their character.

Perhaps though, clearer connectivity at the expense of character will have its benefits. It takes us an inordinately long time to ride the 40 or so miles we get through on that first day. The route is mostly quiet enough that we could certainly have afforded to pedal at greater speed – though if you really want to whizz along, aim for midweek, or very early in the day. Parts of the route are very horsey, and we can all do without any ‘mountain bikers versus horses’ incidents. Those riding a mountain bike will probably find themselves wanting to add speed to the equation to add interest, unless you’re tackling it as a casual family day out, or gentle ride with friends. It’s perfect gravel bike territory – or at least it is in the perfectly dry and sunny conditions we’re presented with. In more inclement weather it would make perfect freak-niche bike terrain: bring your singlespeeds, your Surly ECRs, your rigid plus bikes and your Jones bars. In short, bring bikes for pedalling, and pedalling and pedalling – perhaps through a layer of slippery sticky mud. There is potential here for wet weather epic trudging, the kind of ride that rewards with a well earned sit by a pub fire rather than minute to minute whoops. On a day like we have, however, there is scenery of the ‘oh isn’t this English’ variety to die for.

Actually, at one point the scenery is more French than English – there’s a large vineyard en route (see what I did there?) which would make for a great lazy stop off for a bunch of friends wanting a leisurely ride with convivial atmosphere. But then it’s back to the none more English National Trust territory of Box Hill. Taking the bridleway option up it, I’m slightly bemused as to why it’s such a Mecca for the road cyclists of London – it’s hardly the Tourmalet. I guess though that it’s a hill with a cafe on the top, which is probably enough to make it qualify as a cycling destination.

The ride continues to contour along this ridge of a hill, sometimes offering up big views, other times diving back into the maze of little trails through bushes, small trees and occasionally growth mature enough to be considered proper woodland. There are occasional road crossings, though by and large the route feels extremely safe and sheltered. For a family looking for something off road without too many hills, there is a lot of potential here in this first section from Guildford to Gatton Park. A word of caution though: after Gatton Park, the route – as we rode it – loses much of this charm, and there are a few hairy road crossings plus some dull tarmac transitions between off road sections. Mountain bikers will likely find themselves frustrated at losing elevation on tarmac. Things picked up again near Titsey, though by the time we hit some solid fun stuff through the woods and emerged at Chartwell, home of Winston Churchill, we’d run out of light and had to pile into the broom wagon to take us to our camp spot for the night at Burham. What lies in that gap we missed I don’t know, but there’s a GPX file on the Cycling UK site if you’d like to go and find out.

Those who want to ride a route because it’s there, and who continue to follow it beyond Burham and the more consistently off road initial section to Gatton, will find themselves encountering increasing amounts of National Cycle Network. This seems a shame, as by following these sections the North Downs Way isn’t actually adding to the available ride network. Hopefully this will change as landowners are persuaded to allow bikes and horses across their land – perhaps they’ll see the benefits of offering camping spots and cafes too. Look on a map and way-find the old way, and you may find that a little investment in planning your own route pays off – this new route has sought to stick as close as possible to the North Downs Way footpath, and in doing so misses out some paths which head off in the ‘wrong’ direction. Those concerned more with fun than with retracing historic routes would do well to investigate these options – and indeed that it something that it is hoped this North Downs addition to the National Trail Network will deliver. Think of it as a spine, or a hub – a bit like the Mary Towneley Loop offers connectivity between other sections of arguably more fun but disparate sections of trail. Indeed, at the Farnham end there already exists five loop routes that can be linked together to create up to 80km of riding in the area.

Dedicated route followers may like to note that the walking route has spawned an Ale Trail, with a number of local brewers (it is Kent, the home of hops) being based near the route and giving a portion of proceeds from dedicated ‘Ales of the Trail’ to trail maintenance. As if you needed an extra excuse to have a beer. As far as we follow the new trail however, there are not that many shops or eating options along the way. Take sandwiches, adopt the ‘eat when and where you can’ approach of the armed forces, or be prepared to divert into villages to pick up supplies. It’s not remote terrain and it’s not challenging, but with all the pedalling just past and round small villages without too many amenities, it would be quite easy to find yourself in bonk territory. You should also expect to encounter some pretty industrial hedge trimming along the way – I’d highly recommend a tubeless set up and plenty of repair options. 

It’s possible I was a little grumpy after my (first) night in a bivvy, in temperatures that were lower than the comfort range of my sleeping bag (I won’t make that mistake again – nor will I leave my hip flask in a van where I can’t get to it). Maybe I’d have looked a little more favourably on Saturday’s ride if I’d had a little more sleep, or been on a gravel bike. From a mountain biking perspective, this section was all too tarmac orientated for me – and of course there was the photography and general group faff to slow things up so we couldn’t just get it over and done with. While the riding was dull, the day and scenery were not, however, and we finished up sitting in a beer garden, with half an eye on the possibility of paddling in the adjacent stream, and half an eye on the slightly pink tan lines we’d developed during the day.

Sunday’s ride was more interesting, with a good dose of off road byways – though we didn’t quite ride the planned route, as we went to Canterbury instead of to Ashford, partly because Sunday rail repairs meant that the train options back into London were more favourable. Canterbury is certainly worth a visit – it’s a pretty town heaving with tourists seeking out ye olde England, and the byways and riverside path leading to it made for pleasant if non-technical riding.

As our ride with its impromptu route alterations perhaps shows, there are a number of options available to the rider willing to follow a map – and with so many twists and turns and junctions, you may do well to do your homework and get a decent GPS with navigation option set up before you set off, to keep some forward momentum. I’d recommend the Guildford to Gatton section – or divide it into two sections by getting a train to or from Box Hill. Whether you’re a speedy hare or more of a snuffling hedgehog, there’s pleasure to had in exploring these hidden trails, while the rat race ploughs along the motorways.

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Further Information

• GPX files of the route are here, on the Cycling UK site.
• Farnham to Dover is approximately 150 miles, 34 miles of it is on roads.
• The route can be easily split into sections (and the GPX is in three 50 mile options) using local rail services.

Disclosure

Accommodation and food for the trip were provided by Cycling UK.