Day 393

Got back to the hotel at 5pm by the time I had got myself sorted and out on the bike it was 5:40.

I had planned a ride that would be entirely on cycle paths, heading out towards Hampton Court on NCR 4 and a Local Route E4 and heading back towards Staines on the Thames Cycle route.

The cycle way out of Staines wasnt exactly what I thought...

They obviously coudn't afford to widen the path or even paint it! But still it was better than cycling on the dual carriageway.

Some of the cyclepaths turned into a guess where now puzzle. (Good job the GPS told me when I was heading of route!)

(If you look carefully at the wooden structure you will find a very small sign indicating the right fork in the path)

The ride to Kingston on Thames was much of a muchness with the cycle paths being hidden from plain view or in very poor condition, many requiring the crossing of major roads with no traffic control :-(

However when I got to Kingston on Thames I crossed the Thames and then I was on the Thames Cycle way :-) And that was worth the agravation of getting there!



The cycle path passed Hampton Court Palace

Things went a little awry when 4 miles from Staines the planned route indicated that I could cross the Thames from the left bank to the right, unfortunately at the point of crossing there was nothing but water!

This was a bit of a problem as I don't know the area at all! Thankfully the I told the GPS to plan another route to Staines and it worked :-)

The cycle computer had todays ride as 32.85 miles in 3 hours 34 minutes with an average speed of 12.3 mph.

The RunGPS plot can be found here...

I have enjoyed this weeks cycling away from home, I was lucky the Merida broke because it would not have coped with the cycle ways, and I wouldn't have enjoyed cycling on the busy city roads!

I am looking forward to getting back home tommorow and getting out into slower calmer territory!

The GPS carrier I made for the Merida is a godsend most of my navigation issues this week have been down to me having to listen to the GPS over the noise of the traffic whereas on the Merida I can see the route!

Ohh my story is on the local newspapers website today!..... (Gazzete & Herald)