Woking to London by bike..



From my home in Saint Johns (near Woking) I can cycle all the way into central London, most of the way off roads. It is a really nice ride, though the round trip takes me about 10 hours in all and is about 70 miles. Being off the roads is nice, but it does mean the surfaces are not so smooth so I find it quite long. Cycling past so many London bridges and landmarks as you arrive in London is so exciting though. :-)


I think a good way to do this would be to cycle into London and then take the train home. I will try to arrange for a group of us to cycle this route in the Spring (of 2009) and on my last trip I photographed the landmarks, as well as pubs and places where people could join us or leave us if they wanted to cycle only part of the route. Obvious places to join are in Woking town centre, Weybridge and Kingston.



Here I will describe the route, illustrating with the photos I took.

We start from the pond outside Woking Golf Club in Pond Road (Hook Heath). This is right near where I live, and a very nice viewpoint from which to start. The pond is a popular spot for families on walks, and well known for its very big fish (carp) and few ducks and moorhens. To make it all the way to London and back in a day, we need to set out quite early in the morning. From here we cycle to the end of Pond Road, and take the path to the right of the Golf Club car park and across the railway footbridge, then down the road to Saint Johns.





The road leads from the railway footbridge (which has its own blog - http://footpath102.blogspot.com/ ) - through the woods and down to Saint Johns Lye. The bakers here sells hot bacon sandwiches, which might be a good idea for breakfast.



Ride to the end of the road and take the left fork after the car park. This leads to the high street and shops. Turn left and cross the main road after the canal bridge.



The bridge is Kiln Bridge, and has nice views along the Basingstoke Canal in both directions. We will be cycling towards Woking, which is the side with the lock gates.



I think there are 14 locks along the few miles of Basingstoke Canal that we cycle. The canal was restored some years ago and is now a really pleasant walk or ride.




To reach the towpath you pass through a gap beside the bridge.


The towpath from here through to a mile the other side of Woking town centre has been resurfaced and widened. It makes a nice easy cycling surface with plenty of space for both cyclists and walkers. I think this work was done by Sustrans - http://www.sustrans.org.uk/ - who are also to thank for the London side of our cycle route (cycle route 4).










































































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