A friend and I have just finished Lands End to John O groats using the easy east coast route. We took it leisurely aiming to do an average of just 50 miles a day so we could stop and explore along the way. This worked well, despite being the wrong side of 60 neither of us ever felt exhausted or reticent to cycle the next day, even after two consecutive days of 70 and 60 miles. The route was excellent, although there was one occasion in Cornwall when it routed us on a private track. I'm afraid to say we trespassed, but happily with no consequence. Closer to John O groats we met several others who had come via the more usual west coast route and had suffered several extremely wet days . By contrast we had only one drenching day and that was in Devon. Scotland, amazingly, was completely dry. We also had less wind than those on the west. We would thoroughly recommend this route for those who have time & want to tour for the joy of experiencing a country and its people. In these covid times, despite what the media is constantly feeding us, we found everyone extremely welcoming, behaving sensibly & working hard to maintain their businesses and lives as normally as possible. It restored some faith in this beleaguered country and its people.
Comments
Thanks for the review of this ride Clare. I'm hoping to do LEJOG next year and am gradually coming to the view that the East coast may suit me better rather than the long, and sometimes poorly surfaced, canal tracks of the Midlands. Hopefully Covid will be in retreat next year and allow unrestricted travel.
Yep, thanks Claire - am thinking of doing this route this year, so the feedback was really helpful.
Since this is now 2025, has anyone looked at this offered route and made any good suggestions/alteration since its creation?
I used this route as the inspiration for a trip taking 24 cycling days; our first major tour.
With relatively modest changes, it's possible to use YHs at Lands End, Okehampton, Street, Bath, Cirencester, Stratford, National Forest (nr Ashby dela Zouch), Sherwood Forest, York, Osmotherly, Alnwick, Berwick, Edinburgh, Perth, Pitlochry, Aviemore, Inverness. (We did non-hostel nights at Truro, Camelford, Durham, Tain, Crask, Melvich, JoG, plus had to substitute for a few hostels that were not available.)
YH's distinctly cheaper than using B&Bs etc, esp as they enable self-catering; plus I enjoy the ethos.
Note some deliberate shorter days, such as splitting Edinburgh - Pitlochry at Perth; for myself and party, a single leg (c77miles/ 3700ft) would have been too stretching esp if adverse weather.)
The day through the midlands from Stratford via Atherstone etc was a pleasant surprise, mostly on small roads. One suggested detail: from Nottingham, we went via Radcliffe and Gunthorpe, then 2 miles on the grassy path beside the Trent towards Hoveringham (officially only a footpath ...); doing this avoided city and A roads, worked well for us.
Our principal variations were:
1) via Bath and the Cotswolds instead of Bristol and the lower Severn valley. Extra climbs over the Mendips and after Bath but akin to Cornwall and Devon/ some pushing allowed; the railway tunnel at Bath was a highlight and the Cotswolds inc using sections of Fosse Way were v nice too.
2) in the north east diverted via Durham (home), then via Newcastle (quick cycling on wide urban roads and on cycleways) to Wideopen, then minor country roads via Mitford and Tritlington to rejoin the route at Warkworth. About 900ft more climbing but similar distance, and gets back to nice countryside more quickly; features Durham and the Tyne Bridge in lieu of Sunderland/Tynemouth/Blyth etc, net win IMO.
3) over the border via Duns and Gifford; the countryside and deserted B roads along the Whiteadder one of the best bits of the whole trip (as quiet as NW Scotland used to be ...).