by Cyclist Yoni
📏Distance: 40-50 mile ⏱️ Duration: 3.5-4 hours 🚴 Difficulty: Intermediate 🚲 Terrain: Road 🗺️ GBX file
A day out cycling is always a good idea when the summer sun starts shyly shining on the British Isles. An unexpectedly cosy day at the end of April, had brought us to experience a well-known cycling route: starting in London and ending in Windsor Castle. Here's how we've done it, including suggestions through which you could probably do it better.
Our route reminds the one posted by Condor Cycles on Cycling UK's website, however, we tweaked it a bit, according to some information we gathered in the ultimate beehive wisdom - social media. Also, while we opted to go on to Slough and take a train back, Condor Cycles's is a loop. You can find it here.
There are basically three forks along the road, which you need to pre-decide how to address:
1) Whether you want to 'waste' time in Richmond Park (which is a wonderful cycling outpost on its own merit) or overtake it from the west.
2) Do you go through Stains or Egham/Engelfield, and if the former then through which route - the Thames's or the more direct.
3) Whether you overtake the Home Park Golf Club on the east (entering Windsor from the north) or stay on King's Road, which is slightly busier (but seemed like the cyclists' choice when we were en route)
As for issue number one, for us, it's was a no brainer - any opportunity to strain up the roads circling Richmond Park is a breath of fresh air for North Londoners, who don't normally get to the southern realm of London cycling. A brief spin here would equal a showcase of all the latest cycling brands, attires and gadgets, and the pastoral herds of deer make it all worthwhile, a brilliant London cycling route which has an "out-of-town" feel.
From Richmond Park, we go by route of Kingston Upon Thames and Bushy Park. Getting sidetracked in this area is easy, as the lively river scene is enough to call for a stop. An alternative is to keep going south to the impressive Hampton Court and join up River Thames's path earlier.
Through The Woodland Gardens, we kept heading west towards Sunbury-on-Thames and Shepperton which is a route that keeps with River Thames. Another alternative here is to keep straight on Stains Road, which is a major road - something we really wanted to avoid.
A coffee break in sleepy Stains seems as adventurous as drinking java in the early 2000's, but then we were in for a treat by the plains of Runnymede. This vast green is the site of the Magna Carta signing, which took place after fierce negotiations between King John and the rebelling English aristocrats - the Council of Barons, in 1215.
Magna Carta still forms an important symbol of liberty today, often cited by politicians and campaigners, and is held in great respect by the British and American legal communities, Lord Denning, a leading British judiciary, described it as "the greatest constitutional document of all times—the foundation of the freedom of the individual against the arbitrary authority of the despot", it is upon this out of London cycling route that we found this hidden gem.
As mentioned earlier, before Windsor you will have to make a decision whether to go on straight west or to flank the closed gated Home Park from the north - as we did. This was a welcome break as my left thigh started to burn out at this stage - having been on holiday and not on the saddle for nearly two weeks.
Another note- just before this (straight after Runnymede) is also roughly the spot to decide whether or not you would like to take a detour through Old Windsor, a scenic old village parish.
We were on a pretty tight schedule but next time round we will try to go farther south-west, via Windsor Great Park, with the famous path leading to Cumberland Lodge.
The final stretch towards Windsor Castle took its toll on my already soft muscles. I had to stand and stretch for a solid five minutes, under the watchful eyes of her majesty's guards.
From here we were glad to have a prebooked lunch spot at the Boatman Pub down by the river, as every other walk-through cyclist had been refused (on grounds that the place is booked solid). It seems that Windsor on a sunny day is the "it spot" for a midday pint and burger, and prebooking is advised.
Alternatively, Cinamon Cafe, in the shopping area across the street from the castle, is considered a beloved spot by cyclists, and rumour has it that the owners, cyclists themselves, do not deny entrance to anyone or their two-wheeler. The place was facing closure in 2017, and an online petition kept its lease renewed. It used to offer a 10% discount to cyclists, and it remains a hub from which out of London cycling routes takes place, whether in adjacent Surry or the Chiltrens.
A nearly summer day in Windsor seems like the perfect day out, if you're into some country roads by the river. The track itself inclines only by the usual spots of Richmond Park, and while keeping a steady pace will strain you, save the castle hill itself - it's mainly flat.
There are some beautiful spots along the way, and it's highly recommended for half a day of cycling, if not longer. Make sure you book bike spots on the train if it's not off-peak. It was a great Bank Holiday for yours truly, and will definitely try to explore the other options this out of London cycling route has to offer - in the future.
