Tow Path Trip

[SRS]

Myself and brother are planning a towpath trip this coming July.

My 50th birthday.

We both have ankle/foot disabilities and plan to take an Xipi kitted out e-bike and KTM Macina 29er.

A 200 to 300 mile trip over 5 days. We'll report on the pro's and cons of both bikes for those who are interested.

Trouble is we are having difficulties in deciding a route. If anyone on this forum has experience of UK towpath trips, we'd appreciate any recommendations as to a good route.

I live down south, brother is in Newcastle, does not matter where in the country the trip takes place, the important thing is that we end up at the start point.

Grateful if anyone can point us in a good direction.

 

[Deleted member 4366]

Myself and brother are planning a towpath trip this coming July.

My 50th birthday.

We both have ankle/foot disabilities and plan to take an Xipi kitted out e-bike and KTM Macina 29er.

A 200 to 300 mile trip over 5 days. We'll report on the pro's and cons of both bikes for those who are interested.

Trouble is we are having difficulties in deciding a route. If anyone on this forum has experience of UK towpath trips, we'd appreciate any recommendations as to a good route.

I live down south, brother is in Newcastle, does not matter where in the country the trip takes place, the important thing is that we end up at the start point.

Grateful if anyone can point us in a good direction.

Make sure there's no angling competions otherwise it could become rather tedious. You might want to plan it for before June 16th.

 

[SRS]

Make sure there's no angling competions otherwise it could become rather tedious. You might want to plan it for before June 16th.

d8veh Never gave it a thought but very useful to know, we are totally flexible on our dates and just wish for a pleasant trip. We'll plan around the fishing.

Many thanks.

 

[GaRRy]

A good one would be to combine the Four counties ring and Warwickshire ring into one big figure of 8

Four Counties Ring - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Warwickshire ring - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

It should come in at just over 200 miles and you could extend it a bit by adding in a few there and back detours (eg ashby canal)

There are other rings but you need to be careful of ones that have rivers as they dont always have a tow path (eg thames)

take a look here Canal ring - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia and here Inland Waterways of England & Wales Map

 

[GaRRy]

d8veh Never gave it a thought but very useful to know, we are totally flexible on our dates and just wish for a pleasant trip. We'll plan around the fishing.

Many thanks.

Doubt it will be a problem. I have been cruising on canals for years and can count on 2 hands the days I have passed a fishing contest and highly unlikely to come across more than one in a day covering maybe 1/2 mile of canal.

 

[SRS]

GaRRy

Thanks, I'll check out.

I am hopeful for a few good pointers to this thread so won't initially thank all for any feedback immediately but will be following your comments each day.

Many thanks, in advance to all who may have some input. I'll ultimately advise on our final route and feedback a report on both bikes used and their suitability to this type of trip.

 

[Deleted member 4366]

I'm speaking from my own experience. I went on a towpath once, and there were hundreds of anglers. Not only did they have the pole that they were fishing with, but most had another two lying over the path. These were those 10 meter poles that you have to dismantle to get out of the way. The anglers were very considerate, but we had to wait while each one dismantled his pole/s. One had a fish on, so we had to wait for him to land it. This was a big competition and spread over a couple of miles - in fact nearly the whole stretch that we went along at Norbury Junction near Stafford. Best to check first!

 

[Zebb]

Dont know is this is of any interest to you, but cycling on towpath requires a licence, not sure if its needed or not really, but here is a link to a site, they are free so might as well down load one, I reckon the chances of being asked to see it are very low and what they would do if you didn't have one.!

Waterways cycle permit|Bike Trails|Towpath Cycling|Canalcuttings - Online canal magazine

 

[Hugh]

Looks like a permit's not required - I can't find anything on the website except a link to this -

The Canal & River Trust welcomes considerate cyclists to its towpaths and you don't need a permit to use your bike on any of our towpaths. However, we would ask that you take a look at our Greenways Code for Towpaths before you take to the towpaths. Lots of people visit the waterways, for many different reasons, and everyone is entitled to feel happy and safe while they're visiting.

The trip sounds like a really good idea - something of that distance has never occurred to me before. I hope you do it, and it's good.

Thanks also to Garry for links about canal rings - a whole new world opens up..........

 

[Cyclezee]

One hazard that can seriously impede progress on towpaths is pubs

Right now my local canal, the Grand Union is frozen solid.

 

[GaRRy]

Dont know is this is of any interest to you, but cycling on towpath requires a licence, not sure if its needed or not really, but here is a link to a site, they are free so might as well down load one, I reckon the chances of being asked to see it are very low and what they would do if you didn't have one.!

Waterways cycle permit|Bike Trails|Towpath Cycling|Canalcuttings - Online canal magazine

Actually no longer true since British Waterways became The Canal & Rive Trust. Was completely pointless any was as you could just print one out on web site and fill it in (Even before that they never kept any information just gave you the permit).

 

[Zebb]

Actually no longer true since British Waterways became The Canal & Rive Trust. Was completely pointless any was as you could just print one out on web site and fill it in (Even before that they never kept any information just gave you the permit).

Ok thanks for the heads up on that.

 

[Scimitar]

I used to cycle on towpaths regularly and ended up avoiding Sundays on one or two stretches because of angling. It wasn't really a problem, but it was worth keeping away from those bits simply to avoid accidentally riding over a rod. If you're riding on stretches you don't know it might be something you encounter, but relatively unlikely on weekdays.

 

[neptune]

This has the potential to be a wonderful memorable trip. I hope you take a camera, so we can all be there in spirit. Up to now, no mention has been made of where you will recharge your batteries, where you will sleep[camping?] and where and what you plan to eat. Remember the weather can turn bad even in summer, so you will need waterproofs, emergency rations and a mobile phone[and charger]. With the right preparation you will stay safe and well.
You need to strike a compromise on gear, not too much, and not too little. Do not forget a pump, spare inner tubes, and puncture kit. Personally I would carry a small tent, just in case.

 

[GaRRy]

This has the potential to be a wonderful memorable trip. I hope you take a camera, so we can all be there in spirit. Up to now, no mention has been made of where you will recharge your batteries, where you will sleep[camping?] and where and what you plan to eat. Remember the weather can turn bad even in summer, so you will need waterproofs, emergency rations and a mobile phone[and charger]. With the right preparation you will stay safe and well.
You need to strike a compromise on gear, not too much, and not too little. Do not forget a pump, spare inner tubes, and puncture kit. Personally I would carry a small tent, just in case.

All good advice but as canals tend to connect towns together accommodation should not be a big problem.

One thing to try and get hold of is a British waterways key as that gives you access to water supply and various toilets etc that you cant access without, although Im sure if you ask a friendly boater they will let you have access anyway.

 

[RobF]

You are bound to encounter a few 'hazards' on a trip of that length.

No point in being put off by anglers, but I'm always wary of any I do come across.

Not least because some are very anti-bike and have been known to drop hooks and other small, sharp objects in an apparent bid to cause punctures.

 

[SRS]

This has the potential to be a wonderful memorable trip. I hope you take a camera, so we can all be there in spirit. Up to now, no mention has been made of where you will recharge your batteries, where you will sleep[camping?] and where and what you plan to eat. Remember the weather can turn bad even in summer, so you will need waterproofs, emergency rations and a mobile phone[and charger]. With the right preparation you will stay safe and well.
You need to strike a compromise on gear, not too much, and not too little. Do not forget a pump, spare inner tubes, and puncture kit. Personally I would carry a small tent, just in case.

The plan will be to use B and B accommodation, eliminating the need to carry a lot of kit.
Camping would be nice but we wish to be minimalist and spend time sightseeing and not tent pitching.

I envisage topping up charge at the odd pub or two, of which there should be many. Fully charge overnight.
Goes without saying, we will carry cameras, diary, spares and toolkit.

As far as fisherman, having experienced a string of barbed wire across a river whilst white water canoeing some decades ago, i am well aware that a very small minority will not tolerate people with different pursuits to their own.

We shall treat people respectfully and I trust we will not encounter any real problems.

Really looking forward to the trip and am most interested to see if touring on electric cycles is a real option for future trips.

Thanks for all your feedback and suggestions so far.

 

[OldBob1]

You might want to pop into a canal boat yard or Candler shop and check out a canal guide book such as Nicklesons etc, theses are what most canal boat owners use to plan there trips, in most, it will show you what pubs and beers they sell, if they do food, shops and post offices, also items or/or places of interest.
Most pubs will know of a good B & B locally.
Have a great trip and allow at lease a couple of days spare to check out places of interest the locals will tell you of.

Bob

 

[twain]

Myself and brother are planning a towpath trip this coming July.

My 50th birthday.

We both have ankle/foot disabilities and plan to take an Xipi kitted out e-bike and KTM Macina 29er.

A 200 to 300 mile trip over 5 days. We'll report on the pro's and cons of both bikes for those who are interested...

Hi SRS,

While my distance away (downunder) precludes it, I wish I could join you -because I would love to take a trip like that!

Hope you take lots of pics and publish them somewhere so we all can see them.

Have a good trip…!

Cheers

 

[DavePat]

SRS
I have 2 Nicholson guides you can borrow to look at or for use on your trip. Books 2 and 3 cover Severn Avon and Birmingham, and Birmingham and Heart of England respectively. I am on the Llangollen canal this year so dont need either.
If your brother is in Newcastle he could arrange to collect them and drop them off again.
I am pretty sure a lot of Marinas have free car parks so possibly a good starting point.
The guides are good as they list shops, pubs etc as well as mile posts.
Let me know if you want to take me up on the offer.

Dave