The Simple Escape
The weather in the UK this past week has been glorious. High temperatures, sunny skies, and long evenings the kind of conditions you spend all winter dreaming about. As luck would have it, the stars aligned for the bank holiday weekend. A friend and I had a short two-night, two-day trip planned, and we couldn’t have picked a better couple of days to be out riding.
Originally, we had planned to ride the tail end of a different route, but after digging around on Komoot, Phil found a loop that was just over 100 miles, heading from Salisbury up towards Bath and back down again. It felt like the perfect distance for our little trip, and as it was an area I’d never ridden before, I was excited to see what it had to offer.
Getting away is never easy when you’re balancing work, family life, and trying to coordinate with someone else who has similar commitments. It’s hard to plan too far ahead, yet equally difficult to be completely spontaneous. That’s why any opportunity to sneak away for a couple of days always feels like a real treat.
As I’ve mentioned before, I’m not much of a technology person, and that very much extends to navigation and route planning. I guess that’s a little lazy of me, and maybe a wee bit entitled, assuming someone else will take care of that side of things. Well, after Phil sent me the route and we settled on it, it turned out he hadn’t looked at it in much detail either.
So once we got pedalling on Saturday evening, we both realised after finally bothering to check properly that a surprisingly large percentage of the route was on the road. Not something either of us would normally lean towards, but on this occasion we were just happy to be out riding and didn’t give it a second thought. And when I say roads, I mean quiet country lanes rather than busy A-roads. The sort of roads lined with trees and fields, where it almost feels like you’re off-road anyway, just with a smoother surface beneath you.
One of the things I enjoy most about multi-day trips, even if it’s only for a couple of days, is the sense of escape they provide. Going out for a ride is always a great way to clear the mind, especially when you’re riding through the woods. But knowing that at the end of the day you’ll pitch a tent with only the things strapped to your bike, and then wake up the next morning, pack everything away, and keep pedalling, adds another layer to it. There’s something about that simplicity that feels like the ultimate escape from reality in the best possible way.
The other thing I love, which ties into that same sense of escape, is finding somewhere to sleep for the night. There’s a real buzz that comes from pedalling along, knowing it’s going to get dark soon and that you still need to find somewhere to pitch up and spend the night. It’s hard to explain unless you’ve done it. Especially in the UK, where technically you’re not allowed to do it. The little punk BMXer in me absolutely thrives on that shit.
The first night, we set off around 6:30 pm, so we only pedalled about 15 miles before calling it a day. We stopped when we came across what looked like the perfect little nook of woodland to sleep in. A trail led off the road towards a farmer’s field, and tucked alongside it was a small patch of woods with no fencing around it. An ideal little spot for our first night.
Right next to it was this incredible valley that looked like something straight out of a medieval film the sort of place where fools would have been swinging axes and lopping heads off. If it hadn’t been someone else’s field, it would have made the perfect spot for a morning coffee.
The second evening, we weren’t quite so lucky. After only riding 15 miles on the first day, we had planned a leisurely 45 miles for each of the next two days. But as the afternoon rolled on, finding a good camp spot proved harder than expected, and we ended up covering closer to 60 miles before finally pitching up. In the end, it worked out pretty well. With temperatures climbing into the low 30s the following day, having only around 25 miles left to ride was a blessing. After months of cooler weather, the heat was welcome, but it definitely took its toll.
Overall, the route wasn’t bad at all, with plenty of nice scenery, good places to eat, and opportunities to stop for a pint if that’s your thing. Personally, I’d usually lean towards something with a bit more off-road riding. The longest off-road section followed a canal path, which is pretty monotonous for long stretches. Also, nothing against people living on boats, but when the towpath starts to feel like an extension of someone’s living room, it can get a little old.
There’s also a sprinkling of MOD land around Salisbury, which is always a highlight, with its wide-open, rolling trails. Unfortunately, those sections were fairly short. If you’re looking for a relaxed two-day trip around that part of the world, it’s definitely worth considering. But if you’re after more gravel than tarmac, I’d probably look elsewhere.