Sarah Woods - The 50 Greatest Bike Rides of the World

GREATEST

BIKE RIDES

OF THE WORLD

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GREATEST

BIKE RIDES

OF THE WORLD

SARAH WOODS

Published in the UK in 2016 by

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ISBN: 978-178578-181-0

Text copyright 2017 Sarah Woods

The author has asserted her moral rights.

No part of this book may be reproduced in any form, or by any means, without prior permission in writing from the publisher.

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Typeset and designed by Simmons Pugh

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR

S arah Woods is the author of over a dozen travel books, a fellow of the Royal Geographical Society and a member of the British Guild of Travel Writers. She has won the prestigious BGTW Travel Guide Writer of the Year award and has twice won the Kenneth Westcott Jones Award. As a travel presenter on British daytime TV, Sarah won the PSA prize for reportage in 2012. She is also the author of The 50 Greatest Road Trips of the World in this series.

DISCLAIMER

The descriptions given in these articles are for general guidance only, and should not be used as a substitute for a proper route plan or map. Neither the author nor the publisher shall be liable or responsible for any loss, injury or damage allegedly arising from any information contained in this book.

INTRODUCTION

T hough many men from umpteen nations throughout history have laid claim to the invention of the bicycle including, somewhat bizarrely, Leonardo da Vinci it was Englishman John Kemp Starley who created the cycle in the form we recognise today. His design, a bicycle with a chain-driven rear wheel and a steerable front wheel, was patented in 1885 and set the Victorian eras two-wheel craze in motion. Soon, cycling had not only revolutionised transport but also our clothing bloomers (long knickers that tapered above the knee) arose from the popularity of pushbikes with women. Indeed, the bicycle became a symbol for the suffragette movement for the freedom it offered.

Since then, the bicycle has gone through a variety of design trends, including racing styles with dropped handlebars, chunky mountain bikes with robust, balloon tyres and light-as-a-feather speed machines made from carbon-fibre frames. Be it for excitement, necessity, adventure or relaxation, two-wheeling today is enjoyed all over the world by people of all ages. Few things stick in a young childs memory more than the day they can finally ride a bicycle without wobbling. Within a couple of years they are relishing the adrenaline thrills that bikes offer. By the time they are teens, a bike is invaluable for the independence it brings. As adults, we cycle to work, for leisure or as sport to keep us fit. In our later years, cycling provides us with a gentle mode of transport at a slower pace.

Freewheeling through tufted French vineyards, scaling rocky, cloud-topped tracks in the Himalayas, rattling past whitewashed sugar-cube houses in narrow Spanish valleys, surviving the peaks of the Yorkshire Dales and the volcanoes of Colombia and tackling truly hair-raising descents in rural Cuba: the sheer variety of routes in The 50 Greatest Bike Rides of the World will have you reaching for your cycle clips, helmet and gloves. Enjoy tales of scenic single tracks, switchback climbs and routes newly discovered its time to get those panniers packed and sprockets checked and climb into the saddle!

THE 50 GREATEST BIKE RIDES OF THE WORLD

UNITED KINGDOM AND IRELAND

BELFAST, NORTHERN IRELAND

For decades, the city of Belfast wasnt characterised by its fine architecture but more for its security barricades. During the worst of the troubles, amid bullets, guns and bombs, Belfast symbolised a city riven by fear, hatred and sectarian clashes. Today, now that the 50 years of unrest and social conflict is consigned to the history books, Belfast and its slogan-daubed mural-painted walls, vast expanses of terraced houses and high brick walls topped by reinforced steel panels have become as much as a part of the citys historical fabric as its grand Edwardian mansions, Victorian landmarks, Georgian buildings, sculptures and state-of-theart modern structures. Gentrified docklands, swish quayside apartments and chichi wine bars, loungers and bistros rub shoulders with giant fortified police stations not far from the violent flashpoints of the 1970s that made the bulletins of the worlds prime-time TV news. Billions of euros have been pumped into the local economy from an impressive roll-call of international investors and it shows. Mature leafy parks, elegant plazas and pedestrianised shopping zones attract large numbers of tourists. Nature reserves, museums, literary and socio-political attractions do a roaring trade. Ancestry tours a far-reach phenomenon that draws anyone with a drop of Irish blood are booming. As a 21st-century city, Belfast is modern, welcoming and handsome and determined not to be stigmatised by walls that once kept communities apart.

BELFAST, NORTHERN IRELAND

Another big change for Belfast is its move to become increasingly cycle-friendly. In recent years, a sizeable network of cycle lanes, off-road paths and riverside terraces have encouraged more people to explore the city on two wheels. A favourite route is the Comber Greenway: a seven-mile (eleven-kilometre) traffic-free section of the National Cycle Network that runs along the disused Belfast to Comber railway line. A tranquil green corridor that offers great views of the famous Parliament buildings at Stormont, Scrabo Tower and the Belfast Hills, the route opened in 2008 and has a number of access points, including Dee Street (close to the Harland & Wolff shipyard), the C.S. Lewis Statue at Holywood Arches, Bloomfield Walkway, Tullycarnet and Dundonald. Community training projects have helped set up groups that offer bike maintenance and Belfasts annual event calendar now includes a wide-range of cycling activities. An extension to the route now links Comber Greenway to the Titanic Quarter and other existing riverside trails into the city centre. Not purely a tourist boon, the route also enables East Belfast residents to get around without needing a car: not just to the city, but also out into the open countryside and beyond.