Quick A23 uk question

hisoka

HI,
I just was planning a trip, back from Brighton to London, Peckham actually. The easist route I can find (least changing of roads as I good at getting lost) seems to be straigh up the A23 from Brighton all the way to London. But is this a good road for a cyclist with a reasonably heavy laden bike? I would be grateful for any advice at all with regards to this.
Thanks all

andyp

The A23 from Brighton is a motorway in everything but name and has some stretches that are a bit hairy in a car so there is no way I'd do it on a bike.

I've ridden a route that follows the B2112 from Ditchling to Haywards Heath, then picked up the B2028 to Turners Hill, turned right there onto the B2110 to East Grinstead then followed lanes I already knew through Lingfield to Westerham then over the North Downs and home to Peckham (this is when I lived there).

Another option is to head east from Brighton then head north from Lewes to Uckfield then pick up the B2026 all the way through to Westerham.

ian_oli

Actually the A23 has a reasonable route that parallels it. It starts by the A27 junction (theres a proper way on to it, but I found it by accident just past the A27 slip road when I'd intended just to do a mile or two on the A23 until the first turn. It keeps to reasonably surfaced tracks, a couple of bits of pavement and stretches of old A road. If I remember rightly there is one slip road crossing where you are better joining the slip road than taking the signed crossing.

It's well signed as a cycle route until you come to an almost invisible sign sending you left here. (OS refs 526750,126250 near Warninglid) I missed it and had to turn back a mile on - the A23 as it was getting dark in a winter rush hour was not a place I wanted to be.

I continued the route up to Pease Pottage and then cycled into Crawley and got the train home (interesting ride on its special bus lanes).

Actually discovered responding to this, that the route is shown on Streetmap 1:50000 - so presumably on recent OS maps too. I had no idea it was there before I rode it, but would use it again.

hisoka

Thanks for the information there, both sound interesting.
I'm trying to find the path in Streetmap but I've never used that site so still getting used to it. lol.
Is the side route well signposted to get onto it at the junction with the A27? I'm very good at missing things so tend to need to plan well in advance.