SW London to Bournemouth/Swanage

iPete
iPete Posts: 6,076
edited August 2011 in Commuting chat
Planned a weekend away camping but it appears there are not enough seats for the journey down, perfect excuse to cycle!

Anybody done this or know any good routes, don't fancy the hard shoulder of the M3 and have little plan time except tonight!

Fortunately I know all of the country lanes beyond Bomo to my campsite!

Comments

  • Stag on
    Stag on Posts: 99
    A30 to basingstoke, A33 to Winchester, then Romsey, Lyndhurst, Christchurch Bournemouth?

    Would be a direct if fairly exposed route into the wind that is blasting up from the SW this morning.
  • iPete
    iPete Posts: 6,076
    Thanks, the wind is somewhat worrying!

    Look like a very direct route, A33 looks very straight and narrow, any experience riding on this stretch, imagine most traffic is on the motorway but this look like a fast 60 road?
  • EssexSuffolk
    EssexSuffolk Posts: 112
    iPete, just out of interest, how d you find touring on your Allez? Noticed your picture with it loaded up with panniers there. Thinking of fitting a rack to my road bike and doing similar!
  • iPete
    iPete Posts: 6,076
    EssexSuffolk wrote:
    iPete, just out of interest, how d you find touring on your Allez? Noticed your picture with it loaded up with panniers there. Thinking of fitting a rack to my road bike and doing similar!

    It was an experience, the bike handled everything ok, had to be careful with planning/weight, too much and it would get a bit sketchy.

    Only downside was my compact chainset; covering the Alps and some of the ranges in Italy fully loaded was an experience! I'd deffo put a MTB cassette on doing it again.
  • clarkey cat
    clarkey cat Posts: 3,641
    you taking the chain ferry?
    Dolan Mythos
  • iPete
    iPete Posts: 6,076
    clarkey cat wrote:
    you taking the chain ferry?

    Yup, used to commute by car across the ferry and down the lanes for a brief period, look forward to riding it!

    Look forward to reaching the square and compass!
  • joenobody
    joenobody Posts: 563
    iPete wrote:
    A33 looks very straight and narrow, any experience riding on this stretch, imagine most traffic is on the motorway but this look like a fast 60 road?
    I sometimes use the A33 as an alternative route when travelling back from the coast. I wouldn't say it was particularly narrow, but it is national speed limit. Of course, in my experience this means the traffic travels at 50, not 60, but you will get people travelling at 60+. There are also a couple of stretches of dual carriageway where the traffic will be a little faster. That said, it has always been a pretty quiet route, so while there will be traffic, there won't be loads of it.
  • clarkey cat
    clarkey cat Posts: 3,641
    are you a Bournemouth boy iPete?
    Dolan Mythos
  • iPete
    iPete Posts: 6,076
    Thanks Joe, invaluable advice! I'll make sure my Hope District is charged up!

    Clarkey, was a slacker student for a few years & picked up photography whilst down there and spent lots of time exploring the Purbecks.

    This your neck of the deep dark woods?
  • clarkey cat
    clarkey cat Posts: 3,641
    I'm a Poole lad - left 13 years ago. Live in Surrey now. But as my old man likes to tell me - you can take the monkey out the tree... but you cant take the tree out the monkey.
    Dolan Mythos
  • Stag on
    Stag on Posts: 99
    JoeNobody wrote:
    iPete wrote:
    That said, it has always been a pretty quiet route, so while there will be traffic, there won't be loads of it.

    Spot on. While it is an A road the existence of the M3 means it is very much a quiet local route. As a former trunk road it is quite wide in places and rather 'lumpy' towards Winchester. The A30 from Staines down to the far side of Basingrad would be slightly more of a worry, particularly through Camberley with plenty of traffic crossing but as you ride into London every day it should be child's play in comparison.
  • el_presidente
    el_presidente Posts: 1,963
    The A33 Winchester - Basingstoke is awesome as it's a huge wide A road with a nice surface, long striaghts, great sight lines but basically has the traffic of a sleepy country lane because of the M3.

    Just imagine you are on a long flat TdF stage and have pulled off an epic lone escape, the bunch for once have miscalculated and you have a 15 min lead to take into the finish at Winchestre where the Maillot Jaune will be yours.... chapeau mon brave, chapeau...
    <a>road</a>
  • Gussio
    Gussio Posts: 2,452
    el_presidente wrote:
    The A33 Winchester - Basingstoke is awesome as it's a huge wide A road with a nice surface, long striaghts, great sight lines but basically has the traffic of a sleepy country lane because of the M3.

    Just imagine you are on a long flat TdF stage and have pulled off an epic lone escape, the bunch for once have miscalculated and you have a 15 min lead to take into the finish at Winchestre where the Maillot Jaune will be yours.... chapeau mon brave, chapeau...

    You had a good lunch, then?

    :wink:
  • iPete
    iPete Posts: 6,076
    @ stag but I like London traffic, I can go as fast as it!

    el_presidente I'll keep that in mind, see if I can attack the whole way :P
  • iPete
    iPete Posts: 6,076
    IMG_1273-PS.jpg

    That was painful, have had a weekend of cider drinking to recover!

    Ended up being 109 miles @ 17.7mph moving average with a steady head wind! Non-existent food strategy meant I nearly bonked after 40 miles, couldn't get comfortable after that.

    A big thanks for the route help, not the smoothest roads but hardly any cars!

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