Good hills - where are the ones SW of London?

chrisaonabike

I was interested in the Shaley Brow article, wondered if there are some good hills accessible from SW London that would be a good challenge.

Here's one I found the other day by accident: Chapel Lane/Bagden Hill (south of Great Bookham in Surrey) - fortunately I only had to go down it on the way to Box Hill.

God knows if I'll ever be able to go up it, it's 20% in places. It seemed very steep going down (very slowly and carefully on the wet road!) - certainly steeper than anything I've done so far.

Anyone been up it?

ugo.santalucia

ChrisAOnABike wrote:

I was interested in the Shaley Brow article, wondered if there are some good hills accessible from SW London that would be a good challenge.

Here's one I found the other day by accident: Chapel Lane/Bagden Hill (south of Great Bookham in Surrey) - fortunately I only had to go down it on the way to Box Hill.

God knows if I'll ever be able to go up it, it's 20% in places. It seemed very steep going down (very slowly and carefully on the wet road!) - certainly steeper than anything I've done so far.

Anyone been up it?

Yes, I do it often and I did it yeasterday. Nothing special... a couple of steep bends, but I doubt it's 20% for real, maybe 15-16%. The steep section is not very long. Whitedown lane is harder and Leith hill (Coldharbour lane side) is much longer

chrisaonabike

ugo.santalucia wrote:

ChrisAOnABike wrote:

Chapel Lane/Bagden Hill (south of Great Bookham in Surrey)

Nothing special...

:shock:

ugo.santalucia

ChrisAOnABike wrote:

ugo.santalucia wrote:

ChrisAOnABike wrote:

Chapel Lane/Bagden Hill (south of Great Bookham in Surrey)

Nothing special...

:shock:

Really, it's nothing special... I went up on a 39 x 27 on the steep bend, but I could have easily dropped down one gear to 39 x 24. There are no real beasts in the Surrey hills, probably Whitedown lane is as hard as it gets and it's not that hard.
All relative of course, but having cycled in various parts of the country, Surrey is not exactly for mountain goats.
I recenlty visited Exmoor... now those are tough climbs...!!

chrisaonabike

ugo.santalucia wrote:

ChrisAOnABike wrote:

ugo.santalucia wrote:

ChrisAOnABike wrote:

Chapel Lane/Bagden Hill (south of Great Bookham in Surrey)

Nothing special...

:shock:

Really, it's nothing special... I went up on a 39 x 27 on the steep bend, but I could have easily dropped down one gear to 39 x 24. There are no real beasts in the Surrey hills, probably Whitedown lane is as hard as it gets and it's not that hard.

Challenge accepted

Not just yet, though. :shock:

Monty Dog

Whilst each hill on it's own isn't too tough, by a bit of judicious planning you can string together a route around the Surrey Hills that within 120km you can pack in over 3000m of climbing without doing the same hill twice - that's about the same as your typical alpine stage. Did it on 48x16 fixed once too, but I haven't ridden these routes for a few years now - Surrey is too full of cyclists and 4x4 drivers these days!

moscowflyer

Whitedown is a toughie, there's some great climbing to be had around that area with plenty of hills to test people of all abilities. You could try Winterfold if you fancy something to get the heart pumping...

marcusjb

Monty Dog wrote:

Whilst each hill on it's own isn't too tough, by a bit of judicious planning you can string together a route around the Surrey Hills that within 120km you can pack in over 3000m of climbing without doing the same hill twice - that's about the same as your typical alpine stage. Did it on 48x16 fixed once too, but I haven't ridden these routes for a few years now - Surrey is too full of cyclists and 4x4 drivers these days!

Totally right. Easy to make some very challenging routes around the Surrey Hills with some really good ascent figures for a relatively short distance. There's nothing outstandingly steep, but more than challenging enough.

Also think of heading West into the Chilterns - I think there are some far nastier climbs out that way - real steep sharp nasty bleeders on roads less travelled by bikes or cars.

tiredofwhiners

MoscowFlyer wrote:

Whitedown is a toughie, there's some great climbing to be had around that area with plenty of hills to test people of all abilities. You could try Winterfold if you fancy something to get the heart pumping...

And the road up past West Humble Station from the Dorking side. Pretty much anything north from the A25 climbing up the hill there is about as tough as it gets but none are even close to 'alpine'.

prhymeate

Monty Dog wrote:

within 120km you can pack in over 3000m of climbing without doing the same hill twice - that's about the same as your typical alpine stage. Did it on 48x16 fixed once too

How long did that take you?

elderone

Dont know about your way but come the spring/summer im going to travel to hardknot pass (have a look on utube) and try that beast and some of the other big climbs around that area.will make a good weekender away.
The point im making is an incentive to do local hills with an aim to cracking a beast you have set as a target.
My two on my list so far are hardknot and mowcop.

chrisaonabike

tiredofwhiners wrote:

And the road up past West Humble Station from the Dorking side. Pretty much anything north from the A25 climbing up the hill there is about as tough as it gets but none are even close to 'alpine'.

Yes, that's the Chapel Lane one I was talking about.

Is this where you mean? If so, it's the same one I think.

I was quite nervous coming down it - road was wet, it was very easy to lock the back wheel with all the weight over the bars, and I didn't want to brake too hard on the front.

I realise it's just inexperience talking, but at my stage it certainly focused the attention!!

tiredofwhiners

ChrisAOnABike wrote:

tiredofwhiners wrote:

And the road up past West Humble Station from the Dorking side. Pretty much anything north from the A25 climbing up the hill there is about as tough as it gets but none are even close to 'alpine'.

Yes, that's the Chapel Lane one I was talking about.

Is this where you mean? If so, it's the same one I think.

I was quite nervous coming down it - road was wet, it was very easy to lock the back wheel with all the weight over the bars, and I didn't want to brake too hard on the front.

I realise it's just inexperience talking, but at my stage it certainly focused the attention!!

Yes, thats the one - never knew the name of it and have only come down it once about five years ago and now only go up it on my way back from Box Hill.

RDW

ChrisAOnABike wrote:

I was interested in the Shaley Brow article, wondered if there are some good hills accessible from SW London that would be a good challenge.

Check out: http://www.kingstonwheelers.co.uk/news/ ... s-project/

marcusjb

elderone wrote:

Dont know about your way but come the spring/summer im going to travel to hardknot pass (have a look on utube) and try that beast and some of the other big climbs around that area.will make a good weekender away.
The point im making is an incentive to do local hills with an aim to cracking a beast you have set as a target.
My two on my list so far are hardknot and mowcop.

(not quite SW of London - but still, a good opportunity to wave willies!)

If you fancy a hard weekend in that area (and the rest of the North of England!)

http://aukweb.net/events/detail/13-312/

It only started last year and already has gained a reputation as the hardest 600 in the calendar. Over 10000m of climbing including Hardknott.

If I am riding well in the spring challenges I have set myself, then this is on the cards.

chrisaonabike

RDW wrote:

ChrisAOnABike wrote:

I was interested in the Shaley Brow article, wondered if there are some good hills accessible from SW London that would be a good challenge.

Check out: http://www.kingstonwheelers.co.uk/news/ ... s-project/

Excellent stuff, many thanks.

Are you a member? If so, how do I find out which club run they're going to do on a given Sunday? I'd just turn up, but I'd be wasting their time if they were going to do the 60 miles "hard and fast" one. I emailed them ten days ago, but their info@ address may not be monitored, since I've heard nothing back.

nochekmate

Hardknott Pass from the side facing Wrynose Pass looks an absolute pig. My 19 year old son and I both climbed Wrynose Pass successfully (from both sides last summer - harder from Ambleside) - me on a compact 34x25 and my son on a traditional 39x25 but we both turned off left back towards the family cottage where we were staying (at the foot of Walna Scar) rather than go up Hardknott.

We walked up Hardknott later in the week and both felt that we would not get up that on our set-ups at the time. Take my hat off to others who manage on a road bike, without the triple set-up.

jibberjim

ChrisAOnABike wrote:

Are you a member? If so, how do I find out which club run they're going to do on a given Sunday? I'd just turn up, but I'd be wasting their time if they were going to do the 60 miles "hard and fast" one. I emailed them ten days ago, but their info@ address may not be monitored, since I've heard nothing back.

You see the relevant sundays thread on the KW club run sub-forum - on any given "good weather" sunday they'll be at least 6 different rides going out at different paces to different places. One of them will always be the "newbie ride" which 95% of the time is Effingham/Box ridden at the pace of the slowest newbie to come along (unless they're completely unable in which case they'll be encouraged onto a train at Effingham - but you will not have that problem).

If the weather is really bad, or the olympic road race is on, or ... will reduce the number of rides going out, but it's rare that one is not suitable for a newbie - simply because newbies turn up almost every week. Please thank the ride leader when you do turn up (and you should!) it can be annoying herding newbies and most will be sacrificing some speed or something to do it for you.

RDW

ChrisAOnABike wrote:

Are you a member? If so, how do I find out which club run they're going to do on a given Sunday?.

No, afraid not. Might be worth signing up to their forum: http://www.kingstonwheelers.co.uk/kwccforum/portal.php

Edit: Sorry, missed the post above with the same link!

moscowflyer

I'll be joining the wheelers in the new year, it's been long overdue.

Chriscommuter

ChrisAOnABike wrote:

[ I emailed them ten days ago, but their info@ address may not be monitored, since I've heard nothing back.

KW get loads of spam e-mails. It is possible that yours went into the spam folder.

Have a look at this link about the Club Runs:

http://www.kingstonwheelers.co.uk/clubrun.shtml

Then if that looks like it works for you just turn up at about 8.55 on a Sunday at the start point and you'll get looked after.

By the way Barhatch Lane out of Cranleigh up to the top of Winterfold is generally the toughest hill SW of London. It was used in the the Tour of Britain.

chrisaonabike

Chriscommuter wrote:

Have a look at this link about the Club Runs:

http://www.kingstonwheelers.co.uk/clubrun.shtml

Then if that looks like it works for you just turn up at about 8.55 on a Sunday at the start point and you'll get looked after.

Ah, many thanks for that. I'd failed to read the bit about splitting into three groups, hence always doing one of the shorter easier ones. That was why I was hoping to find out which one they did, but they do three. My bad. :oops:

Will give it a go soon

drlodge

Chriscommuter wrote:

By the way Barhatch Lane out of Cranleigh up to the top of Winterfold is generally the toughest hill SW of London. It was used in the the Tour of Britain.

+1 with Whitedown Lane a close second, and as someone else said Leith Hill is long and still pretty steep especially going up from Dorking. Chapel Lane isn't really a big challenge. Combe Bottom is worse, Crocknorth Road is quite steep too. The others (Staple Lane, Chapel Lane, Greene Dene, Ranmore Road, A25 to Newlands Corner) tend to be longer and shallower.

okgo

Barhatch Lane as said above is pretty steep in places, Coldharbour Lane is quite a good one too, but I have only done it once or twice. I have never done it, I'm sure Jim will know, but Tanhurst Lane is meant to be pretty hard going, more because its apparently little more than a dirt track of a lane that goes up Leith Hill.

I've done them all on 42-25 but Winterfold is my least favourite, I quite like Coombe Bottom, the steep bit is short enough to do it out of the saddle, a bit like Pebble Hill.

moscowflyer

Combe Lane kills me up by the hairpin but it's good fun. Staple Lane is a nice longer incline which although not as harsh is a good tester on the legs.

I failed on my only attempt at Whitedown a few weeks back, need to have another crack at that.

Chriscommuter

okgo wrote:

but Tanhurst Lane is meant to be pretty hard going, more because its apparently little more than a dirt track of a lane that goes up Leith Hill.

It is actually a road but there is a spring which runs down it so at almost anytime of year it is muddy and wet...

and steep! :twisted:

drlodge

I did Tanhurst recently for the first time in the cold, dark and wet. Blimey, I wasn't prepared for a gravel track but actually found the climb not too bad. Yes, its steep in places, but it flattens out in a couple of places towards the top a bit, giving time to recover. I won't be doing it again in a hurry though, bike gets too crappy.

jibberjim

okgo wrote:

Barhatch Lane as said above is pretty steep in places, Coldharbour Lane is quite a good one too, but I have only done it once or twice. I have never done it, I'm sure Jim will know, but Tanhurst Lane is meant to be pretty hard going, more because its apparently little more than a dirt track of a lane that goes up Leith Hill.

Tanhurst is an easy climb, it's just a steepish climb with an atrocious surface, but it's not particularly hard and if you're on your own you can generally pick an okay line through it.

How hard a road hill is, isn't really purely about steepness - steepness is just hard 'cos most people have the wrong gears - If a car can get up it - a bike should have no problem at all. But so many people ride around with doubles when they don't have the legs for it (Many local bike shops are terrible for selling inappropriate chainsets) that the hill becomes hard simply because they're trying to ride up it at 30rpm. Pretty much any hill does in that situation.

For me, who likes to keep a cadence at least 70 up even very steep hills - barhatch with 36x28 I can get up at barely more than 4w/kg - 4w/kg for the 4 or so minutes of the steep part is well within the range of most people who aren't carrying a lot of extra weight. Most people are actually happy at a 50 or so cadence up very steep climbs (it depends on muscle strength and fibre type and things) and they'll be okay even with higher gearing.

Coldharbour is a good climb, but only steep in places so you always get recovery.

Chriscommuter

MoscowFlyer wrote:

I'll be joining the wheelers in the new year, it's been long overdue.

Well, did you join?

bikergirl17

chapel lane is the easiest 20% you will ever do, as it only ticks up that much on the turns. as others have mentioned the hardest climb in the area is winterfold/barhatch, which is a full on 20%. everyone speaks about whitedown in hushed tones, but you can chunk it into three sections, and it is only the last that is 18%.

if you want to start a little more modest but relatively long (for surrey), do repeats on pitch hill from shere to ewhurst and back. it hits about 12.5% on the way back to shere.

there is a great audax in august, tour of the surrey hills, that is about 110 km and 2700 m of climbing and takes in many of the area climbs. the only one of note they miss is climb past the dorking train station and garbage dump up to ranmore (which i think was mentioned) that is about a mile at 7% and is just a good, steady climb if you want hill work.

i should add i ride a standard 12-27 -- and that has been (for me) sufficient for every climb in the surrey area ... and used it in the french alps, although that wasn't as pleasant.

Monty Dog

The Tour of the Surrey Hills (ToSH) audax exists from way before Sportives and is a pretty popular event - we used to ride it before it got too busy and people starting 'racing' it on narrow lanes and there were too many close calls with traffic and people crashing. Worth getting the know the route as it links all the key climbs together - I once joined it up with some of the climbs on the South Downs between Petersfield and Pulborough, long day in the saddle at 275km.