London to Paris - Information

Bmacbri

Hello,

First time poster so go easy please!

Next May myself and a group of friends are planning on riding London to Paris on an 'unorganised ride' - that is to say, we aren't paying a company to partake in an organised ride.

Number of reasons for doing this but what I actually am after is any information about doing this ride? I can't find out what sort of elevation I (we) might experience? Has anyone done an unsupported L2P ride? Were there are good places to stop en route?

Think we are planning on doing it over 3 days which I think is something in the region of 80-90 miles a day. Not overly worried about the distance at face value but I'm far from a great climber so was wondering just how bad the ride is up to Dover? I think I've read elsewhere it is pretty sharp?

I've also never ridden that mileage over consecutive days so any tips on how to cope on days 2 and 3 would be welcome.

Thanks for reading anyhow.
All the best
Bri

andymiller

I've not done it, but from what I've read, the best bet may be the Avenue Verte.

You might also want to have a look at this guy's site and route (especially important is the route into Paris itself). This is the route people lots of people recommend - although you could go in via the Canal d'Ourq.

http://www.donaldhirsch.com/dieppeparis.html

Getting through Saint Denis and La Defense is tricky - so if you decide to go that way take the time to research your route (eg Google Maps has a bike layer that might be helpful - or use the OpenCycleMap).

If you decide to go via Dover and Calais work out how to avoid the A20 (on option is the NCN route).

Kent is pretty hilly - but it's not so much how high the hills are, but how much climbing you need to do in total. Your best bet might be to use one of the online routeplanning sites that will give you an altitude profile for the route you are thinking about doing.

Bmacbri wrote:

I've also never ridden that mileage over consecutive days so any tips on how to cope on days 2 and 3 would be welcome.

I'm guessing that 'ride fewer miles' isn't the tip you're hoping for. If you don't know how many miles a day you can sustain over 3 days then it pays to err on the side of caution - or go on a two-day weekend dry run to at least give you a rough idea.

Bmacbri

Thanks @Andymiller, much appreciated.

The route info is very useful, I'll certainly take a look over those links in the coming days.

Re mileage over consecutive days, I think I will try to take myself off somewhere for a long weekend around March/April time and ride for 3 days back to back to get an idea on how I'll cope...or not as the case may be!

Thanks again,

rodgers73

Bmacbri wrote:

Hello,

Has anyone done an unsupported L2P ride?

Were there are good places to stop en route?

...how bad the ride is up to Dover? I think I've read elsewhere it is pretty sharp?

I've also never ridden that mileage over consecutive days so any tips on how to cope on days 2 and 3 would be welcome.

Thanks for reading anyhow.
All the best
Bri

Yes, I've done it three times. Once via Newhaven - Dieppe (3 days) and twice via Dover - Calais (3 days and then last time all in one go).

Yes, there are plenty of places to stop for food and to sleep - you'll be passing through civilisation no matter what route you take. Best bet though is to plan each day ahead and book a hotel at your selected destination rather than counting on finding stuff ad hoc. Just to make your life a bit easier. If you get a decent road map of France you'll be able to work out where is a good stop and book accordingly. Alternatively just go on any of the cycling GPS sites and you'll easily find routes mapped out for you that you can download/copy.

The route to Dover is as hard as you want to make it. I've gone through the Ashdown Forest and the hilly bits of Kent and the more northerly route through Dartford/Gravesend and then down the A2. the latter is the shorter and less hilly option (apart from a couple of short sharp climbs around Chatham).

Days 2 and 3 will be easier if you get a good nights sleep and keep piling in the calories. Otherwise, train plenty and you'll be fine. There are some hills around the Pas de Calais area but once you're past them it isn't a demanding ride.

Getting in to Paris safely can be a bit tricky. 2nd time I did it we accidentally strayed onto a motorway for a bit! Recommend you come in via Pontois where there is a good size A road that's safe to ride on and without any high speed traffic on it that will take you pretty much right into the centre. This is the D14.

Let me know if you need any more help

Tom

Bmacbri

Thanks Tom, really appreciate the feedback.

Point noted re entering Paris, I certainly don't fancy mixing it on the main roads with the French drivers. I'll get that route planned out well in advanced I think!

If I have any questions and you don't mind, i'll drop you a line on here.

Thanks again
Brian

apreading

Heading South out of London to Newhaven is much nicer than the route to Dover. Its a nice route over the other side too. There is a big Decathlon store in Dieppe too, which can be useful should anything get damaged on the ferry (as one guy found someone had bent two of his aero spokes, which subsequently broke, by resting the pedal of their bike against his wheel...) or anything else mechanical crop up on the first day.

Some people try and sleep on the ferry then have an early start/long day but that is just miserable to have 3-4 hours max of uncomfortable sleep and then get there at some ungodly hour in the cold and dark and have to set off for a long day cycling. We stayed at a hotel in Lewes and got one of the first ferries out in the morning.

Make sure you have enough provisions to not need anything on a sunday, because all the shops and restaurants seem to be shut, usually. Trying to find an open supermarket even in big towns on a sunday is a nightmare.

Bmacbri

More information! Thanks very much, all duly noted.

Excellent tip re shops being closed on Sundays - I'll make sure the others are carrying plenty of food for me :-)

Thanks to everyone who has replied, much appreciated.

Once the plan/route is mapped out I might post it back on here - get some thoughts on what we are planning..

rodgers73

Bmacbri wrote:

Thanks Tom, really appreciate the feedback.

Point noted re entering Paris, I certainly don't fancy mixing it on the main roads with the French drivers. I'll get that route planned out well in advanced I think!

If I have any questions and you don't mind, i'll drop you a line on here.

Thanks again
Brian

Happy to help - feel free to PM me.

If you aim for Beauvaix then getting on the right track to Pontoise is easy from there - I found that if you're not careful you can end up being funnelled down a certain route once you're on it and crossing from there to where you need to be can be awkward.