Guided, Supported Group Bike Tour of Wessex, England

Wessex Itinerary

• Day 1 (Monday)
  On arrival in Bath you will be fitted with your bicycle and equipment – and you can take a warm-up ride if you wish. Alternatively, you may prefer to take a tour of the city in an open top bus. There is a meet and greet session and a tour briefing by your guide in the late afternoon, followed by dinner at a riverside restaurant in the evening.
  Accommodation: Bailbrook Lodge
  
  
• Day 2 (Tuesday)
  The tour proper starts with a ride into Bath along the towpath of the Kennet and Avon Canal. We then pick up pick up the Avon Valley Cycleway, built along the bed of the old railway track between Bath and Bristol, and so avoid the traffic leaving Bath. Leaving the cycleway at Saltford we ride south west through the rolling, tranquil Avon countryside to Chew Magna and a welcoming cup of coffee. Continuing south past Chew Valley Lake, there is a short climb at the start of the Mendips and a descent to the village of Cheddar for lunch. Cheddar sits at one end of Cheddar Gorge, a spectacular ravine cut through the Mendips plateau by fast flowing streams. The caves in this gorge once provided the ideal environment of constant temperature and high humidity for storing and maturing the cheese which bears the Cheddar name. A steady climb through Cheddar Gorge is rewarded with an exhilarating descent into Wells, passing the caves at Wookey Hole on the way. Wells, smallest of the English cities, is our home for the next two nights.
  Accommodation: The White Hart
  
  
• Day 3 (Wednesday)
  The main part of today’s ride is a circuit of the mysterious and atmospheric Somerset Levels. First stop on the route is the ancient town of Glastonbury, shrouded in Arthurian myth and once one of the most important destinations for pilgrims in England. Legend has it that Glastonbury is also the site of Avalon – the last resting place of King Arthur and the Holy Grail. The ruins of Glastonbury Abbey, Glastonbury Tor and the Chalice Well Gardens are sites of particular interest. The Somerset Levels themselves are home to the Peat Moors Centre and the Abbot’s Fish House. The picturesque village of Cossington provides a welcome lunch stop, while an optional extension takes more ambitious riders to Stembridge Tower Mill. On returning to Wells you will have time to visit the wonderful Cathedral and Bishop’s Palace and then perhaps to enjoy a cream tea in one of the quaint tea shops.
  Accommodation: The White Hart
  
  
• Day 4 (Thursday)
  Leaving Wells we climb gently east into the Mendips to Cranmore and past the home of the East Somerset Railway. The picturesque villages of Butcombe and Upton Noble lie on our route up to Alfred’s Tower. A short detour from here leads to Stourhead, possibly the finest example of 18th century landscape gardening in Britain, and a breathtaking work of art. From Stourhead we next ride through Longleat Estate to admire the grandeur of Elizabethan architecture that is Longleat House. Parts of the grounds, landscaped by Capability Brown, enclose an expansive safari park where a variety of exotic animals roam freely. On the last leg of the ride to Warminster, we take a ride around the beautiful lake at Shearwater.
  Accommodation: The Red Lion
  
  
• Day 5 (Friday)
  This is a very beautiful ride south along the River Wylye Valley through a succession of picture postcard villages to the town of Wilton. This town is renowned for the carpet industry that was started by the 8th Earl of Pembroke using French Huguenot refugee weavers. Wilton House, largely rebuilt by Inigo Jones in the 17th century, includes one of the original Tudor towers, a fine art collection and a landscaped park with a Palladian bridge. A short climb and descent from Wilton leads to the River Avon Valley which we follow north to enigmatic Stonehenge, Europe’s most famous prehistoric monument. Amesbury provides a lunch stop before we continue north to the village of Upavon and on to the market town of Devizes. For ambitious riders there is a challenging extension involving a climb over Salisbury Plain.
  Accommodation: The Bear
  
  
• Day 6 (Saturday)
  A circular route from Devizes takes us to first through the tranquil countryside of the Vale of Pewsey to Great Bedwyn before climbing and dropping to meet the River Kennett which is followed west to Marlborough. This is an attractive town with a long, wide High Street lined with colonnaded Georgian shops. There are numerous lunch options in the town!
  From Marlborough we ride to the village of Avebury to marvel at the Avebury Stone Circle, built around 2500 BC, and thought to be some form of religious centre. The Alexander Kieller Museum illustrates in detail the excavation of the site. Nearby is Silbury Hill, Europe’s largest prehistoric earthwork (whose purpose remains a mystery). On the last leg back to Devizes we get great views of the Vale of Pewsey and the Alton Barnes White Horse.
  Accommodation: The Bear
  
  
• Day 7 (Sunday)
  Starting out from Devizes for the final day’s riding, we head north with a gentle climb onto the Marlborough Downs and a long, exhilarating descent to the village of Lacock. Maintained by the National Trust, Lacock is a delight! Lacock Abbey, the location for much of the filming of the first Harry Potter film, is also famous for being the place where William Henry Fox Talbot, the father of photography, took the first photograph in 1835. A 16th century barn at the abbey gates now houses the Fox Talbot Museum, which has displays on his experiments. After lunch, we ride west to Bradford-on-Avon where we join the Kennett and Avon Canal for a spectacular ride back to Bath along the restored canal towpath.
  Accommodation: Bailbrook Lodge
  
  
• Day 8 (Monday)
  Departure after breakfast
  

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