An space of Northumberland has been named amongst the top cyclist-friendly locations in the United Kingdom.
The county is residence to some positive cycle trails together with Hadrian’s Cycleway, the Reivers Route and the Coasts and Castles Route. And it is the Northumberland Coast AONB, the place you will discover the latter route, that is made it into the top 20 cycle-friendly locations in a examine performed utilizing Google Trends knowledge by staycation property market Big-Cottages.com.
Home to 85 miles of the 192 mile Coasts and Castles route, which connects the Forth and Tyne estuaries in Edinburgh and Newcastle respectively, the Coasts and Castles route can also be half of the world’s longest worldwide cycle route, the North Sea Cycle Route. It passes by seven international locations alongside the North Sea: together with Netherlands, Germany, Denmark, Sweden, Norway and Scotland.
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However, many follow brief sections of that, and cyclists in Northumberland can cease off to admire beautiful castles in Holy Island, Bamburgh, and Warkworth. Some who did so in 2021 have been well-known faces, with Star Wars and Indiana Jones actor Harrison Ford and comic David O’Doherty each exploring the county’s coast by bike.
Being amongst the finest in the nation might be a lift to native companies too, after a gathering was held in March to thrash out plans to capitalise on the improve in curiosity in biking tourism and make Northumberland a premier vacation spot for these holidaying with their bikes. One factor to return out of early conferences is the Northumberland Cycling Charter, which is able to enable companies to display they’ve all the necessities of a ‘Cycling Friendly’ institution.
(Image: Newcastle Chronicle)
One enterprise that calls itself ‘cycling-friendly’ is Norham Bike Yard, opened by Jim and Mary-Rose Blythe final 12 months as a retirement venture. The mattress and breakfast has already confirmed fashionable with these on two wheels, as a consequence of its location on Routes 1 and 68 of the UK Cycling community, and its proximity to the coast.
(Image: Norham Bike Yard)
Jim stated: “Last year, when the pandemic was on, we were getting people coming out from London, Bristol, Sussex, Devon and a lot of them had never even been to Northumberland and honestly, they were absolutely taken aback by the scenery. It’s a whole different world from the centre of London.
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“The coast is one of the top locations in the nation to cycle as a result of of the amenities – you’ve got received the likes of Bamburgh Castle, Alnwick Castle and Dunstanburgh. You’ve received Holy Island too, which I ‘d say round 80 p.c of our visitors come to. We had eight simply final evening who cycled to Holy Island and again once more, in order that’s one of the major points of interest.”
(Image: Newcastle Chronicle)
As effectively as operating Norham Bike Yard, Jim arrange the Monday Morning Cycle Club, largely made up of retirees in north Northumberland. He continued: “When the group first started, we only had 5 or 6 people then but now we have an email list of 50 and we regularly get between 10 and 17 out every week. We take turns in organising a route and a coffee stop, and sometimes that will be on the coast.”
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To compile the examine, Big-Cottages took into consideration Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty, quantity of biking routes, native authority charges of highway visitors, the sq. mileage for exploration and charges of bike theft. Northumberland ranked significantly extremely when it got here to analysing visitors knowledge from the Department for Transport.
(Image: Northumberland County Council)
The Shropshire Hills got here out on top general, whereas the Cotswolds took first place for being the largest space to discover, with the highest quantity of cycle routes, regardless of coming thirteenth general.
Matthew Fox, CEO of Big-Cottages.com, stated: “Cycling has long been a popular mode of transport. Even before the Covid-19 pandemic, millions relied on their bikes to get to work, or simply to explore and enjoy the great outdoors.
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“But with the value of gas skyrocketing, and consciousness of our private influence on the surroundings larger than ever earlier than, extra individuals are selecting to swap their automobiles for 2 wheels. As a consequence, the nation is growing an actual love for biking.
“We want to cater to all holidaymakers, including groups of cyclists, and are happy to offer a helping hand by shining a spotlight on the best locations for those exploring the UK by bicycle. The results were pleasantly surprising, highlighting areas of the UK that people may have previously only visited on four-wheels as opposed to two, and we hope this research encourages people to continue the bicycle boom!”
The top 20 cyclist-friendly locations in the UK
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Shropshire Hills
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Cornwall
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East Devon
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Dorset
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Isle of Wight
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Blackdown Hills
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Suffolk Coast and Heaths
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Lincolnshire Wolds
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North Pennines
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Surrey Hills
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High Weald
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Norfolk Coast
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Cotswolds
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South Devon
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Northumberland Coast
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Wye Valley
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Chiltern Hills
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Solway Coast
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Nidderdale
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North Wessex Downs
To learn the full examine into the finest cyclist-friendly locations in the UK, click on right here.
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