Inspirational Stories and Tips of Travelling by Bikes, Trains, Feet, and Boats: Part 2
Following on from our event last month with Anna Hughes from Flight Free UK, this is our second blog where an attendee at the event and a friend of the shop let us know about some of their adventures to inspire us.
The first is from Lyn Brayshaw who has been travelling abroad by boat, bikes and trains with her family.
We've had 2 great holidays going by the 24-hour ferry to Spain, from Portsmouth/Plymouth to Santander.
To start our holiday we got the train to Cosham and walked round the edge of the water to the ferry port. There was a mini pool on the ship but our aim was wildlife spotting. We were out on deck early for the best dolphin and whale area and each time we saw great views. One time there was a whale and dolphin tour (they happen regularly) so we were able to check what we'd seen with experts. From Santander we used mainly buses and some trains to visit the nearby area. Both times we went into the mountains and had lovely walks around that part of Spain. A great day trek was along Cares Gorge in the Picos de Europas mountains. We had our last day or 2 in Santander (as we don't like to risk not getting back!) and loved the waves on the beach.
We love travel being part of every holiday, and getting the overnight ferry was a great transport option, leading to lots of fun exploring.
Italy by train 15 days over the school Easter holiday, about 10 years ago, was great.
By looking in advance we got bargain tickets - see seat61 website for all the info you need. Had to book Eurostar ahead and sleeper trains ahead, so forward planning was needed for bargain tickets. We went to London the evening before, stayed near the station so there was no stress, then got 6am Eurostar (much cheaper), then walked through Paris for the day to the station we needed to get overnight trains to Italy. Rome, Naples, Pompeii and definitely Herculaneum, Venice, Vesuvius .... It was great and a good temperature in April - we were putting our caps in fountains to cool our heads. It was a great trip and 10 and 8 year olds loved it too.
We've done lots of UK cycling trips, especially since/during COVID, using the National Cycle Network (NCN).
Get the free Ordnance Survey app, choose cycle routes and the app shows you exactly when you go wrong (like the Google dot). Or look up OS NCN without getting the app.
We've cycled around the coast from north Kent to East Sussex to West Sussex; the valleys north of Cardiff and along the coast at Swansea; around Barmouth (west Wales, cheap train to Birmingham area); all around Bath and up to Stroud, Bath to Southampton via Warminster and also via Hungerford; the Kennet and Avon Canal from Windsor (we got train to Woking), to Reading, to Hungerford; Oxford to Cotswolds to Bath (although train to Oxford is a pain as you have to lift your bike and hook it up); north of Oxford; Waterloo to Greenwich to further west; and lots around Hampshire.
Our children are/were at university in Bath and Oxford so we have cycled most of the NCN in those areas. If we need to be somewhere for an event/funeral/etc we look at NCN and plan a trip around it. I know people who are trying to go to all the NCN marker posts and I definitely suggest you look at the NCN map for inspiration!
Secondly here is information from Sharon Merredew, in July she did a circular cycling tour with her friends starting at Southampton, and taking in places such as the new forest, Salisbury, Tisbury. Do have a look at her article on the trip here about her trip https://www.sharonsgonecycling.co.uk/2023/08/july-2023-door-to-door-adventure.html
For more inspiration from her travels go to https://www.sharonsgonecycling.co.uk/
With many thanks to you both for sharing your adventures!
