What is the best country for cycling in the world?

[Dayvo]

On a trip from Norway to Gibraltar, I found Germany to be far and away the best country to ride in. My mate was of the same opinion, although we didn´t mention it until we´d finished our journey.

The roads were very well sign-posted and had bike paths running parallel to major and busy roads; the ashphalt was in excellent condition; the drivers were considerate; there were plenty of good cafs and coffee stops along the way; the people were very friendly; the scenery was very pleasing on the eye, and it was cheap. And the weather was good all the time we were there (in November)!

Surprisingly, given the status and popularity of cycling in Belgium, their roads were/are atrocious and the worst we encountered.!

 

[Randochap]

France is good because it's big and comparatively empty and everyone (almost) likes cyclists.

+1

 

[darkstar]

For me Canada has been the best place i've ridden, this trails around Whistler are sik! That was before i gave up down hilling

 

[Davidc]

Of those I've cycled in - The Netherlands by a country mile.

Next Germany
Then Luxembourg
Then France

Last comes the UK, and I'm stuck with living here!

Trouble with answering this is that in each case experience is of course limited to the bits I've cycled in, which can only be a few %, even for the UK

 

[Banjo]

Pictures of my favourite ride.

Britain may not be the most cycle friendly country but its still my favourite corner of the world.

Took these pictures today on an hours loop from home and back.

 

[HJ]

I agree with will. Netherlands is great. Well maintained cycle tracks in the towns, and as you go out of town, the paths split away from the roads making them safer as the roads get faster. Also flat as a pancake, so great boring for touring holiday.

Corrected that for you....

 

[Randochap]

For me Canada has been the best place i've ridden, this trails around Whistler are sik! That was before i gave up down hilling

Well, of course, I'd love to agree with you. But as a Canadian who actually (normally) puts in 8-10,000 km a year on Canadian roads, I am still looking for the "best country."

As I noted above, France comes closest (agree though that road surfaces are often less than smooth -- a good argument for 650b).

Did you actually cycle here, darkstar, or just poke around the trails at Whistler on a MTB, which is not really cycling in Canada, but rather playing offroad in a closed resort environment?

Unfortunately, Canada is close to the US in its slavish worship of the automobile and has been slow to adopt the need for bicycle infrastructure in cities and on it's highways -- which, incidentally, are being crossed with abominable "rumble-strips."

By far the worst part about cycling here though is the indelible view that bicycles are toys better restricted to the sidewalk (pavement).

I've been waiting over 40 years now for this perception to change and I think it will be several more generations yet, or the fall of the Age of Oil, before things change considerably for the better.

The one consolation I have is that, going on my last visit, in 2007, Canada is a better place to ride than the UK, where I was lucky to grow up in the fading post-war period when bicycles were taken seriously as transportation and cars were few on the scenic roads of Shropshire. Unfortunately, Britain seems to have embraced the motor car and its "culture" (sic) with more single-mindedness than North America.

How lucky I was to have experienced that former version of the UK! I guess you could say I've been searching for that Pattersonesque, bucolic experience ever since.

I have indeed found that on more than one occasion here in Canada, particularly on the remote highways and byways of the north. Of course, the scenery is unparalleled and I recommend a cycling trip here without pause. As far as Canuck cycling cities go, Victoria and surrounding rural areas, as well as Vancouver, are the best we have to offer.

If only Canadians respected cyclists like the French; then we could boast a true cycling paradise.

 

[Perfect Virgo]

Excellent appraisal Rando and I am envious of the dramatic landscape out west. My experience of cycling in Canada is of Prince Edward Island for the past 3 years. P.E.I. is of course 20 years behind the times and the pace is pretty slack. Scenery on the island is no match for most of the rest of Canada but there is a nice mix of shoreline and country roads. The handful of towns are not cycle friendly but I just hold road position and wear a bright jersey!

The only two highways, Routes 1 and 2 are smooth and have wide shoulders. The inclines are haulage truck friendly. Get out onto the rural roads and it is a very different story. Most are rollers, straight as an arrow with 50% potholed, buckled and repaired while the other 50% are red dirt and unrideable on 23mm tyres.

Regarding treatment on the road, I find motorists still fall into two camps: the pickup and car drivers who give me a suspiciously wide berth as if I might react like a startled deer and skitter across the road; and the construction truckers who thunder past within a foot or two belching blue exhaust and sucking me into their slipstream.

On balance I prefer Canada for the decent shoulders, the lack of heavy traffic and the absence (in my experience at least) of serious aggression on the road.

 

[longers]

Are some of the logging wagons/trucks driven remotely in British Columbia? ie no driver.
Not sure if I've picked up the wrong end of the stick somewhere.

 

[Randochap]

Are some of the logging wagons/trucks driven remotely in British Columbia? ie no driver.

It might seem that way sometimes. Fast-moving, heavily loaded logging trucks are indeed intimidating, but despite their penchant for passing closely -- expecting you to hold your line -- they can usually be trusted to drive safely.

By far the most frightening drivers on northern Canadian roads are Europeans who have rented big RVs (usually in Calgary, for some reason) and have no sense of the width of the vehicle they are driving. Be afraid of these.

 

[Archie_tect]

Denmark... drivers are considerate and unhurried- it's the pace of life in a rural environment that we loved. Cars move around slowly, max speed 50kph just about everywhere in towns and 80kph max on rural roads... bliss!

 

[Randochap]

Excellent appraisal Rando and I am envious of the dramatic landscape out west.

And I'm envious of Maritime country. I've wanted to tour Nova Scotia and Newfoundland for ages. Any idea what Gros Morne would be like? I'm thinking of Highway 430. Can't get much more dramatic landscapes than that, huh.

My grandkids are out there, so maybe in a year or two, after I heal up ...

Again, speaking of bumpy roads ... 650b.

 

[darkstar]

Did you actually cycle here, darkstar, or just poke around the trails at Whistler on a MTB, which is not really cycling in Canada, but rather playing offroad in a closed resort environment?
.

I only spent 3 weeks around the Blackcomb region, used to be quite into Downhilling, competing sometimes until i dislocated a couple of vertebrae as well as my left shoulder. Then decided to give it up and after a fair bit of rehab time got into MtB XC. So i wasn't road cycling on the roads out there but the trails around that area are second to none in my opinion!

 

[raindog]

Britain may not be the most cycle friendly country but its still my favourite corner of the world.

I think alot of dissing the uk can be put down to "the grass is allways greener" syndrome. I've only got the fondest memories of club riding in my native Derbyshire. Also people go on holiday for a couple of weeks and see one tiny corner of another country and think it's paradise. Living there permanently might give a different picture.
Nice pics by the way.

 

[Davidc]

I think alot of dissing the uk can be put down to "the grass is allways greener" syndrome. I've only got the fondest memories of club riding in my native Derbyshire. Also people go on holiday for a couple of weeks and see one tiny corner of another country and think it's paradise. Living there permanently might give a different picture.
Nice pics by the way.

On some subjects - yes. Not this one though.