Where would I cycle in this situation?

[grldtnr]

or done decent cycling training, such as Bikeability.

For the rest, well, cycle route signs are white on blue, right? 🤦

Ahem, so are motorway signs !!!!

 

[C R]

Ahem, so are motorway signs !!!!

I think that's the point of the post.

 

[grldtnr]

To be honest, I suspect I am going to be more irritated at the need to be constantly checking the cue sheets for turns than enjoying the scenery and I may start looking for obvious routes regardless whether they are quiet roads or not. I do use cue sheets rather than any GPS device - although many of my routes are designed on RWGPS - whence I get the cues. I carry a Wahoo on the bike which I use for miles and history but it is impossible for me to read routes on it, it having far too small a screen. So I develop cue sheets from various sources and attach them to the space between my aerobars.
Most of my routes on this trip have been created by Peak Tours, and they have kindly provided them to me. As you say, they are designed to keep their riders safe - it's a nanny thing. Too late now for any change there - all rooms booked. However, their routes are pretty economical in terms of distance. The route between Street and Bewdley for instance at 114 miles compares to 139 miles mapped out on CycleTravel.
Again, thanks for taking the time to offer your suggestions and advice.
Ken.

Blackrat, it wasn't immediately obvious you are a 'foreigner', I apologise for my previous comments, but many Continental Europeans do cycle over here, and it isn't that much of a problem.
You say it's a booked and provided by a tour company, surely they will provide you with mapping ?
as mentioned by other posters up thread,, it will be a good thing to study a map, in the UK , we have an excellent mapping agency called the Ordnance Survey, this country is covered by a range of maps called the 'Landranger' maps, it will be expensive to buy them all, but they are clear and concise.
You don't say if you wIll be using a device or 'phone, but for a modest fee you can access the Ordnance Survey onto your smart phone, , they will present on your device the same as the map agency, with realtime tracking it's pretty foolproof.
A degree of map reading ability will be required.

 

[Dogtrousers]

t will be a good thing to study a map, in the UK , we have an excellent mapping agency called the Ordnance Survey, this country is covered by a range of maps called the 'Landranger' maps, it will be expensive to buy them all, but they are clear and concise.
You don't say if you wIll be using a device or 'phone, but for a modest fee you can access the Ordnance Survey onto your smart phone,

Other places you can peruse OS maps online are https://maps.bing.com and https://www.streetmap.co.uk

 

[icowden]

Again, thanks for taking the time to offer your suggestions and advice.

Once you have plotted your routes, it might be worth sharing them on here so that we can help you to find the best routes with some local knowledge.
For example, on that STreet to Bewdley stretch you have to go through Worcester but there are good ways and awful ways to go :-)

 

[blackrat]

Are you a British national ? Or been domiciled overseas for some time?
It's very unlikely you will end up on a motorway, you may stray onto a fast A road, but even then you have a legal right to ride on one, even if it is really not sensible to do, unfortunately sometimes you will have too in places.
Any way ,your sense of self preservation will lead you to avoid these roads and generally there will be alternatives, even if it's case of getting of and pushing.
I say this after over 50 years of cycling, YES , there are idiot motorist out there,even with all my cycling experience I still'find' them, but the way to deal with this is to ride defensively, and take 'command' position on the road, if you don't feel you can do that ,then I must question your intention to do this 'Long Slog' north.
Having done the LEJOG , and other expeditions , it's just as much a mental thing as it is a physical challenge.

"Are you a British national ? Or been domiciled overseas for some time?"
Yes and yes, but please be aware much of my comments on this site are "tongue in cheek' as a rest from my usual writing grind trying to get the stories moving forward.
No offence intended or meant. Just imaging we are sitting in a pub sharing stories.

 

[Jenkins]

Indeed! But looking at the EDP site - I'm from Norwich, so nostalgia? - I saw this and wondered if it might have any bearing on my upcoming slog northward as a potentially typical example of current British road situations.
On an aside note, the main concern I have is how to avoid missing a strategic turn on my route and ending up on a motorway, so wondering about the conditions shown <snip>

Here's the main problem - as there are NO motorways in the whole of Norfolk (and my home county of Suffolk for that matter) you wouldn't know which signs to look for to avoid them

 

[mjr]

Other places you can peruse OS maps online are https://maps.bing.com and https://www.streetmap.co.uk

And then you can stop being silly and use maps designed for cycling instead of firing ordnance, such as cycle.travel and cyclosm.org which shows useful info like surface solidity, speed limit and/or cycle route number.

 

[grldtnr]

Here's the main problem - as there are NO motorways in the whole of Norfolk (and my home county of Suffolk for that matter) you wouldn't know which signs to look for to avoid them

No, but there is the A12, parts of which are fuelled, and fast.

 

[grldtnr]

And then you can stop being silly and use maps designed for cycling instead of firing ordnance, such as cycle.travel and cyclosm.org which shows useful info like surface solidity, speed limit and/or cycle route number.

But O.S. is highly accurate,and the base mapping of online apps.

 

[icowden]

But O.S. is highly accurate,and the base mapping of online apps.

That's perfectly true and they are excellent maps, but they may not necessarily be the best tool for working out your cycle route. They will certainly tell you the type of road and give you an idea of elevations and hills if you can read the lines properly, but things like cycle routes and speed limits can often be far more useful.

 

[Alex321]

And then you can stop being silly and use maps designed for cycling instead of firing ordnance, such as cycle.travel and cyclosm.org which shows useful info like surface solidity, speed limit and/or cycle route number.

While Ordnance Survey maps are indeed often not the best for cycling, they were never actually designed for "firing ordnance".

It is called the Ordnance survey because it was the Board of Ordnance which requested the maps. The board of ordnance encompassed a significant part of what is now the Ministry of Defence.

They certainly were originally military maps, with the first ones being maps of Scotland made after the Jacobite Rebellion. And then a general survey of the whole of the UK, starting from the South coast.

But they were more about being able to move troops around and know where they were going than about cannon fire.

 

[raleighnut]

While Ordnance Survey maps are indeed often not the best for cycling, they were never actually designed for "firing ordnance".

It is called the Ordnance survey because it was the Board of Ordnance which requested the maps. The board of ordnance encompassed a significant part of what is now the Ministry of Defence.

They certainly were originally military maps, with the first ones being maps of Scotland made after the Jacobite Rebellion. And then a general survey of the whole of the UK, starting from the South coast.

But they were more about being able to move troops around and know where they were going than about cannon fire.

The maps of Ireland are not so accurate though, that's what comes of 'employing' locals to assist in the map making when you've invaded their country, some headings can be 'off' by nearly 30 degrees and distances awry by several miles.

 

[blackrat]

The maps of Ireland are not so accurate though, that's what comes of 'employing' locals to assist in the map making when you've invaded their country, some headings can be 'off' by nearly 30 degrees and distances awry by several miles.

"..that's what comes of 'employing' locals to assist in the map making when you've invaded their country,"
Do you mean the British Normans? After that, Ireland was British, so one cannot invade one's own country.

 

[matticus]

<finds comfy chair>