The first big ride abroad was the 2008 journey from Calais to Montpelier in the South of France - undertaken with Jon and detailed on the www.cycle-endtoend.org.uk website, and our book Wine-ding Down Through France.
Starting in 2012 I organised overseas trips with groups of members from Heart of England Cycling Club (CTC-Heart of England prior to 2015) - this is just a quick list, I may add more detail and photographs in due course:
2012
- Eurotunnel Bike service and ride to Ypres with tours of the WWI sites on the "Peace Trail" cycle route - 7 members
The story as a .pdf document (opens in a new window, close window to return here) CLICK HERE
2013
- Eurotunnel Bike service and hired coach with bike trailer to the Loire Valley staying at two centres and then riding via Orleans into Paris and the Eurostar train ride to London - 13 members
The story as a .pdf document (opens in a new window, close window to return here) CLICK HERE
2014
- Eurotunnel Bike service and a reprise of my ride with Jon in 2008 from Calais to Montpelier, travelling back on the European Bike Express bus service - 5 members (I should have been riding but I was seriously ill and unable to go)
2015
- Eurostar train to Paris and then TGV to Metz to ride along the Moselle to Koblenz, via Luxembourg, and then along the Rhine to Koln before turning left to cross Holland and finish in Belgium for the Eurostar train ride to London from Brussels - 8 members.
2016
- Eurotunnel Bike service and a reprise of the Ypres ride, adding Ghent and Bruges on the way back to Calais - 11 members
2017
- ferry from Portsmouth to Caen and then riding along the coast to Calais and the Eurotunnel Bike service to Folkestone - 11 members
2018
- ferry from Portsmouth to St Malo and riding in a large loop around the Cherbourg peninisula to the ferry at Caen - 9 members
2019
- ferry from Portsmouth to Caen, hired van for the bikes and train to Tours for stays at two centres in the Loire Valley ending at Angers (Tour of the Cointreau factory) and train/van back to Caen and the ferry - 10 members
2020
- the one that got away . . . . the plan was ferry to St Malo and then ride/part train to the area around St Nazaire for stays at two centres - 10 members. [The Covid pandemic forced cancellation]
2021
- a reprise, as an overseas tour wasn't possible, of the 2011 Oxford Tour with a few changes - about 200 miles riding around Oxfordshire starting from Warwickshire, with brief forays into Gloucestershire and Buckinghamshire. An unfortunate incident involving a kerb and falling off necessitated the Captain (me) retiring hurt and taking the train home on the penultimate day.
2022
- we did it . . . the one that got away . . . . ferry to St Malo, van for bikes and then ride/part train to the area around St Nazaire for stays at two centres - 10 members.
2023
- ferry to Caen, van for bikes and then ride/part train to the area around Alencon for stays at two centres - 10 members. This is the tour when one of the team was bitten by a dog on the first day ride (and it was her birthday) - some changes and repatriation and 10 members became 8 for the second half..
2024
- trains to London and then Dover, ferry to Calais and trains to Paris before setting off to ride la Seine a Velo along the Seine to Honfleur and on to Caen for the ferry to Portsmouth and trains home - 7 members. One of the members celebrated his 80th birthday during the trip with a memorable dinner in Rouen at what is billed as the "oldest auberge in France"
2025 . . . .
