I enjoyed my first short tour of the year last week, from home in Derby to Berwick upon Tweed. Based mainly on Sustrans Pennine Cycleway with a few diversions for BCQ points, a diversion onto A roads in inclement weather and getting lost a couple of time. Also being very familiar with the first fifty miles I took a few short cuts, joining the route proper from Holmfirth.
The route is nearly all on road, maybe 50 miles out of 370 are on track and I only did about 20 of them. The roads used are some of the most scenic in the country, it's not just pleasant in sections as with so many routes, it's good riding for mile after mile, day after day, I didn't want it to come to an end. It is tough, I thought 60 miles a day without camping gear would be a breeze, but it was about on my limit. I was expecting to arrive at each stop mid afternoon, when in most cases I was getting there early evening. Despite some rough weather for the first couple of days, it was a good time of year to do it, the remoteness of some parts was enhanced by not having to share it with any other tourists, I often didn't see anyone for hours.
The Raven of course preformed faultlessly, A lighter bike would have been nicer on some of the climbs but the ability to always be in the right gear really came into it's own on some of the hilly sections. It isn't a route to rush, even if you're capable of it and the Raven suited that perfectly.
I've stuck some photos on the Derby CTC website;
PCW Photos
