Why this ride
Out of Milford, one way: 176 km, roughly 2 h 37 in the saddle. The climbs: near Royal Tunbridge Wells and Scenic stretch near Sevenoaks.
CURVESCOUT / MOTORCYCLE RIDE
Chilterns Ridge and Thames Valley · part 2
Plan this ride
- Recorded distance
- 176 km
- Riding-time estimate
- 2 h 37
- Journey
- One way; return travel is separate
Distance and timing basis
Ordered leg totals agree within rounding. Stop distances are approximate sums of rounded legs. Stops, delays, approach and any separate return travel add time. Basis: producer-declared routed record.
Reading history stays on this device. My road watch requires a separate selection; opening it does not subscribe this ride.
Distance and riding time are measured on the routed road. Check local closures and conditions before you ride.
Waypoint introductions and full write-ups
1. Photo stop near Milford
Milford is a village just south of Godalming in Surrey, on the old road from London to Portsmouth. The A3 runs past it, climbing south towards Hindhead and the Devil's Punch Bowl, a huge natural hollow in the sandstone hills, and that climb is the reason this is a high point on the ride.
Read the complete Photo stop near Milford write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Photo stop near Milford is where the day begins. Next is Chilterns Ridge and Thames Valley checkpoint 8.
2. Morden
The Northern Line ends here, deep in suburban South London, and Morden is the place commuters come home to. It is a district of semi-detached houses, parks and shopping streets, built mostly in the 1920s and 1930s when the Tube arrived and turned fields into suburbs almost overnight.
Read the complete Morden write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Finish at Chilterns Ridge and Thames Valley checkpoint 8. That is the ride. Next is High point near Royal Tunbridge Wells.
3. High point near Royal Tunbridge Wells
Tunbridge Wells owes its existence to a rusty spring. In 1606 a young nobleman, Lord North, was resting in the woods here and noticed a pool with an orange scum; he tried the water, felt better and told the world. Within a few decades the court was coming down from London to drink it, and the Pantiles, a raised, colonnaded walk with trees along it, became the place to be seen taking the waters. The town was granted its Royal prefix in 1909 by Edward VII, and has been the butt of letters to the editor ever since, usually signed by someone disgusted.
Read the complete High point near Royal Tunbridge Wells write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
This is where the road stops climbing. Next is Scenic stretch near Sevenoaks.
4. Scenic stretch near Sevenoaks
Planning note
The high point of this section. Next is Back to Chilterns Ridge.
5. Back to Chilterns Ridge
Upminster has a windmill. The windmill, a tall white smock mill built in the 1800s, stands on a hill above the town and is open to visitors on some days, and the sight of it among suburban roofs is oddly cheering.
Read the complete Chilterns Ridge write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Finish at Back to Chilterns Ridge. That is the ride.
Leg by leg
Photo stop near Milford to Morden
Photo stop near Milford → Morden is 48 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
High point near Royal Tunbridge Wells to Scenic stretch near Sevenoaks
High point near Royal Tunbridge Wells → Scenic stretch near Sevenoaks is 15 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Scenic stretch near Sevenoaks to Back to Chilterns Ridge
Scenic stretch near Sevenoaks → Back to Chilterns Ridge is 50 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.