Why this ride
A 217 km one-way ride from near Midhurst, about 2 h 57 of riding.
CURVESCOUT / MOTORCYCLE RIDE
Essex Saltmarsh and Suffolk Villages · part 2
Plan this ride
- Recorded distance
- 217 km
- Riding-time estimate
- 2 h 57
- 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. Food stop near Midhurst
Midhurst is one of the nicest market towns in the South Downs, and it sits on one of England's most loved biking roads. The A272 runs east and west across Sussex and Hampshire, through villages and woods and over little hills, and it has a cult following among riders who prefer charm to speed. Midhurst is a natural pause along it, with old coaching inns, timber-framed houses and a broad main street.
Read the complete Food stop near Midhurst write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Food stop near Midhurst is where the day begins. Next is London motorcycle escapes return.
2. Pevensey, on the way back
In September 1066 William of Normandy brought his army ashore here, onto a shingle shore that has since moved, and camped inside walls that were already seven centuries old. Pevensey Castle is that layered thing: a late Roman fort, Anderitum, built against Saxon raiders, with a Norman castle planted inside one corner of it. The Roman walls still run most of the way round, and walking the circuit takes ten minutes and a lot of imagination.
Read the complete Pevensey, on the way back write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
London motorcycle escapes return comes up about 92 km into the recorded legs. Next is Scenic stretch in South Benfleet.
3. Scenic stretch in South Benfleet
Vikings once had a fortified camp at Benfleet. In 893, the forces of Alfred the Great's kingdom stormed it while most of the Danish army was away raiding, capturing ships, women and children, and archaeologists later found charred remains of ships in the creek. Today, South Benfleet is a quiet residential town on the Thames estuary, but the creek is still there, lined with boats and mudflats, and the history adds depth to an otherwise suburban place.
Read the complete Scenic stretch in South Benfleet write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
The route ends here after 217 km.
Leg by leg
Food stop near Midhurst to Pevensey, on the way back
Food stop near Midhurst → Pevensey, on the way back is 92 km of getting across. Ride it tidily and keep the enthusiasm for what comes after.