Day 1 – Gatwick to Portsmouth
May 14, 2024
Distance: 112km
Ascent: 372m
Descent: 416m
End of day altitude: 18m
Weather: Partly Cloudy – 15°C
The day started somewhat chaotically as I did 4 laps around Gatwick airport trying to find my way out.
The ride to and through Crawley had me getting turned around a few times as I tried to figure out where Google Maps (GM) wanted me to go…but I figured it out. Learning to ride on the left side of the road while negotiating the roundabouts was a challenge…and included a few close calls with some impatient and assuming drivers….but I managed to survive.
The route to and through Southdowns NP wasn’t what I thought it would be….with the entrance taking me through lovely and somewhat and seemingly exclusive neighbourhoods, with many of the residences having thatched roofs, which I was very much looking forward to seeing…as I’ve never seen them in North America…very cool!
The ride through Southdowns NP wasn’t what I expected either, with a steep climb up to the top of a “hill” (with lovely views all around), and them I was taken through gates into sheep grazing fields (complete with lots of sheep), then along some single-track which was more suited to my Surly ECR than my Disc Trucker…but that didn’t last too long, and I was emptied out onto a road that took me down into and through Chichester…and it wasn’t long before I got to Portsmouth. I stopped to pick up a few munchies and my end-of-day beer before reaching my accommodation at Hotel Ibis, which was quite nice.
I grabbed some dinner to go from the in-house restaurant before finally retiring to my tiny but unique room.
All in all, it was a fascinating, enchanting and challenging first day in the UK…and as I turned off the light to call it a night, I was full of anticipation of the ride to come!
10 Comments
That was a duel carriage way which you can cycle on be best give a miss, a motorway 3 lanes you can not ride on .Goggle maps for cycling not a good idea Ridewithgps or Strava better bet .Welcome to Blighty and crap roads. I rode Lejog 2017 enjoy the ride.
Looking forward to the adventure. That was a crazy beeping highway.
And so it begins 🙂 Hope you eventually did find the missing part for your microphone setup. It works as is but I know if you're anything like me, it's going to bug (pun intended) the jaheebers out of you until you've fixed it 🙂 I guess we're going to find out over the course of the next videos.
Getting used to the lefthand orientation takes some practice, but I believe I'd have a harder time in a car than on a bike. On a bike you at least have greater freedom of movement than you'll have driving a car, making it a little more forgiving.
I really gotta commend you on your choice of music, Reinhart. Once again, I might ad, 'cause I know I've done that in the past too. But the first tune in this one….wow. Awesome. I'm definately going to Shazam it, because that one is going onto my Spotify playlist 🙂 For my taste, it hit me square in the chest. So serene. I guess I'm a sucker for that guitarbased country-ish style of music 🙂 Anyway, 25 minutes went by too fast and now I can't wait until the next one is installed 🙂
Cheers 🍺
Google maps seems to be stitching you up 😢
If you switch to Komoot you can choose the type of cycling you want ,for your bike I'd select" bike touring "
Hi Reinhart, good luck. Cycle.travel is also a really good route finder in the UK. Looking forward to seeing g your adventure. Motorists are possibly less used to cyclists. Stay safe 🥰🥰🥰
Good luck with your adventure. Ive liked , subbed and hit the notification bell. Looking forward to your journey.👍
No way of avoiding the South Downs on that route – at some point that climb is inevitable! I assume the ride is already finished but I'm hoping that you ditched Google Maps for navigation and went for something less awful – in the UK at least google maps is terrible for cycle routes as you demonstrated! As someone else here has said, if anyone is thinking of coming over and riding here, cycle.travel and the app for phones is a brilliant alternative. Looking forward to the series.
Good luck Reinhardt, welcome to the UK. It’s a great ride, just sit back and enjoy 🤗 Subscribed
Did you follow a defined route ? Like the ACA great divide route? Maybe you posted a pre ride prep video , I’ll look. (Wow street riding in the US/Canada scares me to death and this looks even scarier!)