Starting in Bury St Edmunds in the Brecks Region of Western Suffolk
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5-DAY CYCLE TOUR IN SUFFOLK AND NORFOLK IN JUNE 2020 …. WITH OPTIONS TO CYCLE THERE AND BACK Starting in Bury St Edmunds in the Brecks region of western Suffolk heading south and taking a couple of days passing through the Wool Towns and into Constable Country, then turning east to Ipswich and north out to the Suffolk Coast. After finishing in Lowestoft the tour moves into South Norfolk and Norwich followed by a day cycling through the Broads and up to the North Norfolk coast. The final section takes us down to Kings Lynn and West Norfolk ending up in March in Cambridgeshire. The tour will be scheduled to start on a Friday and end on a Tuesday so that the Main Tour could be done as an extended long weekend with participants taking advantage of railways stations in both Bury St Edmunds and March for transport to the Start and from the Finish. For those with time on their hands there is also the option to take two days cycling Out to the start at Bury St Edmunds, and then a further two days Back from the finish in March. This is scheduled for early June 2020 SUFFOLK COUNTY – DAY 1 & 2 NORFOLK COUNTY – DAY 3, 4 & 5 Page Page 1 of 11 CTC Coventry Alan Jelley This Tour is intended to have some different features from other tours I have done HOTEL ACCOMMODATION – I will NOT be booking Hotel Accommodation for you. (The cheapest prices are on a ‘Book Now’ basis and I am not prepared to risk paying up front and then not have the numbers commit to the tour or have people drop out). You and your ‘buddy’ have the opportunity to book all accommodation for yourselves on the basis that suits you. This will give you flexibility over whether or not you actually wish to participate in the tour (which should be particularly flexible for many of you who have a busy and committed lives), what accommodation you want to chose , and control over how and when you book and pay for your accommodation You get to chose the hotel, the style of the room and the facilities you want, and the price – and what contingency you wish to plan for in the event that you can’t make the tour. I have offered up some suggestions in this planning document which reflect where I shall be booking – and in most cases where we are staying in the larger towns have selected chain hotels such as Travelodge and Premier Inn which should be able to accommodate all of us. In the small stops such as Fakenham and March I have given you what are the most obvious options and left it for you to choose. I would suggest that when you go to book accommodation unless you are just reserving accommodation and not paying upfront, that you might like to arrange your accommodation in Fakenham first as it is the overnight stay where there is most likely to be an issue of availability – then following that arrange your accommodation in March for the following night. (Please watch out for the hotels individual sleeping arrangements – for example Premier Inn’s ‘Twin – Bed’ is in fact just a Camp bed put into the room alongside the in-situ Double bed !) HEALTH WARNING ! - you need to be aware of the daily distances, which at up to 65 miles with panniers are not insignificant, and the fact that I will be using this as a ‘sightseeing tour’ and will be stopping to look at stuff….makes a combination which means we are likely to be needing to take advantage of the length of daylight in June to have long days with early starts and potential late finishes, and to be cycling ‘quite briskly’ when we are moving. CHOSE WHAT YOU WANT TO DO – The tour has a 5-days CORE TOUR running from Friday 5th June 2020 starting in Bury St Edmunds through to Tuesday 9th June ending up in March. There are train options available for getting to the start in Bury St Edmunds and from the end in March. So, allied with the option to book your own accommodation, this could be a useful option for those of you who are still in gainful employment! There are also two optional legs. The first to cycle 2-days OUT to Bury St Edmunds starting on the 3rd June and arriving on the 4th June for the start of the Core Tour. The second is at the end of the Core Tour to stay in March then leaving on the 10th March to take 2-days BACK finishing at Brandon on the 11th June. Once again, allied with the option to book your own accommodation and use the train you can do one or both of those. Page Page 2 of 11 CTC Coventry Alan Jelley CYCLE OUT TO BURY ST EDMUNDS ITINERARY & ROUTE SHEETS For those beginning the tour from Coventry area Depart / Route Refreshments / POI Accommodation & Evening meal OUT DAY ROUTE 16 miles – Long Buckby (Morning Stop) DESTINATION ACCOMMODATION O1 Born & Bred Cafe. Open Wednesday to Saturday 08.00 – 16.00 O1 Bourton - Bedford Premier Inn Priory Marina Hotel in Wednesday Bedford https://cycle.travel/map/jo rd 30 miles – Sywell (Midday Stop) Priory Marina, Priory Country Park, 3 June urney/108069 Pilots Mess Cafe on Sywell Airfield. Open 09.00-16.00 Barkers Lane, Bedford, MK41 9DJ, Phone: ?? Miles to get to Bourton + 01604 741 177 +44 3337773687 57 miles + 600m Ascent £67 per room Bourton on (We have used this before and it is a Dunsmore Meet at Blooms Garden 45 miles – Harrold (Afternoon Stop) reasonable choice. As it is so far out of to Bedford Centre, Bourton on Dragonfly Cafe on Harrold-Odell Country Park the town centre then I suggest it is the Dunsmore Carlton Rd, Harrold. Open 09.00-16.00 default) 01234 720016 Leave Blooms at 10.00 EVENING FOOD 57 miles – travel through Bedford centre to the hotel at the Marina Hotel is on the outskirts of Bedford so after what is probably a long and tiring day it is probably best to eat at the nearby Beefeater Restaurant Page Page 3 of 11 CTC Coventry Alan Jelley Depart / Route Refreshments / POI Accommodation & Evening meal OUT DAY ROUTE 21 miles – Bourn (Morning Stop) DESTINATION ACCOMMODATION O2 Stove Cafe, Manor Farm, 14 Alms Hill, Bourn 01954 713976 O2 Bedford - Bury Opening Hours: Monday to Saturday – 9:00-4:00 Premier Inn Bury St Edmunds Town Thursday Centre https://cycle.travel/map/jo 4th June urney/108071 New Shire Hall, The Churchyard, Raingate 31 miles- Visit Cambridge City Centre (Sightseeing + Midday Stop) St, Bury St Edmunds IP33 1RX 0871 527 65 miles + 600m Ascent Trinity College is close to where we cross the river for sightseeing 9512 £68 Bedford to Depart at 08.30 to give a Join the track back at the river bridge and head along the river to … Travelodge Bury St useful amount of time in Etna Rd, Bury St Edmunds IP33 1JZ 0871 Edmunds Cambridge THEN 984 6547 If people are staying in Fort St George Riverside Pub £49 different hotels then will Midsummer Common, Cambridge CB4 1HA need to arrange a Which has outside seating and lots of space for our bikes. rendezvous place and time These hotels could also be used by those taking the train to Bury St Edmunds the 49 miles –Newmarket (Afternoon Stop) day before so they are ready to start the main tour the following day. Travelodge The Pantry Café In The Guineas-Shopping Centre, Fred Archer Way, Newmarket is 400m from Station whereas Premier CB8 8EQ Inn is about 1 mile from the station. Open until 11PM daily EVENING FOOD Many restaurants in the Town Centre a short walk away from the Premier Inn 65 miles – Arrive Bury St Edmunds city centre (If anyone is still in transit on the train we need to inform them as to where we intend to eat … and maybe delay somewhat to give them a chance to checkin and join us) Page Page 4 of 11 CTC Coventry Alan Jelley MAIN TOUR ITINERARY AND ROUTE SHEETS Depart / Route Refreshments / POI Accommodation & Evening meal & Bike Shops MAIN ROUTE 15 miles – Lavenham (Morning Stop + Sightseeing) DESTINATION ACCOMMODATION TOUR DAY Choice of Refreshment stops on the High Street / Market Square T1 T1 Bury – Ipswich A Woollen weaving village - “Lovely timbered buildings, an ancient guildhall and Premier Inn Ipswich Town Centre graceful churches help to make Lavenham one of the most attractive and charming villages in Suffolk, England.”. With a Harry Potter House and a Quayside Friday https://cycle.travel/map/jo urney/108292 cottage with a window where ‘Twinkle Twinkle Little Star’ was penned! 33 Key St, Ipswich IP4 1BZ 5th June £42 24 miles – Sudbury (Sightseeing) Silk and Woollen weaving town, for us, acting as the gateway into Constable and OR 57 miles + 600m Ascent Gainsborough country.” Bury St Depart at 08.30 as a longish 26 miles – Little Cornard (Route point) Travelodge Ipswich Edmunds 15 Duke St, Ipswich IP3 0AE•0871 984 day and much to stop and ½ mile of track to Ipswich 6329 look at on the way 35 miles – Stoke by Nayland (Midday Stop) Cycle £41 through Train travel is probably not The Angel Inn Restaurant Suffolk practicable on the day as Polstead Street, Stoke by Nayland +44 1206 263245 These two hotel options are about 400m Wool the journey from Coventry apart 43 – Dedham (Sightseeing) Towns and goes via London and takes Dedham is frequently rated as containing some of England's most beautiful EVENING FOOD then into over 3 hours …but we will Lowland landscapes, particularly the Water Meadows of the River Stour, which Constable be looking to make an passes along the northern boundary of the village forming the boundary between Lots of dining options in centre of Ipswich Country early start for a long day.