King Alfred's Way | Britain's BEST Bikepacking Route?

[@albert85b]

Enjoying this little tour of (part of) Britain in the most British of conditions.

[@CycleXplorer]

British conditions sums it up pretty well 😂 have you done King Alfred's Way?

[@GardeningforBeginners]

Wonderful weather

[@CycleXplorer]

A Septembers delight! Maybe one for you on an e-bike 😉

[@timmcdowell3097]

It’s been on the to do list for a while, great to see you on the case. 👊

[@CycleXplorer]

Thanks Waterman, maybe a trip next year! I expect the Rowe Dog would be keen

[@A_AAA232]

awesome ride in those conditions...the SDW always saps your energy especially when you do the section down from Butser to Winchester...I've been there counting down the mile's and gates from Cheesefoot head :) you did really well smashing the KAW in a couple of rainy days, it's a great route...nice one

[@CycleXplorer]

Thank you, sounds like you know King Alfred's Way and the South Downs Way well too. The last part did feel like it took a little while, especially the final few rolling fields up to Cheesefoot Head...

[@robrfu7]

It is a great route..... in the dry!! Well done for sticking it out in those conditions

[@CycleXplorer]

I've now done it in both the dry and wet. I can confirm the dry conditions were much more enjoyable 😂 guess you've ridden king Alfred's Way then?

[@robrfu7]

@@CycleXplorer yeah did it over 4 days with all the camping kit a couple years ago. Would not have wanted to ride all that chalk in that weather!!

[@CycleXplorer]

@@robrfu7 nice, 4 days make for a good trip. I do enjoy camping out but not when I did it this time 😂

[@SophiaZapanta-e9e]

Yes lucky you very nice weather

[@CycleXplorer]

Haha tropical

[@LeeBritt-ss8fo]

Mate absolutely full credit too u and well done ! Another great video too

[@CycleXplorer]

Thank you. Perhaps add King Alfred's Way to your list? If you can do the South Downs Way you can do this one.

[@LeeBritt-ss8fo]

I didn’t no about this but yes it’s definitely a possibility for a 2 dayer next year, I’m doing the L2B off road tomorrow so looking forward to that

[@lizzycampbell3665]

So inspiring I might have to try that route looks a good one 😊

[@CycleXplorer]

Thank you. I'm sure you'd love it 😊

[@lizzycampbell3665]

@@CycleXploreryes I probably will but in glorious sunshine hopefully. Not sure I would cope with that amount of rain

[@CycleXplorer]

@@lizzycampbell3665 king Alfred's Way in the sunshine sounds much better

[@footballkid7570]

Looks great!

[@CycleXplorer]

Thank you!

[@Forest_velo]

Fair play! Tom. Not sure how you carry on in those conditions!

[@CycleXplorer]

Maybe I'll take Forest Velo round it at some point. Perhaps mid January 😂

[@lydiagould3090]

Nice route, shame about the weather! I’ve done it a couple of times as I live on the course. Decided to make a bypass for Reading which made it much better. Premier Inn👍

[@CycleXplorer]

@@lydiagould3090 the bit through Reading is the one part of king Alfred's Way which isn't really enjoyable. But it does give access to lots of amenities. If (probably when) I do it again I too may bypass the main centre. Can't beat a Premier Inn 😂

[@TheMarkmoffat]

Wow, did this in July and thought it was hard enough , but those conditions look very tricky

[@CycleXplorer]

Yeah it was touch and go whether I'd do it but I'd booked the day off work so went for it. Ditched the bivy bag and stayed at the Premier Inn for a compromise. How may days did you do King Alfred's Way in?

[@BazDee]

Another awesome video🎉 We're doing Winchester to Goring on the weekend. My heart sank when you said King Alfred's Waterway 😢😅. What's better for the conditions - clipped in winter boots or MTB flat soles? Never cycled on mossed up chalk 😂

[@CycleXplorer]

Thank you! Well the weather over the last week or so has been fantastic so it's probably dried lots of it out. It was the days of rain leading into it which really impacted on it. Probably ride what you feel most comfortable in, I kind of like my mtb shoes (spd) as they have good grip for walking also. Are you doing it over 2 days?

[@BazDee]

@@CycleXplorer We're doing Winchester to Devizes on Saturday, then Devizes to Goring on Sunday. Good point - think I'll stick to flats as chalk/moss are new to me. Looking forward to the adventure 🚴‍♂🚴‍♂

[@CycleXplorer]

@@BazDee have a great time. The chalk can be slippy but there are different levels of slipperiness to it. I'm sure you'll work it out and if it stays relatively dry it should be good!

[@paulmyers4335]

welldone you must have a Good vo2 max!

[@CycleXplorer]

Thank you. I'm not sure 🤔 I'm more suited to a longer endurance effort than anything super short/sharp. I did a VO2 max based workout on Tuesday and it wasn't very pleasant 😂

[@paulmyers4335]

@@CycleXplorer haha no they aren't. But at 58 the longer rides are a bit tougher for me !

[@rubikzcuberuss7404]

Conditions were not the best but well done 👏 I did it this anti clockwise from South Harting in a day about a month ago much nicer conditions manged 18h 30 min pretty sure I can do better on my full suspension as I found the gravel hard on the hands n butt.

[@CycleXplorer]

Wow that is a cracking time. I could be tempted by a one hit king Alfreds Way a go next year 🧐 In the ultra events I've done I've found a mountain bike to be equal to, if not quicker than a gravel bike. Purely for comfort so you can spend a lot long and push a tad harder before the pain kicks in 😂