Cycling Walthamstow (London) to Cambridge, UK: Green Fields and the DNA Cycle Path
5-15 May 2019
Time-out in Walthamstow, London (5-12 May 2019)
We spent a week in an Airbnb apartment in Walthamstow, just north of the city of London. You’d think we might get out and about to see the sights in the city - and we thought so, too, at first. But it turned out that we were content to just chill out, and catch our breath from all the travel. We had been to London several times in the past, so that may have had something to do with it.
We did get a few things done. I picked up my new glasses, and they are awesome. With steel frames and flexible hinges they are sturdy, and look good. I’m really pleased with how well that worked out.
A thing of strength and beauty. These glasses will replace my last, rimless pair, which couldn’t withstand being sat on inside a tent. I’m hoping they will be rugged enough to survive an extended bicycle tour. Copyright © 2018-2019 Pedals and Puffins.
We cleaned some of the dirt and grit off of our bikes, and installed new drive chains. What’s a little time off without some bicycle maintenance?
It wasn’t all chores, though. Waltham Forest, the area near our apartment, has the feel of a neighborhood that’s been lived-in for a long time. It’s mostly residential, with old brick townhouses and row houses, interspersed with small commercial districts lined with independent stores. We enjoyed walking around and exploring what could be found close to home.
A delightful mural in Waltham Forest, London, England, UK. Copyright © 2018-2019 Pedals and Puffins.
Always up for a little fun in the park. Lloyd Park. Waltham Forest, London, England, UK. Copyright © 2018-2019 Pedals and Puffins.
But the big event in Walthamstow, that ended up taking up a lot of our time, came when PedalingGuy went to see a dentist. He learned that he needs to have some serious dental work done, including one, maybe two root canals. That’s a bit tricky given our current plans. He started the process of trying to find a dentist in Edinburgh, Scotland, since we have another planned layover there (when I will head back to the U.S. to teach a class). But getting the required appointments set up hasn’t been simple, and he didn’t get it all worked out before we needed to hit the road for Edinburgh. Since we’re unsure how long it will take to complete both procedures, we’re also not sure if we will need to stay in Edinburgh longer, and modify our plans for traveling around Scotland and Ireland. We’ll have to wait and see how it goes. Given the uncertainty, we spent a fair amount of time talking about different planning scenarios, and thinking about which options are most appealing to us, so that we’ll be ready to make a more firm plan as soon as we have a set schedule for the dental work.
Walthamstow to Bishop’s Stortford (13 May 2019, 55.8 km, 35 mi)
It seemed to take us forever to get out of the apartment. It’s not like we have that much stuff to pack up, but making sure that the Airbnb was tidy, and we hadn’t left anything laying in a corner somewhere, just seemed to take more time than we expected. So, we were off to a bit of a late start.
We didn’t get very far before the next problem struck. We had replaced our chains over the break, but didn’t take the time to get the bikes outside and test them, to make sure everything was okay. Well, it turns out that my chain was not threaded through the back derailleur properly. We pulled over by the side of what we though would be a quiet road to make the repairs.
Just as we had removed the chain on my bike to re-thread it, along came a street-cleaning truck - on an almost completely unused back road. What??? We had to get out of the road and onto the grass to let it pass by. Not once, but twice. It was almost surreal.
Once my bike was repaired, we started riding again only to then decide that we should stop and repair PedallingGuy’s chain which was making a clicking noise from a defective link. We had to replace both the master link and one of the other links in PedalingGuy’s chain. Luckily, he had brought a spare section of chain for just this reason, so we had some extra links we could use.
Once our mechanical issues were fixed, we were able to start appreciating the beautiful weather. It was partly cloudy and warming up nicely. That was great, because it had rained nearly every day for the past week. We really were lucky, after all.
For more than 25 km, we headed north through the Lee Valley. The first 10 km remained very urban. In fact, this part of the Lee Valley has been an industrial center for many centuries, using the river water to run mills and support factories that fed the commercial needs of London. But north of King George’s Reservoir, the route became much more rural. Here the Lee Valley Park broadens around the many channels of the River Lea, creating a peaceful greenway among the ponds and marshes. We enjoyed seeing the whimsical art installed along the trail, including a sculpture of a burned-out Viking longboat. According to the sign, the piece commemorates a legend which says that in 895 King Alfred the Great defeated a band of Vikings that had positioned themselves north of London by blocking or diverting the River Lea, and stranding their boats.
A Banded Demoiselle damselfly statue along the Lee Valley Park greenway. Waltham Abbey, England, UK. Copyright © 2018-2019 Pedals and Puffins.
In Roydon, we hit a short patch of trail that was not fully developed (dotted line on the map). There was probably an easier route, but we missed it. Even though it only lasted about 0.5 km, our progress was really slow. We found ourselves pushing our bikes along narrow footpaths that were lined with stinging nettles. And to spice things up even more, we had to cross through two gates that were clearly not meant for bikes. Once again, we had to unload all our gear, and maneuver our bikes through the obstacles. You just never know when something like this will crop up on the route and keep you from getting too comfortable!
This stretch of trail was more of a footpath than a cycle route. Roydon, England, UK. Copyright © 2018-2019 Pedals and Puffins.
Maneuvering the bikes through a pedestrian gate. First you remove all the panniers. Then the bikes go through, one at a time. Roydon, England, UK. Copyright © 2018-2019 Pedals and Puffins.
We had originally planned to stick with EuroVelo 2 all the way to the coast, then follow EuroVelo 12 (national bike route 1) all the way up the eastern coast of England and Scotland. But while we were in Walthamstow, we decided it would be fun to cut directly northward through Cambridge. We both thought it would be great to visit the famous university town, and the route would be a bit shorter, too - giving us the chance to take a more leisurely pace to our next, planned layover in Edinburgh.
So, just past Harlow, we left national cycle route 1, and headed due north on cycle route 11. That threw us for another loop. For the first 6 km, route 11 is not complete - another dotted line on the cycling maps. When the trail turned onto a narrow, dirt path beside the River Stort, we decided not to follow it. By this time it was late afternoon, even though we’d only managed to cover about 40 km. We strongly considered calling it a day, and staying at a hotel in Harlow. But the hotel options in Harlow weren’t particularly appealing, so we pushed onward. Instead of biking along the river, we rode on the sidewalk/cycle path along Harlow Road.
We finally made it to Bishop’s Shortford, but the hotel we had planned to stay in was fully booked. Shoot. We finally found a room in a hotel near Stansted Airport. The Ramada Inn near the airport is a pretty nice hotel, but it’s tucked away in a giant car park/service area for Highway M11. The immediate area around the hotel has no cycle paths. We were very happy to finally navigate through one of the most bike unfriendly sections of road we had ever seen, and settle into our room for the night. A food court in the service area provided a convenient place to have dinner right next door.
Bishop’s Stortford to Cambridge (14 May 2019, 54.8 km, 34 mi)
Getting out of the highway service area and back onto “normal” roads was extremely challenging. The first hurdle was just getting out of the giant car park. The signage wasn’t very good, and there were lots of one-way, multi-lane roads. After riding in and out among the parked cars, we finally had to ask someone which way to go in order to get out.
Once we were out on the main roads, we had less than a kilometer to go before getting back onto a quiet side street. But it involved maneuvering through high-speed, multi-lane highways, and a huge roundabout with roads coming in and peeling off in many directions. Plus, you could tell that the cars rushing through were not expecting to see cyclists here, and were disinclined to slow down for any reason. Timing was everything. It was a big relief to finally get back on the trail. And it was surprising how quickly the traffic disappeared once we ducked into a nearby residential area.
A beautiful and peaceful flower garden, away from the craziness of the M11 highway service center. Stansted Mountfitchet, England, UK. Copyright © 2018-2019 Pedals and Puffins.
Once we left the town of Stansted Mountfitchet, we cycled through nearly 30 km of low, rolling agricultural fields. The treeless fields were almost all planted in wheat and other types of grains. For the second day in a row, the weather was glorious without a cloud in the sky.
As we head towards Cambridge, we’re approaching a vast, low-lying region of England known as the Fenlands or the Levels. Marshy lowlands, dotted with chalk hills create a landscape that’s very amenable to large-scale agriculture. So, much like similar regions in France, the land was ditched and drained long ago for farms.
A public footpath that has probably been used for centuries, strikes out across one of the grain fields south of Cambridge. Strethall, England, UK. Copyright © 2018-2019 Pedals and Puffins.
A sign by the side of the road introduced us to the Coploe Hill Pit, a 400-year-old, former chalk quarry that was dedicated as a nature preserve in 1957. Ickelton, England, UK. Copyright © 2018-2019 Pedals and Puffins.
Ancient, weathered timbers still hold up the roof of this entrance to the Church of St. Mary and St. Andrew in Whittlesford, England, UK. Copyright © 2018-2019 Pedals and Puffins.
Approaching Cambridge from the south, we rode onto a colorful stretch of the route at Great Shelford. Here, the cycle path is decorated with 10,257 colored bars representing the four nucleotides that are the building blocks of genes - in this case the BRAC2 gene that helps suppress the growth of cancer tumors. BRAC2 was chosen as the model, because it was discovered in a lab at Cambridge University. Cool.
Colorful strands representing the BRAC2 DNA nucleotides are painted on the cycleway, covering a distance of nearly 2 miles (3.2 km). If the entire human genome was painted on the ground at the same scale, it would circle the earth nearly 10 times. Great Shelford, England, UK. Copyright © 2018-2019 Pedals and Puffins.
As we entered Cambridge itself, we were blown away by the scale of construction going on south of the city. There were miles of construction zones, gleaming new buildings, and wide, multi-lane boulevards. It was all very sleek and modern..
A new building going up at Addenbrooke’s Hospital, south of Cambridge, England, UK. Copyright © 2018-2019 Pedals and Puffins.
Then, the scenery morphed back to a more green and serene setting. We rode along the River Cam greenway, passing the University botanic garden and crossing Coe Fen before cycling through the heart of old Cambridge.
Punts on the River Cam. “Punting” as riding in the boats is called, is a favorite pastime. It looks like a great way to relax. University of Cambridge, England, UK. Copyright © 2018-2019 Pedals and Puffins.
There seem to be more bikes in Cambridge than cars. We negotiated our way through the heart of the old city, looking for a place to stay that wouldn’t completely bust our budget. Cambridge, England, UK. Copyright © 2018-2019 Pedals and Puffins.
We had initially hoped to stay in a Travelodge or Premier Inn, even though these budget chains are also somewhat pricey in Cambridge. But when we arrived, both were full. After considering our other options, we decided to try an apartment rental. That turned out to be quite an ordeal. The rental company didn’t have a front office, so everything was handled via a long series of emails. Unfortunately, there was something wrong with their online payment system, and we couldn’t complete the payment. When someone eventually came out to help us pay in person, we discovered that they had double-booked our room and it was already occupied. What a mess. So, they moved us into another apartment about 10 minutes further out of town by bike. In the end, it took more than 3 hrs to check in.
On top of all that, the apartment they gave us had a lot of problems. Worst of all, the boiler wasn’t working so we had no hot water, and no heat. In the end, they gave us a slight break on the rent as compensation, but it wasn’t particularly generous. We were both grumpy, but tried hard not to let it impact our enjoyment of the city.
Layover Day in Cambridge (15 May 2019)
Neither one of us slept very well. Adding to our woes, it turned out that the walls between the apartments were very thin, and we had a loud neighbor that stayed up until the wee hours of the morning. Plus, the morning’s shower was cold. Not a great way to start the day.
Our plan was to take a tour of the University campus later in the day. We signed up for a tour of King’s College in the afternoon. Around lunchtime, we headed out to cover the 1/2 hour walk into the city.
As we walked back into Cambridge for our tour, we passed this bike store with a thought-provoking quote painted on the window. Cambridge, England, UK. Copyright © 2018-2019 Pedals and Puffins.
The tour of King’s College and The Backs focused heavily on the Chapel at King’s College. We learned about the symbolism in the stone carvings, the history of the Chapel’s construction, and the massive collection of stained glass windows.
On our way to King’s College, we passed the Chronophage, or time-eating clock. More of a work of art than a true clock, it’s only accurate about once every 5 minutes, because the sculptor purposely designed its mechanism to hesitate or speed up periodically. The crazy-looking grasshopper on top munches along, swallowing time. If you find this premise unsettling, then the artist achieved his goal! University of Cambridge, England, UK. Copyright © 2018-2019 Pedals and Puffins.
The Chapel at King’s College is its defining architectural symbol and dominant building. Cambridge, England, UK. Copyright © 2018-2019 Pedals and Puffins.
Our tour guide, explaining the meaning of the various stone carvings and stained glass story panels at King’s College Chapel, Cambridge, England, UK. Copyright © 2018-2019 Pedals and Puffins.
The Chapel’s delicately lacy ceiling is extraordinary, being the largest fan vault ceiling in the world. This style is found only in England. King’s College Chapel, Cambridge, England, UK. Copyright © 2018-2019 Pedals and Puffins.
The gorgeous pipe organ in King’s College Chapel, Cambridge, England, UK. Copyright © 2018-2019 Pedals and Puffins.
After touring the chapel, we wandered down to the River Cam, on the back side of King’s College - where we saw more punters. Cambridge, England, UK. Copyright © 2018-2019 Pedals and Puffins.
After the tour, we wandered back to our apartment through the city. I thought I’d check out one of the empty phone booths. If you can believe what you see on TV, anything could happen. Cambridge, England, UK. Copyright © 2018-2019 Pedals and Puffins.
We were treated to the sight of a Peregrine Falcon swooping down over Trumpington Street and landing on the Pitt Building, which houses Cambridge University Press. Cambridge, England, UK. Copyright © 2018-2019 Pedals and Puffins.
By the time we reached the Fitzwilliam Museum, it was only 45 minutes before closing. We decided to pop in anyway, and check out the exhibits, like this armor and weaponry room. Cambridge, England, UK. Copyright © 2018-2019 Pedals and Puffins.
By the end of the day the dark cloud that had been hanging over us started to lift, and we were feeling better. A little bit of ice cream in the evening certainly helped.
