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Route
 The
map below shows
you the route from Dover to London. Kent,
also known as the Garden
of England,
offered great possibilities for
a bike tour such as ours. With its charming countryside and
varied
coastline, cycling through Kent was bound to be a
refreshing and enriching experience. Our route basically followed
the The Cliffs and Castles
Route (National Route 1) of
the National Cycle Network.
Dover's
castle marked the start of this
ride to
London, which followed the coast to the stunning
chalk cliffs of the North Downs,
the town Deal near the spot where Julius Caesar landed in 55BC, through
sand
dunes and flat grassy fields where medieval monks drained the old
marshlands to
the mediaeval port city of Sandwich, historic lighthouses and the
unspoilt
beaches along the seaside. Then it went cross-country to the beautiful
cathedral
of Canterbury.
Passing by Dartford, we
followed
the south bank of the Medway and then the Thames estuaries past the
Thames
Barrier, finishing in Greenwich from
where it was
only a few more miles to downtown London
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Sights on the way:
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Dover
Dover
is mainly known as a cross channel ferry port, but it is a town steeped
in history. It has one of the finest Norman Castles in the country with
a
commanding view over the straits of Dover.
Other places to visit in the town include the Roman painted house,
Victorian
Gaol, the White Cliffs Experience and the Grand Redoubt.
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White Chalk Cliffs
The
white cliffs of Dover, immortalized in popular song and verse, are
cliffs which form part of the British coastline facing the Strait of
Dover and France. The cliff face, which reaches up
to 350 feet high, owes its striking façade to its composition of
pure white calcium carbonate.
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Deal
A
small fishing community nowadays, this is the site where Julius Caesar first
arrived in Britain.Due
to its position on the
Downs, the town was once the busiest port in England;
today
it enjoys the reputation of being a quiet seaside resort,
its quaint streets and houses the only reminder of its fascinating
history. Its finest building is the Tudor Deal Castle,
commissioned by King Henry
VIII and designed with an attractive rose floor plan.
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Sandwich
Sandwich is an historic town in Kent,
south-east England. It was one of the Cinque Ports and still has many
original medieval buildings. The town's connection with the snack: John
Montagu, 4th Earl of Sandwich allegedly invented it of the same name is
that
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Kent Countryside
The ride
from the ancient Port of Sandwich to Canterbury is about 58 kilometers.
The
whole route is fairly flat and you should not encounter any bad hills.
Across
the water meadows to Fordwich, past orchards, along the Great Stour
River, we
will pass the remains of a Roman Fort at Richborough Castle.
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Canterbury
We'll
take a short ride around the main city of Canterbury
seeing its many attractions outside the main pedestrianised area
including Westgate Tower, Westgate
Gardens, Eastbridge Hospital,
Greyfriars, Canterbury Heritage Museum,
Canterbury Castle, St Augustine’s
Abbey, Lyndon Gate, St. John Boyes House and Blackfriars.
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The Crab & Winkle Way
The
Crab and Winkle Line
was the second railway line
to be built in the world and
runs from Canterbury West Railway Station to Whitstable. The cycle
route, following as closely as it can to the path
of the original railway was built by Canterbury City Council. The route
opened
on Sunday October 3rd 1999. This route is dedicated to use for Cycles.
The
distance is about 6 miles and it should be possible to ride this route
in about
an hour.
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Greenwich
The
Royal Greenwich Observatory is located in Greenwich and the Prime
Meridian passes through the building. Greenwich Mean Time was at one
time based on the time observations made at the Royal Greenwich
Observatory.
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London
An important settlement
for more than 2.000 years, London is today one of
the world's major global cities, the
most populous city in the EU and truly international.London
is a major tourist
destination, with four world heritage sites and
numerous iconic landmarks such as the Houses of Parliament, Tower Bridge,
the Tower of London,
Westminster
Abbey, Buckingham
Palace
and the British
Museum.
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