Does anyone have a GPS file for the SDW route? Any info on water points would be fantastic to if possible.

I've got a few days off next week and fancied a relaxed 2 day winter ride/ bivi.

Any tips/ pointers from anyone who's ridden the route would be great to.

Cheers, Lewis

Hi Lewis,

It's something I'm intending to do next year - I have only ridden a fraction of the route. But, I have found these resources, which might be of interest to you:

http://www.southdownsdouble.net/routeinfo.html has plenty of info, incuding GPX files and water locations

Mark Goldie's South Downs Double ride on Strava - you can download the GPX from there as well: http://www.strava.com/activities/167288619

Mark Goldie's blog post: http://thebikepicture.com/south-downs-d ... all-print/

http://mikecotty.co.uk/south-downs-double/

Simon.

Hey there,

I did it in August for my third time! Really enjoyable and I really love it! Super tough.

Are you going to camp out?

I added my GPX file.

Any q.s let me know,

N

Thanks for the replys chaps. I really appreciate it. I know there's loads of resources online but there's nothing better than 1st hand experience.

Yes I'm going to bivi. I'm guessing that temps are still in the low minuses overnight so it shouldn't be too bad. I've been told by a few people it's tough so I'll be looking at completing it over two days (including the cycle home to the New Forest).

Me and ChickenLegs did it a few months back, a double in fact, took 27 hours, it's tough, relentless climbing. Stunning views, nice trails, some of the chalky stuff was pretty lethally slippery with just dew on it, i imagine when it's wet it can be awful. Don't be fooled though, it's not all chalky, there's plenty of flintiness too. I got a gpx from here http://www.southdownsdouble.net/routeinfo.html

The taps are pretty obvious, just keep your eyes open for them.

It's actually not too muddy at the moment, at least the middle third.

If you want some company let us know when you are doing it.

D

Water stops nicely spaced but take 2bottles.
The hills get bigger and bigger as you head east.
There hardly any munchies stops!
route easy to follow once you get clear of winchester.
Look at every signpost though, plenty of alternative bridleways to lead you astray.
The chalk can be very very slippery.
Start at eastbourne if there is a cold easterly blowing.
If you want company I would gladly
Tag a long. No worries if not.

Cheers chap's, I dipped my toes in the water at QE park earlier and it wasn't too bad. Chalky sectons were slippery as expected and my tyres got clogged surprisingly quickly. The car was reading -1 when I arrived but all the climbing kept me toasty. It definitely gave me some ideas for kit/ tyre choices etc.

Thanks to those who've offered company. I was thinking of riding from Eastbourne towards Winchester starting on either Tuesday or Wednesday if that fits?

*Disclaimer: I might be slower than some. I estimate I'll average below 10mph.

I'm about on Tuesday and could join you for the Eastbourne to Shoreham/Washington section. I was up on it today round Worthing/Shoreham and it was great with the frost. Got a bit mushy after it had melted, but it's ok at the moment.

Best of luck... Be interested to hear how it goes!

Lmorgan87 wrote:Does anyone have a GPS file for the SDW route? Any info on water points would be fantastic to if possible.

Any tips/ pointers from anyone who's ridden the route would be great to.

Cheers, Lewis

A while back I put all the reference points for water stops in a response here but I can't find them. I'll look for them in the morning Lmorgan. I've ridden the route 1 and a half times. This covers part of the trip.http://wp.me/p3yZa1-17F

UPDATE: I've put the water points here http://wp.me/p3yZa1-1fs. Good luck it's freezing out there.

Thanks Meraid, I appreciate the effort this must have taken. Funnily enough I stumbled on your blog last week but I didn't see the SDW bits.

Update: Due to the wet weather I decided to postpone the trip until next weekend (20/ 21st). The SDW is firmly in my sights for this year though and I'll be posting a trip acount on here once I've finally got round to tackling it.