Colchester to Harwich Colchester |
Wivenhoe |
Great Oakley | Harwich This section runs from Colchester and
National Cycle Route 1 to Harwich, where a seasonal foot ferry can be caught to Suffolk where the line continues. For much of its length it is also the route of the
North Sea Cycle Route, although this branches off at a park in
Dovercourt to head to the
Harwich International Port at
Parkeston where there is access via ferry to the Continent. At Harwich the signs indicate the route is 22 miles to Colchester, 3 to the International Port and 1 to
Dovercourt. The
North Sea Cycle Route junction is 1 mile along the route from Harwich to Colchester.
Harwich to Ipswich Harwich | Felixstowe |
Nacton | Ipswich The route from
Harwich to Felixstowe uses the
Harwich Harbour Ferry (summer only, check timetable) to Langard Point offering an impressive view of The
Port of Felixstowe. On the Felixstowe side the ferry lands near
Landguard Fort which is rich with history. The route then heads along the sea front into the centre of Old Felixstowe itself, a
Victorian seaside town. From Felixstowe the route heads out of town though a residential area and then mainly along minor roads towards Ipswich. There is a 1400-metre section of the official route takes one along a dedicated cycletrack very close to the A14. For this section there is an alternative route that uses a narrow single track road further away from the A14 which is also used by motorists and buses. The route then heads through Statton Hall, Levington and Nacton into Ipswich via
Landseer Park,
Holywells Park and the new waterfront area, where the routes crosses
National Cycle Route 1. Alternatively from Felixstowe one can take the
RCR41 up the coast through the
Suffolk Coast and Heaths Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.
Ipswich to Bury St Edmunds Ipswich |
Needham Market |
Stowmarket |
Woolpit |
Tostock |
Thurston | Bury St Edmunds This section of the route uses quiet roads passing the entrance to the
Museum of East Anglian Life in Stowmarket, the village of
Shelland and then through Thurston using a couple of off-road sections and finally into Bury St Edmunds using another section of off-road good cycle track running parallel with the road. In late 2008/early 2009 part a section for the route west of Stowmarket was re-routed to take advantage of changes to the A14. It now uses a section of road that used to form the Eastbound carriageway of the A14 at Haughley Bends and has been turned into a traffic free route for cyclists, walkers and horse riders as shown on the official map of the works.
Bury St Edmunds to Cambridge Bury St Edmunds |
Newmarket |
Burwell | Cambridge Links to
NCR 11 at Burwell and Cambridge
Cambridge to Bedford Cambridge |
Girton |
Swavesey |
Huntingdon |
Sandy | Bedford NCR 51 leaves Cambridge crossing the A14 near Histon, routing north to St Ives adjacent to the
Cambridgeshire Guided Busway, passing near Oakington and Swavesey, (adjacent to a guided bus route, no vehicles). Then via the old stone bridge from St Ives to Hemingford Abbots and Grey, then via Cow lane into Godmanchester and generally east towards Huntingdon railway station. At Huntingdon, it loses its identity, merging with
NCR 12 (LondonGrimsby) as far as
Great Barford (between
Sandy and
Bedford. From here, the route follows the
trackbed of the old
Varsity Line, now a
rail trail, briefly joining the public highway at the village of Blunham, past
Willington and the
wetlands around Priory Marina, before arriving at the outskirts of Bedford where it follows the south bank of the
River Great Ouse through parkland to the south end of Bedford Bridge.
Bedford to Milton Keynes Bedford |
Cranfield | Milton Keynes From Bedford, the route follows the north bank of the River Great Ouse through town, passing under County Bridge at Prebend Street, and following a surfaced path along the river before crossing the river into Kempston at a footbridge. This section is prone to flooding, and an alternative cycle route is available by crossing County Bridge and following Prebend Street south to the Bedford Road cycleway. NCR 51 follows a split cycle path (pedestrians/cycles separated by solid white line) through
Kempston, past a supermarket, and through alleyways to
Ridgeway School. From the limits of Kempston, there is a well-marked route on roads, crossing the
Bedford western bypass via
Wootton to
Marston Moretaine The route travels through the
Forest of Marston Vale (bike hire in the Forest centre) where there is a cycleway connecting with
Millbrook railway station. From the Forest of Marston Vale, NCR 51 takes residential roads, tracks, and bridleways to
Cranfield At Cranfield, there are no further NCR signs westbound until
Salford, where the route crosses the M1 towards
Wavendon and
Woburn Sands (in the
Milton Keynes Urban Area). Entering the eastern edge of
Milton Keynes, the route follows Lower End Road (Wavendon) and then Walton Road (Wavendon Gate, Milton Keynes), then onwards along the
Milton Keynes redway system (a segregated
shared path (cycleway and footpath) network) around the south edge of
Willen Lake (where there is some bike hire, tourist attractions etc.). A little further on (at the bottom of
Campbell Park), it meets
National Cycle Route 6 that leads to
London and
Northampton. Climbing through Campbell Park, it enters the
central business district of Milton Keynes then follows Midsummer Boulevard down to
Milton Keynes Central railway station. in a sheep-grazed
linear park in Milton Keynes
Milton Keynes to Oxford Milton Keynes |
Winslow | Bicester |
Oxford From Milton Keynes Central railway station, the route goes over the
West Coast Main Line on a pedestrian/cycle bridge, and follows paved routes in parkland past the
National Bowl and
Furzton Lake to the
A421 junction with Buckingham Road in
West Bletchley. There is a cycleway here along Buckingham Road to link with
Bletchley railway station. Leaving Milton Keynes, the NCR 51 continues south-west along bridleways to Winslow. Onwards from Winslow, the route reaches Verney Junction and a little further on it interconnects with National Cycle Route 50 for
Buckingham and
Daventry. Minor roads then take it through
Middle Claydon (from whence a short diversion may be made to
Claydon House, a
National Trust property). Next comes
Steeple Claydon and then onwards to Bicester. In Bicester, there are local routes to
Bicester North railway station and
Bicester Village railway station. Thereafter, a minor road beside the
A41 takes it through
Wendlebury,
Weston on the Green,
Bletchingdon,
Kidlington, and then on into Oxford. == References ==