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| The Lake District is a popular destination for mountain biking, family cycling outings and road riding alike (Seb Rogers/Future Publishing) |
Saturday 4 May saw the launch of a new ‘Bike Bus’ service in the Lake District. The Stagecoach 800 runs the full length of England’s largest lake, Windermere, and has been specially converted to carry up to 12 bikes.
The new route includes the following popular stops around Windermere and links in with the ‘Bike Boat’ ferry shuttle from Brockhole to Wray:
- Ambleside (Kelsick Road)
- Brockhole, the Lake District Visitor Centre
- Windermere train station
- Bowness-on-Windermere Pier
- Fell Foot Park
- Newby Bridge
- Lakeland Motor Museum
- Lakeside& Havethwaite Railway
- 4 May – 14 July (Saturdays, Sundays and Bank Holidays)
- 20 July – 1 September (daily)
- 7 Sept – 28 Sept (weekends only)
Claire Maclaine, programme manager for the GoLakes, supporter of the Bike Bus service, said: “The Bike Bus is another great way to help people to explore and enjoy our stunning landscape without the hassle of loading up car bike racks and fighting for parking spaces at the other end. This regular service is geared up specifically for the needs of cyclists and is ideal for families to hop on and off at a range of locations running the full length of Windermere.”
Two new leaflets are being produced to complement the service, ‘Rides from the Bike Bus’ and ‘Days out from the Bike Bus’. Printed on waterproof paper, they will both be available from late May. Alternatively, a full timetable can be viewed online.
Sustrans’ National Cycle Network route 6 runs east from Windermere, linking riders with Kendal and going on through the Howgills and Yorkshire Dales. There’s also a short family friendly bridleway ride on the west side of Windermere, through National Trust land, that can be accessed via the ferry that runs from Bowness-on-Windermere.
It’s about 20km to cycle the length of the lake one way, and there are mainly minor roads and bridleways on the west side and main roads on the east.
