Tag Archives: Shetland

North Sea Cycle Route (Part 1) London to Norwick, Shetland

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Part 2 – Norway  Part 3 – Sweden/Denmark  Part 4 – Germany to London

Distance is nothing – only the first step is difficult, well pedal rotation for this journey – to cycle around the North Sea starting in London heading north to Norwick in Shetland and then on to Bergen and the coast route home via Sweden, Denmark, Germany, The Netherlands, Belgium and France.

This journey will be the longest extended trip away from home. I estimate 60-80 days according to the detailed plans I had been making over the winter. A few short trips on a new Thorn Sherpa, as yet unnamed, confirmed riding comfort and carrying capacity. To keep costs down, I set out to camp every night and do as much cooking myself.

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I booked a flight from Sumburgh airport in Shetland to Bergen and would worry about packing the bike when I got there. The flights departed every Saturday, so I timed my departure three weeks beforehand. I joined the National Cycle Route 1 at Hoddesdon, after cycling along the NSC 6 and 61 from Slough. This route would guide me all the way to Shetland.

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NSCR Ferries

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Catching a ferry is one of the pleasures of cycling the North Sea Cycle Route.  I counted 26 in total but I probably missed a few.  Some services run for just 6 weeks in summer, so careful planning is needed to avoid long detours.

This is a rough guide to the main ferry services, but it is not exhaustive and some of the ferries mentioned are not strictly on the NSCR.

Starting from London and working clockwise:

LONDON to SHETLAND

  • Brightlingsea Ferry from Mersea Island to Brightlingsea – brightlingseaharbour.org you cycle across Mersea island down a rough lane and then have to push your bike to the end of a shingle spit. There are no signs or indication that a ferry even runs, but phone the number and they come and pick you up

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  • Harwich to Felixstowe Ferry – the Harwich Harbour Ferry harwichharbourferry.com takes you across the River Orwell and past the huge container port of Felixstowe, landing you on the beach near Languard Fort, very friendly, with a café at the Harwich embarkation point
  • The Harwich Ferry is the first of the Four Foot Ferries, see pdf http://www.suffolkcoastandheaths.org/assets/Publications/Other-Publications/2016-Four-Ferries.pdf you can then take the Bawdsey, Butley and Walberswick ferries to Southwold. This route is not strictly on the NSCR but worth a detour if the ferry times work and the weather is good.  Some run to a schedule, others you have to call.
  • The next ferry is much further north at South Sheilds (excellent fish and chips at Colman’s), a regular commuter ferry which takes you into Tynemouth

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