Join me cycling the northern section of the Tarka Trail from Barnstaple railway station to Braunton, then on-road up and down the hills to the Ilfracombe railway path and to Ilfracombe seafront. This is the northern section of the Devon Coast-2-Coast (C2C or Coast-to-Coast) and National Cycle Network Route #27. This is a there-and-back cycle ride: 33.48 miles with an elevation gain of 2,180 ft.
You get a choice of routes with NCN route 27: there’s a mountain bike route which follows the old railway line after Braunton but it’s not suitable for road bikes. I tried it in June, but was forced to back-track when the surface became particularly challenging! You also get a ‘via the coast’ route a bit further along, via the pretty village of Georgeham, which I did back in June. It takes you along the coastal path which is fairly rocky and may not suit some road bikes. There is also a hike up the hill at the end to the Ilfracombe rail path. So on this particular ride, I stuck to the hill-top route.
I long avoided the Ilfracombe railway path because I thought it would be punishingly steep on the drag out of Ilfracombe, a North Devon seaside resort not exactly known for being flat!!!!! But I was pleasantly surprised to find that it’s fairly easy-going and the downhill run towards Ilfracombe is stunning. I got lost in Ilfracombe (first time I’ve been there), but eventually found the sea front. The NCN route signposts can be a bit confusing.
Braunton is where I first got the bug for cycling as an adult of ‘a certain age’, a few years back. I’d signed up for a surfing course at Croyde Bay just along the road from Braunton, but quickly discovered that surfing wasn’t my forte. I spent that summer trying to get fitter for another attempt at surfing – cycling seemed a good option for getting fit so I borrowed my son’s mountain bike.
However I quickly discovered that I loved cycling so much (and was so useless at surfing) that I dumped the surfing, took my bike to Braunton and cycled along the Tarka Trail! And the rest, as they say…
Be sure to check out my bike ride videos and the other (mainly Yorkshire) cycle ride segments - ideal for use at the gym on an indoor trainer, exercise bike, treadmill, cross trainer, etc! Most are in Yorkshire, but some are in Lancashire, Devon, Dorset, Somerset and Derbyshire.
DISCLAIMER: I am not responsible for, and expressly disclaim all liability for, damages, injuries or losses of any kind arising out of use, reference to, or reliance on any information contained within these videos. In other words, I accept no responsibility for things like accidents, etc that happen to anyone who decides to try out these rides for themselves. You do it at your own risk.
