A blessed change

Michael Malins rides on hallowed ground on a short pilgrimage to some of England’s finest cathedrals.

I' A blessedchange… VE BEEN RIDING round from Welling in south east London in circles since the 2020 where the final section from lockdown, so in Bike Week this Canterbur y picks up the route. The year I decided to tackle a ride which official route uses cycle paths as would actually take me somewhere much as possible but needs a bit of – the Cathedrals Cycling Challenge. refining, I think.

This event involves 42 cathedrals The route through London is on a 2,000 mile route across the fairly quiet but as soon as it crosses countr y. I didn’t tr y the whole the M25 it parallels the A3 on a thing – the course can be easily cycle path which resembled a broken down into 200km DIY jungle in June. Finally sections.

I chose the section

MICHAEL MALINS

WORDS & PICTURES arriving at Guildford cathedral I obtained a sticker for my Pilgrim's Passport (available online or at most Cathedral shops). Guildford has a modern cathedral, built with public donations, so sits majestically high on a hill rather than in the middle of the town. Town? I thought it had to be a city?

Not a city… the publicly-funded cathederal of Guildford

No – there are about half a dozen cathedrals which are in towns or even villages, and conversely a similar number of cities which have no cathedral. There are also abbeys, some of which are cathedrals, like St Albans, and some of which are not, like Westminster.

Leaving Guildford there were a couple of long drags to Hindhead on a cycle route. The course then rolled towards the high point of the day at Harting Hill on the

South Downs. I diverted off the bridleway on to a quiet but steep hill. At the summit I chatted with a group of riders who were also cycling between cathedrals, riding a section of a baton relay which had started in Newcastle some weeks earlier. We were given an official reception at Chichester – and a blessing. With the hills behind me it was a familiar ride along the South Coast Cycle Route to an unfamiliar cathedral at Portsmouth, a beautiful structure only completed in 1991, with a golden barque on the steeple, used as a guide by returning sailors over the centuries.

I left the baton relay team for my fourth cathedral at Winchester. By now the rain had picked up so I was glad to pass by on this occasion, and head for the station for a train home.

The next section will take me to Salisbur y Exeter and Truro, probably over a weekend. Details of the challenge and the route can be found here: https://www.cyclinguk.org/

cathedrals-cycle-route-challenge

Just finished… the recently built cathederal of Portsmouth