Lanes, Havens, Ports and Beaches | Log

One of our aims at Albion is to champion the great cycling Britain has to offer.

Each season, we head to different places in the British Isles to explore local roads and test our newest clothing and equipment.

For Spring/Summer 2019 we took a trip to Cornwall, specifically the roads on and around the rugged Atlantic coast in the north of Britain’s most southerly county.

The riding in this part of England is notorious for its undulating roads and its short, punchy climbs. Flat roads don’t really exist here.

For those who like it when the road goes up however, there is plenty to get stuck in to.

Tucked away along the coastline and accessible only by steep, narrow roads, quiet havens give shelter to secluded beaches.

Crackington, Millook and Combe havens all sit within relative proximity to each other and offer stern tests for climbing legs in whichever direction and combination you choose to tackle them.

The climb out of Millook heading south west is a particular highlight, winding its way from sea level to over 110 metres above in less than a kilometre as the Atlantic ocean laps at the shore below you.

Further down the coast the climb out of Port Isaac heading south, Church Hill – 500 metres at over 17%, with gradients of more than one in four in places – is a brutal ascent that feels out of keeping with the serenity of the picture postcard port it leaves behind.

Head inland to explore the intricate network of narrow tracks on Bodmin Moor, which can feel happily disorientating at times and leave a lasting impression of lanes that were made to be ridden on. Be sure to include a ride across the now disused Davidstow airfield if you are over this way.

When the riding is done, make for the beach to refuel on the traditional local fare of Cornish pasties and clotted cream ice cream.

Collected below are a few more photographs from our recent Cornwall trip.