Weekender: Avon calling
Start/finish: Wapping Wharf car park beside the M Shed museum. Or you could pick up the route at Temple Meads Station
Maps: OS Landranger 172
Distance: 44km (27.5 miles)
Climbing: 56m
Bike type: any
Ride level: beginner (although parts of the River Avon Trail and the marina edge at Portishead are unfenced)
Accessible toilets: M Shed (start), Bakehouse (nr Bristol and Bath Railway Path terminus), Underfall Yard (Bristol Harbour), Waitrose café in Portishead
Being the home of Sustrans, Bristol is blessed with plenty of cycle paths. This route uses them to explore central Bristol, the River Avon and the marina at Portishead. It’s designed to be rideable on a tricycle as that’s what I use. I set up a Facebook group, South West and Wales Trike Riders, which encourages and arranges rides for recumbent tricyclists.
Crossing Bristol on cycle paths (both shared use and dedicated) is a relaxing way to see the city. You glide serenely through Queen Square, which has been restored to its Georgian splendour, and past the Gothic masterpiece of St Mary Redcliffe church. You also pass Brunel’s Old Station, now a conference and exhibition centre alongside today’s Temple Meads Station.
The route takes you to see one end of the original Sustrans project: the Bristol and Bath Railway Path. You can add 30 miles by cycling to Bath and back along 30 miles by cycling to Bath and back along it; the Bakehouse, which you can see from the Bristol end, would then make a good coffee stop.
Whether or not you visit Bath, you then loop back through Bristol to the Harbourside area. From here you join the River Avon Trail, a path on the south bank of the river. In the depths of the Avon Gorge, you pass underneath the Clifton Suspension Bridge and the outermost branches of Leigh Woods. Emerging into more open countryside, you cycle through the village of Pill, then ride under the busy M5. You enter Portishead via a nature reserve.
The return leg takes you over the M5 motorway bridge and along the north bank of the Avon, where you’ll see the Clifton Rocks Railway, a disused funicular, just after riding under the suspension bridge again.
Finally, you cross Bristol Harbour entrance and return to the start via the Chocolate Path, so called because the brick paving is reminiscent of chocolate bar segments.
1. SS Great Britain
There are vessels of all shapes and sizes in Bristol's dockyard area. Among them is Brunel’s steam ship, the SS Great Britain, which sits in the dry dock where it was built. You get a good view from across the water but if you also want to visit (see ssgreatbritain.org for times and prices), it’s only a few minutes from the route's start and finish.
2. The old powder store
As you come around the river’s horseshoe bend, you’ll see a small white building on the opposite bank. The Old Powder Store was built in 1775 and used to store gunpowder, which wasn’t allowed within Bristol Harbour. Note that the River Avon Trail is unsurfaced. While it’s firm enough for cycling on anything but the narrowest of road tyres, it can be dirty when wet.
3. Portbury Wharf Nature Reserve
This 150-acre nature reserve was created this century to offset the impact of building 2,500 new homes. Nestled between the housing at Portishead and the industry of Royal Portbury Dock, the reserve provides a vital haven for wildlife, which ranges from dragonflies and great crested newts to water voles and owls.
4. Portishead Marina
Pause at the entrance to the marina to enjoy spectacular views of the Welsh coastline across the Severn Estuary. You’ll sometimes see ocean-going vessels navigating the deep water channel into Portbury and pleasure craft entering the locks of Portishead Marina.
5. Portishead Public Arts Trail
Portishead’s Public Art Trail project saw artists from across the globe collaborate to create 30 different artworks. These all reflect an aspect of the area’s rich heritage, and they are dotted around the marina and within the surrounding streets. See how many of them you can spot.
6. Avon gorge cliffs
As you approach the Clifton Suspension Bridge again, take time to admire the cliff faces. They’re home to a wealth of wildlife, including nesting peregrine falcons and many rare plants and invertebrates. In an area known as the gully, you may spot a herd of goats.
