Cuckoo! A 42 Mile Ride Through The Lovely Kent & West Sussex Countryside

This is a super day out starting near Crawley and meanders down towards the south coast. This 42 mile ride follows three closed railway lines have been converted to flat, easy-to-navigate cycle trails. There's also road sections connecting the trails with a total climb of around 2000ft. A Hybrid bike or Gravel bike would be suitable.

We meet at Three Bridges station for a prompt 10am start. Leaving Three Bridges Station we cycle to East Grinstead along the traffic free Worth Way and we stop for coffee near Forest Row at the Tablehurst organic farm shop and cafe. We continue on towards Groombridge where, if we arrive on time, we may see a steam train around 1pm. We cycle a further seven miles and stop for lunch at the Kings Arms pub in Rotherfield, the pub has a lovely garden and offers a fine selection of local ales and culinary treats. The route then continues by road through Eridge and Mayfield before joining the traffic free Cuckoo Trail at Heathfield. Keep a look out for Spitfires as pleasure flights regularly pass overhead en-route from Biggin Hill to Beachy Head.

The Cuckoo Trail takes us all the way to Polegate, near Eastbourne where we hop on an obliging the train to Clapham Junction. Buy the cheapest train ticket possible a few days ahead of the ride as fares are much higher on the day. Cycle carriages on Southern trains are easily identified as they are marked with red lines each side of the doors.

The fee for this ride is £4 payable on the day.

CYCLING IS DANGEROUS SO YOU JOIN THIS RIDE AT YOUR OWN RISK