Our Routes
New to Bristol? Looking for something new and spicy? Here's a catalogue of rides recommended by our committee.
These include a link to the full route map and GPX downloads so you can load them onto your GPS device and get started right away!
Join our Strava club here: www.strava.com/clubs/university-of-bristol-cycling-club
Submit a Route
Do you have a good route, enter it here and we could include it in our lineup
Strava Unravelled (FAQs)
Have any questions about Strava, hopefully these should clear things up
Note: this is not officially associated with Strava in any way, it's simply a guide to answer some common questions.
Short (20-35km)
All these routes are less than 35km for anyone who is new to cycling or who needs a quick escape out into the countryside, but not much time to do so. There are still plenty of options of where to ride with this distance so no need to get bored doing the same route over and over again.
Through Flax Bourton and Backwell
Distance: 23km Elevation: 336m
A very simple ride and great one for fitting in some exercise when you don’t have much spare time.
This ride starts out heading down Beggar Bush Lane and carrying straight on down Belmont Hill. Take care down this descent as the corners can be deceptive!
After Belmont, carry on straight into Flax Bourton along A370 before turning right onto Station Road and then again onto Backwell Common. Now on a quieter road you can whiz safely along here before joining the cycle path which leads you straight to Long Ashton. Before long you will be on your one and only climb up Ashton Court and home.
Avonmouth along the Portway
Distance: 27.9km Elevation: 298m
Heading out of town along Beggar Bush Lane and down Portbury Hill, take the M5 bridge and then enjoy a scenic ride along the Portway cycle path which takes you alongside the River Avon. The cycle path leads you into city centre and all to the way to the Mud Dock cafe. Here they have storage for over 10 bikes and serve really good coffee!
Medium (35-50km)
These routes are perfect if you have a couple hours to spare and want to explore a little further from town. If you are planning on joining the medium club rides then these are the kind of routes to expect.
Nailsea - Claverham Drove - up Belmont
Distance: 40km Elevation: 435m
If you're in need of some peace and quiet then this is the ride for you. Practically flat for Bristol rides, this routes takes you along some beautiful lanes in the middle of fields which go for miles.
Starting out going down Ashton Court, head into Nailsea and then along Nailsea Wall Lane. At the end of this road take a sharp left onto Kenmoor Road. Your next left turn down Claverham Drove is very sharp so make sure you break in advance! You'll stick on this road for a while, enjoying the view and hopefully some fast, quiet roads.
To get home, you'll turn onto Brockley Way before heading through Backwell, along the cycle path and then up Belmont. Seeing as you will have saved your legs with no climbs during the main part of the ride, you can now chase that PB up Belmont and down Beggar Bush Lane for satisfying end to your ride.
Kennmoor lanes, through Yatton
Distance: 43.3km Elevation: 466m Author: Lottie Marshall
Heading out of town down Beggar Bush Lane and then Clevedon Road, take a left turn onto Church Lane (before the descent into Tickenham). From here enjoy a loop round the lovely Kenn Moor country lanes before heading through Yatton and back home through Backwell and up Belmont Hill. If you fancy a flatter route, then head up Ashton Court instead to knock off a bit of elevation.
Long (50-80km)
If you've got between 2 to 3 hours to spare and need a good route to go for then check out some of these. These will often be used by the fast ride and some long medium rides.
We love the climbs in the medips, so they're definitely worth checking out.
50km over the bridge
Distance: 52.9km Elevation: 450m
This route takes on some classic features of the road riding in Bristol. We leave through the suspension bridge and hit the main road to then descend into Portbury, we then briefly climb up to the coastal road for some views and descend back down. From here we tackle the straightest roads in the world in the Kingston Seymour area, then its the standard Nailsea, cycle lane, Ashton Court route back into Bristol.
Cheddarrrrrr
Distance: 73.3km Elevation: 810m
Cheddar!
One of the best climbs around, so it's definitely worth the ride out to do this one.
From Bristol we descend Belmont and ride through the back lanes around Nailsea to Congresbury, we then ride some more direct but busier roads to get to Langford (where you can see the UOB vet school), through to Churchill and up a few kickers to open up the legs before tackling the main climb of the route.
There are loads of great cafes in the Cheddar village if you need a coffee break!
After cheddar, we ride through the Mendips, descend Harptree hill (be careful down here!), and ride back to Bristol via Chew lake and Winford.
2 hours to Burrington
Distance: 58km Elevation: 690m
The Burrington Coombe climb is a nice and wide 8-15min climb just in the Mendips.
This ride takes a gentle laney way out to the climb including some classic roads including the straightest road in the world. From there we head back to bristol to make this a nice and round route.
2 hours around local hills
Distance: 58km Elevation: 690m
Hitting up the classics, winford, dundry and belmont. Make a hard 2 hours in the lanes.
Extra-Long (80km+)
Perfect for an all day ride. These routes will take upwards of 4 hours and are definitely a challenge. If the fast ride is doing one of these then we will let you know! Make sure to take plenty of snacks and spares but the views in Wales and around the Mendips are definitely worth the ride.
3 hours flat riding around Bristol
Distance: 80.9km Elevation: 440m
Not all rides have to be hilly! This is a great one made by Josh Acton. Incorporating the Portishead descent, Clevedon lanes, and a bit of riding around Congresbury. This route is designed to take you on some smaller, quieter lanes where we can.
120km into Wales
Distance: 120km Elevation: 1,292m
This is a classic Wales route, but it requires some commitment! If you're not feeling good when going over the bridge then make sure to be sensible and cut the route short if you need to.
We go out on the main roads and into Chepstow. Up a couple of bergs and potentially a coffee stop in Wales.
A big day out but worth it!
120km Mendips
Distance: 120km Elevation: 1040m Author: Will Jewitt
Leaving Bristol, we hit up Portishead and Clevedon for some seaside viewing before going into the Mendips. From there we are riding up to Churchill and up the Chauterhouse drag. We ride over this berg, down through the back end of the Mendips, take a brief lap around the Stowey climb (a common race course) and then heading back to Bristol to finish the ride.
140 around the Mendips
Distance: 139.25km Elevation: 1,812m Author: Will Jewitt
Taking on almost all of the climbs in the Mendips, this is a beast.
There are plenty of turn back options on this route which makes it nice and adaptable for any issues that may come your way.
We start by going out over the bridge and down to Portishead. Then we climb up into the back end of Portishead and down the coastline towards Clevedon then the 'belgian roads' around Kingston Seymour. From there we ride up to the Brockley climb, to Chew Magna lake, and over the Stowey hill climb which is used on the Bristol South Road Race in the spring.
We pass over a few more rises and up Dundry because Will is evil and wants pain for everyone.
We finish with a loop around Nailsea and up the classic Belmont hill to finish you off.
If you can get around this ride then chapeau, you deserve a beer.
Our Favourites
All these routes are less than 35km for anyone who is new to cycling or who needs a quick escape out into the countryside, but not much time to do so. There are still plenty of options of where to ride with this distance so no need to get bored doing the same route over and over again.
Through Flax Bourton and Backwell
Distance: 23km Elevation: 336m
A very simple ride and great one for fitting in some exercise when you don’t have much spare time.
This ride starts out heading down Beggar Bush Lane and carrying straight on down Belmont Hill. Take care down this descent as the corners can be deceptive!
After Belmont, carry on straight into Flax Bourton along A370 before turning right onto Station Road and then again onto Backwell Common. Now on a quieter road you can whiz safely along here before joining the cycle path which leads you straight to Long Ashton. Before long you will be on your one and only climb up Ashton Court and home.
Avonmouth along the Portway
Distance: 27.9km Elevation: 298m
Heading out of town along Beggar Bush Lane and down Portbury Hill, take the M5 bridge and then enjoy a scenic ride along the Portway cycle path which takes you alongside the River Avon. The cycle path leads you into city centre and all to the way to the Mud Dock cafe. Here they have storage for over 10 bikes and serve really good coffee!