Way of the Roses

In the War of the Roses the House of Lancaster was represented by the Red Rose, and the rival House of York by the White Rose. The Tudor era ended the war and brought the two sides together in the Tudor Rose. This ride also joins Lancashire and Yorkshire in a spectacular 274 km (170 mile) cycle route from the Irish Sea to the North Sea. The route can be done in either direction but the recommendation is to go from west to east (Morecambe to Bridlington) for the greater chance of having a tailwind. The Way of the Roses can be done at your own pace and timing - 2 days from coast to coast is for die-hard road cyclists while 6 days riding makes for a very leisurely tour. We chose to ride in 4 days with a 2 day break in York.

The scenery and sights

These ranged from lovely to spectacular. One thing evident was that, the more hills, the better the scenery! The Yorkshire Dales (Day 1 and 2) offered amazing views and were interspersed with pretty villages.

Day 3 was flat and was also our shortest day as we planned to have a couple of days break in York. Points of interest along the way included the Aldwark Toll Bridge, the Dunsforde Vineyard (in Upper Dunsforth - unfortunately closed that day), the Linton Lock and Beningbrough Hall.

York is definitely a recommended stop with 2000 years of Roman, Viking and Medieval history very evident in a fully functioning, albeit touristy, city. However this meant Day 4 was much longer but the minor climbs in the Wolds offered some very nice views of this part of the county. And as usual there were more pretty villages and towns to stop off in for meals and breaks along the way to the coast at Bridlington..

The people

There were lot of cyclists out there along the route. Some, like us, were doing the Way of the Roses - one group of women from Manchester and Yorkshire were following the itinerary in similar timing so we crossed paths several times and got chatting. When we arrived at the finishing post, a group from Leeds and Wakefield were just ahead of us - having done the route in 2 days (with a support vehicle).

There were also many local riders out elsewhere along the route. Some out on a training ride and some exploring their local area, like a couple we got chatting to in the heart of the Yorkshire Dales. They were on their way to Grassington (aka Darrowby) to see a live filming of 'All Creatures Great and Small'. They invited us to join them. Although sorely tempted, as ardent fans of the series, we didn't have the time or stamina for the necessary diversion from our route.

The terrain

The tour started out flat from Morecambe to beyond Lancaster along some great bike paths. Most of Days 1 and 2 were across the Dales so there were some steep hills. The climb out of Settle had a gradient of 20%, which we walked; and the biggest downhill was also on Day 2, Greenhow Hill down into Pateley Bridge. Day 3 was flat; and Day 4 crossed the Yorkshire Wolds which weren't too challenging down to the sea at Bridlington. The route was paved all the way.

 

The route

Our route was very close to the 'official' Sustrans route. And although the signage was generally excellent, we did have to keep our eyes peeled. There were a few minor diversions - mostly deliberate!

Would we do it again and what, if anything, would we do differently?

Absolutely we'd do it again, but probably as a self-guided tour with accommodation pre-planned and pre-booked and to have our luggage transferred from one night to the next.
That said, the official Way of the Roses website is full of information to help you plan your ride and accommodation - in particular I recommend our Bridlington stay at a fabulous B&B called South Lodge Guest House. Tony & Steve were excellent hosts​. A hearty breakfast was served every day!