Cycling around West Bergholt
West Bergholt, ideally located on the west side of Colchester, serves as a perfect base or stopover for cycling trips. With easy access to a host of quiet country lanes you can pick up on one of the ‘Cycle Essex’ routes (see the Visit Essex website or the sample route extract pasted below). Alternatively, just follow your own route; maybe wander over the border into Suffolk to enjoy Constable Country, or track the River Colne upstream.
Parish Council’s Commitment to Cycling
The Parish Council’s Action Plan aims to identify cycling needs and address them. It has formed a Working Party of local cyclists, including a triathlete and a Lands End to John O’Groats cyclist, to take on this project. The work has started – click the link above to find out more.
Real Essex Cycle Routes
Cycle Essex sample Route incorporating West Bergholt – Click to open in PDF format
Colchester Orbital Maps Improved
There are now new and improved downloadable maps of the Colchester Orbital and they are available at www.colchester.gov.uk/better-colchester/colchester-orbital.
The picturesque Colchester Orbital is a nearly 15-mile circular walk and cycle route around the edge of the town. It connects a network of cycle paths and green spaces to make an idyllic way to enjoy the countryside.
Launched in 2018
The Walk Colchester initiative officially launched the Colchester Orbital route in 2018. It is a part of the Jane’s Walk programme, an international initiative of local walks led by local people on local themes. The programme honours the legacy of the urbanist, writer and activist Jane Jacobs. Colchester Borough Council has worked with a range of partners to support this community project. It seeks to promote, preserve and protect the circular route around the borough since 2015.
Cycle map
Colchester Sports Park
Located at Northern Gateway, this facility offers a range of cycling facilities including:
- A 1-mile all-weather floodlit closed road cycle circuit,
- Indoor velo studio,
- A ‘Pump Track’ where the bikes are pumped to generate momentum around the winding course, and much more.
See more on their website here.
Cycling News Items
The following recent news items include material relevant to cycling locally.
- Cycling ‘Join a Ride’ Leader & Route Announced - Following a recent meeting with Zoe Swainston, British Cycling Community Coach based at Northern Gateway, we are delighted that she has volunteered her services to lead our proposed ride around the West Bergholt area. A suggested route is shown below. This would potentially consist of two rides, including a shorter route for families, depending on demand. More information will be available in a few weeks, so please sign up below if you are interested in joining us. So, please ‘enter’… …
Continue reading "Cycling ‘Join a Ride’ Leader & Route Announced"
- Cycling – Join a ride - Cycling Working Group: Join us on a ride! The Parish Council has set up a Cycling Working Group, with its own terms of reference, under the Neighbourhood Plan Action Plan, in April 2024, to determine the need for cycle facilities/ additional facilities in West Bergholt. Its remit also includes promoting cycling routes, including off-road, and investigating the reinstatement of village-to-village cycle rides/rides to places of attraction. The group, under the Chair of Andrew Ross, includes a wide variety of cyclists… …