Cycling the South Downs Way | A Gravel Bikepacking Adventure

The South Downs Way is a popular bikepacking and hiking route going through the UK's newest National Park, between Winchester and Eastbourne. The 100 miles (160km) long route follows old droveways, tracks and bridleways and lies entirely within the National Park. The chalk ridgeway provides a challenging ride, but the stunning scenery makes it a great weekend adventure. It's been on my list of routes to do for a while, so I finally decided it was time to cycle the route, wild camping along the way.

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#southdownsway #bikepacking #wildcamping

[dannychild]

Great to see an honest appraisal of the route, warning of the lack of shade, and being OK to show that you were cool with changing your plan when the circumstances dictated!

[juliet]

Very impressed with your efforts in the heat too. 👏🏾 You were rewarded with lovely scenery

[GarGri]

Useful video and appreciated your comments at the end regarding bike and tyres.

[neovo]

6:44 ayyyy, water point washington. I went there

[FollowThomas]

Really beautiful place to ride. Thanks for sharing your bikepacking adventure 👍

[paulsslightlyactivelife]

Great video. I was planning on tackling it a few weeks ago, but the weather just wasn't playing ball that weekend, so one to come back to in the future. Thanks for sharing your experience with us.

[thecampingastronomer]

Came across your Channel Ceri and had to subscribe to a fellow Middleton 🤣.
I am contemplating doing the South Downs Way over perhaps 3-4 days leisurely so your video was very interesting.

[TEFLLemon]

This was great! By the way, I'm from Seaford (near to Eastbourne), and I'd like to say to viewers here that cycling that in one day is an awesome feat! There are some tough climbs there!

[VagabondTurtle]

This looks so adventurous, beautiful towns, nature is awesome, and mainly flat 😄 that last one is important for me, I can't stand bike climbing :)))

[willowwatts]

Watching this from rainy dark and gloomy Wales..⛈️.. I was planning to leave tomorrow for my first bike packing trip but the weather looks grim.. going to wait out till Sunday.. Another great video..👍🏻.One question pal .is it essential to have a sleeping mat?? Or would I be able to get away without one..just want to save some weight and space..cheers..I'm going to be using my soloist and a sleeping bag..

[Alex-jbl]

I'm very curious what tires you use on your bike, because the road surface is not always good and safe for soft and thin tires. where do you sleep - in a tent or in hostels?

[grumpy-dad]

Looks great. This could be next year's adventure.
Rode pedders way this year. 1st bikepacking adventure.

[nickpousson]

Looks amazing. How long have you cycled to get that base of fitness to tackle that.

[mattevans]

Nice video. Living close to the South Downs, I am on there fairly often and the whole length is pretty brutal. I did a short bikepacking trip in April when restrictions eased. So great to get out and test out some new kit, but the weather was horrid. The chalk was like an ice ring. Wish I had filmed it as it was more of a climbing adventure scrambling through new fallen trees!!! Can recommend it to anyone :)

[RoadyPacking-CyclingAdventures]

Lovely video Ceri thanks! Have you done the Dorset Gravel Dash? I did it last weekend and it looks very similar.. hills of happiness!! All the best :-)

[Sail-Ride-Walk-Repeat]

Loved the video. You're obviously an experienced cyclist but I did wonder why you kept a cap under your helmet in the heat. The South Downs countryside looks really nice.

[trysomeme-laurkawchmurka]

Hi Ceri, great achievement! Quick question: do you think its doable with a bike trailer (with kid)? I mean is the route wide enough or there is a lot of single track sections where wider, two wheeled trailed won't fit?

[queasyj]

Lovely vid Ceri, I notice you're using a Norco bike. How is it? I am thinking of getting one

cycling on 15cm wide singletrack with a gravel drop bar is no joke, so much strain on arms.