Where to ride a bike around Bideford

A bike is no good to anyone if there is nowhere to ride it. That is the first thing people ask me once they have bought one, usually while they are putting it in the car.

The good news is that Bideford is one of the better places in the country to have a bike, and most people who live here have never ridden the best bit of it.

Where can you cycle around Bideford?

The Tarka Trail runs through Bideford and is the main answer. It is an old railway line turned into a path, so it is flat, surfaced, and has no cars on it at all. Just over 30 miles of it are traffic-free, from Braunton in the north to Meeth in the south, and Bideford sits roughly in the middle.

You can get on it, ride for ten minutes or three hours, and turn round whenever you have had enough. That is what makes it good for families. Nobody is committed to anything.

What is the Tarka Trail?

It is a path built on a disused railway line, which is why it is so flat: trains cannot climb steep hills, so the route was already levelled out a century ago. The surface is tarmac and finely packed stone. It runs through Braunton, Chivenor, Barnstaple, Fremington Quay, Instow, Bideford and on past Great Torrington to Meeth.

It is part of the National Cycle Network, and the stretch through Bideford also forms part of the Devon Coast to Coast route, which runs all the way from Ilfracombe to Plymouth, somewhere around 98 miles. The people who look after the trail describe the traffic-free section as the longest in the country.

The traffic-free trail, north to south

1. BrauntonThe northern end of the traffic-free section
2. Chivenor
3. BarnstapleAbout 9 miles from Bideford
4. Fremington QuayCafé, toilets and free parking, right on the trail
5. InstowSandy beach, and a car park with direct access
6. Bidefordyou are hereJoin at the old railway station on Station Hill
7. Great TorringtonAbout 5 to 6 miles from Bideford. The trail passes below the town
8. Petrockstowe
9. MeethThe southern end, and the quietest part

Where do you join the trail in Bideford?

The trail runs along the east bank of the Torridge, through East-the-Water, which is the side of the river opposite the town centre. The easiest place to join it is the old Bideford railway station on Station Hill, EX39 4BB, which is now the Railway Heritage Centre. From the town centre, cross the old long bridge and you are on it.

If you are driving to the trail rather than riding to it, Fremington Quay and Instow both have car parks with direct access to the path, and Fremington Quay has a café and toilets as well.

Is it safe for children?

Yes, and it is the main reason to use it. There is no traffic on the traffic-free section, it is flat almost the whole way, and the trail’s own description calls it very suitable for families. A child who can ride confidently can ride here without you having to think about cars at all.

Two honest warnings. First, flat and traffic-free does not mean short: the trail’s own route page says the Fremington Quay to Bideford ride, about 12 miles there and back, may be tiring for younger children. Start with less than you think and go again next week.

Second, the gates along the trail have a width limit of about 1.5 metres, which matters if you are towing a trailer or a tag-along.

What kind of bike do you need?

Any of them. The trail’s own guidance says the traffic-free section suits all types of bicycle, and there are very few gradients. You do not need a mountain bike, and you do not need gears for it either, though they help on the gentle rises.

If you are choosing a bike mainly for the Tarka Trail, a hybrid is the obvious one. Flat handlebars so you sit up and can see the estuary, tyres smooth enough to roll easily on the tarmac but wide enough for the packed stone sections, and usually room for a rack if you want to carry a picnic.

A road bike is fine too but you will feel the stone sections. A mountain bike is heavier than it needs to be here, though plenty of people ride them and have a perfectly good time.

For children, the thing that matters far more than the type of bike is whether it fits. We have written about what size bike a child needs, and a bike that is too big is the quickest way to put a child off cycling for a year.

How far can you actually go?

Pick by how long you want to be out, not by how far you think you should go.

• An hour or so. Head north towards Instow. Flat, along the estuary, and there is a beach at the end of it.
• A half day. Bideford to Barnstaple is about 9 miles each way, with Fremington Quay roughly halfway for a stop.
• A quieter ride. Head south instead. Great Torrington is about 5 to 6 miles, through the wooded Torridge valley, and it gets quieter the further you go.
• A proper day out. Carry on south past Torrington towards Petrockstowe and Meeth, which is the emptiest part of the whole trail.

Distances along the trail vary slightly depending on who is measuring, so treat all of those as approximate. The official trail site has route pages for each section, and is worth a look before a long one.

What should you take?

Not much, and that is part of the appeal.

Water, a pump, and something to fix a puncture. There are cafés and toilets at Fremington Quay and in the towns, but long stretches in between have neither. Check your tyres are hard before you set off, because soft tyres are what cause most punctures on a surfaced path like this one.

A phone, obviously. And if you are going south past Torrington, tell somebody where you are going, because the signal is patchy and there is not much out there.

The short version

• The Tarka Trail runs through Bideford and is flat, surfaced and traffic-free
• Join it at the old railway station on Station Hill, in East-the-Water
• North takes you to Instow, Fremington Quay and Barnstaple. South takes you towards Great Torrington and gets quieter
• Any bike will do. A hybrid is the best fit for it
• For children, the right size matters more than the type
• Turn round whenever you want. That is the whole point of an out-and-back

If you need a bike for it, have a look at what we have in. Every one is checked over and ready to ride, and you can try it before you pay.