Guided and Self Guided Bicycle tours of England and it’s countryside

Bicycle Navigation 101

Finding your way around the English countryside whilst on a bicycle is a fun and important part of Discovery CycleTours vacations. It’s a thrill to “shove off” on your own to discover new villages, ancient sites, or meet new friends. On our self-guided tours you’ll obviously be expected to navigate from day to day; on the guided tours you will get daily briefings and all the enroute support you’ll need, but you probably will want to strike off on your own at some point and do a little discovering of your own.

There are three basic steps to bicycle navigation: Orient yourself on the map (where am I?), apply dead reckoning (DR) techniques (heading and distance), and cross-check your progress. At Discovery CycleTours we make it easy to navigate: our routes and mileages are highlighted on each map.

Guided and Self Guided Bicycle tours of England and it’s countryside

Align your map to NORTH

STEP ONE: MAP ORIENTATION

Lay your map out on a flat surface. Next, place your compass on the map, flat, so that the needle can swing free. It points to magnetic north (as opposed to true north, which is slightly different in most places on earth, but close enough for our purposes). Align the map so that its top points north (the lettering on the map will be upright when this is done). Now locate yourself on the map: find the closest roads and lanes and note them on the map; confirm which way they lead away from you. It’s very important to start out on the correct road.

STEP TWO: DEAD RECKONING
Heading: Find the highlighted road on your map; estimate the compass heading which matches this road (the compass is divided into 360 degrees: due north is 000 degrees, due east is 090 degrees, due south is 180 degrees, and due west is 270 degrees. Interpolate for any combination, e.g., northeast is 045 degrees). As you ride along, confirm that this is the correct road by checking your heading on your compass.

This Cyclist is travelling SOUTH, 180 degrees

Distance: All Discovery CycleTours route maps are marked with distance. If, however, you chose to go “off route”, there is a mileage scale on the bottom of each map. Use “statute miles” and estimate the distance to your destination or next turn point. Now use your odometer to keep track of the distance you cover.

Use the statute miles scale.

STEP THREE: CROSS-CHECK
Use map features and your eyes to cross-check and confirm your progress. On the map, you will see rivers, bridges, cross roads, churches, pubs, phone boxes, etc. Our maps are small scale, so that you’ll easily find features to help you navigate.

If you get lost, don’t panic! One of the reasons you’re cycling in Norfolk is the abundance of pubs, inns, and villages and friendly locals to tell you where you are.

EXAMPLE: We want to travel from Little Snoring to Great Walsingham. We are located at the phone box in Little Snoring.

ORIENT Orient your map to north. Note the distance from Little Snoring to your first turn point, Little Walsingham (approx. 3 miles). Note the heading of the road from Little Snoring to your first turn point, about 340 degrees.

DEAD RECKON Ride at about 340 degrees for 3 miles.

CROSS CHECK As you ride north out of Little Snoring, you’ll pass Great Snoring. Look for a phone box and church on your left in Great Snoring. Carry straight through Great Snoring toward Little Walsingham. As you approach Little Walsingham, you’ll see a road come in from your right (don’t take it!). Your road will turn gently left towards west, then you’ll come across a cross road. Turn right there heading about 010 degrees toward Great Walsingham, approx ½ mile. If you enter Little Walsingham or cross a railroad track you’ve gone too far!

The ubiquitous phone box (booth), shown on our maps by: