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Where to Ride - Breckland - Leisure
With over 23 kilometres (14 miles) of way-marked family orientated trails Thetford Forest, which covers an area of Suffolk and Norfolk, is a fantastic location for leisure riding. When the other on-site activities and facilities are also taken into account, it is easy to see why so many people enjoy using the Forest as a base to pass away their free time.
I took the opportunity to go and test the trails in anticipation of a trip with my wife and daughter later in the year. Matthew, my brother-in law, was my riding companion on what was an extremely cold day. In general he uses his bike for commuting to work within Norwich and having never ridden at Thetford before Matthew would provide some valuable opinion on the trails from a leisure rider's perspective, especially as he was using a hybrid bike with limited grip on his tyres.
The Blue Route
We met at Brandon Country Park and headed out on the 12.8km (8.1 mile) blue route, which does have a shortcut available. The Forestry Commission's literature describes the trail as being easy to moderate, which would prove to be a fair description. Having descended gently from the car park (over some protruding tree roots which should be taken with caution) we headed west through a great tree-lined track that provided some welcome shelter from the bracing north-easterly wind. In the main the trails were dry for the time of year and followed either fire roads or reasonably wide tracks, which were way-marked really well. The 'you are here' map boards every kilometre or so also provided welcome reassurance that we were following the correct path.
The flattish nature of the ride meant that we were able to chat and put the world to rights as we rolled along but the odd drag, most notably up Fire Road 4, did get the lungs working a little harder. As the route turned north we were passed by a large group of friendly mountain bikers riding their 'old skool' bikes as part of a retro meet, which clearly included the prerequisite to wear clothing to match the era.
Avoiding the short-cut we continued on the blue route to Mayday Farm. From there we crossed the B1106 to the High Lodge Visitor Centre side of the Forest to link-up with the green route.
Green Route
The 10km (6.3 mile) green cycle trail also has a short cut available and is designed for beginners and families. The route follows wide and relatively smooth fire roads for much of the time (but is sandy in a few places) and proved to be an enjoyable and interesting ride, not just for us. The day of our trip was extremely cold but we still passed a number of families enjoying the Forest by bike.
We then headed to the main High Lodge Visitor Centre (see below for details) and then back via the way-marked trail to Brandon Country Park for refreshments. Matthew certainly enjoyed his first ride at Thetford Forest and his hybrid bike coped well with the blue and green trails. Inspired by the families that were out riding, especially the Allans, I plan to return soon with my wife and young daughter.
Forest Facilities
The High Lodge Visitor Centre has the main facilities for riding in the Forest and although parking is more expensive than at Brandon Country Park it is the ideal base for families. Aside from parking and toilets it has a very good cafeteria, a bike shop (Bike Art) with cycle hire for all abilities and a bike wash, plus direct access to 3 of the 4 way-marked cycle trails. Additional facilities which may prove useful if you have children and / or non-cyclists within your group include picnic sites (barbeques are available for hire), children's play areas, way-marked walks and the Go-Ape tree-top climbing adventure.
If you fancy riding your bike then having some music-based entertainment, the Forest hosts a number of concerts in the summer months with artists such as Simply Red, Katie Melua, Keane and the Doves playing at High Lodge in 2010.
Brandon Country Park has car-parking and toilet facilities with direct access to the blue cycle trail. The site also has a cafeteria and access to way-marked walks.
Centre Parcs at Eleveden (approximately 5 miles south of Brandon) is a popular location (with cycling facilities) for families to enjoy Thetford Forest.
