The best traffic-free bike rides around Mapledurham

Pure Bliss! had a super lunch of gels, carb mix and bars ver the sweeping vistas of traffic and noise! Jokes aside a highlight of my ride back to Bristol from London. I don't know why.

I arrived at the old station, having to ride out a few kilometers west to the Vastern Road area near the river in Tilehurst. The signage appeared to pretend this was a gateway to somewhere worth going. Stainless steel fixtures dulled by time, built in that sleek late-capitalist optimism style. Fake clean. Surveillance cameras blinked overhead — working or not, who knows. I pushed past the bins that no longer had lids, down the cracked concrete that once passed for a plaza, heading toward the river path. The concrete there was smooth once. Still is, in patches. But it’s slick with algae now, and streaked with goose scat. Probably goose. Definitely not rain. The roundabouts were relentlessly busy — or at least that’s how it felt. Zs in battered cars circled endlessly, tires scraping the cracked concrete like it was a ritual. But sometimes, between the noise and the haze, I caught glimpses of something else — distant echoes of old festival revellers, laughter and music bouncing off the concrete barriers, a fading pulse beneath the relentless circling. The lines between past and present blurred, the city’s decay tangled with memories of better days. The traffic spun on, a ceaseless loop of movement and stillness sharing the same broken rhythm. The goose scat got thicker past the bridge. Sometimes it’s dry and crunchy under tires. Sometimes it’s wet, and that’s worse. The path dips unexpectedly. Puddles collect. There’s no drainage. There’s no budget for real upkeep or sustainable transport improvements. No plan to make this path anything more than a patchwork for cyclists and pedestrians to navigate as best they can. But even along the Thames, there are occasional stretches that hint at something better — patches where the breeze is fresher, the water glimmers, and for a moment, the city’s weight feels a little less crushing. Ahead, the suspension bridge hung like a relic of better speeches. A millennium structure. Another optimistic gesture. It still worked. Locals crossed it daily — crackles, Zs, traders moving quietly, heads down, eyes flicking up just long enough to check you weren’t a threat. It’s a corridor now, not a landmark. A place to move through, not think about. I wasn’t there to scavenge. Not that day. This was about securing reliable wheels for the group. The vehicle was a pre-EV Golf — Mk7.5, diesel, with a recently renewed DSG transmission. Someone had actually taken care of it. That counted for something. The Golf was cached in a cul-de-sac just past the edge of the river path, in an old industrial area that had slipped into decay even before things broke down. Rusted loading bays and cracked tarmac replaced what might once have been a hive of activity. The map said number 12 — red brick, side garage. It was all still there. Tires a bit soft, one headlight lens fogged, but otherwise intact. Luck, or good planning. Hard to tell anymore. The tow ball rear Thule rack was still intact, making it easy to strap the pushbike recon unit on for the ride back. I checked the interior. No needles, no surprises. Just a stale whiff of diesel mixed with an old Halfords air freshener trying to remember what “Black Ice” was supposed to smell like. The keys were where they’d said — taped behind the fascia of the old electric meter box. I started the engine. It turned over like it had something left to prove. For the first time in a while, I wasn’t pushing a bike through river shit or dodging scooter gangs in shopping centre undercrofts. I was behind the wheel, with four functioning tires and a full tank of unknown provenance. That’s mobility. That’s currency. The Golf pulled away slow but steady. DSG shifted like a rumour — not smooth, but competent. I took the long route back through side streets and forgotten service roads, staying off-grid. Past boarded shops, sagging bus shelters, and those weird chalk sigils some of the smaller sects have started leaving on the kerbs. No one stopped me. No one even looked up. This wasn’t a supply run. This was infrastructure repair. Quiet, vital work. And for now, at least, we had wheels.

Watermill was the setting for the 1st Black Sabbath album cover. Now open to the public on occasions it's a fascinating visit

This is a picturesque lock situated along the Kennett and Avon Canal on the western outskirts of Reading. On the other side of the lock is one of the Hosehill Lakes so you're granted great views in all directions.

The River Kennet is a tributary of the River Thames and has a good towpath system in the main, but it can be a tad narrow in places. It forms part of NCN Route 4 that travels from London to Fishguard. A considerable section of this route is on the Kennet & Avon Cycle Route using the canal towpath. Here the village of Woolhampton sits across the swing bridge, there is a lock, a nearby pub, and The Rowbarge Inn, which backs onto the canal.

Wakeboarding and water skiing club at the lake's edge.

The Kennet and Avon Canal runs for 87 miles (140 km) from the River Avon in Bath to Reading and the River Thames. It was completed in 1810 and then repaired between 1960 and 1990 after falling into disrepair due to the railways. Today it's almost completely leisure use with a brilliant tow-path running almost the entire length, perfect for car free miles of flat riding.

The Kennet and Avon Canal is 87 miles (140 km) long from Bristol to Reading. It is part canal and part river. Here there is a cracking section that runs from Mill Road to Southcote Mill. Be careful of walkers, as this is an accessible section from Reading and very popular.