From Blackwell Mill to Bakewell, this route cuts through some of the Peak District's most spectacular limestone dales, revealing the ambition of 19th-century railway engineering. There are six well-lit tunnels along its eight-and-a-half miles, with deep cuttings one minute and high viaducts across the River Wye the next. The former station at Hassop has become a bike-hire café, and the Wye valley is dotted with grand old cotton mills. As home of a famous pudding, there’s a strong incentive to reach Bakewell.
Find out more: www.peakdistrict.gov.uk/visiting/cycle/monsaltrail

You might also like…
Find more wonderful walks in the MIdlands
10 reasons to take up cycling
Bake a classic Bakewell tart

Magnificent views of the Mawddach Estuary in the Snowdonia National Park and peaks such as Diffwys and the Rhinogs are the key attractions of this nine-and-a-half-mile trail that begins in Dolgellau. The River Mawddach has been designated a Site of Special Scientific Interest due to its salt marsh and lowland peat habitats, and the trail includes two RSPB reserves and an old signal box at Penmaenpool that has been converted into a bird hide. Barmouth, the end point, is a fine old seaside resort with a sandy beach and long history in slate and shipping.
Find out more: www.mawddachtrail.co.uk).

You might also like…
Explore Snowdonia National Park
Find more walks in Wales
10 reasons to take up cycling

This green corridor full of wildlife leads from the heart of rural East Sussex to the south coast. The 14-mile route is lined with benches, picnic tables and sculptures, and it runs imperceptibly downhill through fine Victorian bridges, the village of Horam, and pretty towns Hailsham and Polegate. As part of the new Avenue Verte (London to Paris via rural areas), it will welcome many more riders in years to come.
Find out more: www.eastsussex.gov.uk.

You might also like…
Escape to Romney Marsh
Find more walks in the Southeast
10 reasons to take up cycling

Big open skies and flat, rich farmland laced with fens are the highlights of this 33-mile trail linking the cathedral city of Lincoln with the market town of Boston. The former Lincoln to Boston Railway Line clings to the banks of the meandering River Witham, home to the shy water rail. The path is lined with sculptures celebrating Lincolnshire, from its farms (a pair of now-extinct Lincolnshire curly-coated pigs) to the poet Tennyson, born here in 15809.
Find out more: www.lincolnshire.gov.uk and www.visitlincoln.com

You might also like…
A night and day in Stamford
Find more walks in the area
10 reasons to take up cycling

After a seven-year restoration, this revived railway route was opened in April. Locals enlisted bike charity Sustrans to help renew a four-mile stretch of the disused Somerset & Dorset branch line, linking Georgian Bath with the village of Midford. A smooth path runs through two tunnels, including the mile-long, well-lit Combe Down – the longest of its kind for cycling in Britain. It also forms a scenic 13-mile loop with a return journey via the Kennet and Avon canal towpath.
Find out more: www.twotunnels.org.uk.

You might also like…
Escape to the Somerset Levels
Find more walks in the Southwest
10 reasons to take up cycling

This 21-mile route is a link in the National Cycle Network Route 27 and the hub of a network of walks. Starting at the Hoe in Plymouth (where Sir Francis Drake played bowls, ignoring the Armada), the path then slips down from the town to run up the Plym Estuary. From there, it wheels through the parkland of glorious Saltram House before entering Plymbridge woods, full of wild flowers and woodpeckers. Eventually, you’ll emerge in open country to skirt the western edge of Dartmoor and descend to the historic market town of Tavistock.
Find out more: www.dartmoor.co.uk.

You might also like…
Find somewhere to stay in the Southwest
Find more walks in the Southwest
10 reasons to take up cycling

Sir John Betjeman described the Atlantic Coast Express route along the Camel Estuary as “the most beautiful train journey I know”. Alas, there are no locomotives today, but the Camel Trail, from Blisland and Bodmin to Padstow, is one of the nation’s favourite leisure routes. Along its 18 miles are moorland villages, the woods of Camel Valley and the estuary – an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty and home to darting azure kingfishers.
Find out more: www.cornwall.gov.uk.

You might also like…
Find somewhere to stay in the Southwest
Find more walks in the Southwest
10 reasons to take up cycling

Once the route of the world’s first passenger railway line, which opened in 1830, this is now a seven-and-a-half-mile walk and cycle trail, starting in Canterbury and ending in the seaside resort of Whitstable, famous for its oysters. It’s mostly flat, and has stretches on woodland and Forestry Commission paths, as well as along the old trackbed.
Find out more: www.kent.gov.uk.

You might also like…
A day and night in Tenterden, Kent
Find more walks in the Southeast
10 reasons to take up cycling

Beginning in Consett, once a boom town for steel and coal, this 12-mile trail wanders beside the wooded Derwent Valley towards Gateshead. The most scenic part is Derwent Walk Country Park at Rowlands Gill, where red kites wheel above the trees and red squirrels dart past. Historic houses dot the route, including the ruins of the medieval Hollinside Manor and Gibside Hall.
Find out more: www.durham.gov.uk.

You might also like…
Explore the North York Moors National Park
Find more walks in the Northeast
10 reasons to take up cycling

This 65-mile trail is one of the most spectacular in Britain, running over the toes of the Cairngorm mountains along a glorious Scottish river on its tumbling journey to the sea at Buckie. Principally a walking route, it starts in the ski resort of Aviemore and rambles past the osprey centre at Boat of Garten, then into whisky country with distilleries at Knockando, Tormore and Dufftown on the riverbanks. Expect to see leaping salmon and tweedy fishermen, and, when you reach the shore of the Moray Firth, pods of dolphins.
Find out more: www.speysideway.org.

You might also like…
Explore the Cairngorms National Park
Find more walks in Scotland
10 reasons to take up cycling