About this guide
Finding Dartmoor gravel
Hello and welcome to the Dartmoor Gravel Bike Guide
I started mountain biking way back when in the ’90s and did a number of Polaris events (2 days, navigation, winter, super noodles, jelly babies) as well as cycling in Morrocco before heading off to South America for 9 months (Peru, Bolivia, Brazil and Venezuela).
My bikes then gathered dust for a few years but in 2003 I started running and ended up becoming an obsessed ultra runner and ran the infamous Marathon des Sables (Sahara desert), the Jungle Marathon (Amazon), the Yukon Arctic Ultra and Britain’s most brutal ultramarathon The Spine Race.
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But my mates from the ’90s were still riding bikes so after 14 years of ultras, I decided that the Spine Race in January 2020 would be my final ultra and that I’d use the rest of 2020 to just ride my bike with no races at all. Wow, that was a far better decision than I could have ever known.
Gravel vs. MTB
When I think back to my early MTB’s they were far less capable than my gravel bike; V brakes, skinny tyres, narrow bars, aggressive geometry etc. yet we managed to ride some pretty gnarly routes, hanging on and hoping on many of the descents! Hence, by comparison, I consider my gravel bike to be very capable so I do push it to the limits of (maybe) what it was designed for. I have tried to be mindful of this when “grading the gravel” as I know that coming from ‘road to gravel’ may be a very different experience compared to coming from ‘MTB to gravel’.
Pubs and cafes
I do like to enjoy a ride that includes a pub or cafe stop so all of the routes include a mix of both and in most cases, one or both at the start/endpoint of the ride.
Speed
I am not a racer so I work on an average of 5mph/8kmh for the routes although this does NOT allow pub/cafe time so do factor this in. I have also kept most routes to 30 miles/48km or less so they can all be completed in less than a day (8 hours) including time to stand and stare and of course eat and drink!
Longer breaks
Dartmoor is a fair drive for most people so I have also factored in places to stay for those that want to stay more than a day plus the routes are very much of a mix and match nature allowing you to maximise your time on Dartmoor.
There are numerous B&B’s, pubs, bunkhouses and camp sites along the various routes. I will write a separate post that includes a comprehensive list and map to make your planning nice and easy.
Bike repairs
There are two “proper” bike shops included in various routes that can fix stuff, sell you stuff and feed you stuff while you wait.
Rockin Bikes — Yelverton. (cafe next door)
The Pump and Pedal — Okehampton. (cafe inside)
