Book Review – 'Big Rides' by Kathy Rogers and Markus Stitz

Big Rides Book Review

I have been dreaming a lot lately. Dreaming of faraway places, wilderness, and wild camps; of campfire dinners, loaded panniers, and long twisting trails that meander across the map.

Big Rides by Kathy Rogers and Markus Stitz arrived on my doorstep just in time to add some achievable goals and route ideas to my bikepacking dreams. The book features 25 of the best long distance road cycling, gravel, and mountain biking routes across the United Kingdom.

Markus Stitz is a friend I have contacted on several occasions regarding route ideas and trip itineraries. Big Rides is a paperback portfolio of beautiful routes all over the UK, crowd-sourced from knowledgeable bikepackers, but curated and edited in a comprehensive and very coherent manner in this detail publication by Markus and Kathy.

From well-known routes such as Land's End to John O'Groats, to lesser-known trails such as the West Country Way or the Great North Trail. This book presents every route in meticulous detail, as well as supplying maps, kit guidance, weather considerations, and accommodation suggestions.

Each of the routes in Big Rides is accompanied by stunning photography to showcase the adventure on offer, as well as topographic maps to show the challenging terrain that features along the way.

Aside from the South Downs Way and sections of the Wild Atlantic Way and North Coast 500, I have not completed any of the other trails or roads in the Big Rides collection. The beautifully presented book has got me eagerly plotting and planning—to see if I can squeeze in a few staycation adventures in the latter part of this year.


'Big Rides' by Kathy Rogers and Markus Stitz

'Big Rides' by Kathy Rogers and Markus Stitz
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