Tour de Jardin d’Angleterre
Stages 4 – 5 of 6
We are so fortunate to live in the beautiful Garden of England, and the Tour de Jardin d’Angleterre will take you on a journey to rediscover this lovely corner of England.
Each month Le Jardin will take you on a journey through time, seeking classic Kentish views or provide the opportunity to sample our unique specialities ….Oysters anyone?
The Format
Running from April to September, Le Jardin, will consist of 6 stages.
Each stage will have:
- Standard (approximately 40 Miles) and Epic (approximately 60Miles) options.
- Some will also have Steady and Extreme options!
The monthly stages will not be timed, all you need to do, to complete Le Jardin, is finish 1 stage per month, for 6 months.
To spice up Le Jardin there will also be 12 timed segments. The riders from each club ride group will be pronounced the monthly King (or Queen) of the Mountains and the monthly King (or Queen) of Speed.
Credits
With thanks to Ian Goldsmith (HCC) for his time and effort in providing the routes and information for each stage and managing the content on Spond. Contents transcribed and adapted for the website by Paul Taylor (HCC).
| Ride Name | Tour Stage 4 – Calling Birds |
| Route Info |
I know it’s far too early to start thinking about Christmas, but did you know that the 4 Calling Birds in the ‘The Twelve Days of Christmas’ used to be the 4 Colly Birds in the original 1790 version? But what were Colly Birds? It is believed that the birds being referred to were actually Canaries and the colly was referring to the fact that they were covered in coal dust from being taken down to coal mines to protect the miners from being overcome by dangerous gas.
Stage 4 of Tour de Jardin will follow much of the Miners Way Cycle Trail which visits the site of all the major former collieries. Like Stage 3, this month’s stage will have 3 different lengths. The routes are Steady (27miles & 504m climbing), Standard (43miles & 753m) and the Epic (50miles & 898m).
This month’s King/Queen of Speed Segment https://www.strava.com/segments/34669087 will head up the Elham Valley from Lyminge, whilst the King/Queen of Mountains Segment https://www.strava.com/segments/34669064, will climb the hill out of Lydden.
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| Stage 4 Steady Route on RidewithGPS |
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| Approximate Distance | 44km |
| Approximate Ascent | 461m |
| Stage 4 Standard Route on RidewithGPS |
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| Approximate Distance | 71km |
| Approximate Ascent | 689m |
| Stage 4 Epic Route on RidewithGPS |
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| Approximate Distance | 82km |
| Approximate Ascent | 212m |
| Ride Name | Tour Stage 5 – Mosquito Coast |
| Route Info |
Romney Marsh … We all know it so well, we have all battled the relentless headwinds, the horizontal rain, the burning sun …. but even though we swear through gritted teeth and feel the lactic acid fill our legs, it remains a special place…Romney Marsh is one of only three English wetlands, the others being The Fens of East Anglia and the Somerset Levels. Much of the area has been reclaimed over the centuries and is now flat farmland, world famous, and renowned, for its own breed of sheep – The Romney (naturally). Before the marsh was drained, Malaria was common among its inhabitants, with the last person dying on the marsh because of Malaria as recently as 1806.
Stage 5 of Tour de Jardin will explore our beloved Romney Marsh, and its surrounding countryside, through a choice of four routes.
The Steady Route will be 53km (32 miles) with 220m (726ft) of climbing.
The Standard Route will be 80km (49 miles) with 365m (1,204ft) climbing.
The Epic Route is a Metric Century of 100km (62 mile) in length and 681m (2,247ft) of climbing.
The Extreme Route is an Imperial Century of 161km (100 miles) in length and 1,163m (3,838ft) of climbing.
One problem with routes on Romney Marsh is where to find a suitable King/Queen of the Mountains segment. So, as a break from other stages, the Q/KOM will not be on the course, but close to the end, so you can decide to tackle it as part of the route or make a special trip for your attempt … Welcome to Lympne Hill
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| Stage 5 Steady Route on RidewithGPS |
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| Approximate Distance | 51km |
| Approximate Ascent | 230m |
| Stage 5 Standard Route on RidewithGPS |
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| Approximate Distance | 80km |
| Approximate Ascent | 378m |
| Stage 5 Epic Route on RidewithGPS |
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| Approximate Distance | 100km |
| Approximate Ascent | 675m |
| Stage 5 Extreme Route on RidewithGPS |
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| Approximate Distance | 161km |
| Approximate Ascent | 1092m |
| Ride Name | Tour Stage 6 – Favourites |
| Route Info |
Everyone has favourites… Raindrops on roses and whiskers on kittens Stage 6 is self-indulgent and will feature some of my personnel favourite roads, so nothing too steep, nothing to busy, nothing too hilly but there are challenges on every route. Again, we have a choice of 4 routes to choose from The Steady Route will be 50km (30 Miles) with 370m (1,221ft) of climbing. The Standard Route will be 74km (45 miles) with 613m (2,023ft) climbing. The Epic Route will be 104km (64 miles) in length and 857m (2,828ft) of climbing. The Extreme Route will be 115km (71 miles) in length and 452m (1,491ft) of climbing. |
| Stage 6 Steady Route on RidewithGPS |
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| Approximate Distance | 50km |
| Approximate Ascent | 376m |
| Stage 6 Standard Route on RidewithGPS |
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| Approximate Distance | 70km |
| Approximate Ascent | 594m |
| Stage 6 Epic Route on RidewithGPS |
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| Approximate Distance | 104km |
| Approximate Ascent | 859m |
| Stage 6 Extreme Route on RidewithGPS |
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| Approximate Distance | 116km |
| Approximate Ascent | 471m |
The Hythe Cycling Club is affiliated to British Cycling
You can join the club Here or via British Cycling online. Note: there is a £1 admin fee if you join any BC club online.