Dad’s cycling tour of 624 national treasures
...and his family came too
A DAD has completed a cycle tour of 624 National Trust properties – racking up 5,376 miles in the saddle.
It took Huw Davies, 47, a year and he would pedal up to 90 miles a day.
He visited roughly 73% of the country piles in just three months – with his wife and daughters following in a £40,000 motorhome.
But he then spent nine months visiting the remaining homes at weekends – fuelled by jacket potatoes and flapjacks from Trust cafes and service stations.
His final stop after 862 hours in the saddle was Woodchester Park in Gloucestershire, near his home in Stroud.
Climbing
He completed nearly 350,000ft of incline – the equivalent to climbing Mount Everest 12 times.
Huw, who is head of data for the Trust, tried the challenge to see how cyclefriendly the properties were.
He said: “The whole thing kicked off in lockdown – I started thinking, ‘is it possible to visit them all by bike?’
“The first week was a bit of a killer with the big hills – I did start thinking, ‘have I bitten off more than I can chew here?’
“But further along I started to feel really good. I was able to do longer distances. Some of the places I enjoyed most were on the Northumberland coast – the weather and beaches were lovely.”
The dad of two spent six months working on the perfect route and doing “lots of logistical planning”.
He took a three-month sabbatical and set off on May 28, 2022. He was joined by wife Oonagh, 46, a psychologist, and daughters Isla, 11, and Phoebe, nine – after their school approved time off for an educational trip.
The route began just south of Bristol at Cadbury Camp, and he covered the South West before heading east.
They then travelled north and covered the coasts before moving west to hit further northern beauty spots before travelling back down through the mainland.
Huw said: “The family were doing different things during the day, then we’d meet in the evening.”
Huw got through three tyres, 10 inner tubes, two sets of brake pads, two pairs of gloves and a snapped gear cable.
There were just three properties he could not tick off – Lundy, Farne Islands and Brownsea – islands where bikes were not allowed.
By May 8, 2023, he completed his tour having burned 243,067 calories and finishing a stone lighter.
Huw said he and the family cherished the memories.
He added: “I couldn’t have done it without the family. They were so supportive.
“Spending a lot of time outside together was lovely.
“I’m not sure what the next thing to do is, maybe I’ll find another adventure.
“I’m always keen to find new things to do – but it’s back to Sunday cycling now.”