The best cycling routes around Cardinham

Cardinham offers a wide selection of touring cycling routes, with over 100 options available. These routes cater to various skill levels, including 14 easy, 30 moderate, and 60 difficult trails.

The terrain in Cardinham is diverse, featuring mixed woodlands, forest roads, and river valleys. You'll find everything from gentle gravel tracks suitable for all abilities to more challenging ascents and descents within the extensive 650-acre woods. The wider area also includes open moorland and rolling hills.

Yes, Cardinham has several easy touring cycling routes perfect for beginners or families. A popular choice is the Park Café at Lanhydrock – Hart Trail, Lanhydrock loop from Lanhydrock, an easy 10.8 km trail that winds through the Lanhydrock estate. Another gentle option is the Park Café at Lanhydrock – Lanhydrock House and Gardens loop from Bodmin Parkway, covering 6.9 km.

Cardinham Woods itself offers beautiful woodland scenery, shady glades, and bubbling streams. Beyond the immediate woods, you can explore significant natural monuments such as Helman Tor, a nature reserve with prehistoric hill forts, and Golitha Falls, where the River Fowey cascades through Drakes Wood. The granite tors on Bodmin Moor, including Brown Willy Summit and Rough Tor, also offer stunning views.

Yes, many routes in Cardinham are designed as loops. For example, the challenging River Fowey loop via Helman Tor - Cornwall is a 46.2 km trail that takes you through varied terrain. A moderate option is the River Fowey – Park Café at Lanhydrock loop from Bodmin Parkway, which is 14.1 km and follows the River Fowey.

The touring cycling routes in Cardinham are highly rated by the komoot community, with an average score of 4.5 stars from over 100 reviews. Reviewers often praise the diverse landscape, the peaceful woodland atmosphere, and the variety of trails that cater to different abilities, from gentle forest roads to more challenging singletrack sections.

Yes, Cardinham Woods provides practical amenities for visitors. You'll find onsite parking, toilets, picnic spots, and the Woods Cafe, which serves fresh food and drinks. These facilities make it convenient for cyclists to start and end their rides comfortably.

While this guide focuses on touring cycling, Cardinham Woods is also known for its designated mountain biking trails. These include the 12km blue-graded Bodmin Beast trail, and more technical red-graded sections like Dialled-In Dave Trail and Hell's Teeth, offering challenging climbs, descents, and technical features for experienced riders.

Cardinham offers beautiful scenery year-round. In autumn, the woods transform into a blaze of color, making it a particularly picturesque time to visit. Even in winter, the dedicated trails provide beautiful scenes. Spring brings blooming native woodland flowers, adding to the natural beauty.

Yes, for those seeking flatter, traffic-free routes, the Pentewan Trail and the popular Camel Trail are excellent alternatives in the vicinity. The Camel Trail is an 18-mile route connecting Padstow to Wenfordbridge via Wadebridge and Bodmin, offering a different cycling experience.

The dappled shade beneath the woodland canopy of Cardinham Woods provides an important habitat for numerous native woodland flowers that bloom in spring. The woods are also home to abundant wildlife, offering a chance to observe local fauna in their natural environment during your ride.

Yes, within Cardinham Woods, visitors can discover remnants of a former lead mine and an ancient clapper bridge, adding a touch of unique Cornish history to the natural environment as you cycle through.