The Great British Divide (2021)

The Great British Divide is a new unsupported MTB bikepacking event from one end of Great Britain to the other. The first edition was due to start in July 2020 but sadly Coronavirus had other ideas….. At the end of May 2020 we took the only responsible decision there was and cancelled, now it is all about 2021….

It’s not a race, it is an adventure to be completed in a maximum of 15 days. Travelling from the bottom to the top of Great Britain, at times taking a less obvious route whilst still passing through much of the most beautiful, dramatic and testing terrain the country has to offer. Mostly off-road and with a distance of 2300km and more than 25000m of climbing this will be a challenge and experience you will never forget. The route is set for for participants to follow with three checkpoints to pass through. Tracking is provided by Map Progress and all riders will have a Spot tracker.

Follow along live below:

Starting near the village of Bridge, a few miles South East of Canterbury, Kent the route immediately takes you into the ‘Garden of England’. The North Downs Way and then cross-country to Eastbourne for the South Downs Way. You reach Winchester fairly quickly before heading into the New Forest and CP1 in Lyndhurst. A loop of the forest sends you up towards Salisbury Plain and then on to the outskirts of Bath. From here you will head West and into Wales where the challenge starts to ramp up, as does the elevation as you pass first through the Brecon Beacons, CP2 and then on to the edge of the Snowdonia National Park

Heading East out of Wales there is about 120km of quiet roads across to the Peak District – not the most exciting bit of the route but the first half is fairly flat and it will give you a break after Wales and before hitting the Pennine Way! Once here you again head North for some more stunning riding. Continuing North, you then ride through the Yorkshire Dales and onto CP3, the final checkpoint before the finish. From here you will travel to the East of the Lake District and then through the North Pennines and Northumberland National Park where more stunning scenery and challenging climbs await.

Next Scotland looms…. Heading up through the middle of the lowlands towards Edinburgh through more beautiful rolling countryside you will then swing West across to Glasgow before riding through the Trossachs and then the spectacular Glencoe. Next up is the first of the ferry crossings and all of a sudden you are not completely in control. From Mallaig the Ferry takes you to the Isle of Skye and here you will do a mini-divide of the island before looping back and taking the second ferry trip on a very small and unusual ferry across the Sound of Sleat back to the mainland and the village of Glenelg. It’s the final push now – you are right up in the Highlands and there is plenty more to do including climbing the Bealach na ba – the fearsome climb on the road with the greatest amount of elevation from sea level in the whole of Great Britain. Once at the summit the descent to Applecross begins almost straight away with an 8km blast to the finish.

Places in this first edition are limited so, in July 2021 will you be one of the first to attempt the Great British Divide….?