From: Cambridge.

Distance: 14 miles round trip.

Summary: One of the most relaxing places in Cambridgeshire in which to spend a sunny afternoon.

The map on the left is interactive — you can zoom in, move it around, see a satellite view, etc.

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Not in Anglesey, and not an abbey, Anglesey Abbey nonetheless has some of the most lovely gardens in Cambridgeshire — it’s a great place to spend a sunny afternoon curled up with a good book. Just 7 miles to the northeast of Cambridge, in the village of Lode, it is easily reachable by bike, and the National Trust even gives cyclists a discount on their usual admission charge.

There are two ways to reach Anglesey Abbey by bike — one on the main road, covering approximately 6 miles; one using the rather quieter National Cycle Route, covering approximately 7 miles. I will briefly outline both, but the interactive map above highlights the National Cycle Route option, which I would recommend as the best route.

On-road, 6 miles

• Starting at the Natwest bank opposite the tall Catholic church, and on the corner of Regent Street and Gonville Place, cycle alongside Parker’s Piece, towards the police station. Continue straight ahead into East Road, past the back of the Grafton.
• At the big roundabout, you need to turn right into Newmarket Road — it’s best to use the underpass, going straight through the middle and then turning right as you come out on the other side.



• Continue right along Newmarket Road for about 3 miles — as far as the big roundabout with the A14. You’ll pass Marshall’s on your left and Cambridge Airport on your right. As you pass the airport, look to your left, where you’ll see fields full of tall posts with lights pointing toward the sky: these are the approach lights for the airport, and strobe towards the runway at night to guide pilots toward the airport (point A on the map).




• At the roundabout with the A14, continue straight ahead towards Stow-cum-Quy — a cyclepath alongside the road makes this easy to do. Follow the brown signs with an image of a windmill.
• Continue straight on through Stow-cum-Quy, and you will reach Anglesey Abbey just over a mile later on the left-hand side of the road.

Via National Cycle Route 51, through Fen Ditton

• The above route is easiest to follow, but Newmarket Road can be quite busy at times. Many of the busy sections can be avoided by instead following National Cycle Route 51 in the direction of Bottisham.
• Join this cycle route just opposite the Cambridge United football stadium (point B on the map), by turning left from Newmarket Road into Ditton Walk. Follow the brown cycle signs: you’re effectively following the outside of a semi-circle, along the outer perimeter of the Ditton Fields area of Cambridge. The signs encourage you to use the pavement; in my experience the pavement there is in appalling condition, so you’re a lot better off using the road.
• The signs lead you onto Fison Road, and then through a field into the Newmarket Road Park & Ride site. You are allowed to cycle through the Park & Ride site, along a shared pedestrian/cycle path, following the blue National Cycle Route 51 signs.
• Eventually you’re led onto a cycle path alongside Newmarket Road once more, and the route becomes similar to that above. However, I strongly advise you to continue to follow the National Cycle Route 51 signs as far as Stow-cum-Quy: these guide you away from the road at the busy A14 junction, albeit taking a slightly circuitous route to do so. Just follow the signs that point in the direction of Bottisham though, and all is well!

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Anglesey Abbey itself is a country house, built around a medieval priory in the 1930s by the 1st Baron Fairhaven. Set in 98 acres of landscaped gardens, it’s now owned by the National Trust, and is open most of the year on every day but Mondays and Tuesdays, when six gardeners and a myriad of volunteers work their magic on the grounds.

The estate also contains a working water mill, from which you’re able to buy flour, and a nature reserve, where it’s often possible to see deer and foxes (hopefully not simultaneously) drinking by a pool. The grounds are filled with imaginative detail around every corner, and stone animals that look as though they might come alive at night.

One of the things I love about Anglesey Abbey is that the grounds have a sort of structured informality. There are impressive 1.5 mile-long avenues leading from one end of the garden to the other, but there are also so many spots where you can settle down to read a good book and never be disturbed. Baron Fairhaven created Anglesey Abbey and its grounds with the aim of creating an idyllic English country estate — and, for me at least, he certainly succeeded.

At the time of writing, the entry charge to the gardens for cyclists is £4.40, or £7.30 if you also wish to look around the house. Admission is a little cheaper in the winter.