A Family Escape From London
On a grey January morning, my sister Tara bundled her three kids onto a train at Clapham Junction railway station for what could easily have become a sofa-and-screen kind of day.
Instead, a couple of hours later, they were rolling through the lanes of the Cranborne Chase National Landscape on e-bikes, wrapped up against the winter drizzle and laughing the whole way.
That’s the thing about e-bikes. You don’t need blazing sunshine or Tour de France fitness for a genuinely memorable day outdoors.
One of the nicest parts of running Cranborne Chase Escapes is showing people just how easy it is to escape London for the day. Whether you leave from London Waterloo station or Clapham Junction, you can be in Salisbury surprisingly quickly - and from there, the countryside changes almost immediately.
We include pickup and drop-off from Salisbury railway station, so there’s no need to worry about taxis, route planning or transporting bikes. Just hop on the train with a small bag and we’ll take care of the rest.
For Tara and the kids, the weather was properly British. Damp lanes, low cloud hanging over the hills, and occasional muddy puddles. But somehow that made it better. The children loved it. There’s something about being outdoors in winter that feels much more adventurous when you’re gliding along on an e-bike rather than battling into a headwind.
The route wound through quiet chalk valley lanes, sleepy villages and stunning open countryside that feels a world away from south London. One minute you’re navigating commuters at Clapham Junction; the next you’re looking across rolling Wiltshire farmland - often with absolutely no one in sight.
And because the bikes take the sting out of the hills, everyone arrives fresher, warmer and happier than they expected.
January’s shorter daylight hours meant we kept the ride fairly compact, although it served as a reminder that even in the depths of winter, a countryside escape is perfectly doable as day trip from London. Now, with the sun higher in the sky (and can be seen more often), the evenings are stretching out again, so there’s even more time to explore.
The day finished exactly as it should: muddy shoes by the fire and food at The Queen's Head before heading back to Salisbury for the train home.
It felt less like an organised activity and more like the sort of spontaneous family day out people talk about afterwards for weeks.
That’s really our aim. It’s not hardcore cycling and you don’t have to wear lycra.
Just a very good day outside.
If you want to see a short video of their day, check out our instagram reel.
Find out more at www.cranbornechase.com or get in touch for a chat via our contact page.