Have you ever got on a cycle route and wondered how far it goes or where you would end up if you followed it all the way to the end? Many people will be familiar with National Cycle Network Route 4, which goes from London to Fishguard. NCN4 runs east-west through West Berkshire and is well used by local cyclists and long-distance tourers alike.

However, what you may not know is that most of NCN4 also forms part of EuroVelo 2, which connects Galway with Moscow, via many of Europe’s major / capital cities, including: Dublin, London, The Hague, Berlin, Warsaw and Minsk. EuroVelo incorporates national and regional cycle routes into a single European network. It currently consists of over 45,000 km of bike paths with more planned – when completed it will total over 70,000 km.

The aim behind EuroVelo is to encourage large numbers of people to give cycling a try, and promote a shift to healthy and sustainable travel for daily trips and cycling touring. Cycle tourism is big business in Europe, with increasing numbers of our European cousins coming over to the UK. So next time you are pottering along the K&A towpath, you might just meet someone who’s doing a much longer journey!