{"id":5687,"date":"2023-10-17T11:22:35","date_gmt":"2023-10-17T09:22:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.welovecycling.com\/uk\/?p=5687"},"modified":"2023-10-17T11:22:35","modified_gmt":"2023-10-17T09:22:35","slug":"nocturnal-cycling-planning-your-route","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.welovecycling.com\/uk\/2023\/10\/17\/nocturnal-cycling-planning-your-route\/","title":{"rendered":"Nocturnal Cycling \u2013 Planning Your Route"},"content":{"rendered":"

Planning a route is never more important than when you\u2019re heading out in the dark. Everything looks different at night and a peaceful, enjoyable ride can quickly become a frustrating series of stops and starts if you keep losing your way. Here are a few tips to help you plan out your route whether it\u2019s in an urban area or out on trails.<\/strong><\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Planning doesn\u2019t have to take all of the adventure out of your nocturnal ride. The main point is to make your ride safe, avoid areas that are closed or restricted at night, and get back home without getting unpleasantly cold and wet. For longer and more relaxed rides, it may be enough to choose a few markers to guide you. Other times you can make full use of GPS and apps to take care of the navigation for you.<\/p>\n

Play it safe in urban areas<\/strong><\/h2>\n
\"Cycling<\/a>
Be extra careful in the urban areas. \u00a9 Jochen Tack \/ Alamy \/ Alamy \/ Profimedia<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Cities and villages may seem like the safest for night-time cycling but the opposite may be true as you have to deal with traffic. You definitely want to be well-equipped with lights and reflective elements<\/a> so that drivers can see you as we discussed in the last part of the series. Also, be extra careful when the sun is low and close to sunset because the glare can easily make you less visible to some drivers.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s best to stick to well-lit cycling paths or low-traffic roads for your night cycling in a city and avoid isolated areas. When planning, check whether some paths or parks are closed off at certain hours of the night.<\/p>\n

Avoid unwanted surprises on trails<\/strong><\/h2>\n

A well-planned route enhances the joy of cycling under the serene, starlit sky. It allows you to explore the quiet beauty of the night-time landscape without constantly navigating unexpected obstacles or challenges. When planning at home, you can check whether there are construction zones or other roadblocks in the area ahead of time to avoid an unwanted surprise.<\/p>\n

Choose moderate terrain, especially when you\u2019re starting out with night rides. Even your local trails that you\u2019ve ridden before will look very different at night, with shadows and blind spots and rocks you never noticed before. You can up the difficulty as you gain more experience and comfort riding with just your front light for illumination.<\/p>\n

Use navigation and technology to your advantage<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Having a phone in your jersey can usually bail you out of trouble if you get lost at night. But remember, phones can run out of battery and they don\u2019t always have reception. You can improve your chances by downloading a map of the area ahead of time and if you\u2019re going on a longer adventure, consider taking a good old-fashioned paper map as well.<\/p>\n

Use an alert system on your smart device. Your Garmin device<\/a> as well as your phone have the option to send out a signal to the emergency services or your family in case you get in trouble. This could be a literal lifesaver under certain circumstances.<\/p>\n

Check the weather<\/strong><\/h2>\n

The weather can change dramatically after dark. If you don\u2019t have experience with night riding, definitely check the forecast when planning your route. Nocturnal rides can feel like riding in winter, even if it\u2019s still warm during the day. Also, you don\u2019t want to get caught in heavy rain unprepared in the middle of the night. If the temperatures at night are getting close to freezing, be extra careful when planning routes close to rivers as they turn very slippery very quickly.<\/p>\n

Ride with a friend<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Night riding is a fantastic group activity, sharing the adventure always creates lasting memories. It also increases safety by having more lights on the road and more friends to help in case of a mechanical issue or a fall. And you get more phones with more battery time when you need the GPS.<\/p>\n

With your equipment ready and route planned, you can safely head out for your first nocturnal ride. If you catch the night riding bug, check back for the next article on advanced tips to master the dark.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Planning a route is never more important than when you\u2019re heading out in the dark. Everything looks different at night […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":178,"featured_media":5703,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[20],"tags":[],"global-categories":[],"class_list":["post-5687","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-all-the-latest"],"yoast_head":"\nNocturnal Cycling \u2013 Planning Your Route - \u0160koda We Love Cycling - United Kingdom<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.welovecycling.com\/uk\/2023\/10\/17\/nocturnal-cycling-planning-your-route\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_GB\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Nocturnal Cycling \u2013 Planning Your Route\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Planning a route is never more important than when you\u2019re heading out in the dark. Everything looks different at night […]\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.welovecycling.com\/uk\/2023\/10\/17\/nocturnal-cycling-planning-your-route\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"\u0160koda We Love Cycling - United Kingdom\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2023-10-17T09:22:35+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/d2p6e6u75xmxt8.cloudfront.net\/18\/2023\/10\/Night-Cycling-profimedia-0034549988-CVR.webp\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"990\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"660\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/webp\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"evelynfindlay\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Jiri Kaloc\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.welovecycling.com\/uk\/2023\/10\/17\/nocturnal-cycling-planning-your-route\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.welovecycling.com\/uk\/2023\/10\/17\/nocturnal-cycling-planning-your-route\/\",\"name\":\"Nocturnal Cycling \u2013 Planning Your Route - \u0160koda We Love Cycling - United Kingdom\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.welovecycling.com\/uk\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.welovecycling.com\/uk\/2023\/10\/17\/nocturnal-cycling-planning-your-route\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.welovecycling.com\/uk\/2023\/10\/17\/nocturnal-cycling-planning-your-route\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/d2p6e6u75xmxt8.cloudfront.net\/18\/2023\/10\/Night-Cycling-profimedia-0034549988-CVR.webp\",\"datePublished\":\"2023-10-17T09:22:35+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.welovecycling.com\/uk\/#\/schema\/person\/0fb8f5556d93cedeab625dee98f6bf84\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-GB\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.welovecycling.com\/uk\/2023\/10\/17\/nocturnal-cycling-planning-your-route\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-GB\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.welovecycling.com\/uk\/2023\/10\/17\/nocturnal-cycling-planning-your-route\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/d2p6e6u75xmxt8.cloudfront.net\/18\/2023\/10\/Night-Cycling-profimedia-0034549988-CVR.webp\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/d2p6e6u75xmxt8.cloudfront.net\/18\/2023\/10\/Night-Cycling-profimedia-0034549988-CVR.webp\",\"width\":990,\"height\":660,\"caption\":\"Night Cycling\"},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.welovecycling.com\/uk\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.welovecycling.com\/uk\/\",\"name\":\"\u0160koda We Love Cycling - United Kingdom\",\"description\":\"\u0160koda WeLoveCycling - United Kingdom\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/www.welovecycling.com\/uk\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-GB\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.welovecycling.com\/uk\/#\/schema\/person\/0fb8f5556d93cedeab625dee98f6bf84\",\"name\":\"evelynfindlay\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-GB\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.welovecycling.com\/uk\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/9ca0246e815ce39c3171ab03d96ff7a0617b252ab40d91e1c1e799819dc92fcf?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/9ca0246e815ce39c3171ab03d96ff7a0617b252ab40d91e1c1e799819dc92fcf?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"evelynfindlay\"},\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.welovecycling.com\/uk\/author\/evelynfindlay\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO Premium plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Nocturnal Cycling \u2013 Planning Your Route - \u0160koda We Love Cycling - United Kingdom","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.welovecycling.com\/uk\/2023\/10\/17\/nocturnal-cycling-planning-your-route\/","og_locale":"en_GB","og_type":"article","og_title":"Nocturnal Cycling \u2013 Planning Your Route","og_description":"Planning a route is never more important than when you\u2019re heading out in the dark. Everything looks different at night […]","og_url":"https:\/\/www.welovecycling.com\/uk\/2023\/10\/17\/nocturnal-cycling-planning-your-route\/","og_site_name":"\u0160koda We Love Cycling - United Kingdom","article_published_time":"2023-10-17T09:22:35+00:00","og_image":[{"width":990,"height":660,"url":"https:\/\/d2p6e6u75xmxt8.cloudfront.net\/18\/2023\/10\/Night-Cycling-profimedia-0034549988-CVR.webp","type":"image\/webp"}],"author":"evelynfindlay","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Jiri Kaloc","Est. reading time":"3"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.welovecycling.com\/uk\/2023\/10\/17\/nocturnal-cycling-planning-your-route\/","url":"https:\/\/www.welovecycling.com\/uk\/2023\/10\/17\/nocturnal-cycling-planning-your-route\/","name":"Nocturnal Cycling \u2013 Planning Your Route - \u0160koda We Love Cycling - United Kingdom","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.welovecycling.com\/uk\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.welovecycling.com\/uk\/2023\/10\/17\/nocturnal-cycling-planning-your-route\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.welovecycling.com\/uk\/2023\/10\/17\/nocturnal-cycling-planning-your-route\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/d2p6e6u75xmxt8.cloudfront.net\/18\/2023\/10\/Night-Cycling-profimedia-0034549988-CVR.webp","datePublished":"2023-10-17T09:22:35+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.welovecycling.com\/uk\/#\/schema\/person\/0fb8f5556d93cedeab625dee98f6bf84"},"inLanguage":"en-GB","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.welovecycling.com\/uk\/2023\/10\/17\/nocturnal-cycling-planning-your-route\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-GB","@id":"https:\/\/www.welovecycling.com\/uk\/2023\/10\/17\/nocturnal-cycling-planning-your-route\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/d2p6e6u75xmxt8.cloudfront.net\/18\/2023\/10\/Night-Cycling-profimedia-0034549988-CVR.webp","contentUrl":"https:\/\/d2p6e6u75xmxt8.cloudfront.net\/18\/2023\/10\/Night-Cycling-profimedia-0034549988-CVR.webp","width":990,"height":660,"caption":"Night Cycling"},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.welovecycling.com\/uk\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.welovecycling.com\/uk\/","name":"\u0160koda We Love Cycling - United Kingdom","description":"\u0160koda WeLoveCycling - United Kingdom","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.welovecycling.com\/uk\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-GB"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.welovecycling.com\/uk\/#\/schema\/person\/0fb8f5556d93cedeab625dee98f6bf84","name":"evelynfindlay","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-GB","@id":"https:\/\/www.welovecycling.com\/uk\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/9ca0246e815ce39c3171ab03d96ff7a0617b252ab40d91e1c1e799819dc92fcf?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/9ca0246e815ce39c3171ab03d96ff7a0617b252ab40d91e1c1e799819dc92fcf?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"evelynfindlay"},"url":"https:\/\/www.welovecycling.com\/uk\/author\/evelynfindlay\/"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.welovecycling.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5687","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.welovecycling.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.welovecycling.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.welovecycling.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/178"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.welovecycling.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=5687"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.welovecycling.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5687\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":5701,"href":"https:\/\/www.welovecycling.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5687\/revisions\/5701"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.welovecycling.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/5703"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.welovecycling.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=5687"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.welovecycling.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=5687"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.welovecycling.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=5687"},{"taxonomy":"global-categories","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.welovecycling.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/global-categories?post=5687"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}