Description
Bedgebury Forest Mountain Bike Trails sit on the Kent/Sussex border in the 2,000-acre Bedgebury National Pinetum and Forest. There's a 13km red singletrack trail (with an optional black-graded section), a 9km family cycle trail with a shorter 4km loop, and a wider network of forest roads that make for good gravel riding too.
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The Trails
- Singletrack Trail (Red, 13km) โ twisty, rooty singletrack with short sharp ups and downs, berms, rollers and drops, split into named sections including Deliverance, Cardiac, Five Ways and Magic Carpet. An optional red/black section adds a rock garden roll-in, small kickers and drops.
- Family Cycle Trail (9km, ungraded) โ shared-use forest road through the pinetum, suitable for all abilities.
- Short Family Cycle Trail (4km, ungraded) โ a shorter loop of the family route, aimed at younger or less experienced riders. Some sections are gravelly and gently hilly.
Gravel Riding
Beyond the waymarked family trails, Bedgebury's forest roads add up to around 25km of traffic-free, signposted cycling across the pinetum, making it a solid option for a longer gravel-style ride as well as the singletrack.
Local Organisation
- Bedgebury Forest Cycle Club, known as Boars on Bikes, is active on site with Saturday morning rides, Wednesday night rides and a British Cycling Go-Ride club for young riders: boarsonbikes.co.uk
Beyond the Trails
Bedgebury is built around the National Pinetum, a world-leading conifer collection with over 12,000 specimen trees, so there's plenty for a group or family to do beyond the bike trails. Go Ape runs treetop courses on site, from the family-friendly Treetop Adventure to the full Treetop Challenge with zip lines and Tarzan swings, and also handles bike hire at Bedgebury. Younger kids can burn energy on the play trail and Gruffalo trail, and Bedgebury Cafe, by the visitor centre lake, serves hot food and homemade cakes. See the full pinetum offering at forestryengland.uk/bedgebury.
Getting Here
Bedgebury Visitor Centre, Bedgebury Rd, Goudhurst, Cranbrook TN17 2SJ is the main car park, just off the A21 (Junction 5, M25), about 10 miles south of Tunbridge Wells and 16 miles north of Hastings. Sat-navs should pick up Bedgebury Forest as a point of interest.
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