The King John Way: Epic Bikepacking Adventure

The King John Way is a 300 mile multi-surface cycling adventure that routes around the counties of Lincolnshire, Leicestershire, and Nottinghamshire. This is a little gem of a route visits some historic sites, more info on the route can be found on the official website https://www.thekingjohnway.com/

We started the route in Holbeach as it was the closest point to us, we rode late afternoon on a Thursday evening and finished on the Sunday at lunchtime. This video is a record of our adventure giving an insight to what is on the route but there is so much more….. so get and and create your own memories on this epic route. Bike and luggage weight appx 28kgs.

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Check out some of my other content that visits some historic sites.
The Maldon Wyrm: https://youtu.be/2xmMf9JRZtU
The Essex Serpent: https://youtu.be/8AZp7ITEI2A

#bikepacking #adventure #exploring #historical #wildcamping
#adventurecycling #thekingjohnway #kingjohnway
#trekcheckpoint #trek #bontrager

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0:00 Start of the King John Way
2:26 Boston
6:50 2nd Day Morning
11:24 Bolingbroke Castle
15:25 Cocoon (Coast)
19:30 Cleethorpes
24:06 3rd Day Morning
25:54 Gainsborough
31:00 Lincoln Castle & Cathedral
36:40 Newark Castle
44:00 4th Day Morning
46:02 Castle Bytham
48:26 Stamford
52:37 Crowland & Abbey

300 mile bike ride. It’s going to be a more 
likely 310 miles of the new King John Way which goes through the Shires. Two routes, one on 
road, one offroad. The one we’re going to do is the off-road one. A Thursday evening after work, we’re going to get between 23 and 43 miles in tonight. Find somewhere to 
stay and each day maybe 100 miles with the last day being 60 odd miles. I’m going to 
try and finish it by a Sunday. But if not, I’ve got a Monday as a slip day. Lincoln Castle, 
the old medieval 11th century castle. That’s what I’m looking forward to the most in here. 
Never ridden on these roads before. I’ve not even visited most of the places. So, it’s proper 
little adventure for me and for Wolfy. “FLAT AS A PANCAKE” Glorious. Sun out and a nice tailwind. So, 
we’re making some good progress to start with. Bit of drama. That’s the first hour done. We’ve just done 
over 15 miles. It’s a nice cruise on these   roads. We only even met a handful of cars. 
So, we’re heading towards Boston. Probably a little bit too far ahead of our marker. 
So, we’re going to get some food there. Things might change now. I’m going to have 
a look about to see what Boston can offer. Boston. There was some nice buildings. 
I just wasn’t prepared. I mean,   I should have tried harder at school 
with languages, but even if I had, I would have struggled to understand 
anybody here. But who am I to judge?   I suppose I’m a typical Englishman that 
goes abroad and expects everyone else to speak English. The only difference here is 
I wasn’t the one who embarrassed myself. But by this time, our bellies 
were calling. Made it to Boston. Going to have a bite to eat and 
place in here. Rancho Grill. Spent Wolfy’s monthly wage on a chicken 
burger and we’re off on the canal. Bumpy. Very bumpy along here. Yeah, very quiet roads. Not a car since we’re 
in Boston. So, why is this route named King John? Well, King John Lackland was the king of England between 1199 and 1216. He was infamous for his conflicts with the English barons. He was 
a son of King Henry II and brother of Richard I, also known as Richard the Lionheart. John 
had many ties to the area we were riding, hence the connection. A revolt at the end of his 
reign led to the sealing of the Magna Carta. He eventually died at the age of 49 in Newark 
Castle, a place we will visit on the route. So it doesn’t fall back it came off. So my seat post bodge has failed already. Just need to zip tie around it the true GCN traditions. That means around his neck around here Still cruising along here. A change of direction. We’re 
going to go over this bridge. It says “spa trail”. Let’s see what delights it’s got in store for us. Cruising speed So, 6:50 in the morning and we’re out back 
on the route it’s a damp start to the morning just with mildew on the tent, but really 
nice temperature. Not a bad location to sleep. We’re just on this little track now. 
And then we’re going to go and find some food this morning. Maybe in Hornchurch. If 
not, we’ll push on just a gentle pace. Beautiful morning. Not a cloud in the sky. 
Sun is shining. Warm. Nice. No air. No wind. Thank you. First little incline we’ve come to in 
sort of 45-46 miles. Nice warm up. It’s supposed to be flat in Lincolnshire. This is a nice little spot. I cheated. I went up the bridge. 13 and a half miles in this morning. 
We’ve still not had breakfast, but we’re   just cruising along and we’ll stop somewhere 
appropriate when it happens. But until then, we’re enjoying these country little lanes. 
The elevation’s been good today. Up and down, twisty, lots of like oak trees. You can 
hear all the birds tweeting along them. Rabbits running across the road. 
Usual thing. But it’s been good. Bit of a wind from over here got a nice view. Bolingbroke Castle is easily missed if you 
don’t keep an eye on the route. Luckily, we had   noticed and looped back to the old castle ruin. 
This enclosure castle was built out of Spilsby Greenstone. Spilsby itself is a town we will visit 
shortly. This area was first fortified by the Saxons around the 6th or 7th century. Later on, 
the Normans built a motte and bailey on a nearby hill, but it wasn’t until 1220 the present structure 
was built. The future king Henry IVth was born at the castle in 1367. By the 15th or 16th 
century, which was around the Tudor period, the castle had fallen into disrepair and 
was used as an administrative center. At the start of the first English Civil War, 
the castle was again put into military use   to garrison soldiers, becoming a defensible 
base. However, in 1643 it was badly damaged, besieged by forces. That winterthe castle was 
destroyed. In 1652, what remained of the castle was slated, meaning it was deliberately damaged 
to reduce its value. The towers and walls were torn down and dumped into the moat. The 
last major structure collapsed in 1815. more hills. Not quite finished yet, but that was 10% up there. Spilsby just had a mega bap (food) in Spilsby.   So, we’ve refueled some public toilets there. 
We’ve used them. Had a quick wash. We’re back on the road. It’s 10:00 and it’s quite warm 
today. I believe there’s some rain due in about 2200 tonight. So, as long as we make some 
good progress today, we should stay a bit dry. Yeah. Dog fight of birds. Is that a kite? No, it’s a buzzard. A buzzard? Yeah, the crows 
were…. off that busy road and onto a little incline. Just riding through Willoughby now. There’s hedges in this. Yeah. Opposed to yesterday 
where there was no protection. “Holes” ahead And we arrived at the coast about 5 miles north of 
Skegness in a place called Chapel St. Leonards, a place known for caravans and campsites. It just reminded me of the film “Cocoon”. Our prior to here was to get a water refill and keep moving as it was baking hot by this point. Very warm day and very breezy. 
Thankfully, the majority has been a tail. That is 47 miles done for today. 
Just coming up to midday. Just   come from the coast inland. A couple 
of busy roads, very heavy traffic, so I haven’t filmed on there. Just 
hoping it gets a bit quieter from here. quite open on these roads again. So, having to 
contend with side winds adds to the challenge. It’s really warm today. High 20s. I’m not so 
sure. Maybe 24. Drank a bottle of water in just over an hour; getting the fluids down. But there’s 
not many places to stop this part of the route. Another busy road. This is more like it. Heading back 
towards the coast now and then we’re going to hug a left and then start going 
north towards Grimby. So we’re about 5 or 6 miles from Grimsby. Hopefully 
we’re not going to go to Grimsby because it’s very grim there. I nearly missed this one
missed this one. Bad dad jokes I hear! I see the tower up at Grimby ahead in the 
distance. So making good progress today. It’s close to 3:00 I believe. . 226. So that’s over 70.71. So maybe another 30 miles today. 
We got good time to do it. So this is Cleethorpes. This was a lovely sunny Friday afternoon, but fortunately our timing on reaching Cleethorpes was far from ideal. If we had more time, we may have pushed onto Grimsby, but we continued with our plan. Our poor timing seen us to arrive at a time where school had just finished. People were leaving work. This created a huge amount of traffic on the roads, and the drivers of the vehicles were very impatient. There was lots of slipping on and off cycle paths and roads. It was not 
my idea of having fun. Whilst the hustle and bustle continued, we stopped for an afternoon 
snack, which was very much needed by this point. Once we got going, we started 
to head inland once again,   heading towards somewhere to eat and 
eventually stay. Coming up to 80 miles. It’s been a really warm day. I’m hoping that’s the last of that busy traffic 
segment and we’re back into quiet roads cuz that was not a nice bit for me. It’s probably the time of day 15:00 onwards. Kids coming out of school, people leaving work. Friday evening, 
it’s just a cacophony for a disaster. But not before Wolfy getting some 
of the dreaded cramps out of nowhere.   It’s okay. He’d fix that later on 
with a well- earned beer or two. Remove controlled aircraft. It’s been very Ardennes then like; you’re either 
going up or down. Yeah, not complaining. 93 miles in. Heading towards Brigg now. Just looking. Got a downhill segment. We’re all good. That’s just over 100 miles done. They even have put a sign out for Wolfy over here. Brigg is a small market town situated on one of the most northerly points of this route. The people there were pleasant. We stopped at Weatherspoons which was saturated with young and old. After 
Wolfy stopped hiccuping from his beers, we soon started to head southwest to find our 
camp for the night. All right, all fed, had a good sit down in the sun for about an hour. Bit 
of a chill. Going to go find somewhere to camp. Yeah, it’s a nice place. Really eating 
in there and the people seem more nice. Get the tent up and I got some rest ready for tomorrow. Cheers Cheers on to leg three of our journey to Gainsborough this morning. We’ll get some breakfast there, all being well and then 
off to the castle. Morning Yeah. All the way back here. You can’t hear Wolfy’s  He’s beeping. He’s squeaking. His 
mobile phone’s going off. Peaceful What building is this? This building was in fact Gainsborough Old Hall. The hall is open throughout the year, but we arrived a little early. That 
didn’t stop us taking time to admire this beautiful old building. The hall was 
built in 1460 by a rich and powerful   family. It was a demonstration of the family’s 
wealth and prominence in the area at the time. Inside there are a number of witches marks 
thought to prevent against evil. There are   also curses carved into its walls as well as a 
number of burn marks to protect against fire. on the outskirts of Gainsborough. Few rain drops in the sky. Willingham Gainesburgh. Got William Gainesburgh. Another church. Nice design. Still lead on it as well. Basically, pink. We rode 26 miles just short of 2 hours. Currently 
heading towards Lincoln. We didn’t stop for any breakfast in Gainsborough. So getting a little 
bit hungry, but nothing can’t handle. So since we’re in Gainsborough, we’ve been on Country 
Lands, quiet country lanes. We just spied Lincoln, which is to my left now, so I should be able 
to see it very shortly. It’s very much in the distance, probably about 8 miles away. See that 
white house, cream house in the distance just behind it? That’s where I can see. So that’s 
where we’re heading towards in the the ground that a little bit higher. But until then, 
we’re going to battle on with this headwind. Any chance this could be a 
Roman road? It feels more   don’t it. They don’t know how to put corners in it. Just riding along the canal path into Lincoln now. Just letting my food settle down. That’s where we’re headed in the distance. In 
front of us is a bridge. If we stuck to the original route, we wouldn’t go into Lincoln. 
So, I plotted a little route separate. It’s about 7 miles in and around Lincoln and back 
out and it will rejoin this part of the route. SNAKE!!!!! the nice barges. And this was our detour to see the city of 
Lincoln, mainly the castle and the cathedral, steep hills. But first, we had a 
few cheeky gradients to deal with,   which I ended up riding twice because 
I forgot to restart my GPS. What a rookie mistake. And I couldn’t 
leave it just like that. 14%. Thank you, mate. Thank you. Come on. Do it. Keep going. The early part of this majestic cathedral dates back to 1072. An earthquake a century later seeing it severely damaged. After this, it was rebuilt in phases with an abundance 
of Gothic architecture that we can see today,   making it the magnificent beauty it is. Is the 
UK’s fourth largest cathedral by floor area, falling behind Liverpool, St. Paul’s and 
Yorkminster. It also boasts to hold one of   the four remaining copies of the original Magna 
Carta which can be seen in the castle. Closely situated next to the cathedral is Lincoln Castle 
which creates a visually striking relationship at the city’s high point. The castle is of medieval 
design constructed during the late 11th century by no other than William the Conqueror, a man of 
many talents. I hear. This castle is one of only two castles in the country that has two mottes. It 
was used as a prison and court until modern times which help preserve it. On the day we visited, 
it was ready to be used as a concert venue. So, behind these houses is the castle walls. We’re 
just going to circumnavigate around the castle walls, under a few arches to the town hall, 
and on the way back to the route. Still quite oldy worldy down here with a modern face. Although Lincoln was beautiful and 
quirky, we didn’t hang around too   long. Many parts were too busy for our 
liking. It was nice to look at and enjoy, but we also enjoy the tranquility 
of the countryside so much more. So once we had seen what we had wanted 
to see, we’re back onto the route as that’s finished with Lincoln. Just 
turning back to the original route now. So we’ve just rejoined it 
and the wind’s picking up. It’s nice little path. Quite enjoying this part. No people on here. Just us. 
Two cyclists. How are you enjoying the wind? Loving it. beautiful old church. It’s nice wind. Keep talking 
about it. It’s very open. had a pit stop to get some water and some food 
and because it’s so hot, I had my cycling cap dowsted in water. So, it’s very nice. Just going 
down some other tracks now. Changed my jersey because my other jersey is a lightweight 
jersey and the sun penetrates through it. Just on our way to Newark, a single track. King John Lackland was jokingly 
nicked then by his father because   he was a younger son. So he was not 
expected to inherit significant lands. Newark Castle was founded in the mid 12th century 
originally in timber but later replaced by a stone structure. It was at Newark Castle where 
King John died. Thought to be a dissentry,   but some say he was poisoned. As 
a result of the English Civil War, the castle was slighted in the 17th century. 
It was then left derelict for many years and thankfully it was restored in 1889. This 
grade one listed building stands proud   alongside the river Trent. Day full of stop start and get more water. It’s just warm. So the perfect headwind here. Just standing up on tandems work. Had my fun. Caught them up. Went past them. At least Wolfy has been useful for a change. After a day of headwind, we do have a bit of 
a tailwind. Not perfect, but a good start. Big spire ahead. trees. Still 
still got a chill wind. So it was about 72 miles today. A lot of it headwind and then we got the 
tailwind. We just done the last 5 miles at 19 mph. So it’s welcome cuz we got so far behind on 
time. The tailwind’s pushed us forward. So heading towards Grantham. Probably get something to eat and 
then move on a little bit. Find somewhere to camp for tonight and then work out what mileage we got 
left for tomorrow. So it’s been a good day today. busy at times, but most of the roads have been 
quiet. Not a lot of traffic. It is a Saturday, so you would expect it to be a lot busy if it was 
ever going to be busy today. But it’s been good. on our way to Grantham Sunny evening must feel like another old railway track, doesn’t it? Where’s all the beers? Where’s all the beers? Ah. I’m enjoying this bit. Just going into 
Graantham along the canal. It’s nice to   track. Never expected it. Yeah, 
good little bit of the route. It’s more bumpy down here. Number 66. Oh, made it without falling 
in, which is always a bonus. Overall, a very good track. I’m not so sure that rough bits where 
I want to be. No. No. You will come and find yourself robbed in the night. Do 
you mean robbed in the night? Robbed during the day. Yeah. Seeing some uh special 
characters is the best way to describe them. The slight detour looking for some 
food takeaway tonight I reckon. That’s fed and watered. My last little push 
to find somewhere to camp for tonight and then there should be about 75 miles left 
tomorrow. All been well seen better days. hills out of Grantham on a full belly but I’ve got tailwind which helps the roads feel deserted. Oh, spoke too soon. Second there with triple figures. Last day final push. Perfect little camp spot that Got a friend traveling with me. So quiet lanes on this Sunday morning. 
We’re going to go to Stamford and then back up towards Holbeach. It’s about 
60 miles. Another beautiful day. Very few clouds. Sun’s been up for an hour or two. Well, quite a few hours now, actually. Let’s use momentum to get up this hill. Managed the 
first bit. Think I’ll spin this second bit out. on the lookout. Castle Bytham Uhhuh. I reckon that’s the castle there. And he was right. It was Castle Byford. I’d ridden past it, not even noticed it. too busy focusing on the next climb. The castle was built on a spur of land above the river Tham not long after 
the Norman conquest of 1066. After a siege, it was captured by Henry III in 1221. It was he 
who ordered the castle to be destroyed. It was restored with connections to Henry IV in the 14th 
century, but its demise didn’t come long after in the 15th century where it burned down during the 
War of the Roses. The stone was robbed for local   buildings. By the 20th century, there was no 
longer any stonework to be seen above ground. bit like You’re getting up in the morning. Yeah. morning Cyclist behind. Are we okay to come through? 
Thank you very much. Have a great day. A lot of churches on this route. 
There’s like one every two miles. So, it’s Sunday today. On Tuesday, I had a 
look at the weather forecast and I decided on Thursday that I would start this ride. The 
weather’s been really good. I couldn’t ask for more. There was some rain patches about, but 
thankfully they stayed away. Done well. Just doing that last minute. sort of planning. Now, I’m 
not too fussed about rain, but if I can avoid it, I will. I had tomorrow, Monday, as a backup 
day as well, just in case it took a bit longer. Hello. Hello. Crowland has two sides of a historical 
interest. The first is Trinity Bridge   which dates back to the 14th century. It 
once stood over the river Welland. The river since has long been rerouted odd in 
design with its unique three-way stone arch and onto the Abbey. The monastic history 
started here in the 8th century but it and the community was entirely 
destroyed by the Danes in 866. After bringing it back to its former glory,   it was again destroyed by fire first in 
1091 and 1170. It was rebuilt each time. In 1539, the abbey was dissolved with 
the monastic buildings being demolished. During the English Civil War, the remains 
of the Abbey was fortified and garrisoned and after a short siege, it was taken by 
Parliamentarian Oliver Cromwell. This is when it appears to have sustained the most 
serious damage to its structure. The nave roof fell in 1720 and the south wall was 
taken down a couple of decades later. Today all the remains intact is the north 
aisle which is in use as a parish church. does that fit you that? Just about 50 miles done for today. Maybe we 
could have 10 miles left, plus or minus. Why can’t all tarmac be like this? Beautiful. About 5 miles left. Even a sign that says Holbeach. That’s our little target where we started. It’s been a really good route. Seeing the demographic of the UK in all its glory. Everywhere’s a little bit different. Yes, we’ve done a circumnavigation sort of loop, but there’s a lot to see in that. It’s a nice mixture of roads, tracks, byways. Yeah, it’s been all right. And the bits I didn’t like that was soon forgotten 
about. But the distance is not too much elevation. We’re talking over 300 miles and 7,000 ft. That 
to me is not a lot. Most of the climbs are just gentle. There’s a few cheeky little sharp 
ones in there. But if you’re not confident, you could get your bike and push it up, but most 
cyclists shouldn’t find it too challenging. Hello. It’s been a few good few days. We can recommend the King 
John’s Way. It’s got a bit of everything. Plenty of history, plenty of good scenery, plenty of tailwinds. Yeah. What about the headwinds? Well, we don’t count those. Yeah, exactly. We forgot about them, haven’t we? We forget those rose colored spectacles. Yeah, it’s definitely 
a recommendation. Depends how long you want to take doing it. We’ve done it over 3 days 
effectively. 4 days on paper, but we started late on the first day. Three full days. 
Yeah. So, three full days. We stopped at the place we want to stop. You could stop 
longer. Depends what you want out of it. We just like the adventure and then going   to places we haven’t been. 
And it’s thouroughly recommended. And that’s the King John’s way.