Norwood to Herne Hill (No big hills)

The Col du Crystal Palace is regarded by many as a cyclists' nemesis.

Especially if you're coming back from town with an unpowered trailer or cargo...

But there's a way around, following the contours of the lost River Effra. It rises on Norwood Rec and follows the lowest land from there.

We can't take the river route itself - there's no access across Virgo Fidelis' land, and the West Norwood and Tulse Hill gyratories are pretty intimidating on a bike. But by following the line of the old valley sides - Tivoli Road and Rosendale Road - the steep ups and downs of the area are entirely avoided.

A much more manageable route on heavier bikes than the steep climbs of Salters, Gipsy, Central or College hills.

Grangewood to Chiswick via Wandsworth Common

Another Chiswick/Hammersmith route, via Streatham, Tooting and Wandsworth Commons and the Thames Path.

Some of the Wandsworth Common bit (from the station up to Cat's Back Bridge) isn't designated for cycling but I've chosen quieter paths east of the railway - be considerate and you'll be OK.

This route goes north of the river at Wandsworth and follows NCN4 around the Hurlingham Club, as Hammersmith Bridge is closed for the foreseeable future. Hurlingham Road can be a bit busy, but is popular with cyclists so there is a degree of safety in numbers.

Be careful crossing the A219 just north of Putney Bridge - quite a nasty junction. After that there's Bishops Park and then LTN'ed streets parallel with the river all the way up to Hammersmith Bridge. From there, follow the river path up as far as the Black Lion pub, then under the A4 and through St Peter's Square to CS9.

Update - Dec.2020: CS9 is now present in temporary form (bi-directional track with wands) from Goldhawk Road up to Turnham Green and from there towards Brentford along Wellesley Road. It's great!

Alt.Chiswick - Beverley Brook way.

I've recently been using the Wandle Trail (via my Colliers Wood route) to get to Turnham Green to see my mum. It's a nice route but has a few problems - Earlsfield town centre (the "Wandle Gap") and the Wandsworth Gyratory. (Following river valleys means you avoid South London's hills, which is helpful on a 15 mile journey).

This route ignores the Wandle - heading instead for the Beverley Brook at Wimbledon Common, and following it (roughly) up to Barnes, where it's a short hop to the railway footbridge over the Thames. From there there's a railway path that heads up to Chiswick House Grounds, then it's the A4 underpass and on to Turnham Green.

Have ridden bits of this but not the whole thing. The maps aren't terribly clear on where you can/can't cycle north of the Upper Richmond Road. White Hart Lane is the quickest way but a bit on the busy side - Vine Road and along the railway would be better, but appears to suffer from West London's rather anal attitude towards cycling.

Will be interesting to ride this one and see how it compares to the Wandsworth Common routes.

Grangewood to Croydon the quiet(ish) way

This route takes advantage of LB Croydon's temporary road closures along Holmesdale Road. It's pretty quiet the whole way. 

The main road crossings (Whitehorse Lane, Selhurst Road, George Street and especially Coombe Road if you go that far south) aren't great - probably best dealt with on foot when things are busy.

Crystal Palace Park to Dulwich Park (Secret of the Sphinx)

Nice route from Crystal Palace to Dulwich and onward connections on Cycleway 17.

The secret of the sphinx is.. that there's a cut-through above it which comes out at the Crystal Palace Parade / Sydenham Hill double roundabout. The terrain is a little uneven at the top of the park but it's all manageable.

The toll road runs downhill from here to the South Circular; the pavement along the S Circ is shared-use (cycling permitted) all the way to Dulwich Park.

The streets north of the park are quiet up to the JAGS/Alleyns corner, and the Green Dale path heads up from there towards Burgess Park & Camberwell.