Please note. This site was only created in September 2022 and is still under construction. I hope it will become the “go to” resource for anyone wanting to drive/ride the A66 but there is masses of information to put in. Bear with me please.
Reason for creating this site
Route 66 in the USA is on many people’s “bucket ” list. It is the adventure of a lifetime and I would love to do it, especially on a Harley Davidson – the bike of choice for that adventure. But…. it is expensive (for anyone in the UK who has to fly out there first), quite time consuming, and is generally considered a one-way route.
Here in the UK we have the North Coast 500 (NC500). This is a magnificent scenic route around Scotland and has become hugely popular in a relatively few years, to the extent that it is now referred to as the Scottish Route 66.
Wales also has amazing scenery and now boasts the “Welsh 360”. This is 360 mile route around the Snowdonia National Park and is aiming to be referred to as the Welsh Route 66.
So, in England, what do we have? Well, I suppose we have the Land’s End to John O’Groats. 930 miles and certainly very popular but, again, it is really a one way route. Which means either starting a Land’s End and finishing at John O’Groats (known as LEJOG) or starting at John O’Groats and finishing at Land’s End (known as JOGLE). So if, like me, you live in the Midlands, first of all you have to get to one end of the route. And then get home again afterwards. This means that the whole exercise is something of a challenge, which is OK, but I want a route I can travel at a leisurely pace. And take a detour if a want to explore something of interest. And learn more about the history.
All of this got me thinking. All our roads are numbered, so what about creating our own Route 66 with the A66 as the basis?
The A66 is one of the UK’s main trans-Pennine routes, running from Middlesbrough on the East coast, to Workington on the West coast (in the beautiful Lake District National Park). The route however is rather short at only 120 miles. But that got me thinking even more. Why not have a return route that packs in even more stunning scenery? And then, when I checked the maps, two routes emerged – one longer one to the north and the other to the south. I then noticed that what connected these two routes is the amount of history you will find along the way, especially Roman history. The southern route returns eastwards over the Hardknott Pass (with its Roman Fort) and the Wrynose pass, then takes in some of the majestic lakes before heading off for the Yorkshire Dales National Park. The northerly return route also takes in some lovely Lake District views before crossing the M6 motorway and follows the path of Hadrian’s Wall (along the A69).
There is also some “infamous” history I will add. The A66 passes through Barnard Castle, brought to people’s attention by Dominic Cummings in 2020 who wanted to check his eyesight by driving there….https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2021/may/26/dominic-cummings-says-he-did-not-tell-whole-truth-about-journeys-to-durham-barnard-castle. There is also Seaton Carew, not far from Middlesbrough, where John Darwin lived and disappeared https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Darwin_disappearance_case
So there we have it. A circular, scenic, coast to coast route which can be joined anywhere. The northerly return brings the round trip to 260 miles. The southerly one to about 200 miles. But you will end up doing more because there are so many interesting places just a few miles off the route which you will want to visit. If you are not really into history and just want to add the Route A66 to your bucket list, you can complete it in a weekend. If, however, you want to savour it, then you might want to allow a week.
Route A66 in the UK 