UKC

I'll be starting a new job in Redhill soon so I'm looking at accommodation options but I am completely new to the area so I'm a bit clueless. If you have a spare room that meets the following requirements, or can suggest an area that is suitable, then I'd be most grateful!

1.) I'd like to be 5-10 miles commute away from Redhill so I have a reasonably long bike ride to work every day, to keep fit. Nice roads for cycling would be a bonus.
2.) Good public transport links to London
3.) Close enough to indoor climbing that evening sessions after work are not a total pain
4.) Good road links to get out to climbing/MTB areas

I'm hoping to climb a lot this year so it would be nice to share a house with other climbers/active people. I have a car, full trad rack, rope and bikes so I can be a pretty good climbing/activities partner to potential housemates!

Budget of around £500/month for a flatshare and up to £800 for a 1 bed flat.

In reply to s1362083:

Hi, welcome to the area! There's a climbing wall in Salfords (High Sports) and another in Crawley (K2). Crawley would be about 8-10 miles away and you'd pass through Salfords on the way to Redhill. Crawley is a big town lots of shops. Quieter but still not far from good transport links would be Horley or near Gatwick (e.g. Charlwood), which are a bit closer to Redhill, just a bit further out than Salfords.

My house is full with my own brood, so can't help with accommodation directly, sorry!

Hope this helps. Feel free to ask more questions - I'll do my best!

In reply to s1362083:

Oh and the places I mentioned are all within an hour of some Southern Sandstone, such as High Rocks near Tonbridge Wells.

In reply to mountainbagger:

Thanks for the info, around Horley looks promising. Are there many routes at those walls? They don't seem to be dedicated climbing walls so I'm wondering if it would get a bit boring if I was visiting twice a week.

Around Epsom is another area that looks promising. 10 mile ride to Redhill, a lot of it is off the main roads, White Spider and Craggy Island are reasonably close by and trains to London are around 30 minutes. It makes the drive to Surrey Hills, Southern Sandstone and Portland longer though!

In reply to s1362083:
Ok, given what you've just said, I wonder if Dorking would be better than Epsom. Close to Surrey Hills, Box Hill on your doorstep, easy drive down to South Downs, not far from Guildford for Craggy, good distance to Redhill (and much of it can be done off-road if you've got the time). Might be a bit pricier than Epsom though, but I'm not sure about that.

In reply to s1362083:

Sorry also forgot to answer your question! Yes those walls I mentioned are nowhere near as good as the one in Guildford I think. I haven't climbed at K2 but I've seen it and it's high but not a lot of routes. The Salfords wall is half the height but more routes though that might have changed - I haven't been there for a few years!
You could check them out quite easily from Dorking (if you've got a car) though.

In reply to mountainbagger:

Dorking....great running area.

In reply to Phil1919:

Yes I sometimes run to Box Hill (20 mile round trip from my house, so not that often!). North Downs Way along top from Reigate Hill also nice. Leith Hill area also good for running, walking and mtb (from what I've seen when I've been walking round there).

In reply to s1362083: I'd agree that Dorking is a great place to live for running, walking and biking. What's the train to London like nowadays?

In reply to mountainbagger:

Yeah I had initially looked at Dorking and wrote it off on account of it being a little too far from White Spider but a 25 minute drive isn't that bad. The commute to Redhill would be nicer!

In reply to wbo:

I think Dorking is about 50 odd mins to London. Redhill is 30 mins to London.