Between these, the route runs through

Reading Reading is the process of taking in the sense or meaning of Letter (alphabet), letters, symbols, etc., especially by Visual perception, sight or Somatosensory system, touch. For educators and researchers, reading is a multifaceted process invo ...

Bath Bath may refer to: * Bathing, immersion in a fluid ** Bathtub, a large open container for water, in which a person may wash their body ** Public bathing, a public place where people bathe * Thermae, ancient Roman public bathing facilities Plac ...

Bristol Bristol () is a city, ceremonial county and unitary authority in England. Situated on the River Avon, it is bordered by the ceremonial counties of Gloucestershire to the north and Somerset to the south. Bristol is the most populous city i ...

Newport Newport most commonly refers to: *Newport, Wales *Newport, Rhode Island, US Newport or New Port may also refer to: Places Asia *Newport City, Metro Manila, a Philippine district in Pasay Europe Ireland *Newport, County Mayo, a town on the ...

, Swansea and

St David's St Davids or St David's ( cy, Tyddewi, , "David's house”) is a city and a community (named St Davids and the Cathedral Close) with a cathedral in Pembrokeshire, Wales, lying on the River Alun. It is the resting place of Saint David, W ...

. Within Wales, sections of the route follow branches of the

Celtic Trail cycle route The Celtic Trail is a network of dedicated cycle routes in the National Cycle Network, crossing West, South and Mid Wales, and covering 377 miles in total. It is divided into east and west sections. The west section links Pembroke and Fishgu ...

Route

The total length of the path is 443.6 miles and takes an estimated 36 hours to complete by bike. Just under half (47.4%) of the route consists in traffic-free paths.

London to Reading

The route roughly follows the course of the

River Thames The River Thames ( ), known alternatively in parts as the River Isis, is a river that flows through southern England including London. At , it is the longest river entirely in England and the second-longest in the United Kingdom, after the ...

between London and Reading, and forms a junction with NCR 5 and NCR 23 at the latter. *

Greenwich Greenwich ( , ,) is a town in south-east London, England, within the ceremonial county of Greater London. It is situated east-southeast of Charing Cross. Greenwich is notable for its maritime history and for giving its name to the Greenwic ...

;

Rotherhithe Rotherhithe () is a district of south-east London, England, and part of the London Borough of Southwark. It is on a peninsula on the south bank of the Thames, facing Wapping, Shadwell and Limehouse on the north bank, as well as the Isle of ...

: Surrey Quays;

South Bank The South Bank is an entertainment and commercial district in central London, next to the River Thames opposite the City of Westminster. It forms a narrow strip of riverside land within the London Borough of Lambeth (where it adjoins Albert ...

;

Lambeth Bridge Lambeth Bridge is a road traffic and footbridge crossing the River Thames in an east–west direction in central London. The river flows north at the crossing point. Downstream, the next bridge is Westminster Bridge; upstream, the next bridge i ...

; Chelsea; Imperial Wharf;

Putney Bridge Putney Bridge is a Grade II listed bridge over the River Thames in west London, linking Putney on the south side with Fulham to the north. The bridge has medieval parish churches beside its abutments: St Mary's Church, Putney is built on the so ...

Richmond Park Richmond Park, in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames, is the largest of London's Royal Parks, and is of national and international importance for wildlife conservation. It was created by Charles I in the 17th century as a deer pa ...

; Ham;

Hampton Court Palace Hampton Court Palace is a Grade I listed royal palace in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames, southwest and upstream of central London on the River Thames. The building of the palace began in 1514 for Cardinal Thomas Wolsey, the chief ...

;

Molesey Molesey is a district of two twin towns, East Molesey and West Molesey, in the Borough of Elmbridge, Surrey, England, and is situated on the south bank of the River Thames. East and West Molesey share a high street, and there is a second retai ...

; Walton on Thames *

Chertsey Chertsey is a town in the Borough of Runnymede, Surrey, England, south-west of central London. It grew up round Chertsey Abbey, founded in 666 CE, and gained a market charter from Henry I. A bridge across the River Thames first appeared in ...

(touristic town) or Laleham (shorter, towpath route) * Staines Bridge; Coopers Hill; Windsor Great Park; Windsor; Eton * Bray;

Maidenhead Maidenhead is a market town in the Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead in the county of Berkshire, England, on the southwestern bank of the River Thames. It had an estimated population of 70,374 and forms part of the border with southern Bu ...

Wargrave Wargrave () is a historic village and civil parish in Berkshire, England. The village is primarily on the River Thames but also along the confluence of the River Loddon and lies on the border with southern Oxfordshire. The village has many o ...

;

At its east end, the route meanders mostly set about one "block" back from the

Thames The River Thames ( ), known alternatively in parts as the River Isis, is a river that flows through southern England including London. At , it is the longest river entirely in England and the second-longest in the United Kingdom, after the ...

, including several small parks. It shortcuts through: Rotherhithe and mid-Pimlico. It finds the Thames at the Chelsea Embankment. It zig-zags through Hurlingham and Barnes Common. It finds the

Thames Path The Thames Path is a National Trail following the River Thames from its source near Kemble in Gloucestershire to the Woolwich foot tunnel, south east London. It is about long. A path was first proposed in 1948 but it only opened in 1996. The ...

at Ham, facing Teddington Lock Footbridges, until

Staines-upon-Thames Staines-upon-Thames is a market town in northwest Surrey, England, around west of central London. It is in the Borough of Spelthorne, at the confluence of the River Thames and Colne. Historically part of Middlesex, the town was transferre ...

. A longer route from Putney is to remain on the towpath (Thames Path) to avoid traffic.

Reading to Bath

Much longer, the Reading to Bath section follows the Kennet & Avon Cycle Route which partly follows the towpath of the

Kennet and Avon Canal The Kennet and Avon Canal is a waterway in southern England with an overall length of , made up of two lengths of navigable river linked by a canal. The name is used to refer to the entire length of the navigation rather than solely to the c ...

and the course of the River Kennet, with other sections on low-traffic roads. Approaching Bath, Route 24 and the Two Tunnels Greenway are a corollary, rejoining Route 4 west of the city centre.

Bath to Bristol

The Bath to Bristol section of the route follows the Bristol & Bath Railway Path, a dedicated cycle path on a disused railway line. This is entirely traffic-free.

Bristol to Newport

After passing through Bristol city centre, the route heads north into

South Gloucestershire South Gloucestershire is a unitary authority area in the ceremonial county of Gloucestershire, South West England. Towns in the area include Yate, Chipping Sodbury, Thornbury, Filton, Patchway and Bradley Stoke, the latter three forming par ...

, and over the

Severn Bridge The Severn Bridge ( cy, Pont Hafren) is a motorway suspension bridge that spans the River Severn between South Gloucestershire in England and Monmouthshire in South East Wales. It is the original Severn road crossing between England and ...

. Passing through

Chepstow Chepstow ( cy, Cas-gwent) is a town and community in Monmouthshire, Wales, adjoining the border with Gloucestershire, England. It is located on the tidal River Wye, about above its confluence with the River Severn, and adjoining the wester ...

, it then goes south, passing through

Caldicot Caldicot may refer to: * Caldicot, Buckinghamshire * Caldicot, Monmouthshire * Caldicot (hundred) * Caldicot Castle, Monmouthshire * Caldicot railway station, a part of the British railway system * Caldicot RFC, a Welsh rugby union club * Caldico ...

before arriving in

. The route passes to the north of the Newport Wetlands Reserve and across Newport Transporter Bridge in the south of the city.

Newport to Llanelli

After Newport, the route heads west to Caerphilly, then north towards Pontypridd during which it crosses the Taff Trail. It then heads west towards

Port Talbot Port Talbot (, ) is a town and community in the county borough of Neath Port Talbot, Wales, situated on the east side of Swansea Bay, approximately from Swansea. The Port Talbot Steelworks covers a large area of land which dominates the sout ...

. Near

Briton Ferry Briton Ferry ( cy, Llansawel) is a town and community in the county borough of Neath Port Talbot, Wales. The Welsh name may indicate that the church, ''llan'', is protected from the wind, ''awel''. Alternatively, ''Sawel'' may be a derivative ...

, it crosses the A48 bridge and then follows the A483 road (Fabian Way) into Swansea and passes through the Maritime Quarter. Just before the Maritime Quarter, it crosses National Cycle Route 43. It then follows the seafront promenade along

Swansea Bay Swansea Bay ( cy, Bae Abertawe) is a bay on the southern coast of Wales. The River Neath, River Tawe, River Afan, River Kenfig and Clyne River flow into the bay. Swansea Bay and the upper reaches of the Bristol Channel experience a large ti ...

Blackpill Blackpill (or Black Pill) is a suburban area of Swansea, Wales, beside Swansea Bay, about southwest of the city centre. Description Blackpill falls into the Mayals ward. The area is centred on a seafront building on Mumbles road, which onc ...

where it turns north up the

Clyne Valley The Clyne Valley Country Park is an area of parkland in Britain, at Swansea in south Wales. It lies on either side of the valley of the Clyne River and comprises an area of over of land running from the sea at Blackpill, Swansea, inland to Gowe ...

cycle track passing the village of

Dunvant Dunvant ( cy, Dyfnant) (Dyfn - deep; nant - stream or brook) is a suburban district and community (parish) in the City and County of Swansea, Wales, and falls within the Dunvant ward. It is situated in a valley some 4.5 miles west of Swansea city ...

until it reaches Gowerton. In Gowerton, the trail follows public roads to the south of Loughor towards the Loughor bridge. Once over the Loughor bridge it continues along the Millennium Coastal Path to the south of

Llanelli Llanelli ("St Elli's llan (placename element), Parish"; ) is a market town and the largest community in Carmarthenshire and the Preserved counties of Wales, preserved county of Dyfed, Wales. It is located on the Loughor estuary north-west of ...

Llanelli to Fishguard

NCR 4 follows the Millennium Coastal Path along the south

Carmarthenshire Carmarthenshire ( cy, Sir Gaerfyrddin; or informally ') is a county in the south-west of Wales. The three largest towns are Llanelli, Carmarthen and Ammanford. Carmarthen is the county town and administrative centre. The county is known ...

coast. Between Pembroke and Haverfordwest, NCR follows the route of a disused railway called the

Brunel Trail Isambard Kingdom Brunel (; 9 April 1806 – 15 September 1859) was a British civil engineer who is considered "one of the most ingenious and prolific figures in engineering history," "one of the 19th-century engineering giants," and "one ...

and crosses over the Cleddau Bridge.

References

External links

Sustrans National Routes
{{DEFAULTSORT:National Cycle Route 04 National Cycle Routes Cycleways in Wales Cycleways in England Cycleways in London Transport in Pembrokeshire Transport in Carmarthenshire Transport in Swansea Transport in Neath Port Talbot Transport in Bridgend County Borough Transport in Rhondda Cynon Taf Transport in Caerphilly County Borough Transport in Newport, Wales Transport in Monmouthshire Transport in Bristol Cycling in Somerset Transport in Wiltshire Transport in Berkshire Transport in Buckinghamshire Transport in Surrey Transport in the Royal Borough of Kingston upon Thames Transport in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames Transport in the London Borough of Wandsworth