Cycling-wise, my family’s move from East Oxford to Charlbury couldn’t have been smarter. There’s a fantastic range of formal and informal off-road riding in the rolling hills all around, with trails literally on my doorstep.

Some of these trails I have discovered already. There’s a steady climb north east up out of Charlbury along a wide, easy trail: the Salt Way. This track is an ancient route used to haul salt from Cheshire all the way to the Thames on its way to London. It’s rutted, muddy and not that fast, but the views are awesome as you approach Chipping Norton, the highest point in West Oxfordshire. From Old London Road just south of Chippy, there’s a bridleway that drops like a plumbline down to Chadlington, two miles away in the valley bottom. Known as “Chad Track” on the ride-mapping website Strava, it’s part of a loop that’s already a staple. The route back to Charlbury takes you on bridleways and backroads via Dean, passing the constituency home of David Cameron.

Some of these trails are “known unknowns”, ie what you can see on the OS maps but haven’t yet ridden. A staggering number of bridleways criss-cross this part of the county. Poetically, I even live on a bridleway.

Other hidden trails and rideable forest loops lie waiting to be discovered – “unknown unknowns” for the time being. I’m particularly intrigued by what amounts to giant network of field edges accessible to two wheelers. Many local farmers are paid to leave uncultivated borders 5m wide around fields. These generous borders are like empty motorways for the mountain biker, making it easy to get back on track when you get lost, or simply to head in a particular direction on a whim.

Wearing my road helmet, I am beginning to “get” the purist roadrider idea of treating the downhills as a chance to freewheel while seeking out the toughest climbs for thigh-tingling entertainment. The steep Cotswold hills are certainly making me wonder whether I need an easier gear ratio if I am to survive here.

Meanwhile, I am enjoying easy forays along National Cycle Network Route 442 (www.sustrans.org.uk/ncn/map/route/route-442), which passes through town, and using the amazing cycle journey planner at www.cycle.travel to get further along the Cotswold Line, a cycle route, which roughly follows the train line from here to Worcester. The signed route goes from Hanborough, via Charlbury, Kingham and Moreton-in-Marsh to Honeybourne, near Evesham. It means you can cycle as far as you want out of Oxford, and then get the train home when you’ve done enough.

Cycle.travel is the creation of renowned cartographer-geek and Charlbury town councillor Richard Fairhurst. It assesses terrain (hills) and traffic density to plan the best cycle routes nationally. For riding out of a place as hilly as Charlbury, I can see that I’ll be using www.cycle.travel rather a lot. It’s worth checking out wherever you are – it covers the whole of the UK.