Viewing 40 posts - 1 through 40 (of 85 total)
  • Favourite peaks descent?
  • teenrat
    Full Member

    Been riding the peaks alot recently and am gradually forming an opinion of which are my favourite descents.

    For me, my top 3 are-

    Lockerbrook
    Cutthroat ridge down to ladybower Inn
    North america

    And as a cheeky one, shooters Clough.

    So what are stw’s favourites?

    Nobeerinthefridge
    Free Member

    Shatners bassoon.

    robgclarkson
    Free Member

    Cut Aate (if/when dry)
    Potato Alley
    The Beast

    jekkyl
    Full Member

    Potato Alley.
    &
    Cumberland Clough.

    chevychase
    Full Member

    I dislike potato alley tbh. The only reason I ever ride it is because it’s an easy ride up the other side to the screaming mile (which is ace) rather than pushing up Hagg Farm.

    Pook
    Full Member

    Potato alley is great. I dare say better than the beast

    munrobiker
    Free Member

    Les Arcs
    Parkin Clough
    Cut Gate, either way.

    Edit – brucey bonus – that one with all the rock drops off Higger Tor. That really is the business.

    munrobiker
    Free Member

    chevychase – Member
    I dislike potato alley tbh. The only reason I ever ride it is because it’s an easy ride up the other side to the screaming mile (which is ace) rather than pushing up Hagg Farm.

    I’d agree that potato alley isn’t up to much but pushing up Hagg Farm rather than riding 2 minutes along the road from the end of the Beast to the Lockerbrook climb is total lunacy.

    teenrat
    Full Member

    I also don’t like potato alley, much prefer the beast. Potato alley should be great, but I just don’t get on with it.

    higgo
    Free Member

    In no particular order:
    Lockerbrook
    Stanage Plantation
    Shatner’s Bassoon
    Fox/Strines

    mark90
    Free Member

    I haven’t ridden that much of the Peaks but I think my favorite is Cave dale, or the Beast. Stanage plantation is a blast too.

    Edit:

    Lockerbrook and Potato alley are good fun but not in the same league.

    Add Les arcs to the favorite list.

    Have yet to do Cut gate and North America, or Parking Clough. Maybe on my next Peaks trip

    fathomer
    Full Member

    Les Arcs
    Lockerbrook
    Jacobs Ladder

    Though this changes on a regular basis, there’s so many good descents and conditions/mood can make a massive difference.

    I’d agree that potato alley isn’t up to much but pushing up Hagg Farm rather than riding 2 minutes along the road from the end of the Beast to the Lockerbrook climb is total lunacy.

    Exactly what I thought 😀

    Edit: where’s Shatner’s Bassoon?

    JImmAwelon
    Free Member

    Not ridden in the Peak for years but for me simply because it’s not there anymore – the Chapel Gate of old (10-15 years ago) with the ribbon of tarmac that occasionally ended and necessitated a bunnyhop to the next. I loved that.

    Always liked Jacobs Ladder for the gasps and commentary by the tourists as you dropped off the top.

    vickypea
    Free Member

    Cut Gate

    solidrooster
    Free Member

    Lockerbrook closely followed by cutthroat descent back towards the pub for me

    chevychase
    Full Member

    pushing up Hagg Farm rather than riding 2 minutes along the road from the end of the Beast to the Lockerbrook climb is total lunacy

    Been nearly wiped out by cars too many times on that stretch of road. Eff that for a game of soldiers.

    chestercopperpot
    Free Member

    The Beast
    Cumberland Brook (especially the top bit off Danebower Hollow)
    Jacobs Ladder
    The woods off Win Hill
    Macc Forest/Nessit Hill
    Derwent Edge to the Ladybower Inn
    Cat & Fiddle/Shooters Clough/Errwood Reservoir
    Embridge Causeway/Super Smashing Whoops/Errwood Reservoir
    Mam Tor/Hollins Cross to Castleton
    Stanage Plantation
    Cavedale.

    Want to do Parkin Clough and Doctors Gate.

    sharkattack
    Full Member

    The Peak is my new local but I have no idea where most of these trails are yet.

    I’ve got the Dark Peak guide book with a lot of loops in but it doesn’t name that many individual sections. Can someone put up some maps, or recommend a route that takes in some of the favourite descents?

    newrobdob
    Free Member

    If you ride the Beast without knowing what it is you’d say at the bottom “chuff me that was a beast of a descent”. So then you’d know where you are! Can’t be any other reason it’s called that surely?

    ebennett
    Full Member

    Though this changes on a regular basis, there’s so many good descents and conditions/mood can make a massive difference.

    +1

    Jacob’s – if it isn’t swarming with walkers
    WLT to Ladybower Inn – if it’s nice and dry
    Cut Gate – if it’s dry and not blowing a gale in your face

    I like the beast and lockerbrook but I probably ride them too much so they don’t make the list. Spud alley would make it if it wasn’t for the couple of bits with loose rocks the size of babies’ heads where you’re just pinging around and hoping you don’t flat. Or smash a mech like I did last week.

    Sharkattack, this route takes in Jacob’s, the Beast, Lockerbrook, and Cut gate (in 1 direction anyway). All should be named in the directions. Where it goes down to the Beast from Hope Cross, if you turn left at Hope Cross (NW) instead you’ll go down spud alley.

    docrobster
    Free Member

    No one mentioned hollinsclough?

    Also the descent off totley cairn towards sheep skulls.

    Blacka moor- Devils elbow and piper house gate.

    Bradwell edge

    White edge

    Les arcs/insanity is awesome but getting wider and less awesome through use.

    stcolin
    Free Member

    I enjoyed a couple of the descent in this video of mine. Think the last one is Les Arcs?

    [video]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9GRya_tvly0[/video]

    thisisnotaspoon
    Free Member

    Cavedale, how could anything else be a favourite? Steep, rocky, fast lower sections with a flowy top bit until you hit the gate.

    Bradwell Edge is good fun in the dry too, but the fun bit is only about 20s long. Blaca moor used to be good fun, but rode it on a recent trip after a 10 year absence and it’s not a patch on how it used to be.

    stilltortoise
    Free Member

    Loads of good descents, all for different reasons. I really have no idea what my favourite is. I do prefer either fast, poppy and swoopy or proper-line-choice-is-essential descents, rather than loose and rocky, straight-line let-the-suspension-soak-it-up descents.

    chestercopperpot
    Free Member

    No one mentioned hollinsclough?

    Hollinsclough is on my to do list. Seems popular with the MX boys. Can it be incorporated into a decent loop, I mean with other good descents without endless miles of boring slog?

    stilltortoise
    Free Member

    Hollinsclough is on my to do list…Can it be incorporated into a decent loop…?

    Therein lies the problem and the simple answer is no. That’s not to say you shouldn’t get over there and have a go. The descents are tough, challenging and ultimately rewarding, but it’s not easy to create a classic loop out of them. Part of the problem is that there is such a high concentration of descents in a small area, so unless you session them, you end up riding/pushing up what would be a great descent to get to the next descent.

    The VG White Peak guide has a reasonable loop but it has too much road and/or grassy slog. I recommend just having a play, push back up, have another play on another descent etc…

    Bear in mind Swan Rake and Limer Rake – the two that end in the centre of the village – are officially closed.

    chakaping
    Free Member

    I keep meaning to get back to Hollinsclough.

    When I rode it I’d done a big, boring loop round Millers Dale & Monsal Head first – and the descents at Hollinsclough were amazing by comparison.

    Dunno what my favourite Peaks descent is, maybe Cumberland Clough – I would like to do Cavedale again though.

    jekkyl
    Full Member

    MrTortoise speaks truth about Hollinsclough. My advice would be to avoid the area entirely. The descents that are there are too short and too remote to make into a decent loop. I was there a couple of months back and there was downed trees and lots of mud and generally it was awful. Just the length of them (short) makes them not worth it, add it the other stuff and yeh I wouldn’t bother. Gradbach and cheeky roaches singletrack the other side of the road are much better.

    dannyh
    Free Member

    Thepodge will be along shortly to admonish anyone who mentions ‘Les Arcs’ which, I believe is aka ‘Mono6ti’.

    For me my top three are:

    Cut Gate northbound (left hand fork and all the way to the gate).
    Jacobs Ladder.
    Lockerbrook.

    The whole place is ace to be honest.

    thepodge
    Free Member

    I just prefer calling you a dick these days

    Stevelol
    Free Member

    Les Arcs/Alpine

    Andyhilton
    Free Member

    Where’s shatners bassoon?

    Nobeerinthefridge
    Free Member

    Right next to his euphonium.

    iain1775
    Free Member

    Has no one mentioned The Campsite descent into Hayfield yet?
    That’s my fav, from the very top (the horrible grassy field) it’s just a fast fun blast right down
    Then possibly Cumberland Clough and the long blast from Shooters Cabin down to Glossop Road although as others have said it depends on the conditions and can vary on how I’m feeling
    Although good I’ve riden all the stuff around Ladybower too much for it to feature

    jonostevens
    Free Member

    Cut Gate. On and on and on. 🙂

    jambalaya
    Free Member

    Cavedale, how could anything else be a favourite? Steep, rocky, fast lower sections with a flowy top bit until you hit the gate

    My favourite but as a visitor I don’t know the area as well as most. Jacobs is good but it’s sort of straight down and hang on, not really a massive amount of line choice etc. The Beast .. mmm not so sure either. As a Surrey Hills (ex) local anything rock I appreciate and since my first visit to the Peak 10 yeats ago I hardly ridden in Wales both being a similar 3+ hour drive

    handybendyhendo
    Free Member

    You can get from the bottom of beast to Lockerbrook climb without hitting the road……

    Lockerbrook / Screaming Mile
    Devils Elbow
    Hearthstone to Lea

    colournoise
    Full Member

    Tough to choose, but current top 3 would be…

    Cavedale
    Beast
    Jacob’s Ladder

    HMs to Devil’s Elbow and Lockerbrook

    Loads of my riding mates love Cut Gate and WLT/Cutthroat but I’m not such a big fan.

    Only ridden Les Arcs once – in it’s current ‘wide’ guise – wasn’t all that fussed over it TBH.

    I too am intrigued by the location of Shatner’s Bassoon, and also the Hayfield Campsite descent…

    handybendyhendo
    Free Member

    I think the bassoon one could well be a red herring 🙂

    You know you can still ride the right line on Les Arc?

    chakaping
    Free Member

    Loved cut gate but more as a whole ride than a descent.

Viewing 40 posts - 1 through 40 (of 85 total)

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