I was flicking through the MBUK Ride Guide in the supermarket yesterday and spotted the Hebden route, which is here.

Having only ridden in the area once before I wondered, 1) is it a good route and 2) is it worth driving past the Peaks for?

it is a good route, but a tough one too

That’s a long route but looks like lots of road just to keep it legal.
Yes, it includes Blue Pig and Pecket Well descents but the rest is mainly just moorland milage.
Is it worth going past the Peak for?…. Depends what you enjoy doing in the Peak. If your idea of a day in the Peak is Parkin Clough, Cavedale, Rushup Edge, etc., then NO, that route ain’t going to float your boat but there’s plenty around there that would. You 100% need a guide if you want to do Hebden tech though.
If you’re after more XC with some nice open moorland views and a couple of not-so-technical, but “how fast dare I ride this?” sections, then you should enjoy most of it.

I was flicking through the MBUK Ride Guide in the supermarket yesterday and spotted the Hebden route, which is here.

Then isn’t this like going to try out a bike for size at your LBS then ordering one off the internet cheaper? 🙂
eckythump +1

Its a crap route obviously designed by someone who hasn’t actually ridden in the area, just looked at a map and drawn it out. It’d be ok for a cross bike I guess due to the mass of roads and wide farm tracks.

If you want a good, easy to follow Hebden route track down the one that usually appears in the magazines. Hebden > Heptonstall > Blue Pig (thats an easy and good extra over what the mags suggest) > house of sh*t > Gorple > Widdop > Gorple Road towards Hurstwood > BW to the windfarm at Long Causeway > short road stretch and into the BW to Whirlaw Stones > drop down but veer off on the BW which runs through the golf course > right out the golf course, left at the T junction and right into the BW down towards Eastwood after about 1/4 mile but at the hamlet, go through the houses and take the nice rocky, twisty BW that descends to the car park below the railway viaduct.

Now at this point you’re a few miles from Hebden and the routes normally suggest you climb up to Mankinholes and go along the London Road but thats rubbish with a rubbish (legit) descent. You’d be better off going along the valley bottom a bit and then climbing up towards Colden and towards Heptonstall before either taking a cheeky option or doing the zig zags from Slack into the valley bottom and then the bottom part of the Jack Bridge BW towards the turning circle.

Or option B if you like the look of that route above would be to have a look at Hebden, have a look at Ogden Res and pick up the unclassified path between the northern end of Warley Moor Res towards the top of Luddenden Dean and use that as an out-and-back with a loop of Ogden at one end and a loop including Peckett Well and a climb up to Heptonstall for the Blue Pig at the other. Options for some seriously good riding on that, especially with the conditions up on the tops at the minute being at their best.

I reckon it is a good route for someone who likes a good day out in the hill.
it aint all about the gnarr………. 😀

8km through to 18km is good fun, with the singletrack bridleway down off Bodkin lane, down to the Stones by Oxenhope, up the road and then over White Lane, followed by the singletrack over the moor downhill to Ogden. That’s my after-work ride…

Not mega technical, or up to blue pig type tech levels, but enough sustained rocky parts to make it really fun. Best get in there whilst it is still dry as the peat starts getting boggy as winter sets in.

Agree with original post that it’s best to get someone to guide you round Hebden as there is more than just Blue Pig and Pecketts well.

It’d be ok for a cross bike I guess due to the mass of roads and wide farm tracks

I’d love to see someone ride a CX bike down the singletrack BW off Bodkin Lane down to stones, or cross the moor from oxenhope to Ogden (cleanly).

Its a borderline road ride Tony 😉

There is more to Hebden than Peckett Well and Blue Pig but since they’re the popular and legit ones, they get hammered. I’ve never been a massive fan of Blue Pig and the bottom sections are really suffering at the minute from washouts – big gullies and the cobbles make for some interesting moments.

As someone else said, its good to get some local knowledge because anything you see published in magazines has to be 100% legit and as a result may have big sections of road/boring farm track linking stuff together. That Widdop ride is a cracker and has a bit of everything in it.

Its a borderline road ride Tony

I need some lessons from you 🙂

Hmm…deffo legal ride. Not my idea of fun though with what there is out there. Saying that – some of that moorland is quite nice when dry.

Descent into Ogden is good.

DaveyBoyWonder – Member
Its a crap route obviously designed by someone who hasn’t actually ridden in the area, just looked at a map and drawn it out. It’d be ok for a cross bike I guess due to the mass of roads and wide farm tracks.

Wasn’t it written by Benji Haworth?

Depends what you’re into really. I’ve never really rated the stuff I’ve done in the Peaks.

Most of my riding round Hebden involves staying pretty close to town and doing short sharp ups and technical downs – loads of that about but you’d need a guide really and there’s a bit of a cheeky trail omertà round Hebden! I also like getting out on the moors on a nice day though.

Blue Pig and Pecket Well are both great fun IMO. There’s some fairly gnarly options near Blue Pig if you know where to look.

First off, thanks for the replies and secondly, apologies for opening a can of worms.

DBW, I’ll have a look at your suggested route when I’m not at work but thanks for taking the time to write it all out.

I think we’ll either have a bash at the route I’ve linked to our go to the Peaks. My riding buddy isn’t massively into tech, so a day full of it probably isn’t a good idea, even if I’d love it.

Maybe I’ll wait till a forum ride in the area 😀

Wasn’t it written by Benji Haworth?

My mistake. Benji wrote a different one.

Having looked at it a bit better on the satellite map there are highlights. The bit immediately before the road between Oxenhope and Hebden, the descent into Ogden and I didn’t look closely enough earlier but it does the aforementioned drag out the top of Luddenden Dean, across the moors and then the brilliant descent near High Brow Knoll, into Peckett Well and down “Peckett Well” itself.

But bloody hell theres a lot of double track farm track and roads, especially between Ogden and Luddenden Dean.

If you’re coming from a fair distance away, you want to see the best the area has to offer and that route, IMHO, doesn’t come close to doing that whether you’re after technical stuff or a good day out in the hills on some top trails.

Come to think of it, you could miss out all the road rubbish after Ogden by climbing up the cobbled road out of Ogden dam. Right turn at the top and then through/over the gate down to Warley Moor Res sailing club. Keep left and over the dam, turning right and going down the far side of the reservoir to pick up the track alongside the culvert at the far end. Stick on this for a mile or two (nice and swoopy in places) before taking the first obvious left turn which is a BW into the top of Luddenden Dean. This meets up with the route in the OP near the top of a big climb. Hairpin right here and you’re on the return leg over the moors and down Peckett Well. Happy days…

there’s a bit of a cheeky trail omertà round Hebden!

Ah yes the ‘local trails for local people’ policy. It’s funny cos everyone likes to go on about the cheeky stuff in Hebden yet when anyone asks no one will tell them where it is. Is this for fear of being targeted by the powers that be, fears for the trails being trashed, or just local cliquey-ness?

And OP, if you want to find the best stuff round Hebden, or anywhere else for that matter, the Strava heatmap is a wonderful tool.

Is this for fear of being targeted by the powers that be, fears for the trails being trashed, or just local cliquey-ness?

Maybe a bit of all three but I think it’s mainly that there is a bit of tension round here between walkers and mountain bikers – lots of moaning about mountain bikes on footpaths on the local community forum for instance. No-one wants their favourite trail being made unridable or to get shouted at. I’ve seen strategically placed rocks on some trails that I strongly suspect are to put off bikers – plus new narrow gates etc.

Some people who only ride here every 2-3 months aren’t as bothered about pissing walkers/residents off as local riders are, and big groups riding popular footpaths at busy times is never going to go down well.

I’ve shown people I know and trust not to be dicks round some cheeky stuff round here. I’m not going to post routes on the net though.

^^
This. Not local, but do ride Tod/Hebden frequently. What I know was handed to me by locals with that exact intention – don’t be a dick.

TBH, some work with a map will show you where to look.

Grum: That sounds fair enough to me, no point in deliberately increasing tension. Looking at the map of the area, there’s a lot of tracks, footpaths and bridleways and if you don’t know the area *well* then you are going to get very confused. I suspect that there are also paths on the ground that technically aren’t public rights of way but get used by riders and/or walkers. With HB being seen as a “go to” location I don’t think I’d be wanting to tell all and sundry (which includes me) where the cheeky trails are.

Not disagreeing with any of that. Responsible cheekyness is in everyone’s interest. However, there are some trails which are so obviously ok to ride at most times that the distinction between bridleway and footpath is ridiculous, and I wonder whether it wouldn’t be a good idea to publicise these more widely in order to lessen the load on other popular bridleways (Blue pig has already been mentioned).

Got to admit though that another side of me just think ***k the moaners and walkers as it’s a stupid law and as long as it’s not disrupting anyone’s life, putting people in danger, or destroying anything then there’s no reason they should be kept secret.

Found most of my routes through Strava.Never had an issue with any walkers on any paths since I moved here a couple of years ago.Just speak with a Weegie accent and plead the Scottish defence if any says owt 😉

To be fair it only seems to be upsetting one person who’s been littering the best trails with stupid signs…

Big groups dropping down some trails have caused grumbling though…

Alternatively, ride quieter trails that are just as good 15 minutes away 😀

Maybe a bit of all three but I think it’s mainly that there is a bit of tension round here between walkers and mountain bikers – lots of moaning about mountain bikes on footpaths on the local community forum for instance. No-one wants their favourite trail being made unridable or to get shouted at. I’ve seen strategically placed rocks on some trails that I strongly suspect are to put off bikers – plus new narrow gates etc.

Some people who only ride here every 2-3 months aren’t as bothered about pissing walkers/residents off as local riders are, and big groups riding popular footpaths at busy times is never going to go down well.

I’ve shown people I know and trust not to be dicks round some cheeky stuff round here. I’m not going to post routes on the net though.

100% this.

Never had an issue with any walkers on any paths since I moved here a couple of years ago.

Not had a problem with any walkers but had a bit of a run-in with a farmer round Todmorden Moor a couple of weeks back. I guess he’s the one who’s painted ‘No Cycling’ on all the styles round there. I wonder if he’s open to being bribed with a bottle of whiskey?

I guess he’s the one who’s painted ‘No Cycling’ on all the styles round there

No that was me, didn’t want to lose my KOMs 🙂
That descent ain’t that good anyway daz but it does look good from the other side of the valley.

Ha ha! If you’re talking about the ‘MG Descent’ then yeah the styles break it up too much. It is however a very convenient way for me to get over to the Bridestones side of the valley from Gauxholme. Is there a better route? What about up over the hill under the turbines and round the back of Cockhill Wood? I’ve not tried that one yet, although I hate that hill up to the turbines and on the aerial photos it just looks like a road all the way down.

(b*gger I’m breaking the rules aren’t I about talking about cheeky stuff on the internet 😳 )

I’d skirt round the hill TBH by going along the canal ,past the station then through the park.Up the main road a little and then up Stoney Royd lane then Jumps Lane.there are a few options to get up to Delf lane.