I was walking in the area around the Honister mine at the weekend (Haystacks, Kirk Fell, Great Gable etc.) There looked to be some interesting routes and I saw a few tyre marks.

Anybody know the area and willing to share some routes. It seems some of the old slate mine roads/tracks/railway would make it easy to climb and get height before enjoying the rougher paths on the way down.

We did the classic 4 passes (AKA tour of Great Gable) route a month or so back. It’s definately worth doing.
The Honister-Buttermere and Sty Head descents are the better ones.

http://www.hitthehills.com/blog/index.php/2012/02/tour-of-great-gable/

Yeah, 4 passes is amazing. I preferred Black Sail pass down into Wasdale Head though. More rideable and flowy than Honister – Buttermere IMO

Great Gable to Styhead to Borrowdale is pretty mint. Park at the mine, skirt around Green Gable and hike onto Great Gable. Massive descent then whinch up Honister Pass to finish. If you want it a bit longer I can highly recommend starting with Warnscale Bottom and adding Scarth Gap then over Haystacks to get back on course.

And if you go the otherway, onto Dale Head, there’s a great descent there that runs all the way to Cat Bells. I miss being in the Lakes 🙁

Up Honister Down the BW alongside Fleetwith Pike

That’s Warnscale Bottom Mike.

+1 for the 4-passes