The plan is a quick and easy ride with the missus on Friday. Something scenic and gentle. Secretly I wouldn’t mind if we ended up at Bolehills to finish but not sure what to head for before that.

Then I want to ride Wharny on Saturday. I’ve blown the dust off the DH bike but I have no idea what to head for or where to park. I’d rather not have the van broken into. Also where are the actual push-up DH trails? Will I get lost or will I bump into some locals?

Lastly, any accommodation tips would be welcome. We want to be fairly central so we can check out the centre on a night and an easy drive to Ponds Forge on Sunday morning. Spent ages on Tripadvisor and Laterooms today ringing all the top BnB’s and every one is booked for Friday and Saturday night.

Can’t see a decent campsite anywhere, just one that looks full of hippies and drum circles and wants £40 a night to put a tent up. All the central Travelodge type hotels seem to have off site parking and I don’t fancy leaving a van full of bikes in a distant car park.

I’d sleep pretty much anywhere as long as I can have a shower on a night and don’t have to fret about the bikes. Be nice to pop into the centre for a sniff around as well.

Any ideas much appreciated as always

Look a bit further out – broomhill, Crookes, nether edge. They’re all just a fiver taxi to town. It’s a small place really. Just a big village.

Etruria house gets good reviews.

There’s an ibis straight across the road from ponds forge !.

Etruria house gets good reviews

We might have skipped past that one because of the dodgy reviews on Tripadvisor! I’ll give them a ring in the morning, all the complaints are about the miserable old bloke and to be honest I don’t care I’m pretty miserable myself 🙂

Ibis is fully booked. We tried literally all of the obvious choices today. Maybe there’s thousands of people in town for Peaty’s bike bonanza.

Hora and adey from here stayed there and liked it

There’s a premier inn at tankersley bang next to the m1 jct ( or tankersly manor £££s if your flush) literally a stones throw from wharncliffe and a 10 quid taxi ride from sheff centre, I used to walk it home to there when I was really pissed safe as houses car park on site

Simple, scenic, quick, gentle – hard to beat Ladybower with the Mrs. Either park on the bridge or at Fairholmes visitor centre and head round the reservoir. Pie and peas from the visitor centre mid ride or after. If she is not looking for more tech and is patient and will enjoy the view for 30 mins, pop up and do the bit of Cut Gate to the cairn and back from slippery stones – the bridge at the very top of the last res.

15 minutes drive from the bridge to Bolehills.

Bolehills dig day on Sat morning, call in, check it out and get directions to Wharncliffe. Park in Oughtibridge and push in from over the railway bridge and sniff out the DH trails.

Broomhill has a couple of hotels and guest houses – Rutland, Crescent B&B a bit further down the hill, also had people stay at Etruria and say it’s OK.

Accomodation is sorted. We’re out in the enticingly named Dungworth.

Not far from Ladybower so we’ll check that out. Thanks for the suggestion. I’ve taken the address of the visitor centre so that’s Friday sorted.

Still no idea how to get the best from Wharny. Don’t know where the trails are or where to park. Haven’t heard back from the people I know who’ve been there.

Down south… Sheffield… does not compute.
T’North begins at Watford gap 😆 or for Brightonians just north of the South Downs.

Dungworth:

as for finding Dh tracks in Wharn-couver, strava?

Make sure to pop into the Royal in Dungworth , a proper pub. Still only a 15 – 20 min drive to Ponds Forge.
I was scrubbing my usual Sunday ride to go to Peaty’s do but if half the country are going I think I will stick to planA which will also save me money.
PS if you like ice cream, you must also visit the Our Cow Mollie Ice Cream Parlour at the top of the hill just outside Dungworth.

We were at Wharncliffe on Monday celebrating our wedding anniversary with a bike ride, it was in a bit of a mess in places, probably due to all the rain we have had recently. Will also be at Ponds Forge on Sunday with a view to selling a few bits.

Dungworth is nice. Deffo go and get ice cream!

For Wharncliffe, tips above but more detail:
Park in the top car park on Woodhead Road just through Grenoside if you want to meet people and be shown round, as well as ride Greno.

For just Wharncliffe I prefer:
Drive to Oughtibridge, an area of Sheffield.
Park outside the Pheasant pub.
Push up hill, cross the narrow road bridge and turn left onto the track next to the railway. Follow the track to the fire road, turn left and just ride along next to the railway some distance. You will see the track exits and probably some other riders. Loads of tracks in there, really need a local to get the best out of it.

Home

We stayed here- carpark at the back of the pub.

TBH when you go to sleep I’d park the rear of the van against a wall and bring the most expensive frame/forked bike(s) into the room leaving the wheels in the van.

Its a very simple/basic hotel but the pub is nice and good beer. I liked it.

Thanks for the pointers everyone!

We actually stayed at the Royal pub in Dungworth. They’ve got some nice little cottages behind the main hotel. We got to watch the sun come up in the valley in the morning then watch bonfires and fireworks going off all over the place on the night. It was pitch black and completely silent on a night and we didn’t worry about the van or the bikes at all.

We went up to the Fairholmes visitor centre as recommended above. The weather was perfect and we did a big old lap. It was nice to just cruise about and take in the scenery as I usually get sucked into charging all over the place looking for stunts! The missus getting a bike has slowed me down a bit, in a good way.

Went into town and discovered Devonshire street and the vast collection of real ales and craft beers on offer. I tried at least a pint of everything I fancied. Had a quick look at the skatepark as I vaguely remember riding there about a decade ago. It was Halloween as well so there was plenty to look at.

Did Wharny on Saturday. Parked in Oughtibridge as mentioned above and immediately bumped into some locals. Got to ride loads of rooty, natural, leafy, fast stuff then went along and checked out the new jump trails. It was nice to ride the YT after it’s been hung in the garage for about 18 months. The locals were busy crafting a take off ramp taller than me and a massive step down so I definitely plan to visit again.

Oh, and Sunday morning was the icing on the cake. I took a picture at Fort William in 2013 and I managed to get the whole Syndicate riding in one shot. When I found out about the Bike Bonanza I had the idea of printing the picture and getting it signed. So I had the image turned into 30×20 inch canvas and managed to get it signed by Peaty and Ratboy. Never asked for an autograph before. Never really saw the point in them. But I’m pretty chuffed with my big ass canvas! It’ll be a nice thing to have in 10 or 20 years time.

All in all, mission accomplished. Thanks for the tips above. A little bit of local knowledge can make sure you don’t miss out on the good stuff.

Cheers!

Glad you enjoyed it, some of my tips worked and cheers for coming back and letting us know you enjoyed your time in somewhere I love!