thanks for the heads up butcher – i assume you mean the woods off the main road to dipton?

Sorry, I could have been clearer on the start point! From The mast at the top. You can get there via the little country lane that runs across the back. You’ll find a steep climb coming off this road towards a farm house. So you’re descending right from the top, down into Dipton, and then just keep going, pretty much all the way to Chopwell. It’s good fun. Downhill for a fair few miles. As long as you’re not an idiot, you shouldn’t have any problems riding it.

edit:

ah posibly these bungalows

That’s the one.

double post, sorry.

OK, got the start sorted, am I going down Pikewell Burn or Ramshaw Burn after the farm?

Pikewell.

Cool. Have you tried Ramshaw, or contouring along what looks like a fire track then dropping into Bradley Wood?

I’m very surprised no-one has mentioned Beamish. Very good off road links both East and West via disused railway lines for commuting or training miles then the woods around Beamish have some excellent hidden singletrack. It used to be ‘those in the know’ stuff, but check strava and a bit of exploring will open up these trails for you.

Other places (trying to avoid duplication from above) include Cong burn woods from Waldridge Fell. The river Wear in Sunderland has some pretty good sidetrack, albeit not very ‘hilly’.
Then there are miles and miles of moorland in the tree main valleys for big (if not epic) days out.

thanks for clearing that up butcher

beamish is good, but only ever ridden round there with the oddsox in the dark so have no idea of how to get back to the stuff we did! also add holywell dene in to the mix too – can link over to the coast easily from there too

can make a good fig 8 loop from the greeside/coalway lane – wylam – heddon trails too, easily accessible from newcastle either along the cycle route or train to wylam 🙂

Have you tried Ramshaw, or contouring along what looks like a fire track then dropping into Bradley Wood?

Yeah, you can ride most of it. There’s bits of cool stuff. You can even loop round (through a very dense piece of forest) and end up on the Pikewell Track, which is a viable ride. Start from High Stables (halfway up the bank on the main road, leading out of Dipton), if you wanna do it, not the farm track by the church. You can exit via Bradley Wood too, if you’re heading in that direction.

The one I gave you though provides the most smiles for miles, and is easiest to navigate.

Great stuff, I’ll give it an explore at some point. Thanks

As you head towards the coast you will come into “Waggonways” territory these are the old coal tram/trail lines leading from the pits in SE Northumberland down to the Tyne. There are probably about fifty of them, further east is, as Drac says, Fatbike territory (I realised that today!).

Another consideration is that from Kingston Park it could be almost as quick (say another 30 mins) to head towards Glentress, Inners and the Tweed valley rather than Hammers or the Lake District.