Morning folks. I was meant to be riding torridon and skye this weekend, but the impending deluge of rain means that we might change our mind and head south (coming from glasgow).. I have read in many a magazine and on here about great riding in the lakes.. Any suggestions?!

Do you want big mountains, xc trails, big loops? There is a lot of variety.

This looked like a very good guide when I was flicking through the other day

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Lake-District-Mountain-Biking-Essential/dp/1906148236

They have them in ‘Go Outdoors’ and other similar themed outlets I do believe.

was looking for something big mountain.. big loops etc.. something not trail centre based 🙂

Nan Beale is one of my favourite s, or if you don’t mind some cheek then up Skiddaw bridleway, down longside edge to Ullock Pike, through Dodd wood up to carsleddam then down to millbeck and back up the road to the car park at the bottom of the Skiddaw bridleway is almost unbeatable on a sunny day.

+1 Skiddaw … Park in Mungrisdale and head up Swineside to Skiddaw House and take it from there … Dodd Wood is fun.

@munrobiker.. that pic 0f nan beale lookd bang on what were after. how long a ride is that?

That’s not Nan Bield, it’s the cheeky descent off Skiddaw down to Ullock Pike

Hellvelyn down Sticks pass is hard to beat.

The pic isn’t Nan Bield, it’s the descent off Skiddaw and it’s a lot steeper than it looks there!
Nan Bield is probably best done from Wheelbase in Staveley.
Helvellyn makes a decent day out.
The ‘Big day out’ in the Lakes guide is pretty hard to beat for fun/quality riding with options and variety.

Four passes if you really to test your metal, fair bit of hike a bike but blacksail is worth it on its own.

Something epic like the Great Gable four passes route, a wee bit of carrying, one for the real hairy arse mountaineers.

beat me to it.

That phito is Skiddaw. The top is very steep.

This is Nan Beald

I walked that path up Skiddaw last year and thought that it’d be a great MTB descent especially if it continued down in to the valley you can see on the right of the shot. That hillside is about 40degrees in steepness but the track traverses so isn’t generally that steep but remember one section where the underlying rock poked through the scree that look tricky.

Don’t suppose anyone has a gpx file of the route above including the Ullock Pike etc?

Park Glenridding, Road to Dockray, Old Coach Road to St Johns in the Vale, Up and over Sticks Pass to Greenside, Up Kepple Cove and Low Man, Onto Helvellyn, Nethermost Pike, Dollywagon, Grisedale valley, Patterdale, Glendidding.

26miles 6,200 Climbing / Carrying.

Couple of crackin routes there guys.. traelling down early doors on sat.. doing one on sat then another ride on the sunday..

just bookmarked this page, some awesome looking stuff. need to get up there from Dartmoor for a weekend me thinks!

Ullock Pike will likely be busy over this weekend so early/late start recommended for that one

Start Keswick, Cycle path to Threlkeld, Glenderterra to Siddaw House, Great Calva, Knot, Great Scafell, Longlands gate, Dash Falls, at gate Carry up Birkett edge, Basestall, Skiddaw, Ullock.

27 miles, 6,500 climbing / carrying.

This looked like a very good guide when I was flicking through the other day

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Lake-District-Mountain-Biking-Essential/dp/1906148236

Those books are pretty good. We have a few of them for different areas and usually the rides are pretty good fun.

Think i’ll do the nan bield on sat, looks a good route for a summers day. 🙂

decided to do this route. Looks a good day out.

http://www.theedgecycleworks.com/mtbroutes/staveley-three-passes/

any other routes local to this that i could do on the sunday? 🙂

The ‘Big day out’ in the Lakes guide is pretty hard to beat for fun/quality riding with options and variety.
It’s so good I’ve done it 2 & a half times. (last time my mate broke his wrist about 1/2 way round) 😕

Close to your Staveley ride too

Well, did the three passes route yesterday… stunning day for it and some great scenery and trails, but.. what a brutal hike a bike up nan bield! that really was brutal, and to top it off there was a howling wind coming through the valley which made it a lot harder..Absolutely spent after it, but thoroughly enjoyed it!

Did the Ullock Pike / Longside Edge route last week – there surely can’t be a better descent in England than that!? Incredible!

decided to do this route. Looks a good day out.

The Gatesgarth descent had been sanitised when we did it last year, search on here for nan bield routes and there is a cheeky alternative which is apparently a better option now.

I preferred Helvellyn to Skiddaw/Ullock myself, but I doubt you’d be disappointed by either.