Visiting Keswick in a few weeks with the family and hoping to sneak out for a ride or two. Probably no more than a couple of hours at a time so best smiles per mile routes please!

The two I have seen are skiddaw and the whinlatter forest park. Would these be recommended or should I be looking elsewhere?

Skiddaw is dull – there is a loop round lonscale fell (maps should come up with that in google or KMB have some I think) which is more interesting.
Borrowdale Bash is the other lakes classic for the Keswick end.

question and half that one, I suggest you search lakes routes and keswick on here. The lonscale route mike referred to is I agree about 2 hours. look here: http://www.keswick.org/what-to-do/cycling-routes/
pdfs on there for that one and back of skiddaw and the borrowdale bash but that’s a lot more than 2 hours. Whinlatter is a trail centre and would be an easy one.

Did both Borrowdale and Lonscale in February when I was up in Keswick. Borrowdale is a proper day out, but I think I preferred Lonscale as a ride (even though with the wind when I rode it I was pedalling on the downhill bits to keep moving).