& fat bike friendly? Never ridden there

No

No

Fair enough 🙂

With Cannock chase on your door step, it’s not worth the trip. Ridden it on a fat bike, it’s OK, but is more a pink route than a red route. Plenty of obstacles, walkers and riders riding the wrong way round are common.

Another no. My 12yr old daughter who barely rides, can handle the red route.

Worthwhile for a blast if you are in the area though.

Yes.

I’ve done about 1.5 hours to get there, it’s not the best place I’ve been, but it’s better than Thetford

Mind you, I enjoyed Thetford – cos I got to ride my bike and I like riding bikes anywhere…

If you’ve never been and fancy somewhere different, then it’s fine. The red is Scottish/Welsh blue standard, but they’ve done OK given the topography.

If you are nearer Cannock, have a play at Hicks Lodge – the blue is really a green, but it’s a fun way to spend a couple of hours with less travelling.

It’s good fun trying to ride it as fast as you can on a cross bike.

Not drive two hours worth of fun though.

I begrudge driving 12 minutes

I’d say Sherwood is a good ride out. Not Welsh or Scottish red standards no, but it flows well and has a nice feel to it.

Not as technical as Cannock although nowhere near as many pebbles, braking pot holes or people.

Sherwood will likely be good fun for a fat bike too.

Whether it is worth two hours depends on what your passing to get there. Hicks Lodge is very local to me and I often do it as a warm down from Cannock but wouldn’t choose it over Sherwood any day of the week.

It really really really isn’t worth it. Not sure if you ride in the peaks much but that would be a far better way to spend the time.

I begrudge driving 12 minutes

So ride there

I quite like Sherwood Pines, as people say even I can get round the red route with no problems and I’m a proper mincer. If you’re driving from Cannock direction why don’t you head up to the Peak District instead? Some nice White Peaks routes so you don’t have to travel all the way up to to the Dark Peak.

edit: Frosty beat me to it.

It’s good for blasting round as fast as you can On a XC race bike or a CX .

I wouldn’t drive 2hrs just to ride it.

Not sure if you ride in the peaks much

Never have, needs some local knowledge I expect to get the best route & not waste time getting lost?

guide book ans OS map should sort you for the peak

If your local it’s fine, if you want to encourage an inexperienced rider it is good. For A two hour drive, not for me.

Never have, needs some local knowledge I expect to get the best route & not waste time getting lost?

If you ride any of the routes out of Hope, it’s quite straight forward. Even I don’t get lost and I am not the best with a map.

I like Sherwood for what it is, but I would never drive that distance to it.

Ride to the Peak from Sherwood.

60 miles, mostly off road, bit of Pines, bit of Notts Bridleways, bit Derbyshire canal path, climb to Holmsfield, Houndkirk Moor, loop back to Totley, Holmsfield etc. Finish back at Pines for a small spin.

Half the problem for me is Pines is just a few sqr miles of bits and bobs, when out of the park there are loads of options and great BWs that maybe need a bit of guiding to get the best.

None of that really helps the OP, I know

There is a lot of great cheeky stuff on the edge of the peaks near the Matlock area.

Personally I like sherwood it’s a good laugh , I live closer to the chase , but I think unless your riding off pista , Cannock crap… Poor trail .. Pines is a better flowing trail …
But saying that i would sooner drive up to the peaks so much more fun …
But then it tends to be an all day thing ..
😉

I’m local to Sherwood and enjoy it for a simple quick blast around. It’s not Bike Park Wales but it’s not trying to be either. It gets a lot of stick about people riding the wrong way or walking on the trails but tbh I have been going 5 or 6 times a month since living locally and in 4 years only once found a dog Walker on the trail and never some one going the wrong way. Saying all that I’d travel 2hrs to the Peaks but not Sherwood.

I agree with the others, being local, Pines is a nice forest and worth a blast round the red plus half a dozen goes on the downhill runs, then a bacon butty outside the cafe afterwards, especially with a few mates.
But if travelling 2 hours then it would have to be the White or Dark Peak, and Vertebrate’s 2 books are a great start if you don’t know the area.