You know the place. Your absolute favourite place! The gift that never stops giving!

Not necessarily the where you go if you're after a big challenge or an all-day epic, but the place you love to disappear off to when you think 'I fancy a good old fashioned doss about for a few hours'. The one you never get bored of.

For me its Rivington. I went up there (again!) yesterday. And had a fantastic day out in the sun on dry dusty trails.

Reasons why Rivi is ace:

1) Its totally accessable. 20 minute down the M61, or 20 minutes on the train out of central Manchester – £3.50 return on the train

2) The San Remo descent – which joyously is now even more rutted and full of big holes due to the winter snow. Which makes it twice as much fun. Its impossible to get down to the bottom without a dirty great big grin on your face

3) There are trails everywhere. Perfect for 'make it up as you go along' riding. Either for a quick hours blast, or ride all day

4) I love the fact that its there in the first place because of an rich but philanthropic mad-man (Lord Lervhulme), and I love the way his madness manifests itself. Why is there a scaled down version of liverpool castle by the res? Who builds Italian gardens halfway up a Lancashire hillside?

5) The ice cream run – Loose rocky silliness 🙂

6) The view from the top of the pike on a clear day like yesterday

7) Its as much fun as night as it is during the day

8) A few good pubs around for post-ride refreshment (Yew Tree, The Black Dog)

I bloody love the place! So… where's your favourite place? And why?

For me, the closest place is Dalby forest, as its only 15miles away. However it can be numb after a while since i ride a big bouncy bike. Can imagine its no end of fun on a short travel XC or a Hardtail bike!

I never get bored of riding around Chop Gate on the North Yorkshire Moors, as its another of those places where you can just make up rides. Weather it would be an 10mile loop or an all day ride. Plenty of great descents end in Chop Gate. Not to mention some great views too!

But the place I love to ride on a summer lit evening, is Guisborough Woods. Whilst its a good 1hr drive from me, its great for endless amounts of singletrack, and you can soon be out on the moors as well. Its great on a bouncy big bike for messing around on

Most of my very local stuff is mainly bridalways and footpaths that don't lead anywhere…

Holmbury hill and the North Downs.

Thread closed.

I have one long route that I could do every week and not get bored>
My house to Ladybower. I go off road at Holiday Lane and for the first section, it could almost be the Marin Trail. Over Pooh Sticks Bridge and the hammerfest down the tree lined pebble lane. Over the road and up through Chadkirk Singletrack. A bit of abugger of a climb and not always doable, a real test of how I'm going. This is followed by more Marin Trail like woods that is descending down to the canal. A bit of a pootle along the canal and then down to Roman Lakes and then No Dabs Allowed up to the wall below Mellor Cross. Past the Cross and down and round, over the road and down and round, on to the road and then down and up to the Shouty Dog Run at the farm at Birch Vale. Drop onto the Pennine Bridleway and round to Lantern Pike, Middlemoor, Shooting Cabin, 20 Trees, Kinder Res. South Head, Roych, Rushup, Mam Nick, Hollins Cross, Edale, Jaggers, Edale Cross, Hagg Farm, Lockerbrook, Fairholmes.
So many reasons why I love that route but you need a day off and good legs on the day. I've love dthat ride every time I've done it. The views, the peace and quiet, the hard climbs, the fast descents the diet coke and flapjack and some bird seed for the ducks…..the cold grip of fear when you realise you didn't bring a wallet for the train home. The gushing relief when the guard on the train can't be arsed asking you to pay and stays locked in his room reading The Sport.

Sorry, just realised, you meant one single place? any section of the above is just a section on it's own to me. Nothing special. It's putting them all together that makes it.

My fave Rivi pic:

the view with Liverpool skyline:

Grizedale forest because its close by so I can ride there on my bike.

Win Hill, so many good trails up and down (and thats not even including the cheeky ones!)

amen Hora.
(apart from whistler bike park!)

Not the public highway….. roadies 😛

On Rivington- I'll happily ride exposed moorland/hills but it is truly evil as soon as you get a hint of wind.

For that reason, forests win EVERYTIME with mountain biking 😀

Ooooo boo hoo a bit of a breeze. Oh bless me! there seems to be a spot of rain, I couldn't possibly take my bicycle out in this. My petticoat would be ruined.

You are, without a doubt, the gayest mountain biker on the planet.

MTFU you faggot!!!

Versus

Pretend all you like, same as you lot, stw is my playground.

bolehills. or wharnecliffe.

AMAZING 'scene' at BH too, locals that are sound as a pound. Great place to chill out, or to kill yourself trying hard stuff over and over and over.

Dry dusty and fast with a bit of wind or permanently wet, dark and muddy. 😀

Norland Moor and North Dean Woods, Halifax. Contains every type of riding you can imagine in a small area. Moorland singletrack, rocky singletrack descents, smooth light speed fast singletrack, technical climbs, rocks, roots, steps, jumps, super tech stuff, steep stuff, mellow stuff, woodsey stuff, wide open multi line stuff and lots of places to just sit with amazing views and watch the world go by beneath you in the valley.

The Lakes………specifically Keswick area. The variety of riding within 3-4 hours riding (usually 15 miles or so) is unbelievable!! It never gets boring – you could do the same route 4 weeks running and it would be totally different each time 😀

Amen to that 😀

I'm sorry, but you cant say Keswick as a local playground. Its just not fair on the the rest of us.

Hora, your nuts. Give me open, rugged moorland over forest every day for the views alone, however Rivi gives you both options if you know where to look.

I'd say Rivi as its my back yard. I can be on the moors in 10 mins of pedalling from my door.

Here. 10 wooded square miles of singletrack heaven with everything from several hours jeyboy XC to proper gnarly DH descents. All 5 mins from the house. From the viewpoint in the pic you can even sit and watch super high tech jet fighters taking off and landing if you want. Been riding it nearly daily for 3.5 years and I still get excited every time I think about heading up there. Sad eh?

Bolehill for me too

That's the road to the carpark surely, not the trail itself 😆

North of Cardiff is riddled with trails.

Also love all the stuff between Sheffield and the well known bits of the Peaks.

Devs – where's that then?

I don't really have a properly local playground as there's no decent riding that near to me. Usually go to Farleton Knott for a quick blast which has some nice singletrack DH bits and great views.

Hayfield

Binners notice how the light of God is glowing through the trees on the Forest pic 😉

Hayfield? nbt took me there once. I wouldnt mind a spin round there.

Holmbury and Leith.

Packed with hilly goodness.

Haldon forest. The 'official' loop gives me a trail that's rideable in all weathers and my knowledge of the less than official trails allows me to add a lot of variety on to that in varying weather conditions. It's mellow enough the inbred doesn't feel terrifying there and fast enough (and rough enough on the unofficial stuff)that my coiler is fun there.

Diaryofamountainbikers (not mine)….**** from the top 😯

+1 Holmbury and Leith

Holmbury hill and the North Downs.

Hora, did you not have part of Park Life named Hora's Elbow in your honour many moons ago?

No! I do now though 🙂 Its all washed out/eroded now that roll-in isn't it?

Puttenham Common – it's Surrey Hills with fewer bikers, and quiet enough I can build some cheeky stuff hidden away!! Oh – and it's right outside my front door!

Is that you on deliverance Hora 😆 😆

No but THAT has got to hurt hasnt it? I mean right from the top OVER the bars?! 😐

yep, i would think thats really going to hurt. God knows how he got in that predicament down there – its not exactly hard.

No! I do now though Its all washed out/eroded now that roll-in isn't it?

Could be, haven't checked it out (the side trail on the left) for a couple of years. Is it true you busted your elbow there?

shoulder, arm, two ribs and my head 😕 all on some soft/loose dirt!

I take it you've not been back to own it then 🙂

I have. With FG as my witness on the first ride out on a Blur4x, I also made sure I didnt scout it first- just rolled up and straight down. I shouted and jumped up and down at the bottom 😆

It was easier though as the 'lip' had gone and it was smoother/rounder at the start due to erosion from tyres.

thats a classic crash pic! how did the rider manage that one then? looks like a fairly easy roll-in?!