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Hey all.
I'm up in the lakes in a few weeks with the lads but I was thinking of going up the day before and doing an easy route by myself. Idly flicking through os map app around Staveley I notice there's a bridleway past Monty's Cottage (Sleddale Hall) from my favourite film Withnail and I, plus, the bridleway ends on a classic lakes pass Gatesgarth Pass, plus plus.
Mapped out a wee circucular from Shap. Non too taxing, 20 miles and 1500 feet of climbing.
Question is...is the bridleway connecting Shap and Gstesgarth Pass a pile of 💩 that'll be stop start boulder hell or muddy sodden hell or beautiful fast gravel and/grass. Ie is it reasonably traversable?
Answers on the back of a Camberwell Carrot!
Here's the route, thanks.
https://www.justgoride.co.uk/routes/84175
They don't call it Wet Sleddale for nothing. Not sure what state it will be in in a few weeks, but I could hazard a good guess!
This might help - note, in a dry June...
That's really helpful thanks Martin. I'll think again. I love the remoteness of that area. Any gravel rides you could recommend within 30 mins drive of kendal?
Various loops including Westmoreland Borrowdale.
Further in to the lakes Claife and Grizedale.
East side of Kentmere and over to Troutbeck
Not taken a bike down Wet Sleddale for about 20 years but I remember it as wet. It's turned wet again after a dry period so I would give it a miss now.
Depends what kind of mileage you want, but if you're staying in Kendal, up to Staveley area via quiet lanes/Burneside, then over to the Claife/Bowness ferry with a mixture of quiet lanes and BWs. Then Windermere lakeshore track up to High Wray, cross Claife Heights on fire-roads and the tarns BW down to Near Sawrey. If you've got the legs, head into Grizedale, head south on the fire-road network and small lanes to Newby Bridge, then back up towards Kendal via Cartmel Fell byways and lanes.