Anyone done it? Presume this would be the best way - looks like a mean Mofo of a day out.....
Down of the end of High Crag to the Scarth Gap trail looks hellish steep & rocky from below. We were passing over Scarth Gap and had planned to make a quick trip up and Down High Crag but we decided against it when we got to the junction.
I don't think I could ride much of it but it would be worth a try.
I have done it. I did it climbing up the Rocky slabs to the tarn and then up à scree to the ridge and down scarth gap. The descent from the top is cool as was scarth gap. Going the other way would be cool though there is à bit of à scramble just down from the top .
Good stuff - thanks for the info.
article [url= http://www.mtbbritain.co.uk/lake_district_mountain_biking_red_pike.html ]here[/url]
If you try it let us know how you get on!
Done it but there's better stuff about that area. The carry is hard and the descent is good but nowt special. Doing a loop of buttermere, scarth gap, ennerdale, blacksail, wasdale, styhead, borrowdale, honister and then down the bw the other side of fleetwith offers far more quality riding imo.
Did it years and years ago on a Townsend Colorado !!
More of a ride to tick a box than enjoy.
Being a lucky bugg3r, I'm sat looking at it out the window now. Big carry up Red Pike, rideable along the ridge and mostly down to Scarth Gap.
June last year:
[img]Why won't it post Flickr?[/img]
[url= http://www.flickr.com/photos/8827393@N05/3620584994 ]Short low quality video[/url]
Laird in white shorts alert! 
Indeed
😳 (for him)
I rode all of the downhill. I continued along the ridge to the top of scarth gap. I can remember scarth gap down to buttermere was à great rock fest but rideable. I was on à giant ac.
Walked up it, can't imagine it would be much fun with a bike though. Lots of more enjoyable alternatives IMO.
[url= http://m.flickr.com/#/photos/georgedavy/sets/72157594530436357/ ]Some pictures from red pike[/url]
Just the sort of thing we like!
GEDA - your flickr link doesn't work?
If your after the tops in that area the Newlands round is bikeable but cheeky We go from the end of catbells and take northside path then head up onto Maiden Moor which if dry, like now, is pretty much all rideable if you can pedal. Across to High Spy, descend into Dalehead tarn which is excellent, carry onto Dalehead(harsh) then we go across to Robinson but you have the option of Hindscarth which is excellent. Head off Robinson to Buttermere which is very steep at the top and fast in places especially the bit after the Moss, overheats the brakes everytime. Then go back up sail beck and either head up onto Causy and down the front or if your tired just down rigg beck which is a great bit of singletrack. Miles better than Red Pike and High Stile 😉
anc - that does look good and pretty damn cheeky
Hindscarth - by this you mean over the top and then descend north?
Fleetwith Pike - if this were a bridleway, would it be a decent descent? 😉
Hindscarth - Yep, too scope end.
Fleetwith has a bridleway to the south which descends to Warnscale Bottom, definately a descent its Rossett ghyll level of techy riding in places.
Edit : Sorry just read your post properly Fleetwith front hmmmmm, you could definately ride bits but some of it is super scramble steep and has big drops to the sides. Definate potential for doing yourself some serious harm or worse. The cross on the side of one of the crags has alway put me off!!
What about down the main ridge!
We looked at that main ridge from Hindscarth on Saturday - it looks nuts 😀 The bridleway is a great descent. Going in the other direction on anc's route, the descent of Dale Head to the tarn is a good one, then you could drop down through Rigghead quarry [i]or[/i] Maiden Moor in the other direction, which has a great descent down to Hause Gate, followed by the dreaded zig-zags to Manesty 🙂
Edit - avoid Maiden Moor at 'peak times'...best after 4 pm
NO NO NO NO NO! When I saw that title, I had some very disturbing flashbacks!
We did this last summer (as part of a long loop from was****er yha, which also featured wasdale head > sty head > seathwaite > honistor pass, then after high crag, blacksail pass and back. The carry up Red Pike is a killer (probably worsened for us given the amount we'd already done that day before it though), plus we lost the route a bit along the top (due to visibility), so that involved more carrying. There was some enjoyable riding in places but I wouldn't touch it with a 100ft pole!
If only we'd seen that mtbbritain article before hand!
parkedtiger - yes the ridge does look nuts...
robinbetts - that is a beast of a day out!!! 😯
Pinched these pics off the net. This is be the middle easier potentially rideable section. The top is a scamble as you can see on the other pic, as are parts of the bottom which is where the cross is. I'll tell me mates on the local MR team to be on standby if you have a go...Tehehe!!
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The middle looks sweet (like Ullock) the profile compared to the one I took the other week of Ullock looks somewhat steeper!
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This section looks good though
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After riding Rossett - can it really be harder! well not that I rode Rossett really....
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Down Scarth Gap
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This is looking up Scarth Gap. I think it must look worse than it is as I can remember riding down all of it.
Thanks GEDA - looks like you had the weather for it. 8)
Scarth gaps ok, the section in your last photo is the worse bit, but its so wide and broken in that section you can pick a route through it. Once you go through the hole on the wall it gets a bit easier. Definately all rideable as you say.