Hoping to do Nan Bield this Sun or next and plan on sleeping over in the van and ride on Mon too. I've got plenty of ideas for round Keswick and we've done a couple of theedgecycleworks routes round Grizedale.
So ideas please for a less taxing but equally testing day two, ie, shorter but interesting.
Loughrigg terrace.
Classic Lakes
Short but interesting
Should be quiet on a Monday
Short Borrowdale Bash, if you want to avoid big climbs but still get some nice descents?
Loughrigg's a good shout but we did that one last time out (on a Sunday sadly).
I would prefer to stay away from the top of the lakes if possible.
Again, we did the Borrowdale Bash Inc Warnscale and also the Four Passes up there.
Any good routes that head the opposite direction to Parkamoor?
Double Post
If your doing Nan Bield I would do the Gatesgarth Harterfell option instead of dropping down to the ressy, easy days low level riding here!
https://www.strava.com/activities/747040705
Our Lakes rides so far
Grizedale, Parkamoor, Claife Heights, etc.
Walna Scar
Borrowdale
Four Passes
Loughrigg
Ullock Pike
Helvellyn, Sticks
Ullswater
Don't know if it counts as less taxing, but Walna Scar loop starting and finishing at Torver?
Or just do Garburn pass and the other bridleways above Staveley (depending what you include with nan bield.)
Thanks Postie that's the plan.
Mug boo this was great ride last week would do it instead of Nan Bield
https://www.strava.com/activities/753871691
I'll be with Mugboo for the trip, that looks good Postierich but maybe a bit much for us!
Just a short ride by your usual standards but over 8000ft of climbing! Cheers, that's definitely a day 1 kind of ride 🙂
Anything heading out via Jenkins Crag? Or is it worth an explore round Claife Heights, I've only done the BW on the theedgecycleworks route.
How about Burmoor Tarn to Wasdale, back over Hammer pass to Eskdale? Or if you're tired, just go up hammer pass on the forest road and plummet back down on the loam 😀 a highly underrated descent.
Edit: Hammer Pass being the BW over Irton Pike between Wasdale and Miterdale
If you're after techy stuff look for the enduro stages in grizedale dropping to the east shore of Coniston. Look for the viking and loambada on strava. Keep off .
Ambleside over to Troutbeck- Garburn- three rivers - high borrans- Jenkins crag - Ambleside.
The either pizza @ dodds or pad Thai @ jintana. Lovely.
...Carron Cragg though, please
what about that coffin route Rydal Grasmere way that was in the magazine recently?!
did Nan Bield last Sat and it was just about the worst ride I've done in a very long time. Silly long push up, then a descent that initially was unrideable, then was rideable but lacked any flow, then was a bit boring. I won't be doing it again.
Loads of better routes/descents/everything out there.
Thanks chaps, I'll give those suggestions a good look over this week.
Which route did you do Reggie?
Hehe - I'm sort of in the same boat as Reggie
Did Stavely, up n over to Longsleddale and then up to Harter Fell. Longsledale descent was ace. The climb to Harter Fell was tough. Then we had to walk down a bit off the top - we may have missed the right path - and other than the switchbacks, the rest of it was a bit dull.
I'll not be rushing back but the pint and pie at the brewery was great
Get biketreks red route over to grizedale. Good low level route with some techy climbs and a couple of good really descents wrapped up in a nice old fashioned xc all dayer. Makes a good complement to a day of hike s bike and plummets over ban bield
I'm thinking Nobeerinthefridge's route might be the one, that should have us covering lots of this area in a couple of days.
Or we'll go have a play on the BW's over at Grizedale.
I did Staveley, over the boggy fell into LongSleddale, up to Sadgill, then Gatesgarth, then Harter Fell, Nan Bield, then back down the valley to Kentmere and Staveley.
Thanks Reggie, sounds similar to my plan apart from out via Stile End. Which route did you take back to Staveley?
So it wasn't just me that found Nan Bield a bit meh. I put it down to one descent too many on a long day.
Did Nan Bield last weds with my 15 year old lad. 11 years since I last did it (that's just enough time to forget the climbs) and there's a huge amount of erosion on the drop down to kentmere since then and agree with the lack of flow, so the payback for the climb is not as great as I remember it. But it's far from meh. It's not really a bike ride but a big day out in the north. Well worth doing. Might be another 11 years before I do it again tho. Beautiful place.
I don't know the Lakes that well but I've done quite a few rides where they've felt like big days out and great bike rides. I'd have to do a lot more riding in the Lakes before I felt like doing NB again.
For balance, I rode Nan Bield a few months ago and loved the descent (as usual), though it's likely to be a bit boggy on the grassy bit now.
Felt like it had loads of flow to me, but then I was on a 29er.
Tbf, First time I rode Nan Bield (a wee solo post redundancy mission) I wasn't blown away by it, disappointed tbh (Was at the end of the kentmere horseshoe from Garburn round Mardale. ill bell etc).
Rode it again twice since, with friends, and have enjoyed it a lot more, and would gladly do it again. Knowing that it's all completely rideable at a good pace defo makes it more fun.
Cha****ng +1. After the hairpins and slab, you have to punch it to get the flow. It's not a trail that hands it out for free.
Edit: wrong thread 😳
Sounds like we're going to have to ride Nan Bield flat out then guys and not the usual mincing around 😀
did Nan Bield last Sat and it was just about the worst ride I've done in a very long time. Silly long push up, then a descent that initially was unrideable, then was rideable but lacked any flow, then was a bit boring. I won't be doing it again.
I like the first section, the switchbacks are a well loved classic.
As a local I feel obliged to defend the status of the Nan Beild loop:
It always seems to provoke polarised opinions. Having ridden/guided it over 50 times and chatted to many folk on it, I'd say it'll be ace [b]if [/b]you love being up in the mountains, are competent enough to descend it all cleanly at speed, and fit enough to ride standing up from the bottom of the zig-zags downward. Finding flow is tough if you're tired on the descent to Kentmere, and the Harter Fell option is slow and stressful if you're not comfortable gallumphing over boulders. Alternatively f you like being in wild places and having adventurous journeys, being gnar enough to clean everything won't be so pivotal to enjoyment!
Cheers, sounds like we'll enjoy then.
Sounds great to me too. We'll let you know how good it was Daveyboywonder when you don't turn up! At least then you won't see me mincing...
In fairness I think you're right, we did it at the end of a big day and I was cramping up and pretty tired. I didn't mind the hike a bike and the views but the long stretch of singletrack that looked do inviting just felt like more effort than it should have been. I've done other trails that I didn't like first time out but loved them on subsequent visits.
I'd suggest around Coniston and Walna Scar with a detour down that fun bridleway (love that bit) three gates along from Walna Scar car park to finish. No summiting mountains, all ridable, some decent enough tech and some outright foot out flat out sections which will have you grinning from ear to ear.
[url= http://www.pedalnorth.com/content/tour-de-coniston ]Tour de Coniston[/url]
A slight deviation of the route above to get that bridleway in. I dare say a lakes local could refine/expand on this route!
Thanks Chester, I think I did something similar years ago from Grizedale. We made a mistake on the leg towards Torver resulting in a push up a long unrideable footpath.
I thought it only right to add my thoughts on Nan Bield. I'd agree that there are better rides in the Lakes but we loved it. It felt like a proper adventure, we had sleet, snow and ice and occasionally sunshine. The wind on Harter Fell was lifting my helmet clear off head and my bike off the floor!
All in all, a proper good day in the hills.
Day two, after some great advice from Nobeerinthefridge we went with a hard day rather than easy and did 4600ft of climbing in 15 miles and finished with a descent off Grisedale Pike. The climb from Crummock Water to the top of Gasgale Crags was without doubt, the hardest hikeabike I've ever done.
And a big up to the few walkers we met over the two days, a very friendly bunch.
Awesome, glad to have been of help, though I'm sure you were cursing me going up gasgale...
NW fells are a fine place to be on a clear day, stunningly beautiful, compact enough to explore a bit and relatively quiet as well....
Awesome, glad to have been of help, though I'm sure you were cursing me going up gasgale...
We were! Without a doubt the hardest hike a bike I've ever done, my right shoulder is aching this morning. Is there an easier way up?
Great day out though, amazing scenery and some fun descents. The finish off Grisedale Pike was superb.
You did take the higher path at the start, didn't you? Makes it a fair bit easier!.
We just went straight up!
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https://www.strava.com/activities/768827878
A fair bit easier? Sounds like a good reason to try it again Si!
Double post