Crazy busy at Peaslake today but didnt feel busy on the trails. Loving the summer bonus.
chakaping - That was my mate. I tried his bike out last year, liked it, bought one too. There's not that many around really, yours is the only one outside our group I've seen.
apart from the coach party who passed us walking up Yoghurt Pots just a couple of secs after I'd crashed.
Years ago, I remember watching a mate crash into the first really swampy bit (bottom of the first rooty section) as the result of a German Shepherd leaping out in front. Oh how we all laughed because he stank like a shit pit for the remainder of the ride.
I walked the the trails today with the lady! Can someone clear something up for me, I'm sure the path that runs parallel to Ewhurst Rd, from the bottom of BKB is a footpath, yet I saw at least 5 bikes using the path instead of the road. Am I going mad in thinking it's a footpath and thus out of bounds to bikers?
I'm not 100% sure if it's a footpath, but it's not meant to be ridden, the residents of the houses at the end got (understandalby) annoyed with people shouting as they popped onto the road. It's been blocked off a few times, but people still ride it!
Njee yes that was us we were on an epic loop just to make the most of the dry trails. Conditions were indeed awesome.
It's a footpath and for some reason people think that riding along it and antagonising the locals is better than riding on the road. Don't get it personally.
There is a sort of gate at the start (bottom of BKB) so I assumed if it's blocked don't ride it.
I'm just waiting for a rebellion from the locals a d the whole area will become hostile to bikers, shame as the minority of riders not sympethic to the area will ruin it for all.
Njee yes that was us we were on an epic loop just to make the most of the dry trails. Conditions were indeed awesome.
A retrospective 'hello' then 🙂
2 of our guys rode over from Ligh****er, did all of the hills, then rode back off road, 75 miles, in that heat, rather them than me!
It's a footpath and for some reason people think that riding along it and antagonising the locals is better than riding on the road. Don't get it personally.
+1
75 miles, I thought we were crazy thinking of taking in box hill. We have been riding the hills for 20 years but never really explored the winterfold area so must do some research and walk the trails
Riding that footpath does cause issues and there is no reason to ride it so if you see someone doing it politely ask them not to.
If they ignore you not much you can do about it - except maybe start a "bellends WTF?! 👿 "Name and shame thread...
Last time I looked there was a clear barrier across the start of it proclaiming it a footpath and making it difficult to get on to it to ride it anyway.
I think that's the point. Despite people making it obvious it's not for bikes, some people think its worth doing
That footpath is completely dull anyway. All is does it blend the 'new' finish with the 'old, i.e pootle along for a few yards then drop onto the road.
Heard years ago that there was a trail leading above the houses. Never really looked and never found anything. Might have been an extension of the chicken run from the 'old' trail?
chakaping - That was my mate. I tried his bike out last year, liked it, bought one too. There's not that many around really, yours is the only one outside our group I've seen.
Small world eh? I think your mate bought Nick at Bikeactive's demo Dune, and Nick got a 2011 one - so that's four of them.
Such a fun bike, I'm really loving mine.
spacemonkey - I know where it is (walked down it when hiking down that way but not ridden it). I wouldn't bother; in terms of a fun to pissing off the locals ratio, it's on the low side.
chakaping - That's the one exactly. Oddly enough, rode down Holmbury a couple of months back and some bloke asked me if mine was from Bikeactive as he'd test ridden it there.
Still nice conditions and much cooler!! Took the STW advice and parked at Starvael - surprisingly quick and easy to the Tower. Great explore through all the bomb holes in the rhoddies and then the longer singletrack further North. Unfortunately had mega wipe out trying out WMB skills from their DVD which blew my confidence. Back to the top and then a lovely moderately challenging switchback trail down into the valley on the NE side. That was really good fun and helped re-build a bit of confidence. Pathetic attempt at the climb back to the Tower, with wheel spin about 3/4 of the way up leading to a dab down. Useless. More exploring of the same basic area before finally discovering the amazing stuff above the CP. Wow, lots of drop offs (many too much for me) and really fun bits.
I think its time for some skill coaching now. I am crashing too often and hurting myself every time I go out. Plus getting on to sections that are beyond my technique and level of courage. So stopping too much and bottling out or crashing by going too slowly especially bomb holes with rooty lips!
1. Skill training
2. Practice
3. Time for flats - spds are making me bottle things too often?
4. Of course - a better bike. Using pretty basic trek hardtail with only 100m. No excuse really but would love to try a better bike!!
Only saw one other biker - hi, the the guy on FS with black and white shirt near the Tower!!
heihei
Had a quick spin over Puttenham. Found the smaller jumps on the video. Had a crack at some (first time) and wimped the others. Still not up to the one at 1:25-1:35!! I have a very basic Trek 6500 so not sure it is made for the bigger jumps...well that's my excuse!!
Finally found a little bit of singletrack on Puttenham that I knew must exist but could never find the top section. Really nice tight singletrack which is starting to get overgrown and links into other tracks that reduce the climb back up to the top. No other tracks on it, so put 3 sets on today, so that it doesn't get too overgrown!! It follows the side of the slightly overgrown valley that descends from the big house at the top.
Windy Willows as I do it starting from the tower. Shot this very morning...what a great trail it is too. Sorry about the smudge!
I think I may have ridden bits of this by accident then. I recognise the top. Get lost around 0:40 but then recognise the two little bombholes at 1:02/1:05, then made the mistake and stayed straight on at 1:15 where I think this leads to two awkward bombholes that I wimped!! Then missed the section from 1:58.
Thanks for the video 10pmix - I am inspired to go and find the correct route now!!
Hmm. Don't think i know that trail. Can someone mail me off forum?
i'd like to know too , please.
it looks like it needs a bit of 'running in' 🙂
Nice vid 10pmix. As it happens, I found it on YT last night.
It's funny how people have different names for trails because going by your vid we call 'em:
0:00 Magic Tree (because of the weirdly isolated one at 0:22)
1:25 Kickstart
1:50 Windy Willows (well, what we call the start of just as you turn right by that bushy clump. It heads off in loads of directions after 100yds or so, with WW being the one that kind of carries on until it suddenly breaks right at the third or fourth split)
2:39 Trench Warfare (if you dip in under that fallen tree and follow it round)
Little play area on the left just before TW too.
Damn it whats the tune??? I know that so well but cant remember!.....
Doomsnight?
At 1.05 , the Laurel bush on the left at the bottom of the drop = Robs Bush . I have ended up in it twice.
That route is a good one, best ridden more or less in one go , and no silly gap jumps so mere mortals can feel like riding gods ( if they dont fall into Robs bush )
Wow - I've been out in Surrey Hills a few times but never found this trail - anyone kind enough to give a newbie some directions? Off forum if necessary? Thanks.
Cheers. Much as I ride the area and find new (to me) trails I don't know the names of any of them (no signs of course and no one I ride with knows either!). I only found out (some of) this was called Windy Willows on this thread. So any names of the other bits are welcome!
Tune is Plastic Dreams by Jaydee. A club classic from circa 1992...
Found some other new bits on my ride last weekend along with some old faves. Anyone want to play guess the trail 😀
Really? Sounds like "Jet Boys" by The NY Dolls to me...
😀
Was responding to a previous post. NY Dolls on this new one right enough...
Conditions were good today I thought, drier than I expected!
There was a nice little roll in to the RH side of Deliverance, small left kink halfway down - rode into it today and someone's built a big ol' kicker off a downed tree - definitely not rollable! Luckily managed to stop, but not great! Nice they'd left their bottle of Robinsons lying around too! In the dry I'd normally have carried more speed into it, and you can't see it from the top, so watch yourselves!
Busy out too, no room at all in the Peaslake car park at 10ish when we rode through, never seen that before!
Nick - I was looking out for you in the woods as I buzzed round there on the road today 🙂
Yeah I saw you're back on the road, good effort, hardly 6 weeks! Means you'll still give me a kicking at the Brass Monkeys 🙁
Should do a road ride sometime, can't do next weekend, maybe weekend after!
Yeah sounds good - not sure I'll be at Brass Monkey 1 as my arm is still sore under stress but hopefully I'll be there!
10pmix
I love that second video. Shows me how little I know about Leith Hill as struggled to recognise most of that. Plus you were going sooo fast down SL! Lots of jumps and drops that I didn't recognise.
Great shooting though - but where was the TM smudge? 😉
We made the trip round from N.london again on Sat, trails are still great. I guess it just suits my lairy XC tastes but I don't think Surrey Hills can be beaten. Plenty to keep you on your toes but not so steep that you are just hanging on the brakes the whole time.
Met some lads from Derbyshire who were down for a visit, had a good spin round with them. I love bikes.
@teamhurtmore Cheers! Most of that was shot last weekend when I just went out alone and tried to find new trails. And boy did I.... Just about all of the vid is around Leith Hill. One exception is the steep trail on the backside of Holmbury Hill that has the 'Warning Steep Slope' sign at the start..sorts the men from the boys that one.
I went to Bedgebury Forest this weekend to check it out and realised how lucky I was to have the Surrey Hills on my doorstep!
You are obviously a much better rider than me, but the videos have inspired me to get up on LH a bit more. Is the HH run "widow maker"?
I have only been on LH twice - once a long XC ride and the other mainly focused on trying to find WW! As I mentioned I found bits of this but not the whole route on your video. But did find an amazing area above the car park. Lots of that were beyond my skill levels but lots to work on!!
I am looking forward to spending more time exploring. Was most of the 2nd video on the Tower side?
Any chance some of you guys could mark some of them on Opensource? BKB, Yoghurt and Telegraph are all there (and much loved), would be good to have some more up there.
Ah yes, seems to be Widowmaker. Really do need to get out with Nirvana or similar so I can find out what all the trails I ride are called!
Most of the second vid is descents from the tower in various directions with a jump at the quarry and some other bits and bobs thrown in.
Happy to do a show and tell when next on the hill if you want. Should be showing my riding buddies my new discoveries this weekend (they're just back from 10 days riding in Moab so may not be too impressed..).
What is Opensource?
Rob
Mcboo - I'm afraid I can't really help. There really are no really detailed maps/route guides as such and there is an unwritten rule (it seems!) that people should not advertise routes on public areas such as STW. I am a relative newcomer to mtb in general and to Surrey Hills, so I know how frustrating and time consuming this can be. Having said that I am having lots of fun simply exploring the area. I used to concentrate on Pitch and Winterfold - and loved finding the hidden areas for myself. Holmbury is a bit more obvious and Leith is all new to me.
I just use a combination of looking at YT videos, following people and trial and error. But I know hardly any of the names. The knack is simply to keep your eyes open for obvious tell-tell signs/tracks and to experiment - it doesn't always work and I have found myself in some "bad situations" requiring walking back out on numerous occassions!!
Sorry meant http://www.openstreetmap.org/
We've got a belter of a route that we do from Westcott. up to BKB, into Peaslake, up the other side, back to Peaslake, cheese straw, up to Holmbury, Youghurt, Telegraph, Leith Hill then down the extended SL to the start. We're going to be training for a big endurance event next summer so like to extend it a bit, add some more loops round Pitch maybe, take it from 2.5hrs to 4-4.5.......
http://connect.garmin.com/activity/111430970
Too much controversy over sensitive trails in the area. There are only three official trails. BKB, Yog Pots and Summer Lightning. All the rest, including Telegraph, are unofficial and generally natural unmaintained or unofficially maintained trails.
Pitch and Holmbury existing trails are generally fine under the Hurtwood management, but outside of Hurtwood there's a fair bit of sensitivity. Many are tolerated but as they become popular or advertised a lot the locals and/or landowners start ranting. The press also like to pick up on this siding against us "drunken swearing hooligans" (as we were called in one local newspaper) and "vandals" (again in local and even national news recently, thanks to a certain ranger).
It's tempting to tell the world about all the trails, but the way things are going, we'll lose the lot and have armies of influential ramblers on the warpath. It's better to keep it as it is where the tourists can do the signature trails and anyone who wants more just explores or goes with people who know. It keeps the bulk of the traffic around the maintained areas also.
P.S. A little secret on trails - Strava (specifically segments). I'm in two minds whether it's a good thing or not though.
Anyway, all that said, Surrey Hills is about the best area for MTB in the south of England in my opinion.
Mcboo - i did much of that route a few weeks ago except for the Pitch section. Try it again but this time, when you go up LH, TL on road and then TR up the second track (about 200m on road) instead of your direct route up to the Tower. You will soon find some new stuff on either side. WW etc on the LHS (high up) and some lovely stuff on RHS (again starting quite near the top). You are currently riding past a massive area of great riding all on your LHS!! So save time on Pitch and spend another hour or so exploring Leith. Dont just drop down to SL.
