Forum menu
Isle of Ewe too
"I assume that the trails have no name there?"
Well played 😀 👍




I had to get a new passport, as though it had 3 years left I’d run out blank pages, so had a appointment at the Passport office at Excel yesterday morning, followed by a 4 hour wait to collect the new one, £12 to park in a driveway 2 mins walk way from the office and am spent the nextv4.5 hours riding around on the hard tail.
Had my 10 week collarbone x-ray. New bone appears to have joined broken bits so that's a win. Sadly it's all very soft and not yet in a state it can be subjected to proper MTBing. Maybe another month, but currently glad I didn't have the Op as it looks like it's going to be a strong natural union (albeit with a lump!). So not being able to MTB, I took a MTB on a 25km loop of road, gravel and er the odd 'dirt road'. But nothing with even a hint of gnar 😉
Was good tho. Third time out on the "Beige Adventurer" and it's the perfect bike for this kind of thing. And probably quite a lot more. Unless it rains. Those tyres do not look mud compatible !
Midweek seems to have become road(ish) ride time. Over the hill from hebden to Keighley, then towpath to Leeds and train home. I love this ride, bit of a climb, long fast descent, bit of urban warfare through Keighley then a long, fast roll through the leafy urban fringes of West Yorkshire. (Salty?!) Lemon drizzle cake and coffee at five rise locks provided the fuel
Victorian tramway routes on top of Rooley Moor today; long, curving lines of flags worn with grooves where carts took dressed stone into the valleys for onward transport by rail.

https://www.valleyofstone.org.uk/journey/historyofquarrying/quarrying-grand-scale
Comrie Croft. Definitely noticing the darkness creeping in a bit earlier. Stuffing my face with Summer while I can.
There's been chat on here about XC hardtails recently so I stuck the 29er wheels on the pact and took it for a spin on a couple of trails I'd been avoiding on my gravel bike.
Yep - there's still a place for a bike like this in my quiver, even if it's a bit squeezed out between my gravel bike and my "trail" bike.
Today I have mostly been an Ebike ****er.
Not ridden it for over a month so took it out for a spin round.
1500Meters/30km.
Cool new totem pole wolf-like thing at the top of the wolf trails.
Went to explore the hidden northern side of Beinn a Bhuird starting out from Invercauld. Up the Slugain and down the Quoich river (via one of the most scenic bits of singletrack I've ever ridden. Good to see Scots Pine saplings have not been munched by the deer, well done John Muir Trust!) to pickup the usual ascent of Beinn a Bhuird from the SW. Now I used to be able to ride most of the ascent but pushed most of it due to being an old git.
Plan had been to put on my rock shoes and solo the 300ft Squareface, I got myself ready and then decided that I wasn't going to enjoy the experience!
Headed north over Stob an T-Sluichd past the remains of an Airspeed Oxford to pick up the stalker's path heading down to the A'an river. Worthy descent? No not really but the scenery was fab. The return leg via the Fords of Avon and the Culardoch were a war of attrition, almost worth it for the high speed descent to the car
So I can post pictures... four times!
Trip over to Swaledale this morning - a breezy and occasionally rainy loop from Gunnerside taking in the pipeline descent, Bunton Hush and the Electric Gate descent to end.
Ride out with my mate Tuesday. He doesn't ride anywhere near as often as I do, so it was a nice relaxed pace, with plenty of chats. Bit of exploring and we discovered a few hidden trails I'd not seen before.
Forgot to take any photos, other than these 2!
Gravel and a coffee stop today. Next week I've got another operation and 2 months off the bike again 🙄 At least I know what's involved and how to approach getting back into it this time. Fingers crossed we have an Indian summer in October.
Midweek CX in Dundee hosted by Trilogy.cc, I spoiled most of the photos by having my tongue hanging out or looking otherwise haggard 😂
Token air! (this is big by my standards, in my defence it was an uphill approach across woodchips).
There may be trouble ahead...

The heather up on t'moor is an incredible, vibrant purple at the moment.

Repeated last week's hebden to Leeds ride and carried on down the aire valley to pick up the trans Pennine trail to Wakefield. There's some impressive cycling infrastructure in Leeds, a bit elaborate and poorly signed though. After Wakefield it got very hot and my planned route was not so easy to follow: bits of Calder valley Greenway, canal path and lanes appeared and disappeared but once I got to Colne bridge I was on familiar turf. Then I lost my phone , with 2 bank cards and driving licence as well. Panic, and 12 km of backtracking and there it was. Huge euphoric relief and a few lessons learned. 140 km of pretty easy riding, nice enough but not sure I can be bothered with traipsing through horbury and ravensthorpe again! Sorry, long post!
30 miles on the road bike today, longest ride I've done in years! Need a better bib short than the cheap Halfords one I got, my arse is in tatters!
A hot 20km of local back roads and green lanes. Took a short detour to visit a church that's less than 5 miles from my house. Must have driven past the sign 100s of times, but today decided to give it nose. Nice old church as well 🙂
Shoulder still sore after an hour. Better than last week tho but that might be as I've ditched the Ergon Winged grips so I've a bit more choice on how to hold the bar. Talking of bar....mmm cold beer 🙂
Aargh, it's Flying Ant Day on Horse Head Moor! Bivi hastily relocated.

More like it, on the summit cairn high point to catch the breeze.

Coffee at dawn, packed and away for 07:25, home on the train for lunch...


I rode a local(ish) routes yesterday - one of my favourites as it has a bit of everything. Starting from St John's Chapel in Weardale, over the permissive path on Ireshope Moor and across to Cow Green, then over Maize Beck to join the bridelway over Cronkley Fell:
Off the other side of Cronkley Fell back towards Teesdale, nice fast singletrack heading off to the right.
Stop at the visitors centre cafe in Bowlees for some much needed refreshment and ice cream before heading back over Swinhope Head to Weardale.
Lifting stills from this new fandangled camera is more challenging than I thought. Attempt 2, from today's ride.
Weds. Have been battling with the laws of gravity a lot recently! Only got up this once on first try, so mostly losing.
First ride on the hardtail since June. Probably should have charged the headlight before setting off before dawn but made it to the gravel safely anyway. 7 degrees and 91% humidity but clear skies for a birthday 45km lap before work.








































































