Going up to the Lakes in the summer with an extended family group and we were going to do a bit of biking whilst we are there.
Got a very mixed group from 8 & 10 yr olds (that ride a bit and have just started MTB) to adults that have never really ridden MTB before at all.
Firstly - I assume the short blue route shouldn't be a problem for anyone of moderate fitness? And is the best place for bike hire at the hub (indeed is there any hire at all onsite???) or should we hire elsewhere?
Blue is fine for mixed abilities did it when my kids were 8 and 6 iirc with some folk who owned bikes but never cycled. Everyone enjoyed it.
the bit from the centre is probably the trickiest - some berms and twistyness iirc- everything else is just not technical. A couple of great view points and worth the effort with a mixed group.
I only know south lakes routes as I assume the old railway line to threekeld/stone circle is a no go after the flood damage.
I assume , but dont know, that they do cycle hire from there
Do the blue by itself and you'll be back at the centre 20 minutes later. Plenty of fireroads up the hill through the forest that aren't technical but will offer lovely views of the fells beyond.
Its true its only 7.5 km long but with a mixed group pootling and stops you will be at 2 hours not counting sorting out hire etc
There are lots of very steep routes to the views.
Generally i hate trail centres but its pretty much perfect what the OP wants.
All that remains is that I convince the group that I should then be allowed to bog off and do some proper riding myself when they have all bored of it.
After all, I have had to give up my Glastonbury bloody ticket to go for this weekend.
👿
It does link in with the north loop at the end so you can have a blast of that whilst they go to the cafe - not sure that is proper mind but it is an easy option.
You could peel off near to the visitor centre and do either loop, south or north. Or both, if you make it quick, they're not long (12 miles or so for both).
Why not book the kids into Go Ape with an instructor for the afternoon?
I hired a bike from the shop at Whinlatter a few years ago. All went well. Got some else's bike dirty and wet and handed it back after a ride and walked away. Easy, if not cheap.
The Go Ape bit (and the rest of the weekend) being arranged by my mother in law. I'm just doing this bit so the weekend I was meant to be at Glastonbury isn't a complete disaster.
There's a section of duck board on one of the routes, with shellgrip-like coating and a whacking big tree stump next to it.
If you don't notice the stump and bash your right forearm into part of it, you get thrown off the bike quite hard, landing on your left side and taking a big chunk out of your left elbow on the aforementioned shellgrip. Two years later you still have a large scar.
So says a friend of mine...