You can relax GaVgAs - there were blimmin' loads heading out today from Staveley. The natural order of the universe has been restored.
Good Good Martin, all the better trails are miles away from there anyway 😉
I was one of the crowd heading out from Stavley did a cracking loop taking in Garburn pass - was pretty quiet once out in th'ills tho
Did a loop of Rosset Ghyll and Stake Pass on Sat, some fantastic riding when not pushing up, and was genuinely amazed not to see any other bikers all day. I like the lakes 🙂
nice one nick,any photos?
I live in Kendal, I reckon I see more roadies than I do MTBs up here but then it's a big place to hide them all.
That said, when I'm driving to Manchester on a Friday and I see all the MTBs on the cars going north, I get close to pulling a sickle and turning around.
National Park policy is to discourage visitors from entering the area with their vehicles by making parking difficult and siting the attractions around the periphery of the park. Proper mountain biking is dying slowly back to the few diehards who feel comfortable in the outdoors and many of the originals have gone over to the road. The few remaining mountain bikers are sticking to trail centres where they feel safe, can park and can buy plastic drink bottles then scatter them along the trail. Horrific traffic congestion on the motorways also means that fewer people are ready to jump in their cars on a Friday and shoot off to some far-flung mountain area like they used to 20 years ago.
Similar pressures mean that previously popular climbing routes are becoming clogged with vegetation through lack of use and parties of young cavers are seldom seen down caves.
Wozza Kendal based here to give us a shout if you want some company on the trails!
Not biking specific, but we've cut down on hillwalking trips to the Lakes the last couple of years mainly because Friday evening trips up the M6 from the Midlands seemed to consistently turn into nightmarish epics, even with nipping off a bit earlier. Now it's for longer weekends only, which are much rarer. And I wouldn't even consider going to the Lakes on a Bank Holiday weekend.
Srubbish really. Hate living here ;-D
A few pics below f that BH weekend Gav was talking about.
I can understand those of you living hours away......it's a pain in the arse drive up for sure. Worth it though?
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postierich - Member
Wozza Kendal based here to give us a shout if you want some company on the trails!
Dropped you a message.
Just a few more from the weekend on our own (Total Gridlock as you can see) 😉
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[i]clareymorris - Member
Srubbish really. Hate living here[/i]
Excuse me Ms Morris - we live in the Lake District, you live in Cumbria 😀
I've not been home since March. Longest time in 20 years. 🙁
Hopefully going home in a week.... 😀
That's because lake Districts residents are ****s ;-D
OOps - got sweary starred!!
Gav - I can do a few pics!
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Climb up Rosset Gill starts
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Obligatory new bike pic, I think top of Rosset Gill about to descend towards Esk Hause (after a small detour up the random mountain top left of pic)
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Then down the other side.
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I think this was Styhead Gill, I had to stop here and take a couple of pics as my arms were about shot! Long old descent.
Ended up around 35k I think, from Langdale up Rosset Gill, to Esk Hause around Styhead Gill, up to Stonethwaite, spot of lunch then across Stonethwaite Fell and down Stake Pass. Brilliant route 🙂 Been looking at some of the other stuff we could have ridden off it like Grains Gill and will need to try and get back up before winter hits.
^^^ yes that's the Styhead to Stockley Bridge descent Nick.
Up Rosset Gill is not fun... but down is a fair old challenge (No I didn't clean it all)
Scarey, we did Grains Gill last time as an alternative to avoid the unridable traversey section at the top of Styhead. I gotta agree with you, it's a better descent. There's one nasty exposed section at the top with a big drop into the Gill that had me walking/scrambling, but the rest is fantastic, all the way down to Stockley Bridge.
Seems an awful lot of photos of people walking, not my thing TBH. I also remember seeing people riding along the ridge to Helvellyn and thinking it didn't look all that much fun.
dragon...there's only one way to get to the top of the vast majority of big-old lakeland descents. Sometimes you can push, but more often than not it's a carry.
[edit] same again last Sunday (Harter Fell/Nan Bield) and no doubt more of the same this weekend 🙂 [/edit]
i love riding int eh lakes. done some epic days up there.
however i live 9hrs drive away.
I've been biking down in the Lakes regularly for the last 15yrs or so. There were 7 of us down from Stirlingshire just this weekend and we all had a superb time. Most of the folk with us hadn't ridden there before and hadn't experienced the very friendly, outdoors oriented vibe of the place.
I'm pretty sure everyone headed back up North on Sunday already planning their next trip down there, I know I was.
C.
😀
Aw man, i wish I'd not revisited this thread - was supposed to be going to Hebden Bridge on Sunday but I'm getting that Lakes yearn once again 😀
Does anyone have a view on this trail - as a descent obviously 😉
scarey cary - little known gem, so keep hush. Get to it from the Robinson ridge or up from the top of Newlands. Bit of bog to reach it and tricky rocky bit in the middle (grab the little tree if you fall right......)
Good on you boxelder, its now on my hit list! Time to get creative and start mapping... Which i find almost as enjoyable as the actual ride
