Moon on a stick – West Yorkshire Trails

I’m in urgent need of a fix of dry(ish), preferably fast and fun trails in an hour or so. I’m in Leeds and if I’m riding local it is normally either side of the MVT between Adel jumps and Meanwood park.

I don’t mind getting filthy, but cutting six-inch deep tracks into cheeky trails isn’t clever…

I can finish work in an hour and have transport. Looking for at least an hours riding before it gets dark. what are my options?

Stainburn, Gisburn and Lee Quarry all (just about) doable, if my only option is drained trail centre trails. How horrific is Calderdale right now? Ilkley? Anything in the dales? What is holding up to this summer’s weather?

I need a night off from tarmac crunching….

Thanks.

What about Wharncliffe, Sheffield. Can be a bit crappy but some ace riding. I reckon from Leeds about 45 mins.

ogden water loop.

I was just looking at that, isn’t it the sort of place you need to know our way around? Just thinking I’m not going to have much daylight…

Mate was at Stainburn at the weekend and said the trails were really nice. Car park side is dry, but that side is always ridable, he said the other side of the road is about 75% but totally ridable if you don’t mind tha odd bit of muck.

Traffic permitting you can get to Stainburn in 40 mins from most parts of Leeds.

Edit, yeah warncliffe as well. another mate was there opn Saturday and said the trails were pretty good.

hebden was great fun on saturday, Blue Pig, Peckets and rodwell edge all fine. mmmbop a little overgrown but ok. some of the cheeky is a little boggy but most is fine. gorple and widdop is all rocks any way, hurst wood is fine. stone lane is fine.

There is a whole days worth of riding.

That’s just north of Halifax ton, that works. What can I expect?

I know Stainburn well Ads – 20 minutes from here, so very easy. Unlike the road climb back up from the Descent line….

Cheers Phil. Thinking about it, not sure I’ll get through the ‘Fax 5pm traffic in time to enjoy it tonight.

bspoked, nice not to steep rocky/bit wet climb, nice fast descent then a bit of a climb, then a long descent down cobbles.

ideal for a hours blast of a evening.

Sounds fun and I can’t probably get around the top of Bradford without too much pain. Park in Ogden and then clockwise?

road climb back up from the Descent line….

There is a climbing line, admitedly designed by sadistic swine, but it is there… 😉

I’ve tried to ride that climbing line. I got muddy feet…

Pudsey and Calverley Woods using the Leeds Country Way?

What are Calverley woods like at the moment Sam?

yes mate, head back out from the carpark and the b/w is on the left.
follow the b/w to calder/aire link path.
follow this to the road, turn left and climb up above warley moor res.
when you reach the 1st buildings on the left, turn left and follow cobbled descent all the way back to ogden.

Was at Stainburn on Saturday. Was all perfectly good, although a little damp in patches on the norwood Edge side.

Rachel

I concur with philfive,
We had a whole day around Hebden last Saturday: 19 miles & 1400m of ascent; little or no mud.
Missed out mmmBop this time solely because it was so overgrown last time out.
All other trails on that side of the valley are A1. Stuff on the Pike side may have suffered a bit though (eg I’m told that Chipps’ is trashed at the bridge)

It’s a few days since I’ve been through but they were holding up better than expected… It was slippery but then it’s slippery when it’s dry. You do have to pick your lines a bit though. If it was crappy then you could always stick to the tracks and treat it as more of a bridleway blast.

Actually The Chevin’s holding up surprisingly well too, I was running up there last night and there’re not very many unavoidable muddy bits. The steep descentts in particular were fine.

I’m Ogden-bound. Cheers all.

Anyone know the crack with those trails in Riddlesden. Any good?

very good at Riddlesden, if you are into that sort of stuff. With no money or materials support, they’ve done a good job and BMDC only required them to tweek a few bits and bobs.

you just bored of MVT? or worried its muddy? 😉 its bone dry… or was 3 hours ago 🙂

DK – I’d never get bored of it, lines and routes galore, just feel a bit bit guilty hacking through the boggy bits. I always try and give it 3-4 days after rain and it chucked it down here last night.

So… after spending all day dreaming of a nice summer’s evening ride, ripping up some DRY trails, I took Ton’s advice and headed up to Ogden. 1h 20m to do the 16 miles in the car, I parked up, paid the 50p charge and headed off up the trail in the rain, the next 30 minutes basically consisted of riding up a series of streams (nice and grippy) broken up my moorland bog (not so fun). Often I would be riding through running water unbroken for several hundred metres. It wasn’t what I’d been hoping for, but apart from the occasional dismount to traverse the largest bogs it was going well enough. Unfortunately, whilst the streams seemed infintely preferable to the bogs, one of them was carefully concealing a hub deep hole. I was going uphill so luckily only had enough speed to clear the bars, not disappear into the distance. On the plus side, the sodden moorland provided a comfortable landing.

The rain was sporadic, but by the time I was half way along the Calder/Aire link it was setting in and blowing horizontal, plus the light was going. Despite suspecting that the drier half of the ride was ahead of me, I decided, given the circumstances, better the devil I know and turned around.

Back up the hill, then a few hundred metres of bog-trot and I was onto the long shallow descent. The next few minutes were great fun, picking lines through the bogs, dropping through the eroded ruts, kicking off the rocks and charging through the streams (weight a bit further back now).

I arrived back at the carpark just as the light was fading and three lads were setting off on a night-ride. Good effort! Soaked to the skin, covered in bog and with my bike the colour of a turd, I loaded the car – the lack of light preventing me from seeing what a mess I was making.

Drove home to a full bike wash, washing machine load and a warm shower. God knows what is going to get that peaty residue off my disc rotors. Another lovely summer ride!

Joking aside, I loved the descent back of the moor and would definitely go back in drier conditions. So thanks Ton, even if I won’t be asking you for dry trail recommendations again! 😉

I put up a Bingley Bash ride variant which is mostly on dry ground and a good route, but then thought better of it as it included a footpath section and another naughty bit that will not be naughty in a few months (actually not naughty now according to the land owner, but not public knowledge as yet), but wasn’t worth advertising on a public forum right now. email me if you want it bspoked.

I wondered where those two imaged went 🙂
I’ll drop you a mail, ta.

mate, i know i am almost godlike, but even i cant alter the weather…………… 😆

glad you had fun tho.

Can’t quite believe the Ogden BW got a suggestion as a ‘dry’ ride. Most of the stuff around Caldedale still has streams running down it as the ground is still saturated.

If you want to do the Ogden ride again, do it the other way around. Climb up the cobbles (nice easy climb but is just fast, not technical in the slightest coming down). Right at the top and past Warley Moor Res. Then veer right before the road drops down and theres a FP across the edge of the hill (saves a road descent and a really horrible boggy BW across a sheep sh*t infested field followed by a rubbish climb). This will spit you out at the top of the BW back to Ogden which when going down, is a great ride, even more so if you cut off across the grassy descent to the car park at the end instead of sticking to the BW. But, that top section of the BW heading back towards Ogden is flattish and prone to getting real boggy. In the dry though, its lightning fast!

If you fancy doing something similar again, then as a few people have said, Hebden is holding up ok at the moment. Few trails are washed out, Birthday X being the main one. Its totally knackered. 4/5ft deep gulleys in it (no kidding!). Everything else seemed ok the other week though.

Or a bit closer, South Halifax. Doesn’t get anywhere near the traffic Hebden etc does but in my (biased) opinion, the riding is as good as Hebden stuff. Let me know if you want a route idea.

Yes please Dave. Last night was just about trying to get somewhere in the remaining daylight. Always up for route suggestions. Ta.

Ton – I’ll bear that in mind next time 🙂

Drop me a mail to dirtscene@btopenworld.com to remind me 😉

Ach! Don’t travel all that way to do the Ogden ride, especially backwards! I live about 100m from the route and ride it regularly as a 45minute spin in the evening, it’s not a good ‘day out’.

However, you want to climb up the cobbles rather than waste all the descent on them, descend down towards the carpark on the actual bridleway, it’s not steep but you can get some fair speed going. Riding it the other was is just pantaloons from my experience, loose/wet climb and no fun descending.
But to be honest just ride the stuff at Hebden or Stainburn, much more fun.

Edit- Daveyboywonder has it spot on ^

At least last night’s nightfall-inspired about turn got me to ride the bw the right way as well as the wrong way. I’ll be back when it is drier (I bet frozen solid is fun) and will head off up the cobbles.

Hebden just isn’t doable for me on an evening. I’ve got a nice long holiday coming up so will be back over then.

MVT might get a blast tonight if this sunshine holds.

ianv – Member

Anyone know the crack with those trails in Riddlesden. Any good?
Posted 20 hours ago # Report-Post
B.A.Nana – Member

very good at Riddlesden, if you are into that sort of stuff. With no money or materials support, they’ve done a good job and BMDC only required them to tweek a few bits and bobs.

Where about’s in Riddlesden are they or are they obvious?

Bump: I’d like to know that too…

Riddlesden – as in East Riddlesden? Didn’t know there were any decent trails over there?????

If youre doing MVT, I’d pop across to Horsforth quarry and Cookridge woods, always some good lines there and usually dry too.
esholt has good and bad bits and thackley is still holding up well too.

But Bingley/Harden/st.Ives are best.

Do you get into the quarry from the bw next to the railway bridge? Never been in there.

B.A.Nana – I’m interested in the Riddlesden Trails location too, it’s great to find out there’s more stuff on your doorstep.
Can probably work out where they are but a pointer would appreciated.

Cheers

Ah – found ’em.