Heading down to see friends this weekend and have a window for some riding on Sat.

Looking for suggestions – closer to the city the better so I can minimise travel and maximise riding. Preferably something natural singletracky rather than mental-techie-downhill-where’s-the-parachute. 3-5 hours duration or thereabouts.

Cheers.

Meanwood Valley Trail out towards Adel. Then local trails around Golden Acre Park, Bramhope, Arthington, Eccup, Harewood Estate & back via Adel Woods back onto MVT. All public bridle ways so you’ll need access to OS maps to join them all up

+1 John – all the trails I’ve done many times.

+ 1 For John’s route. It’s our default ride when we just fancy popping out. I’d love to hear of something else to mix things up a bit.

Thanks all. Sounds good. Which map(s)? Guessing Landranger 104 from the OS website?

Yeah that’ll cover it, but i refer the Explorer 1:25000 range. 297 & 288, unfortunately, as the route is right on the cusp

Yeah that’ll cover it, but i refer the Explorer 1:25000 range. 297 & 288, unfortunately, as the route is right on the cusp

The law of maps: every route crosses at least 2 😀

Thx.

Alternatively you could hit the Leeds & Liverpool canal towards Shipley, then follow your nose round Calverley Woods, Buck Wood (Thackley), Spring Wood (Esholt) and up onto Baildon Moor. Train back to Leeds from Shipley, Bingley or Saltaire if you get knackered. Afraid I can’t show you round as I’m at an air show on Saturday

Essentially, head north, west or northwest…

problem is that unless you know all the singletrack you will end up having a boring ride on bridleway.

One thing to note is that Leeds City council allow you to ride on the footpaths in the woods etc, as long as you are considerate to walkers.

I would use the canal to hit up esholt, then head over to horsforth woodside loop that then do meanwood and follow that back in to town

Where are your friends based? Could help sort a decent route.

However if you have transport, park up at Golden Acre, from there you have many choices, Eccup, Harewood, Sicklinghall etc.

Where are your friends based? Could help sort a decent route.

However if you have transport, park up at Golden Acre, from there you have many choices, Eccup, Harewood, Sicklinghall etc.

Friends are near Horsforth (don’t have address to hand) but I will have transport anyway. Eccup/Golden Acre park are recurring mentions so am thinking something including those? Open to suggestions though. And thanks.

Cool

I am in Horsforth and you can ride upto Golden Acre no problems. Would a GPX of a couple of routes be any use to you?

They would be of use to me!! Any chance?

I shall stick a few up and get a link up

Nice one..

The GPX routes will be good to see.. I need to branch out my route knowledge too.. 🙂

I’ve not ridden round golden acre yet..

Be careful in Golden Acre if after dusk 😉

Be careful in Golden Acre if after dusk

Aye, I’ve seen a couple of interesting things there 😆

You can get to golden acre easily from horsforth so you might as well cycle through to otley chevin where you will have nice singletrack and a couple of rocky descents if the mood takes.
I go through golden acre at night and have never seen anything, is that lucky or not?

http://we.tl/xRJGcwa3ZA

This may help

Blader you’re not looking in the right place 😉

May be people are scared off by my gazillion lumen (give or take a lumen or two) chinese light! Pretty sure that was the manufacturers quoted brightness which i am certain will be bang on!

top work @darth – cheers. Now…which one?!?

Hehe thats the question.

There is one on there that takes you upto Bingley along the canal so its a longer one if you have more time.

Then a shorter one that I do on an evening if I have an hour or so to burn.

The one over to Sicklinghall is one of my faves 🙂

I wouldnt go to golden acre as there are no paths through it, only tarmac footpaths full of dog walkers in the daytime and doggers at night.

if you have transport and a fe hours why not go to Stainburn?

Yeah but there’s a bridleway on the Leeds side of Golden Acre that spits you out on the A660 just by the hotel. Then across the road into Breary Marsh towards Cookridge

plenty of bridleway to get through acre park and as John said you can go through Breary Marsh which will bring you out just down the road from Cookridge Health club and Old Mods football club. You could then head up to bramhope and on to the chevin as thats only about 2 miles away.

Sfinnie what time are you thinking of heading out? I’ll be off down Meanwood trail and out of town around 3pm for a couple of hours tomorrow, it’ll be a bit of a smashfest but you’re welcome to come along

I’m sorry, did someone mention dogging? In north Leeds? Well I never. Where did you say it was?