Notice theres a path from The Buck carpark signposted "Top of Leach", is that a bridleway and does that lead up that way?

I went up that way. That is the Pennine Bridleway. Follow the acorn logo and bear left on the way up. A bit hard straight from the car! Turn left at the very top.

Is a lovely descent.

Rode(pushed) up from Cowpe today.

A beautifully executed trail! Not as smooth as the OP piccies suggest. Flowing yet tight and quite testing. If you can do the Llandegla 'Black' with a bit of confidence you'll be alright on this.

Did 4 circuits then a pootle over to Healy Dell and back for the workout and one final lap of Cragg.

The descent back into Cowpe 'Top of Leach' is ace.

Hi to the 2 riders I met 3x today!

Well worth a visit!!!!!!

Paul

and XC'd over to Cragg Quarry

Which route did you take from Lee Q (easy)? Ta.

TBH I'd hire in Betws y Coed and ride Penmachno (not as much forest as Marin). It is about a 20 mins drive away from Betws y Coed.

+1 Its more like 10 mins from ByC.

I had my first visit of the year to Penmachno on Saturday. Did the full route ~30k, plus a ride back up the fire road to redo the final 3 sections :)) excellent!!

Go to the Punjab on the curry mile, very authentic…

http://www.prideofmanchester.com/restaurants/indian/punjab.htm

Paul

with the new trails not open until Autumn/Winter I’ll have to look elsewhere/further afield, (unless the trails will be ready before the Lee Quarry link???).

The new trails at Cragg are due open in weeks. Well before the link is complete.

And just for balance, the new climb is excellent too 🙂

+1 Excellent indeed!

I find it quite an ordeal cleaning all the climbs on a lap of the red now.

(Am not going back to SPDs though, flatties are helping me get down the black, sort of…)

Cheers all.

Just back from a 3+ hour workout around and about Lee Quarry. A great way to expunge the week of work 🙂

Blown thru my shock though 🙁 now rides like a bouncy castle all the time…
…wonder if its covered by warranty (?sp).

Sunday plans in hand 🙂

Cheers

not quite

Yes, it seems to work for basics but…

…I guess I'll have to book a course to learn more! :)))

Cheers, ta.

Thanks for the tip about foot placement. Could save my shins!

One thing I was told by a 50 y.o. german MTBer was 'stand on the pedals'. Seems to work for everything, uphill, downhill…
…that is don't think about moving your weight about, just try to stand on the pedals and your weight will be in the right position…

I've heard all sorts of differing suggestions.

Just starting drop offs at the mo. I weight and unweight the bike as the front wheel gets to the lip. Am on flatties and don't really try to lift the forks?

Have a very neutral position and make sure I have some speed.

Suggestions on a postcard or stuck down envelope to…

That would be Pugsleys Bottom followed by Lurch. A bit steeper than it looks in the vid.

Nice vid! Thanks for sharing.

Did you overtake anyone on the in.?

Me? Yes, 6 – 8 happy souls working their way up 🙂

Aye, a 2010 model. Quite a few unloading. A bit muddy after yesterday's rain!

Paul

Aye, was great to see it busy. The new stuff is 'tastic!

In case our paths crossed. I was on a silver Stumpjumper wearing pads and Met Parachute helmet.

Had my first dabble on the Black sections. Great fun!!

Good to chat to TonyL at the entrance gate.

Cheers
Paul

Hmmm, what time might peeps be at the quarry this Sunday?

Looking for someone to pick up the pieces…

…Paul

Nice looking route…
…and thanks for the Rivi outing. I need to bring/wear more for those civilised rides. Was freezing my whatsits off!
Cheers
Paul C

Still think MX are not allowed as motorised vehicles…
…maybe. Am sure someone who really knows the answer will post 🙂

The former, I believe!!

…but twice the length…

The slab scared the pants off me though, I'll be keeping well clear of that for now

Aye, I saw it and went tish!! So got the bike and went straight for it. Would have psyched me out for ages otherwise!!

WOW!!!

Lee Quarry must be the best place in the UK for developing MTB skills!!! Apart from negotiating tree roots 😉

The new stuff looks great, the new Red section makes for an even more intense circuit.

The Lee Quarry Slab(s) will soon be very well known!

Cheers
Paul

A great car. Get a turbo diesel **2WD** version! Great high driving position, can really see where you are going. In traffic and on country lanes. Has some oomph. It is not a softroader in its 2WD guise 😉

IF you want a 4WD car get a proper one…

Fits 2 bikes in the back with seat down and front wheels off.

YMMV
Cheers
Paul

Thanks for the info…
…off there tomorrow then!

🙂

Grand!

Paul

PS What day was that ride?

When the 'normal' west to east journey of weather systems prevails this usually indicates high pressure to the west at sunset. Therefore should be dry for a while as it moves over the UK.

Today, Saturday the cloudy weather/possible rain was trundling in from the north east. Did it rain today?

Looks good for a while though.
:))

*Ha, must read all of the thread before replying!

CyB, I've been doing Tarw (cutting out FR after Rocky Horror) and Dragon's Back (cutting out FR after Cafe) back-to-back in lieu of The Beast. Makes a good outing.

Cheers
Paul

Was the new 'black' section open that branches off from the early part of the first bit of old downhill black singletrack??

If so, how was the start!?

Cheers.

Of course, a branch might fall just as I pass beneath but the chances of that are infinitesimal.

Not quite! Top 20' of a tree fell on me whilst at Llandegla. Over the bars, cut chin and eyebrow. Helmet completely split down the front. Was a bit dazed!!

Helmets are cool! 😉
Paul

thanks, I'll give it a try – for some reason my shots of Grasmere were plagued with obvious noise, even when I wound the ASA down to 400

Did you have a heat source in/near your camera bag? A common problem in astrophotography. Tend to cool the sensors and use Canons that are known for low noise characteristics at long exposures.
Cheers
Paul

Horrible, wasteful man-made light pollution :(((

Nice piccie though 🙂

Paul (your not so local astronomer)

Cool blogging Dave!

Are you sure the sign doesn't say 1221 ft 😉

Ah, back in the day, 78/9 got stuck travelling from Hull to Manc on the M62. Fortunately they had gaps in the barriers back then and a few of us dug our way through and turned around. Had a great night in Leeds instead.

When I were a lad…

🙂

Rep: A ski pass ?
Me: Yeh, at my age I get a bit knackered if I have to walk back up the slopes all day carrying my board !!

Too right Woody!!

At 52 I am often the oldest boarder on the slopes, but thanks to the MTB certainly not the slowest or least fit.

🙂 cheers.

Off to the Alps soon :))))

im 45 in november,i love trail riding or anything to do with off roading.problem is, that im struggilg a lot more now .tell me is there any 45s or over out there who i can look upto?

Depends how short you are. Am 5' 11"…

…and FFS, I *started* MTBing at 51, get a grip you wuss!

:)))

Looks very neat on video!

Will wait until you have finished the section before trying though!!

Cheers 🙂

Thanks for the info guys.

Doesn'tlook like it has snowed up that way but will give it a miss!

Ta.

Ride the Clwyds (.com)

http://www.ridetheclwyds.com/rideclwyds/the_routes1.asp

Around the Lake looks good…

…One Planet Adventure has a bike hire shop at Llyn Brenig visitor centre.

HTH

Likewise. Did Tarw and Dragon's Back today. Both in very good nick 🙂

Not sure about me though…

I would buy one here if you can. Last thing you need is to waste time in shops when you should be on the snow! 🙂

Definitely try on for size. I have a large Giro that fits perfectly, other makes large sizes were too small.

Decathlon do cheap (but to safety standard) helmets. I paid an arm and half a leg at TSA in Manchester…

Paul

Start here

http://www.winterhighland.info

Then link out to 'resort' websites. Also look at their forum posts and reports.
Paul