Wednesday 27 October 2010

The Calf

We'd had this ride planned for a while and there was no telling how the weather would be by the time the date came along. The previous day had been totally dire so we didn't hold out much hope for the day of the ride, but how pleasantly wrong we were!

Five of us set off from Sedbergh to tackle what could well be our toughest ride to date, covering 25 miles and with 4000 feet of ascent, a lot of it all at once at the start of the ride - well at least we'd be fresh for it.

We headed north then west out of Sedbergh, heading for Lockbank Farm where we wound our way through the farm and went offroad. The track up the hillside is long and steep and on a draggy grassy surface which started to sap our energy straight away. The track looks almost mowed into the hillside, giving a clear view of where we were going to be headed, and it looked a long, long way. This put me in two minds as to whether I should slog my way up some of the steeper slopes or take it more gently (and even walk) to conserve energy for later. Riding won out, except for where that was impossible, my leg muscles much preferring the cycling to walking!


By the time we had our first break we were about half way up and 40 minutes into the ride. The route ahead looked no less challenging than what we'd already done, and ominously we couldn't even see the summit. The scenery was spectacular though, in the directional light that the combination of sun and cloud was giving.


We pressed on, eventually crossing a saddle at the head of a valley which served to funnel the wind to more than gale force. No wind like this was forecast, and it was so strong it made riding totally impossible at times, and coupled with the steep gradient and dragging grass slope it meant that occasional hike-a-bikes were unavoidable.


Once this saddle was out of the way the wind was never quite that strong again, though it did still howl at times. We were glad to reach the cairn at Calders where the ground leveled off and the wind eased and got behind us a little. The ride from there to the summit of The Calf was a lot quicker and easier.

We had another break at the trig point on The Calf. Sam needed to relieve himself and for some reason decided to go and  do it in the small tarn/large puddle that was nearby. We think he took delight in peeing in what could end up as Tony's drinking water, though I'm sure that it would be filtered through several beds of peat before it ended up anywhere near a tap.


"All downhill from here" we thought, having climbed 1800 feet in the last 4 1/2 miles, and our eyes seemed to back up what our minds were telling us. The trail stretched out seemingly forever, shadowing Bowderdale Beck all the way down the valley in what must be one of the most beautiful pieces of singletrack going.


If we thought that meant it would be easy from now on though, we were in for a nasty surprise. After the initial plummet, which was largely gravity driven, though technical and requiring a lot of concentration and a modicum of skill, the trail eased off quite a bit, and while still being largely downwards required an awful lot of pedaling to overcome the obstacles in the trail.


The most annoying of these were the constant array of minor fords that we had to cross, caused by the dozens of streams and springs that flow off the hillside. The amount of water that was around from the previous day's rain also meant that much of the trail was like riding in a river, or at best a constant trail of mud.


Progress along here was nowhere near as rapid as we perhaps expected it would be, though the weather was holding and the views were still gorgeous. The trail's difficulty meant we also kept getting strung out, our various degrees of skill and fitness meaning a fair few breaks to regroup.


Eventually we exited the moor, emerging on the road at Bowderdale. There followed a few miles of the least interesting part of the route, a combination of tarmac and pastoral bridleways that took us from Bowderdale to Weasdale to Ravenstonedale. I have to say that I was impressed by the look of Ravenstonedale, and the two pubs there looked very tempting!

We pressed on, taking the tarmac out of Ravenstonedale towards Adamthwaite. Progress was pretty good along here (well, it's tarmac after all) but just after the bridge over Gais Gill there's a steep section where I was hit by the dreaded chain suck. My drivetrain had been lubricated by nothing but mud for a good few miles now, and it was starting to show. No one had any lube with them, so a bit of lateral thinking from Sam had me trying out Gatorade as a chain lube. It worked!


Chain suck banished, we continued up the hill and on towards the point where we went offroad once more, on the bridleway towards Murthwaite. This looked like it would be a muddy, sodden morass, but although wet it was firm and well rideable. There was even time for some real gravity-driven fun down a rocky/stony section of the track where we finally hit the heady heights of over 20mph!

A bit more field-crossing, past some of the famous "wild horses", and we find ourselves in a particularly lovely little woodland descent. It's tricky - small sharp stones are hidden beneath slippery leaves, and a stream appears to be running down the entire length, but it's as fun as it is challenging as it is picturesque! Biggest grin of the day so far.


After that there was a succession of bridge and ford crossings that have all blurred into one! I know I got my feet wet more than once, and was thankful of the best efforts of the Sealskinz socks to keep my feet dry and warm.

A final ford and bridge crossing over Cautley Holme Beck, and a short wait for Tim to fix the day's only puncture, took us on to the final fun part of our ride, a few miles of nice singletrack as good as anything you'll find.


This was no more easy to ride than the section in Bowderdale, being just as wet and having almost as many obstacles en-route. It was good fun, but by now the legs were beginning to feel weary and mistakes were creeping in, and I found myself on my back more than once.

Eventually at Crook Holme we exited the bridlway early via a short section of footpath, so that we could hit the road and drop Tony and Ian at the B&B they were staying at. The promise of dozens of gates on that final stretch also had a bearing on our route choice, our weary legs and the diminishing light meaning that stopping every couple of hundred yards for gates was the last thing we wanted. We must go back some other time and complete that last mile of singletrack.

Back in Sedbergh we changed out of wet and very muddy clothes and hit the cafes. We were about to go into the well known Cafe Sedbergh but they put up the closed sign as we were about to step into the door. Their loss was Cafe Duo (next door)'s gain, and maybe ours too. The hand-cut cheesy chips that Sam and I had really hit the spot, I've rarely had nicer chips. A good big pot of tea too.

The Calf (Sedbergh, Bowderdale, Ravenstonedale, Murthwaite, Narthwaite): 25 miles, 4000' of ascent in 6 hours 20 minutes, of which more than 2 hours was spent eating, resting, photographing, fixing punctures and waiting to regroup.


Riders: Steve, Ian, Tony, Sam, Tim


Full stats and download available on GarminConnect.

Sunday 17 October 2010

Grosmont: The Cursed Route

Only four of us this week for this ride from Grosmont. Last time we did this ride we got 9 punctures and a snapped chain between the four of us and I fell into the icy cold river barely 100m after the ride had started. Hopefully it would be a bit better this time!

Parking proved to be somewhat difficult due to the WWII Weekend being held by the NYMR and we were forced to park at seperate locations. We regrouped in Grosmont and set off on our route. Down the lane just up the road from the level crossing to reach the first of three fords that we have to cross in quick succession. We all took it very easy this time around, no one wanting to repeat my early bath of last time.


We crossed the other two fords without incident too (they're all here in one spot, across a bend in the Murk Esk) and carried on up the lane on the opposite side. Quite a stiff climb it soon got us warmed up, and in the lovely autumn sunshine the high vantage point gave us great views back towards Grosmont.


We eventually reached the road at Green End and turned left onto it, following it for about a mile before heading offroad again to the right. This track is a permissive bridleway, meaning bikes are allowed on it. Last time out along here we were accosted by a "local councillor" (no idea if he really was) who insisted we had no right to be there. We were rather hoping to meet him again, but no such luck


In the dry this is a good fast track, but wet as it was today it was strangely slidey, the bike seeming to just behave very vaguely at speed! We reached the other end without incident or interruption and emerged on the road to turn right and descend down to the bridge over the river and the railway line.

Up in Goathland the WWII weekend was in full swing, and thankfully Goathland was in British hands, unlike Levisham further down the line.


We passed right through the village and at the fork at the far end, just past the Mallyan Spout Hotel, we took the right hand fork but almost immediately went offroad once more, on the left up onto the moor. The track here starts off OK but further on it becomes hard to stick to the bridleway. Footpaths are the more obvious trails, staying lower down the moor, but we stick to our GPS and climb the moor on quite indistinct tracks. Last time round we took the wrong track altogether, following a footpath almost all the way. We did better this time, getting higher up onto the moor than last and following a trail marked by cairns. Surely THIS was the right trail?


No, a study of our track after we returned showed that once again we followed  a footpath! Next time we might just get it right, if there ever is a next time for this route (see later). The track, albeit one we shouldn't have been riding, was interesting and challenging, having a fair few technical rock gardens along it's length.


Eventually we followed the footpath back down to the road at Hunt House where we turned right and followed the road for a few yards before darting offroad once more on the left. This dropped us down a steep bank to yet another ford, followed by a steep grassy climb out the other side.


It was at this point we realised that once more it was going to be "one of those rides". Tony had a rear wheel puncture, and having tubeless rims, tubed tyres and rubbish tyre levers is a bad combination. It took fully 22 (yes twenty two) minutes to change the tube, time I would have been advised to have used checking my own tyre.


We'd only got another 50 yards when it became apparent that I too had a puncture. 7 (yes only seven) minutes later we were finally off again, but for how long? We continued up the farm track, exiting at the road by Hollin House Farm. We followed the road past Julian Park and on to Randy Rigg, going offroad again just before Randy Mere Reservoir. At this point we saw the surreal sight of a group of Waffen SS officers getting out of a Mercedes, with their long leather trenchcoats and jackboots! Time for a sharp exit...

We dropped down the trail past the reservoir, slippery and wet as it always is.


The bottom of the hill is a total bog, probably the boggiest place we ever ride. In some places it was up to our knees (I kid you not) and there was no option but to push.


Eventually we got riding again on what seemed to be a firm track. Appearances were deceptive, the innocent looking puddle Tony rode through swallowed not just his wheel but almost his whole bike and pitched him over the bars, his head narrowly missing a jagged tree stump.


After that it genuinely was firmer going, though still soft enough to make riding uphill a real chore, and we all had brief spells of pushing when there just wasn't enough traction to keep going. Eventually we crested the hill and left the mire behind, following a very indistinct trail around the reservoir and back down towards the road, near Struntry Carr where we make a sharp left turn to follow a thin trail through the heather. This is more like it.


Or at least it would be if not for my "accident". Fiddling with a strap on my Camelback while riding one-handed, the wheel hit a little divot that would ordinarily have gone unnoticed, but one-handedly it managed to pitch me off the bike and I landed with my groin impaled on the bar-end. That knocked the wind out of me, I can tell you, and it also banged my knee up quite painfully too. So painful in fact I thought I might have to abandon the ride. As the moorland trail emerged onto a road I took a couple of Ibuprofen to get me through the rest of the ride.

We crossed the road onto another moorland trail which did a sharp right after a couple of hundred yards and became very indistinct and quite squidgy in places. We muddled through it (but actually kept to it pretty much spot-on) and eventually emerged at a road again. By now Neil had developed a puncture, but obviously a very slow one that would probably suffice with being topped up now and again rather than having the tube changed.

We turned left onto the road which becomes quite steep, too steep for Sam's chain which snapped clean in two. The curse of the punctures and snapped chains was staying with us on this route. Thankfully we had all the necessary gear and the chain was repaired quicker than any of Tony's punctures (7 minutes). We took the road as far as The Delves where we delved offroad once again to take the track through the woods and alongside the river Esk. This was a wet, slippery affair and the elevated flagstones were especially treacherous - we did our best to avoid them where possible. Somewhere within the woods my GPS decided to log my max speed as 58.5mph - no way I ever went that fast in there!

We emerged at The Beggar's Bridge near Glaisdale without incident - well, except that Tony had our 4th puncture of the day. He was becoming adept at getting the tyre off now, and it might have only taken 10 or 12 minutes had he not allowed the valve to slip back inside the rim while putting the tyre back on, meaning he had to start again. Still, two tyre changes in "only" 20 minutes was good going - practice really does make perfect.


Almost all road now back to Grosmont. Up the mighty Limber Hill then first right down Broom House Lane and then alongside the river at Egton Bridge. A quick left-right at the T-Junction takes us onto the private road (track) back past the toll house to Grosmont. Somewhere along this track a three-legged mutt hobbled up to a fully-limbed Labrador and proceeded to savage him. Plucky little bugger.

Back at the car park we said our farewells to Neil and the rest of us headed off for Beck View Tearoom in Lealholm. The scones were very nice, as was the service, and I got quite a bargain in getting two scones on one plate. That entitled me to some sort of discount that saw my pot of tea thrown in for free. Can't grumble, although I did try to insist on paying more!

Another biking couple were sitting there too, and were doing a route from Tony's book, which naturally meant we had to endure the embarrassment of another impromptu book-signing event and  him trying to flog them his up-coming walking book.

Grosmont - Goathland - Glaisdale: 17 miles, 2400' of climb, plenty of mud, plenty of punctures in 4 hours 11 minutes.

Riders: Neil, Steve, Tony, Sam.

Full stats and route download available from GarminConnect.

Sunday 10 October 2010

Rosedale Rumble

My mass advertising campaign brought no fewer than seven riders out this weekend, which is three or four more than we'd have usually got! It must have been the prospect of tackling the climb up Chimney bank that brought them all out.

We left the car park in Rosedale Abbey and headed straight for Chimney Bank, a couple of hundred yards down the road. This is (allegedly) the steepest road in the country at 1 in 3 in places. Strangely the sign at the top advises cyclists to dismount, though there is no such advice at the bottom. Good, off we went at whatever pace we could muster. At places the road is so steep it was a struggle to keep the nose of the bike down, but thankfully, despite its steepness, it's not such a long climb as some others and we were up it in seemingly no time (or just over 10 minutes to be more precise).


A well earned rest at the top and the obligatory photo and we were on our way again, off across the moor and past Ana Cross, left at the track junction to pass Redman Cross and towards the nice, rocky downhill back towards Hollins Farm.


A stop at the top to adjust seat posts and off we go. It's not too technical at first, but gets more and more so the further you get into it, so technical it has some people walking it. Eventually, towards the end,  you come to a lip with a steep plummet just beyond it. This had washed out really badly, a deep gully having formed in the centre of the trail which made negotiating it even more tricky than usual - best keep to one side.


Down at the bottom we turn right to take the lovely "1 1/2 track" (not quite singletrack, not quite double) towards Lastingham. This is as fast and flowy as ever and proves to be a real popular find with those who haven't done it before (and those who have!). At one point I slow for walkers up ahead and have to call out "coming by on your right" which leads to one of the walkers actually stepping to the right, into path. Obviously clearer communication is needed!


Eventually after almost 3 miles of fun we hit the tarmac near Lastingham. We turn left at Lower Askew, left again at Cropton Bridge and then turn diagonally right into the forest about half a mile along the road. After 2 1/2 miles of gentle climbing along the forest road we hit a junction of fire roads just above Low Muffles.


We backtrack 10 yards because we've missed the entry into the forest and set off down a nice little forest run. Nothing too challenging but a little soft and slippery, and we then emerge at a field, which we cross and eventually hit the road at Muffles Bridge. This gives us a road climb almost as steep as Chimney Bank, but thankfully it's only a couple of hundred yards long. At this point Tim decides to puncture. It's been a while.

At the top of the bank we turn right and take the road for two miles to Higher Row Mire. I love place names with the word "mire" in them, you really know what to expect when you get there! This time it wasn't actually too bad and the "mire" was no more than a dirty, but firm and perfectly rideable track. It was however the start of seven miles of almost constant climbing, albeit gentle at times. It began on the track over Row Mires Rigg before hitting the road over to Glaisdale Moor. Here we went off road once more onto The Cut Road. It had been our intention to drop down into Fryup Dale here and re-emerge further along past Yew Grain Scar, but one of our number was starting to feel the pace and we decided to shorten the route and, more importantly, cut out another killer climb.

The Cut Road is quite a nice track, especially on the few downward sloping sections, but in general it climbs. Eventually at the end of that seven miles of constant climbing we'd gained another 700ft and reached our highest point of the day, on the road where The Cut Road emerges.


That would be welcome news for Steve.

Left onto the road, then left again at the next junction and we're soon at our next off-road transition, the bridleway that descends Sturdy Bank down to the Rosedale railway. We set off down it, with me at the head, and some way down I noticed I was well off track from where I "should" have been - according to my GPS anyway. I went trudging off at 90 degrees to the visible track, in search of where I should really have been, but there was nothing visible. This is one of those places where what is on the ground doesn't match what's on the map.

Back on the visible track again, we continued down the hillside, quite a fun descent, and a good place for some photos, until we reached the Rosedale railway.




Once on the railway the tea room a Rosedale was really calling, so we hared off as fast as we could, eating up the last few remaining miles along the railway and road back to Rosedale.


It had been a good ride with a good mix of terrain, some decent downhills, some tough climbs and perfect cycling weather.

Riders: Steve, Steve, Steve, Neil, Tony, Tim & Simon.

Rosedale Abbey - Chimney Bank - Cropton - Glaisdale Moor - Rosedale Railway
25 Miles, 2600' of up/down, 4 1/2 hours (2 hours 47 of moving time).

See the route, stats and download links here on GarminConnect.