Castle Bolton - Carperby - Redmire

Our luck with the weather was back to normal this week as Sunday was a bit cold and grey compared to the previous few days. At least it didn't look like it was going to rain and the preceding dry spell meant there was unlikely to be much mud.

Four of us set off from Castle Bolton car park, amongst us Dave who had somehow forgotten his helmet and was going to have to take things very easy, especially on the descents. "Fortunately there aren't any tricky descents" we were told, not something I really like to hear.

Leaving the car park we set off due west along the very obvious track. This passes through several gates and splashes across no less than three small fords (which were in fact almost totally dry) before passing though one final gate and becoming a more grassy track that heads off across the moor.

We go straight on at Low Gate and take a sharp left before we get to New Pasture. This takes us down a fairly steep grassy hillside that shows up very well on the elevation profile graph of my flashy new Garmin Edge 500. In fact it shows that up ahead is what looks like a vertical drop!

After 200 yards of pretty steep hillside we arrive at the edge of Ponderledge Scar and what would be - if you went straight on - a vertical drop! Amazing stuff this technology. You have to hook right and come back across diagonally to get down it, but what followed was still full-on steep, though being entirely on grass it wasn't too dangerous or tricky - unless you have no helmet!

A few hundred yards on from the base of Ponderledge Scar we made our first mistake of the day. We should have hung left to stay with the bridleway but stayed straight ahead instead on what was a pretty obvious track. This took us to the wrong side of West End Farm whereupon we were accosted by the farmer who asked us "had we not seen the signs" (we hadn't). In the end he was OK, probably because we're such reasonable people - if we'd have been bolshy we'd have no doubt gotten his goat up (farmer - goat... I should be on the stage). So we cut 100 yards or so left across his farmyard to get back on track - if you're following this route, don't make the same mistake, and if you do, don't get bolshy!

So out of the farm and onto the road at Carperby, just in time to see the Heritage Bus passing through.

A right onto the road followed by a couple of left turns have us on Low Lane which eventually we leave for a track that cuts under the old dismantled railway. There's what is quite obviously an old railway bridge taking the track bed over us a little way down the trail.

The section of track from here on is pretty good, once you get through a few more gates. It becomes quite narrow and "singletrack-y", though it's penned in between a wall and a fence and has a load of twists in it around which may lurk horses or walkers, so we can't open the throttle too much.

Half way along we make a slight detour of exploration, taking a look at a bridleway that leads down to the river (Ure) to a crossing via stepping stones. One of those "something for another day" options that we suss out from time to time. It's not very promising as the bridleway actually doubles as a stream, with plenty of inopportune rocks and low branches thrown in for good measure. We abandon the exploration and get back on track.

Bridleway or stream?

Our nice narrow green lane eventually ends at Low Thoresby and we continue on through Low Bolton and on to Redmire. We turn left up through the village and keep to the main road up and right to begin climbing the lung-busting hill up to the top of Preston Scar. This gains us 500 feet in just over a mile and we're happy to rest in the huge Tank Turning Area at the top for Go Bars and Brazilian Mix.

A slight downhill then, as we continue along the road, but it's short-lived as we turn off to the left onto the track up to Cranehow Bottom and beyond. This is a long, long drag uphill, but thankfully not too steep and not too loose.

At Cranehow Bottom we (I say "we", but I mean "Tony") make our second mistake of the day. "We" decide to try out the track that goes over to The Height Of Brownseat. It's one of those tracks that he's never done before and always wanted to. Well, after a mile or so of heather-bashing with no visible track in sight it ends up in the corner of a moor between two walls. Beyond each wall is yet more heather and still no sign of a discernible track.

Heather bashing.

There are, however, some quite queer animal traps perched at intervals along the wall. Smallish arched cages with an entrance at one end and a spring trap - like a mousetrap but bigger and stronger - in the middle. I set one off with a twig to see what it was like and it disintegrated the twig. Really evil.

We tracked along the wall for a while until it came close to the road, lobbed our bikes and ourselves over it and got ourselves back on track. For Tony & Dave that meant a left on the road then right at the next track along to Dent's House. For me and Sam it was the longer trip, right on the road, down to Ridley Hush then turn left onto the track up to The Heights Of Greets. Second time I've done this climb in 3 weeks and it doesn't get any easier. Drier than last time but still by no means dry, it's an energy-sapping drag up the moss, grass and water covered hillside.

Thankfully it's all downhill after this (well, almost). A full speed pelt down to Dent's House, down that weird track I described last time that seems to somehow defeat your suspension and give you loads of kickback. By the time we got to the end of it I had vibration white finger and cramp in my thighs.

A slight climb now to the top of Black Hill and then it's full speed ahead. Plumetting down the grassy track from the summit for what must be one of the fastest off-road descents around, a few muddy bomb-holes and a large group of walkers being the only cause of consternation as we descended all the way back to Castle Bolton.

We didn't much fancy the tea room at Castle Bolton so it was off to Leyburn and The Posthorn for afters. Friendly service as always, scrambled eggs on toast, chunky scones fresh from the oven and a huge pot of tea. Lovely.

Castle Bolton - Carperby - Redmire
16.7 miles, 2100' of ascent in 3hrs 22mins, of which roughly 1 hour was spent stood still, either eating, being chastised by farmers or trying to find a way out of dead-end tracks.

Marske: Assault On Fremington Edge

How would the weather treat us today? The forecast had been all over the place for the three days leading up to this ride, promising anything from sunshine to a little bit of drizzle and the day as we set off was looking "changeable".

Five of us set off from the small car park in Marske, heading west along the road before turning off left about a mile into it onto the bridleway to Hollins Farm. We had a bit of puzzling when we got to the farmyard, trying to figure out if we go in front of or round the buildings. Asking the farmer reveals that we go round them, but that the way ahead is "pretty shitty". At this point we don't realise just how literally or severely he meant that statement!

So round the farm buildings we go, through a gate to come out into a field that is basically just liquid cow slurry. It's up past our ankles, green, smelly and too deep and slippery to ride - and the last thing you'd want to risk is falling off in it. To make matters worse there's a whole herd of cows with very small calves blocking our path. We skirt around them, taking to the deeply ploughed and rutted field, treading nervously as the cows start bellowing defensively.

Eventually we're past them, it's taken us 12 minutes to negotiate 100m of field and we all need to stop at the first available puddle to wash what we can of the green slime from our feet and bikes.

Horrid green slime!

After a few more gates we progress a little faster now, with the short and speedy descent down to the road, remembering to keep our mouths firmly shut as green debris flies up off our tyres. Right at the road then sharp right just a few yards on, onto a bridleway that skirts the river Swale. It's a picturesque spot and I'm eyeing up the river for an opportunity to dip the whole bike in and give it a good clean. No suitable spot emerges though.

At Low Oxque we start another long, slow climb/push up a muddy, rutted farm track that gives little grip and pass through yet more gates. Already this ride is being dubbed "the ride of a thousand gates" and with all the mud, slurry, gates and pushing, so far it isn't high on our list of favourite rides!

Once at the top of the hill there's an interesting traverse along the side of it. Clinging to a path just a few inches wide we follow the edge of the hill before gradually working our way down to the track below. It was a tricky little section and quite fun, but despite having two GPS units and at least one person who's ridden it before, we've taken the wrong track and gone a bit "illegal". We should have stayed higher up, nearer the wall where the track is more obvious and easier.

We were all off-track, none more so than Stewart!

Once down at the base of the hill we followed the track past Nun Cote Nook to emerge at the road, where we had a brief stop for some carbo loading. Only five miles in and already we were snacking.

So off we head to Marrick, looking forward now to the delights of the climb up to Fremington Edge. At Marrick we miss a turning just before Helmsley House and have to back track, eventually taking the correct route, a narrow, rutted and slippery track between two stone walls. The proximity of the walls means it's not somewhere you really want to lose it!

Bearing right at the end of this track we follow the byway past Marrick Abbey, staying parallel to the river until we reach the road at Ewelop Hill.There's a lot of walkers about, many of them carrying painted Easter eggs, perhaps there was some event on at the abbey.

Just before the road junction at Low Fremington we turn right, up a steep path to rejoin the road a few yards up. We follow this road now for as far as it goes. The tarmac eventually begins to break up before vanishing completely to leave a track of loose stone. Welcome to the hell that is The Climb Up Fremington Edge.

If you're fit enough, it's all rideable (though none of us managed it this time, "photo stops" got the better of me. I'm determined to try again later in the year). The tarmac section is "easy", the looser sections more troublesome, easier if you can stay clear of loose stuff by sticking to the edges of the track. The very loose and rocky bit at the top is the biggest challenge and having ridden/pushed so far it seemed a shame not to be going down it! So I did, taking on the most interesting 300m section and then having to come back up again.

It was a fine effort by Sam.

It's quite a nice feeling to be riding past people who are having trouble just walking it! This climb goes straight in at No. 1 in my "Most Challenging Climbs" list. At the top we stopped for more food, including Easter eggs courtesy of Tony, and some interesting chat with some walkers who were up on holiday from Southampton.

A well earned rest at the top!

Setting off once more we crossed Marrick Moor towards Hurst. Half way across we met a renegade group of Muddybums, a couple who haven't been out with us for a while and one who's usually a regular (a further one had had to abandon due to bike failure). Apparently the thought of the climb up Fremington edge had led to this mutiny, they much preferred the thought of going down it!

Renegades to the left, regulars to the right.

The area around Hurst is one of my favourites with its mining spoil and picturesque disused chimneys. It also provides us with a much needed high-speed descent - there's been far too much uphill lately!

On reaching the road we turn right and keep with it through Washfold, going down and over the very picturesque Goat's Bridge.

Up the other side of the valley and we're eventually at a crossroads and a decision point. The original route was going to go right here, down to Helwith, along to Telfit Farm and crossing Marske Beck at Orgate Bridge. I'd spotted a track that crossed some altogether steeper contour lines though, and was prepared to form my own mutinous breakaway group, but in the end it was decided we'd all go that way. So off we went, staying with the road we'd come along as it bears left, dropping down and over the beck at the head of the valley where it hairpins right and continuing on through the MOD "Danger Area". Eventually, after the woods and farm buildings on the right, we turned off onto a bridleway that appears to have been landmined!

Let's hope our navigation skills are up to it!

The track begins as a dead straight farm track then turns 45 degrees left after passing through the first wall and becomes quite indistinct singletrack, though there's enough on the ground to work out where your supposed to be going. Just as well, considering the warning signs we saw earlier!

After passing through the gate at the far end of this track it becomes a bit more indistinct, but thankfully by now we're out of the Danger Area, and just as well as we weave aimlessly across the moor before spotting the gate in the far corner and making a beeline for that. Well, we're at the top of those steep contour lines now, so what lies ahead is a feast of fun, but not before we take in the magnificent views across the valley.

Off we go, speeding down the undulating grassy track as it hugs the hillside down towards the valley bottom. A little too much speed almost sees me parking in one of the disused out-buildings near Orgate Farm, but skilful bike handling has me back on track and whooping it up! A few lumpy sections give us the chance to catch some air, but at this speed the fun doesn't last long and in under 3 minutes we're back on level ground.

On past Orgate Farm and into Clint's Wood for one last chance to get the bike nice and muddy. We emerge onto the road in Marske, looping round to the right on this to end up back at our cars.

After the inauspicious start, where we bust our lungs on a steep road climb simply for the honour of immersing ourselves in cow dung, it's been a great ride. When the sun shines on this corner of the world, it's hard to beat. Most of the climbs have been tough, Fremington Edge very tough, and the downhills have been short and undemanding, but it's been fun and surprisingly none of us are reporting undue aches or strains. Being out 6 weekends in a row is obviously starting to pay off.

For afters we try the tearoom in Marske that we just spotted as we rode by, The Lodge Tearoom. Set in a large conservatory attached to an even larger house, and with a large garden too, it's a very welcoming place. No scones for the scone lovers amongst us (i.e. all of us) but the Yorkshire Rarebit was the best I'd ever had and the bacon buns, chocolate cake and custard pie seemed to go down well with the others.

Marske - Marrick - Fremington Edge - Hurst
18 miles, 2700' of ascent in 4 1/2 hours, with quite a few lengthy stops!
(I seriously think I'd avoid Hollins Farm in anything but the most prolonged of dry spells and head south on the road out of Marske and pick up our route beside the river at Sour Nook)

Tough Day Out!

We did a route much like this back in June, it was 27 miles long and had 3500' of climb. I was dead at the end of it, it was long and it was tough. At only 20 miles and 2500' of climb, this shorter route somehow managed to be no less tough and I ended up feeling no less dead!

Seven of us set off from Square Corner (where we are greeted by the sight of no less than 14 MTBers heading off up Black Hambleton - we wonder if we'll bump into them again) and headed back down the road towards Osmotherley, turning off road (to the right) by Solomon's Temple to take High Lane. A few yards after the gate we turn 90degrees left to go through a cattle grid/gate that leads into the woods and down to the reservoir. An early chance to get a bit of speed up, though it's almost ruined by a playful Golden Retriever who thinks retrieving mountain bikes looks like big fun!

Over the head of the dam and out onto the road on the other side. Six of us turn left, one (Tony) turns right - the climb to the top of Beacon Hill will be a climb he doesn't need, so he's giving it a miss. Probably a wise move, last time up there he almost got mated by a frisky bull.

The climb up to Beacon Hill via Swinestye Farm is uneventful, not too tough and thankfully there are no frisky bulls today. A chance for some proper speed now as we head down the Cleveland Way across Scarth Wood Moor. I love this bit of track, it's nicely flagged in places where it needs to be (though these can be treacherous when wet) and the drainage channels are not too huge. You can get a fair lick of speed up if there are no walkers about - and today there aren't!

Once at the road we do a left, then take a right after about 500 yards to head into Clain Wood. A gentle tootle through the wood brings us to a scenic viewpoint on our left, beside which is a set of widely spaced wooden steps that drops down the hillside. These were a nightmare on my hardtail, and I'm looking forward to seeing how Sparky handles them. I shoot off, Neil close behind, and it's fantastic not to feel every lumpy bump as we shoot down the steps. The descent is one long blur of speed until finally it's over and we're at the bottom. I stop to take some shots of the others coming down and realise something ain't quite right... My front quick-release has jarred itself loose and the front wheel is just sitting in the cups! Lucky there wasn't another dozen steps or it would have been another job for The Great North Air Ambulance!

Right at the bottom we follow the track between the fenceline and the edge of the woods, keeping more-or-less straight ahead until we emerge into fields of sheep. We track directly across these, encountering our first (but certainly not the last)  gloop of the day as we approach Harfa Bank Farm. Swinging a left here, we continue on the track past Harfa House (what use is Harfa House? geddit?) to eventually emerge at the road. We turn right and follow this up to Raikes Farm and Scugdale Hall, where Neil decides to have a flatty. Prepared as ever, he has tubes but no pump because "he knew someone else would have one". Oh, if we all thought that way... It's quite a quick repair, about half the time it took him last time, and we find the mother of all thorns (and half a branch) embedded in his tyre.

On we go, ignoring the first bridleway that comes down at 90degrees from Barker Crags and go a bit further on to swing left onto a track that looks a bit like it says No Cycles but actually says No Vehicles - Cycles.
The No Vehicles portion of the sign has obviously been ignored big-style because the whole trail is really churned up, either by 4x4, Quad Bikes, Scrambler Bikes or all three. It's a right mess, quite sad to see really, and prompted me to start a new section of this blog "Most Damaged Trails".

And This Is The Good Bit!

We trudge up the hill, having to push almost the entire way, avoiding trenches that are almost a foot deep in places to eventually emerge on Barker's Ridge.

A brief stop here for Go Bars, sheltering behind a wall from the icy gale that's sprung up, and then we're off again, semi wind-propelled as we tackle Barker's Ridge, eventually bearing left at a three-way junction to Green Howe. This is the highest point of the ride and the slight downward gradient beyond it gets the better of us and we have to track back to a missed turn-off. Not that missing it was any great surprise, there's absolutely no trail to see on the ground. This is where the bridleway crosses the shooting track at Wether Hill. Neil and I go for it, just following the GPS track while the others track further back and try to find something more obvious. A few minutes of heather bashing eventually brings us to a more obvious bit of trail - the map here doesn't match what's on the ground at all.

This is a sweet little descent down to Head House. Narrow singletrack with the odd hidden rock and pothole to keep you on your toes.

From Head House it's a brief plummet down the track to the valley bottom then the long drag back up to the top again, bearing round to the left as we go and eventually joining the track that we just left some 30 minutes earlier. Sharp right here and we're into another section of ruined track, though this one's ruined for a purpose. They're currently digging it up and laying drainage pipes in it, which will help in the future but for now it just makes for an unpleasant quagmire of mud.

We stay with this track right up to Bilsdale Transmitter. Finally we're here, a landmark that we have seemingly been approaching for hours without it ever getting nearer.

At this point we meet the 14 MTBers who'd been going up The Mad Mile. It turns out they're from Swaledale Outdoor Club, and although one of them asks us if we're The Muddybums he doesn't go on to explain why he thinks that or what the relevance of his question is. It leaves us wondering. How did he know...?

Leaving the transmitter we head down to Low Thwaites, a steady descent though into the face of a howling gale that saps your speed and has you pedalling even though you're losing height! At Low Thwaites we turn off the main track, sharp right to take a bridleway none of us have ever done before. It falls steadily down the hillside on a track of grass that appears to have been especially mown to show where the track is.

It's not too challenging, though there is the odd unexpected drop, but it gets steeper, trickier and altogether more "interesting" as it approaches the stream in the valley bottom.

Feet get wet as we ford the stream and push our bikes back up the the other side. We mount up again, but there's consternation. A gaggle of riders has gathered around Neil's bike. all taking a close look at some kind of problem. Has "Bike Maintenance Neil" struck again? Well I don't think he could be blamed this time, no amount of lube, cleaning and preparation was going to stop his frame from cracking! Yep, yet another cracked Commencal frame.

A short road section takes us from Lane House to Locker Low Wood. At this point 3 of our group decide they've had enough fun for one day. Neil's busted bike, Sam's cramping legs and Howard's In-Laws provide sufficient excuse for them to take the easy route home, staying with the road all the way back to Square Corner. For the rest of us the delights of Locker Low Moor await. It's renowned as "a bit of a mare" when wet, and wet is how we expected to be. We were pleasantly surprised, damp but not too wet, its long but fairly gentle technical climb was quite enjoyable. I still think I'd enjoy it more as a downhill though.

Passing through Dale Head, now being heavily restored, it's an easier, less technical trail but my legs have just about had enough. Having stopped to take one last photo I find it impossible to catch the group up again, not even Tony. Yes, it was that bad.

The track eventually emerges back onto the road where it's a left turn and a gentle last half mile back to the car park. Nowhere really to go for scones around here since Chequers closed. Osmotherley is the only option but that's just way too packed. In fact just driving through it was a nightmare of constant reversing and squeezing by. So straight off home for a bath and a rest, my thighs aching as I drove back, telling me just what a tough ride this had been.

Square Corner - Scugdale - Bilsdale - Locker Low Moor:
20 miles, 2600ft of ascent, 4 hours.

Apedale The Wrong Way

Another lovely sunny Sunday saw us over in Reeth for the first time since we ventured out in the snow back in late December. The lovely weather had brought out the crowds and Reeth was teeming, unfortunately it hadn't brought out many of our squad and only three of us were doing this ride! Apparently we'd done much of this ride before, more than once, but always in the other direction. Today we were doing it "the wrong way", just for a change.

We started with a short road section from Reeth to Grinton, just long enough to warm up the legs ready for the slog ahead. Taking the Grinton to Redmire road we climbed and climbed and climbed. It seemed like it would never end, every time a welcoming looking bridleway left the road we'd pass it by and continue climbing. It was a climb to sort the men from the boys, and fortunately only men had turned up, the boys had decided to stay at home today.

Eventually, after about 1.5 miles of road climb, we took a bridleway off to the right. This didn't make life any easier, as the gradient stayed the same but was now on damp, slippery, energy-sapping grass instead of lovely tarmac. Eventually, after a total of 1100' in 2.5 miles, we reached the summit at The Height Of Greets. 1100', that was half of the day's total climbing done on the first hill!

Well, if this was the summit then the only way from here was down! Down we went to Dent's House, 500' of descent on fast, stony double track. There was some strange undulation going on here, a series of small, sharp bumps that reverberated through your arms despite the fork's best efforts and it felt really wierd. I guess I don't have my fork set for optimal small bump compliance, and Neil reported the same sensation.

First photos of the day at the bottom of this descent and then it was off again, though not straight back up as I'd expected, but a right turn and a little bit of (almost) flat before the climb steepened again up to Apedale Head.

From Apedale Head it's another fast plummet, not quite as fast as the last one because of the twisting nature of the track (though it looks straight on the map!) but all the more interesting for that and with a nice little splash through a ford near the end. The attention I'd paid to the "How To Keep Speed In Corners" section of the Dirt School DVD had obviously paid off as I had to wait a fair while for Neil to arrive at the bottom. Nothing compared to how long we waited for Tony. I had my phone out and was calling Dales Mountain Rescue when he eventually appeared, quoting "loads of photo stops" though knowing Tony this probably meant "fell off".

A brief lunch stop and then off again, taking the tarmac to the right as we followed the road to Grinton for about half a mile before taking a bridleway on the right. This starts off quite easy going but eventually turns into a right slog as you work your way at 45 degrees through a field towards a gate in the far corner. It's uphill, riddled with molehills and covered in half dead vegetation. It's horrible. Beyond the gate it doesn't get much better and soon we were all off and pushing as we trampled through the worst of the heather on a barely discernible track.

Glad to be able to get back in the saddle (I hate pushing) we joined the main track running along to Harkerside. Half a mile of easy going brought us to Blue Hill where we were saying goodbye to Tony for now. I was going to introduce Neil to the delights of "The Pipeline" and given Tony's variety of skeleto-muscular problems and his propensity for falling off, he'd decided not to risk this part of the route. So off we went, another lung busting climb (though thankfully short at only a couple of hundred feet) took us to the start of the bridleway to The Pipeline. This is just about the most indistinct bit of track we ever ride, and even locked  onto the GPS trail we still had no idea where we were supposed to be headed. Sam has an uncanny knack of being able to ride straight to the start of the descent, without him Neil & I weaved about a bit until we found the cistern, the man-made landmark that marks the starting point.

Seats down and off we went. The pipe seemed even more vicious than usual, determined to send you off in directions you didn't want to go as you switched sides to keep away from the worst of the rocks. Part way down we hit an unexpected hazard - snow. A shady gully harboured a patch of soft, deep snow that came up to your nadgers and meant that cleaning The Pipeline was out of the question today.

After a bit of a lark about in what is hopefully the last snow we'll see this year, we set off again. I got an action sequence of Neil taking on one of the tricker, rockier sections of trail, one of those bits where you just know that any sort of fall is going to hurt. A lot. I love the way his facial expressions seems to change from coolness to concentration to panic in the space of a few seconds.

Coolness

Concentration

Panic

He admitted later that "he was a bit scared". The Eston Mountain Man, scared of a few sharp rocks! Off we went to complete the lower section of the descent, nothing sharp in the way anymore, just a nice, fairly speed heather singletrack with a few hidden boulders. The whole thing was big fun, I love The Pipeline.

Nothing left now but the road back to Reeth, starting with the almost 40mph tarmac downhill to Grinton. If not for the narrow bends and the danger of cars coming the other way this could be one of the fastest downhill sections anywhere.

A quick change back at the car then for me & Tony it's off to The Dales Bike Centre for scones and a latte. For Neil it's off to work, no rest for the wicked. First scones of the year for The Bike Centre, and a damn fine effort.

Reeth - Apedale - Harkerside:
14.1 Miles, 2262' of up/down, 3 hours dead.

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Sunny Sunday In Danby

Finally we got some good weather this weekend. All week it had been lovely and when that happens you usually just KNOW it's going to be rubbish come Sunday. But for once the weather surprised us, and we got full sun from start to finish. This really brought the crowds out and we had 10 people on our ride, including 2 first-timers (first time with us anyway) and no fewer than 3 long-term absentees making a welcome return to the fold.

We set off from Danby Moors Centre and began with the climb up Park Bank towards Danby Beacon, a nice tough road climb to get us all warmed up.

We turn off left for a traverse along the moor by Castleton Pits to eventually come out at the road past Clitherbeck Farm. We then turn right onto the road and follow it for a short way to the point where it bears sharp right, at which point we turn sharp left. Here we come across an example of the harm that taking 4x4s onto the moors can do. The track here is so deeply rutted and filled with water that it's impassable, even by 4x4s, so all vehicles, bikes and people have started taking wide detours to the side, leading to more erosion off the actual trail. The "pond" was actually totally frozen over. I was hoping Tony would try to ride it.

"Not thick enough", said Sam.

"Tony or the pond?" I enquired.

So having negotiated this obstacle we track across Gerrick Moor to eventually reach the road at Three Howes Rigg where we go straight across, initially staying on the road before swooping off onto the bridleway that leads down towards the railway near Commondale station.

We follow this, staying parallel to the railway, all the way to Castleton where we hit the road once again. A Left/Right at Castleton puts us onto Wandels Lane, around the back of Danby Low Moor. A left turn from this takes us onto the bridleway to Rowantree Farm and some exceptionally sticky mud. We'd done well to be largely mud-free up to now, a result partly of the ground still being frozen in some of the potentially muddiest places. No such luck here though, the mud stuck with a vengeance, increasing our tyre diameters by a couple of inches and dragging against the crowns of our forks. Once off the track and into the farmyard we bounced our bikes along, practicing bunny-hops in a desperate attempt to shed the extra few kg's of unwelcomed weight we'd just gained!

Eventually we came out at the Danby-Ainthorpe road. Here we lost 3 of our group, 2 who were having mechanical problems and decided to take the quick way back to Danby, and another who was feeling the pace a bit in his first ride with us for quite a while. The rest of us turned right for a few metres of road work before turning right once more for the technical climb up to Ainthorpe Rigg. This track was noticeably more difficult than usual, having suffered a good deal of erosion since the last time we did it.

Once we made the top, what lay ahead was one of our favourite descents. Steep, rocky and droppy at the top it turns narrow and technical a bit further down before finally opening up into a fast and furious finish down to the road. It made a good spot to take some action shots (click for larger images).

At the bottom we meet a bunch of motorbikers who are headed UP the bridleway. Illegal and potentially very damaging, it made me realise it was probably more than just the weather to blame for the poor state of the climb we'd just done.

A short section of roadwork took us onto the bridleway into Walker's Plantation, another potentially unrideable mudfest that was rescued by the fact that the wall at the side of the track cast a shadow, meaning that half of the trail was frozen. We stuck to that half.

A traverse along the edge of the moor here took us to Danby Crag where we left the moor onto the ridged, concrete farm track. We followed this till it reached the road then continued downhill for a while before realising we'd missed our turning. Back up the hill then, and back off road once more onto a short section of bridleway that brought us back onto the road back to Danby.

By now no one could be bothered with the final steep road climb that would reward us with a fast but unchallenging downhill back to the very same road we're already on. The lure of the scones was way to strong, so it was just a couple of miles of roadwork back to the Moors Centre. The weight of mud on the bikes and the drag of our tractor-like tyres made this a real slog, except for Laurie who seemed to get some extra energy from somewhere to go sprinting off ahead. The lure of the scones, indeed.

It was a largely uneventful ride; No one fell off, conditions were excellent and Neil didn't break anything on his bike. Not much for me to write about then!

Oh, The Dales Centre was out of scones! Damn You!!!

Danby - Commondale - Castleton 16.6 Miles, 2034ft up/down, 3 1/2 Hours

Ice Road Truckers

We had no idea what the conditions were like on the moors, especially as there had been a fresh fall of snow on Friday night. As a result I had 3 different routes plotted into the GPS, all starting from Square Corner but going off in different directions.

It was a fine, sunny day when we set out, so hopes were high. We went down the Hawnby road a little way before taking the shooting track up to Swainby Shooting House.

This was a nice bit of track, easy to ride with a thin covering of icy snow. If it was like this all the way then today would be great, though even this track threw up the odd challenge as Neil and I, in unison, crunched through the ice of a puddle to find our wheels grabbed up to their centres and us flying through the air and onto the icy ground. Sam meanwhile just skated over all of the ice, oblivious to the fun and games going on behind him. Icy puddles; something to watch out for on the rest of this ride! We eventually got to "decision time" and decided that as the tracks were easily rideable, the sun was shining and the sky was blue, we'd do the longest, most remote loop of our 3 options, up to Bilsdale transmitter and back down through Arden Hall.

The further along the track towards the transmitter we got, the worse and worse the snow became. Deeper, softer, and with "hollow" bits underneath where meltwater from the moors had tunneled underneath the snow. Neal went over, and consequently into one of these, a knee deep wheel-catcher full of the wet stuff and hidden by a cunning layer of snow. The most spectacular crash of the day so far, but unknown to us, soon to be bettered!

We proceeded even more carefully after this, not wanting to be carrying too much speed into one of these hidden hazards. Not that "too much speed" was much of an option now, the snow was so soft and icy that it was hard to go more than a few meters without sliding to slippery stop again. Unless you're called Sam, who once again powered on ahead unaware of the right dog's dinner me & Neil were making of it. These super-duper mud tyres don't seem quite so good in these conditions. Perhaps it's the wrong type of snow.

Leaving the transmitter behind meant saying goodbye to the deep snow, but not to the ice. What is usually a good 4km, unchallenging but very fast downhill blast became a careful, sometimes sideways, always scary, tootle!

Once at the road we had to take the bridleway to Hill End House. We got a little distracted by an interesting looking singletrack climb up Hawnby Hill, hoping that it would lead to an equally interesting downhill at the other side. It didn't, it just led to an alternative farm track down to Hill End House, and later examination of a map showed it to be non-existent and therefore doubtless illegal. Oops!

The final descent down to the river had a couple of muddy/icy technical sections that were quite fun and we were thankful of the two lovely bridges that took us over the river so we didn't have to get our feet wet.

Up and out to the road via New Hall and their usual array of wildly barking dogs and we're skirting round Coomb Hill. The road is a bit frosty, and I'm watching Sam riding in the running water at the edge. I'm thinking "that looks a good idea, you know that bit's not frozen, but then again, the watery spray will get my feet cold & wet". Suddenly BANG, Neil goes down on a sheet of solid ice. I'm not sure whether I was always going to go the same way, or if seeing him go down made my fingers twitch on the brakes. Either way BANG, I'm down too, a heavy fall on a solid road, skidding along until I'm in a pile with Neil. For the umpteenth time today Sam glides on, unaware of the debacle behind him. We could barely stand back up, the road was so slippery. A quick check of bikes and bodies revealed nothing broken (though I ached a bit later) and on we went again.

The climb from Arden Hall is never easy. Give the road a good covering of compressed snow and it becomes, as they say in these parts, "a right bugger!" It was rideable all the way, but when every third pedal stroke results in slippage, and when you can't stand out of the saddle for a bit of respite on the toughest bits, it was slow, tough going.

We all made it without stopping and plodded on towards the Drove Road.

I always hate this bit of any route that comes this way. All you really want is the frenetic dash down "The Mad Mile" but prior to that you have a few km of drudgery. It was made a little more interesting this time by the conditions - we had to ride in a 6" deep Land Rover track for a good way up to The Drove Road, which again made the going tough.

Once we reached the Drove Road I have to say (I'm not ashamed) I reached down and gave my nads a good cuddle! The lack of opportunity to get up out of the saddle, combined with the cold, had almost cut off circulation! I was just happy to find they were still there and still alive!

We plodded on towards The Mad Mile, finding more knee-deep poholes in the snow on the way. It was quite incredible and I'd love to know what force of man or nature had created them.

The Mad Mile was madder than ever. The larger drops at the top were made all the more interesting by being covered in compressed snow, the drainage gullies that run across it further down were filled with sheet ice and the whole run was done just a tad more nervously than usual - and with a lot smaller jumps than I usually go for.

So back at the car, the 19 miles covered in just under 4 hours elapsed, an hour of which was spent stationary, taking photos, eating bananas, picking ourselves off the floor and larking about in snow-holes. The state of the trails in the latter part of the ride made it very tough going, we all knew we'd had quite a workout, but that's exactly what we all needed. Good times.

Square Corner - Whorlton Moor - Bilsdale - Black Hambleton:
19 miles, 1900' ascent, 4 Hours.

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