I’ve not been riding regularly for a couple of months despite a planned attempt of the BB200. Just as i was back on 2 wheels a mate of mine who has not long bought his first lot of bivi gear talked me into heading out for a 2 day ride inc bivi.
I ride up in the Lakes a lot & have several potential bivi routes of different lengths saved in my noggin. But for this ride i thought we’d try a shortened version of the Lakeland 200, a sort of Lakeland 150. Nothing too strenuous, more of an enjoyable ride out of the kind that we all enjoy..
After a bit of gear faff we set off from Staveley about 11.30, following the 200 route (apart from a slight diversion to BikeTreks in Ambleside for some CO2), up to Hodge Close. But from here we headed straight to Coniston for a cafe stop (there was an ‘duro event on at Grizedale so presumed access might be a problem). From here we then re-joined the 200 route & things started to get a bit ‘meaty’ with the climb up Walna Scar Rd.
IMG_20140906_162750 by wotsit_legs, on FlickrOne of the things i like about these sorts of trips are the people you meet along the way. I was partnered the last 1/3 of the ascent by an interesting lady from the borders & her 2 dogs. We had a lively discussion about the Scottish Indy ref & how she was worried for her future.
IMG_20140906_164842 by wotsit_legs, on Flickr
IMG_20140906_165858 by wotsit_legs, on FlickrAfter reaching the top we decided to miss another section out that loops around past Stephenson’s Ground as there’s a boggy section just before Natty Bridge. We then had the steep full on descent all the way down into Duddon Valley. Short-ish road section, then the climb from Birks Bridge, past a school reunion BBQ at Birks & up onto Harter Fell.
IMG_20140906_173720 by wotsit_legs, on Flickr
IMG_20140906_182156 by wotsit_legs, on FlickrThere’s a bit of a bog march at this point which thankfully passes quite quickly, then another fast descent to Jubilee Bridge & the Eskdale Valley. The next section is an enjoyable bit of trail that runs along the valley, roughly following the path of the river. By this point we were getting peckish again & could almost smell the food at the pub we’d planned to eat at, good job this section brought us like two Bisto kids right to the front door!
The pub was welcoming, but we had to wait well over an hr for a table. After dispensing steak & chips washed down with a couple of pints, we decided to head up the road to another pub in order to check out their beer & free wireless.. We spent well over 4hrs eating & drinking in total so were well ‘tuned in’ by the time we stumbled out of there to find our spot for the night. One of the locals said it would take about 45mins to get there, we obviously mustn’t have looked as pi$$ed as we actually were as it eventually took us 90mins!
Mooove off the trail!!
IMG_20140907_001943 by wotsit_legs, on Flickr
IMG_20140907_005219 by wotsit_legs, on FlickrWe woke up to this-
IMG_20140907_082322 by wotsit_legs, on Flickr
IMG_20140907_082851 by wotsit_legs, on FlickrWe knocked but Father Ted wasn't in...
IMG_20140907_082210 by wotsit_legs, on Flickr
IMG_20140907_082516 by wotsit_legs, on FlickrLooking back at the lodge..
IMG_20140907_094843 by wotsit_legs, on FlickrThe few beers were great, but had the knock-on effect of a late-ish start, then by the time we’d got into Wasdale the cafe had shut. Desperate times mean desperate measures!!...
Breakfast..
IMG_20140907_103500 by wotsit_legs, on Flickr
IMG_20140907_105515 by wotsit_legs, on FlickrAt this point we left the 200 route & started the hike under the Great Gable & up Sty Head Pass. Part way up we had another interesting chat with the farmer, who was kind enough to point out that we had taken the harder of the 2 routes up!
IMG_20140907_120709 by wotsit_legs, on Flickr
IMG_20140907_122702 by wotsit_legs, on FlickrOn reaching the top of Sty Head the original plan was to then head down the other side, re-join the 200 route in Grange, follow this to Keswick, but then head straight over to the Coach Rd, Glenridding, then again re-joining the 200, up The Knot, High St & remaining route back to Staveley.
At the top of Sty Head our hangovers had other ideas! As i know the area pretty well i knew there was a bridleway that led from where we were, along past Esk Hause, Angle Tarn & down Rossett Gill into Great Langdale. My only concern was that i’d left all the maps in the cars & all we had was Pauls GPS if we got lost. It was definitely the shorter route back to Staveley though & after the difficult climb we’d just had, our hangovers & lack of decent brekkie, it seemed like a good idea. As it turns out we were wrong. Now i don’t mind a bit of Hike-a -bike, but this was brutal in places, especially the last section down Rossett Gill. It took us over 4hrs to do 6 miles. It would have been quicker to just walk. I’ve done Black Sail & Scarth Gap, but i think this was harder.
The only consolation was that the weather was glorious..
IMG_20140907_132753 by wotsit_legs, on Flickr
IMG_20140907_133906 by wotsit_legs, on Flickr
IMG_20140907_140826 by wotsit_legs, on FlickrBy the time we reached Great Langdale we’d well & truly earned a food stop. The grub served at Sticklebarn was brilliant & we can highly recommend both the pie & burger! The route back from here was pretty straight forward- Elterwater, the fabulous Lonscale Fell (which they’ve now unfortunately sanitised the interesting bits)
IMG_20140907_171655 by wotsit_legs, on FlickrAnyone remember this bit??
IMG_20140907_172248 by wotsit_legs, on FlickrAmbleside, Newclose Wood, Troutbeck, Longmire Rd, High Borrans & over to the fast 3-Rivers descent to finish us with a bit of road back at Staveley.
IMG_20140907_182329 by wotsit_legs, on FlickrA total of 125km & that happy tiredness that only comes with a big ride!
The 200 loop is a good framework to base a long distance loop on, the only thing with the Lakes is that it's going to involve a decent hike-a-bike at some point. I’m planning to test out a few different loops of varying lengths, with a view to having a go at the full 200 at some point, if not this year, definitely next!
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