A great 60km ish ride round the dark peak with Ian Fitz yesterday in glorious sunshine. Judging by today's weather, it may have been the last dusty ride of the summer! Time to get the winter bike out I think.

I had a trip round the Dales 200 yesterday as couldn't make the group start.

A stunning day but very cold out of the sun. It's a great route with lots of rideable sections (don't worry there is the odd bit of pushing though) there are quite a few sections that are already soft after a couple of rainy days earlier this week. Can't help thinking it must have been running a fair bit quicker last weekend.

Garmin said 210/4450m in 17:08

ianfitz wrote:I had a trip round the Dales 200 yesterday as couldn't make the group start.

A stunning day but very cold out of the sun. It's a great route with lots of rideable sections (don't worry there is the odd bit of pushing though) there are quite a few sections that are already soft after a couple of rainy days earlier this week. Can't help thinking it must have been running a fair bit quicker last weekend.

Garmin said 210/4450m in 17:08

It was insane Ian how quick the trails where i was wondering if you had a go at it.
Still a good time mate

stucowp wrote:

ianfitz wrote:I had a trip round the Dales 200 yesterday as couldn't make the group start.

A stunning day but very cold out of the sun. It's a great route with lots of rideable sections (don't worry there is the odd bit of pushing though) there are quite a few sections that are already soft after a couple of rainy days earlier this week. Can't help thinking it must have been running a fair bit quicker last weekend.

Garmin said 210/4450m in 17:08

It was insane Ian how quick the trails where i was wondering if you had a go at it.
Still a good time mate

Cheers Stu. I did enjoy it a lot but never quite felt like i was riding well and didn't get a good rythym on the descents either. Really struggled to eat on the second half too.

Overall I was pleased though as I'm happy with that time given not feeling like I was riding well.

55 miler today starting at Loch Rannoch, heading north through the Ben Alder area, quick toastie stop at Dalwhinnie then a grind up the cycleway to Dalnaspidal and some fine doubletrack south back to Rannoch, all in dry weather, on dry trails!

10 miles of vaguely exciting singletrack!

htrider wrote: dry weather, on dry trails!

No, no, you must be mistaken

I recognize that view! Good in that direction isn't it?

21 miles and 4000 ft of climbs From Cynwyd across to Llanfair DC and back again.

Stopped for lunch in this hut. The last time I'd used one of these places that had been used by sheep I picked up 4 ticks, which made me a bit wary. Every time something tickled my legs I frantically searched for lodgers, luckily without finding any. Is tick season over now?


This made me snigger a bit - a piece of fence post that had been absorbed by a sycamore tree. It's even got a hole in the end. I'm tempted to go back and do a little augmentation with my wood chisels.


Oh No! Have I got to get over those?


Yup! It was a very long push over boggy, rutted, tussocky steep bridleway from the green patch below the upper forestry. Just a bit less than 2 miles.


Once over the top there was another drop and climb to the next ridge. I opted to follow the contour rather than lose all that height and push back up again.


Apologies for the quality of the pictures. My photos are never very good because I just use my phone, but they are especially bad today because of the poor light and hazy air.

AlanG wrote:I recognize that view! Good in that direction isn't it?

Aye definitely although the climb seemed to go on for quite a while!

Nice to see the Fat bikes coming out to play - snow is on the way!

Htrider

What was your route up to Ben alder
Bridge of ericht or track near rannoch lodge then Ben alder cottage up cumhann ?

Whist the BB200 was going on I had a wee Bothy trip.
A old friend and I left our car and went via the reservoir to check out Clearduu, which looked a little neglected by party goers (rubbish, bottles, not tidy etc) which is a real shame. Back to the farm at the end of the reservoir, we headed over the Monks Road, picked up a 10kg bag of coal we stached earlier in the day and ensconced ourselves in Llyest Cwm Bach for the night. The morning brought a push up the hill and a traverse to a nice descent to Rhayader for cake and tea before returning to the car.
Grand it was :)

maddyutah wrote:Htrider

What was your route up to Ben alder
Bridge of ericht or track near rannoch lodge then Ben alder cottage up cumhann ?

Track from near the west end of Loch Rannoch by Rannoch lodge, north-ish through the woods to the southern end of Loch Ericht, follow the track up the west shore for a couple of k (its shown as a path on the map but the nice double track continues for much longer on the ground than on the map), then its about 2k of bog surfing to Benalder cottage, then over the bealachs Cumhann and dubh to Culra bothy (this is the good bit). The bothy is officially closed due to asbestos but I stayed in it in August and the main room is fine.

Htrider
I think I will give this one ago,I came up the track from curla few weeks ago when on the Ben alder circular route,was thinking as a descent it would be a belter.
Cheers for the info

Maddy

A massive 20k around Pitmedden forest in Fife with fellow 29+ owners from the fat bike forum. Dry and excellent trails and more time chatting than riding

Yesterday it was CX riding with the CXLEG2JOG pair of Andy & Dave and today I rode as their wind break for 20 miles on the Fat Bike for training ready for Novembers beach race. 55 miles but the last 10 miles were tough back into another head wind with very heavy legs.

Those two are bloody strong riders, with over a week of riding still to go, I'm in too minds as to how far I walk the dog this afternoon.

Yesterday's ride but still... Built the 1x1 up ready for winter, popped over to Edale for 4-5 hours. Trails were crazy busy, not seen that many people there all summer! Bike was a blast to ride, had a massive grin the entire time, still smiling now!

Fitted MTB tyres to my bike for the first time in over a year! It's not that I haven't ridden off road just not on wider tyres.

Then went for a bit of an explore in the local woods. As suspected there is some nice unofficial 'maintained' singletrack which I rode slowly and badly. Also first time in ages I've been out for a ride, just to ride a bike with no destination. Buzzing now, it was great fun!

Went exploring Llanberis quarry once again on Sunday. The history up there is amazing!!

summittoppler wrote:Went exploring Llanberis quarry once again on Sunday. The history up there is amazing!!

That's Anglesey Barracks. The guys that worked that part of the quarries lived on Anglesey on small holdings and walked to Llanberis on Monday morning, stopped there through the week, four or five to a room, then walked home on Friday night and worked the small holding at the weekend. Their wives would work the small holding through the week.

We lived in Llanrug and one of our near neighbours used to work there. When the owners shut the quarries they simply locked the gates over the weekend so all the tools and coats were just left hanging there. Over the years weather and vandalism has removed those traces but even in the 1980s some of the remoter or harder to get to huts were still eerily decked out.

That's Anglesey Barracks.

The first time I went away a with a girl, who is now my Mrs. we bivvied up there one February.

I dont thnk she's been in a bivy bag since.

A few from the last week or so....

Rode Charlie the Bikemonger's Dorset Gravel Dash 100 route today as I missed the event earlier in the year.

Ended up riding 95 miles though as I forgot that the Army might be playing with guns so couldn't ride the section through the ranges. Did some 'bog trotting' on Grange heath instead!

It's a good route although a fair amount of road to link it all up. I joined it in Bloxworth as it's fairly close to home, however this meant that Hambleton and Hod hill came at around 75/80 miles in!

There was definitely a shove.

Mawddach trail and Pont Scethyn.

On holiday in Barmouth, leaving my Lady in the town, took a ride up to Pont Scethyn and Llyn Bodlyn and back down to Tal-y-Bont.

On the way up.

Every time I see sunrays coming down like that, I imagine a guy with a long flowing beard wearing white robes and carrying a big leather-clad ledger with my life history in it, sliding slowly down before saying,
"So tell me Ludwik, why do think you should be allowed in, hm?

Todays sheep are wearing....... green? And no, it's not Photoshopped.


Pont Scethyn.


Yer 'avin a Laff, right?


Hows this for a (millenia old) bivvy spot?


I'd meant to ride back to Barmouth along the beach but the high tide put paid to that idea.

Looks good. I'm heading that way tomorrow!

Did 56km of a planned 200km ish ITT route I'm developing locally. 5 hours of rain, wind, and eventually ianK's rapidly sheering pedal/crank interface and we called it a day on it. 56km, 1,130m of climbing/descending on a mixture of doubletrack, cobbles, techy singletrack, and some mud. Probably less than 1km HAB if you're competent, less than 3km on road.

Route will hopefully have 3 loops of increasing distance and difficulty around Calderdale and its neighbours. Idea being that you can come along, just do the 1st loop, or 1st and 2nd, or all three together. All three should drop into Hebden as a honeypot for refuel - and also as it's cruel and you'll have repeat chances to bail :) Hopefully Ian will agree that it'll not be a route you'd want to ride a CX bike around after the introduction to the "easy" loop.