# Heat and Howardian Hills



## Pale Rider (6 Jun 2016)

A hot weekend saw me and my mate Steve heading for the hills.

In this case, the Howardian Hills in north Yorkshire.

The plan was a two-day loop from York, stopping overnight at a bed and breakfast in Kirkby Mills, just outside Kirkbymoorside.

We took an early train from Sunderland arriving at about 8.15am.

It was already warm, so my trusty fleece was stowed in the pannier.

We headed north-east out of York through minor roads towards Strensall, and then on to Castle Howard for an early lunch.

Very agreeable place to stop, as @EasyPeez and @Julia9054 can testify from our recent forum ride.







After Castle Howard it was north for another 15 miles or so through more lanes to the bed and breakfast.

Navigation for the trip was strictly old school, OS Explorer maps on paper, plus my and Steve's very limited experience of cycling in the area.

A nod of thanks to @EasyPeez - I used part of the route he sorted for our ride with Julia.

We made good time so were able to stop for a while in Great Edstone, a mile or two shy of the bed and breakfast.

The sun dial in the pic was an hour slow.






The break gave me the chance to study the map.

I spotted a bridleway which would save us a whole mile of going up to the A170, turning left, and turning left again into the dead end lane (for vehicles) where the bed and breakfast was located.

We would feel so superior approaching directly from the south.

Local intelligence suggested the bridleway was barely ridable, but only because it was rarely cut back, and there was a ford which wasn't usually too deep, and even if it was, there was footbridge a bit further on.

What could possibly go wrong?

The bridleway was as described, I did some pushing but it was only for a few hundred metres.

We got to the ford to find it too deep to ride, but the next problem was the footbridge was upstream meaning we would have to get the bikes over two wire and wood fences.

Might have been OK for Steve's bike, but my Rose weighs a lot, and even with two of us we didn't fancy manhandling it.

It was at this point that I regretted not bringing a spare pair of shoes.

No option but to plodge through this:






The first bit wasn't too deep, but there was an unavoidable pool on the far side which had me almost knee deep in water.

It also fully submerged the Bosch motor on my bike, which I think is outside Bosch's design parameter of 'splash proof'.

Happily no harm done, but my feet and shoes were drenched.

We rode past the bed and breakfast and up to the main road we were trying to avoid to Kirkbymoorside to see if I could get a spare pair of shoes, and see if Steve could get some sun tan lotion.

Fail on both counts - but we did book our evening meal in a hotel.

The bed and breakfast was converted farm buildings, and bordering on the luxurious, although not cheap at £135 for two rooms.

There was a plug in oil fired radiator in my room which I pressed into service for shoe drying.

Earliest available breakfast was 8.30am, so the heat was already up by the time we set off for the return leg to York.

That was on more familiar territory through Nunnington, then the valley road past Ampleforth College and village to Byland Abbey.

Another very agreeable spot for a cuppa.






From Byland we took the lanes to Easingwold, where Steve finally got some sun tan lotion.

After Easingwold, we mostly followed NCN 65 which takes you into York beside the (smelly in places) River Ouse.

The path part from the outskirts of York was a relief after mixing it with some fast moving traffic on a couple of the minor roads.

Trouble is, you cannot make any progress on the path, too many other users and it's narrow in places.

Not quite what we wanted for the last few miles of a second hot day in the saddle.

Our first day was 36 miles and the second 40, I was pleased with that because it was about what I'd planned.

Glorious scenery on both days, particularly through the Howardian Hills.

But the heat - and the hills - made what was meant to be a short, relaxing, tour very tiring.


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## EasyPeez (6 Jun 2016)

Haha! I enjoyed reading that, especially the bit about the ford. I was wondering if you and @Julia9054 might fancy another ride over the summer. I was going to suggest you do the route planning next time but having read this....


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