Forest of Bowland route

[dodgy]

Hi all,

I live on the Wirral peninsula, so all my rides inevitably start out SE and finish NW back home. I'm getting into just a little bit of a rut, or perhaps I'm not yet but may soon as I'm upping the frequency of my rides somewhat.

Looking on the map, there seem to be some nice quiet roads in the Forest of Bowland area. Anyone here with local knowledge? I'd like to do a ride of roughly 60 - 80 miles with perhaps 5000 feet of climbing up there with somewhere to stop mid-ride, such as a recommended café or similar.

I've sketched this route out as a starter for ten, but I'd welcome any local knowledge to help me plan a better/more interesting/picturesque route

www.bikehike.co.uk/mapview.php?id=7193

Cheers,

Dave.

 

[longers]

Good cafe at Dunsop Bridge, big pots of tea and the bungo omelette is excellent, worth popping across from Newtown in my opinion.

I don't know the route over from Bentham to Slaidburn but I believe there is a decent hill involved.

 

[Tim Bennet.]

It's a great route and one that can be varied at quite a few points to give a bit of variety on future rides.

However, there is one caveat: this year in particular many of those roads have been 'discovered' by the motorbikers. They've obviously been included in a 'best routes' article in a motorbike magasine recently as the numbers using the high fell roads have gone up exponentially this year and are now congregating in huge numbers at the cafe in Slaidburn. Previously quiet lanes have been reduced to race tracks, whereas they used to be quiet alternatives to the traditional drag strips of Ribblehead, Garsdale, Kirby Lonsdale, etc.

The irony is that some of these have been designated 'quiet lanes' by Lancashire County Council for enjoyment on foot or by bicycle with an advisory 20mph speed limit. But as there's no legal basis for this, 100mph of noisy hell continues to be inflicted on everyone.

 

[ColinJ]

There are also good cyclist-friendly cafes in Waddington and Chipping. Just make sure you lock your bike up because bikes have been nicked from outside them. (The cafe at Waddington has bike locks available in a box just within the door!)

You might like to have a go at the loop that a group of us did last year - link.

It's a great route and one that can be varied at quite a few points to give a bit of variety on future rides.

However, there is one caveat: this year in particular many of those roads have been 'discovered' by the motorbikers. They've obviously been included in a 'best routes' article in a motorbike magasine recently as the numbers using the high fell roads have gone up exponentially this year and are now congregating in huge numbers at the cafe in Slaidburn. Previously quiet lanes have been reduced to race tracks, whereas they used to be quiet alternatives to the traditional drag strips of Ribblehead, Garsdale, Kirby Lonsdale, etc.

The irony is that some of these have been designated 'quiet lanes' by Lancashire County Council for enjoyment on foot or by bicycle with an advisory 20mph speed limit. But as there's no legal basis for this, 100mph of noisy hell continues to be inflicted on everyone.

Oh damn! One of the things I like(d) about the area is/was how quiet the roads are/were...

 

[dodgy]

Thanks chaps, hopefully the motorcycle menace might not be too much of a problem. I might take a day off and go midweek anyway.

Any names of cafés would be appreciated, I know there's the Priory tea rooms in Scorton which is well recommended for one.

Dave.

 

[geocycle]

Yes, its a great route, lots of open moorland and generally quiet roads. It's on my doorstep and I do it a good few times a year. There is a significant hill between Slaidburn and Bentham as others have said. In addition to cafe's mentioned above, the Bridge tea rooms at Wray is worth a visit. I've not found traffic a problem and mid week should be fine.

If you ever need a shorter loop then the road through the Trough of Bowland is also good.

 

[dodgy]

Thanks geocycle, when you say 'its a great route', are you referring to the route I put up on bikehike?

 

[geocycle]

Thanks geocycle, when you say 'its a great route', are you referring to the route I put up on bikehike?

Yes. I think you've got it about right. Quite a bit is signed as the lancashire cycle route (NCR90).

Assuming you are doing it clockwise the section past Lancaster from up to Quernmore is also signed (route 69???). Route 6 would carry you all the way from Goosnargh but takes a convoluted detour across the M6 which is fine if you are going to Scorton but the road via Oakenclough is a nicer (though slightly hillier ride) IMO. You also have a choice after Quermore to either follow the cycle route 69 to Brookhouse which is a nice gently undulating road or take your route wihich involves a longish climb and then very steep descent into Littledale (Crossgill) -up to you. From there it's easy to Wray (but take care on A683 road section and the narrow winding B road to Wray). From Wray follow route 90 signs -take care with direction after junction (OS 636 679).

I've not looked at Bike Hike before but it looks pretty good.

 

[dodgy]

Thanks again geocycle, I'll be using my Garmin Edge 705 to navigate the route so I don't mind planning a technically challenging route in terms of navigation options. My priority is to find some nice picturesque roads, with cafe stop options. If the roads are smooth then that's a bonus, but probably unlikely in that part of the world?

 

[trio25]

All the riding I have done up there is brilliant! I use bikehike as well!

But your route looks nice, enjoy!

 

[dodgy]

Cheers, when I do the route I'll post it up here for all. I might even run live on Sportstracker.nokia.com when I'm doing it so you can all stalk me live, with pictures on twitter ;-)

Dave.

 

[mondobongo]

Plenty of picturesque riding there for you Dodgy, Cafe stops the Priory is like a second home these days and the Cobbled Corner has great homemade cakes. Midweek you will have no problem with the Kamikaze Ninjas on Motorbikes.

 

[dodgy]

Is this Country Kitchen café in Waddington any good? Mixed reviews online!

 

[dodgy]

By the way, I'm adding the cafés to this http://maps.google.co.uk/maps/ms?hl...3.967397,-2.541962&spn=0.542865,1.779785&z=10

 

[longers]

Is this Country Kitchen café in Waddington any good? Mixed reviews online!

Yep, been there a few times with Colin et al. Very decent caff. It's one of the ones that provides bike locks for use while there.