EXMOOR WITHOUT THE BEASTING
This South West national park is known for its epic natural riding, and a new uplift service lets you enjoy the descents without suffering so much on the climbs. Just watch out for big cats!
The MBUK team head down to Exmoor National Park, in South West England, to try out a new uplift-assisted guiding service that aims to deliver all the area’s best descents without so much uphill grind.
We glimpse a beast on the moors. Almost black and definitely dangerous, it meanders through the undergrowth like it’s stalking some hapless prey. This is no big cat though, it’s a natural trail that drops us down to the coast. It’s one hell of a way to finish off a brilliant day and it takes serious commitment, along with a healthy dose of brake control, to make it down to the bottom without tasting dirt. While luckily no one bins it, Jimmer disappears into the undergrowth and JCW (on his e-bike) has a harder time than the rest trying to control his speed on the slick, steep terrain. Still, its natural feel makes it an absolute blast to ride and has us all fixed with grins as wide as our helmets.
SPOILT ROTTEN
We must admit, Exmoor is a location we don’t visit as often as we should, given that it’s only a couple of hours away from our Bristol HQ. But lately, it’s an area that’s been put firmly on the MTB map, thanks to events like The EX Enduro and the British National Enduro Championships later this year (hopefully). Our interest was piqued when Dan French, the owner of Exmoor Adventures, got in touch and offering us a guided uplift day, to take in the some of the best riding spots the national park has to offer. And we wouldn’t be a very good mountain biking magazine if we turned down an offer like that! We meet just outside West Porlock with Dan and uplift driver Ben – who’s already waiting for us by the time we’ve finished faffing. They’re going to show us what this place has to offer, from flowy singletrack and tight hairpin-heavy descents to slick off-piste tracks. It’s going to be a condensed, tightly-packed day of uplifted riding. What’s more, with a pub lunch in the offing, we’re feeling rather spoilt.
MORNING HAS BROKEN
For the first run of the day, we’re taken to the top of Ley Hill, a beautiful spot on the open moorland where the dew still glistens in the morning sunshine. It definitely feels like a rare moment this (dreadful) winter, as we inhale the fresh, crisp air. Bar the wind howling past us, it’s charming. The sweeping descent down Cat Scrambles serves as a gentle warm-up, on a wide trail with smooth turns. There’s a slick surface under the wheels, but it offers predictable slipperiness, so we can easily pick up a fair amount of speed with confidence. Dan heads down first, to wait at any crossing we need to watch out
as we quickly discover, it's not all downhill tracks in this neck of the woods
for and, as these are shared paths, to make sure we don’t charge full-gas into any walkers. This gives us the chance to build some confidence by chasing each other tightly, hopping over rocks and puddles. It’s a chilled introduction, and a trail that Dan uses for less experienced riders to still get a taste of the wild, natural riding here.
As we quickly discover though, it’s not all descending in this neck of the woods. We turn off halfway down the path to discover a steeper, more aggressive trail named Granny’s Ride. To get there, however, requires a bloody steep, muddy climb with a healthy dose of loose rocks. No one makes it all the way to the top, but each of us presents an excuse. Mine? My front wheel gets knocked off-line by one of these sniper rocks, promptly sending me into the bushes on the side of the climb. There’s no doubt that I would have made it if it weren’t for that one pesky stone – honest!