KIELDER FOREST
Northumberland has possibly the most underdeveloped mountain biking potential of anywhere in the UK. Often overlooked en route to or from Scotland, it’s well worth considering as a riding destination in its own right and is finally starting to see some recognition thanks to events like the Naughty Northumbrian Enduro. The original base for riding in these parts is Kielder Forest, which, as well as being Europe’s largest plantation woodland, is the territory for an impressive trail network.
Starting from Kielder Castle at the northernmost end of Kielder Water (the
UK’s biggest reservoir), the ‘Deadwater’ and ‘Lonesome Pine’ red routes head off in opposite directions. Deadwater – named after the 569m
Deadwater Fell, whose flanks the trail skirts – can be ridden in combination with an additional 10.2km black-graded section that tops out on the summit and offers no shortage of technical challenges on the way back down.
The choicest bits of flow trail are to be found on the opposing Lonesome Pine hill, though. Here, a meandering climb through the trees takes you out onto a panoramic boardwalk section across the moor, before non-stop singletrack drops you all the way back to base. Extending the fun of the Lonesome Pine trail is the ‘Bloody Bush’ loop, which branches off at the high point and traces the line of the Scottish border, making for a big 33km day out. Riders with some serious legs on them might consider linking this into the 40km Cross Border trail, which breaches the frontier and creates an off-road link to the nearby trail centre of Newcastleton – the most southerly of Scotland’s 7stanes.