Blissfully ignorant of the impending lockdown, Max and Russell revisit Hebden Bridge in West Yorkshire to discover more of its fabulous hidden singletrack
Blissfully ignorant of the impending lockdown, Max revisits this charming corner of Yorkshire to discover more of its fabulous hidden singletrack
For this Big Ride we find ourselves in Hebden Bridge, a town nestled in the Upper Calder Valley of West Yorkshire. The 500-year-old packhorse bridge that gives the place its name provided a place to cross the river and access the major wool markets. With the steep hills resulting in fast-flowing streams, it was the ideal location for water-powered weaving mills and hence grew as an industrial textile town. The original settlement here was actually Heptonstall, just up the hillside from Hebden. It’s an amazing place – a village lost in time with old buildings, churches and stone-sett streets lined with cast-iron gas lamps. Sadly, the excellent ‘Blue Pig’ descent from the town becomes a footpath at the bottom, so we haven’t included it in this route. The valley still has mills with towering chimneys as a reminder of its industrial past. Hebden was once known as ‘Trouser Town’ because of its clothing manufacturing, and it’s wonderful to see a revival of this, with local company HebTroCo – run by a couple of wellknown characters from the cycle industry – making high-quality jeans, boots and other gear here.
Last men riding
Hebden Bridge is well-known for its excellent riding, from steep, technical, rocky singletrack in the wooded valleys to barren moorland yomps. However, the steep-sided valleys also result in now
all-too-frequent flooding, with early 2020 once again seeing houses and businesses battered. With things just about drying out by the beginning of March, we decided it would be a good time to visit and promote the area. Little did we know this would be our last Big Ride for quite a while, thanks to the coronavirus pandemic…
Enter the labyrinth
As we approach, a grey blanket of cloud is still drawn over the sleepy valley below, draining any colour that spring is trying to deliver. There’s a strong mountain biking community here in Hebden, but it’s a tricky area to find your way around, with myriad tracks, footpaths and unmarked trails within the valleys, not to mention some pretty hefty hills to climb back up if you get it wrong. Russell and I have arranged to meet up with local rider Chris Kilburn, from Whoosh Mountain Biking, who offers skills tuition and guiding, and will be helping us navigate this labyrinth of trails today. There are a few places in the UK where I’d say it’s worth having a local to show you all the best bits, and Hebden is definitely one of them.
Oblivious to the imminent lockdown, we meet Chris at the station cafe to discuss route options before the requisite bike fettling, then we roll out of the car park to, unwittingly, enjoy one of our last rides before the slogan ‘No car, no gnar, not far’ comes into effect. A spin along a cycle path through the park and then beside the picturesque canal warms us up, as does the sun, which is now piercing the clouds. Before long we peel off from the canal and head upwards, our energy levels high as we ascend on a rough track, encouraged by the sight of the valley quickly disappearing below us. I love these beautiful dark, damp valleys where gritstone boulders pepper the trails and the moss clings to the trees, bestowing a wonderful yet somewhat eerie atmosphere.
Rollercoaster ride
As the gradient levels off, the pace picks up, and we’re soon at Jack Bridge and a short, sharp tarmac climb. They have proper hills in these here parts and still the climbing continues as we head off-road, delivering us up and over Brown Hill on a slither of singletrack. We finally make it up onto the moorland proper, to be rewarded with far-reaching views unravelling before us. Our first gravity treat soon follows – a short, fast descent on a rutted rocky track named Moorcock Road. Finally, some flat terrain allows us to spin the lactic acid out of our legs, before we drop down the hillside to
Whirlaw Common. Set below the interesting rocks of Back Stone Hill, with views across Todmorden, we join another rutted track and start to descend. A packhorse trail suddenly appears but quickly becomes a broken jumble of stone slabs, before we swing left and join another packhorse trail. This one’s a finer example, made of smooth stones that gently curve into one another, fitting together naturally, as well as into the landscape. They make a great trail surface through the marshy grass, with the odd protruding rock or water bar to huck off.
We continue downwards and hop onto one of the many hidden singletrack trails that are akin to a network of veins across these hillsides, before eventually bursting out of the trees by a golf club. After a few twists and turns along the road, we soon turn onto a narrow path between walled fields, then drop into a fun descent, slamming our bikes around multiple tight bends, drifting the rear wheel and hoping we haven’t pushed our luck or judgment too far. We reconvene in the car park at the bottom, insuppressible grins splitting our faces, then rejoin the canal path towards Hebden Bridge, ducking under the low bridges as we go. You could end the ride like this, but we have more ambitious plans, so duck off the path and instead start climbing up the steep-sided valley once more.
The only way is up
Smooth tarmac turns into rough track, and the concentration of searching for a line is a welcome distraction from the burn in our legs (and the thought that we could have been enjoying coffee and cake right now). The zig-zag climb attempts to take some of the sting out of the gradient, and then unlucky timing sees us crest the top to meet the tarmac just as a vehicle arrives whose kindly driver (sadistically) waves us on. No rest for us then! The stiff climb has at least meant we’ve quickly gained height and we’re soon enjoying another fast singletrack descent, with flashes of colour from the wild flowers as we fly down between the fields, guided by the ubiquitous dry-stone walls on either side.
Finale with a flourish
We emerge by Jack Bridge, where we were earlier, but this time we turn right on the road past the school, with the kids spilling out for home. Once we dispatch the tarmac climb, we’re back off-road and anticipating the finish Chris has in store for us. More enticing singletrack awaits, yet again falling between walls. Then it twists and turns for a fun drop to Golden Water and across Lumb Bridge. Just a short grind up the far side reunites us with the track we rode up first thing this morning, when our legs and stomachs weren’t so empty, so we’re grateful for the assistance of gravity that enables us to roll back down to the valley bottom and into Hebden Bridge with minimal effort.
Finally, we’re able to collapse at a cafe, where we reflect on the day. We’ve only touched on the awesome riding on offer here, but it’s been a fantastic and varied route taking in a bit of everything, thanks to Chris’s excellent guiding. It’s been great to return to Hebden Bridge, to see the strong community spirit helping it bounce back from tough times once again, and I know they’d love more visitors – as soon as we’re allowed back into the car and to go find some gnar.