BLACK MOUNTAINS, SOUTH WALES

45KM (27.9 MILES)

Pen y Fan hums with walkers in the summer months, OS reckons its the fourth-most trodden route and that’s more than enough of a reason to leave it well alone. In fact, even in the summer it’s too wide and well surfaced to recommend as a ride, so instead turn your gaze a few miles to the west, and the Black Mountains. This loop around Waun Fach is an absolute belter, it finishes with one of the best descents anywhere in the UK, and you’re almost guaranteed to see no one else for the entire ride if you tackle it outside the school hols.

GPS download bit.ly/blackmountainride

AMBLESIDE, LAKE DISTRICT 23.8KM (14.8 MILES)

Ambleside is the gateway to so many great rides so it’s easy to see why it ranks as one of the top-five destinations in the UK. It’s worth persevering to get an empty day on the fells though, because you get access to some mighty jagged crags, big mountain passes and the rocky insanity of the singletrack in between. This ride is a taster loop really, although a pretty tough one at that, with proper riding without ever going too high or too far. It works in all weathers as well, which makes it about perfect if you’re heading there in autumn or winter.

GPS download bit.ly/amblesideride

JACOB’S LADDER, EDALE 20.3KM (12.6 MILES)

The Peak District is the most heavily used National Park in the country, and with an estimated 20 million people within an hour’s drive, it’s no surprise. The park is beautiful, of course, and perhaps nowhere more so than the village of Edale where our ride starts. It’s also the start or end point of the Pennine Way, which makes it crowded with walkers in the summer months. Head there in Autumn though and with luck you’ll get Jacob’s Ladder to yourself, and the freedom to try and pick your way up this famously techie climb. The descents are great too, just the right side of rocky to make them challenging but flowy and fast.

GPS download bit.ly/edaleride