‘Twisty Alpine hairpins and lovely views’

RIDE reader Alastair Daley shows us round the White Peaks

ALASTAIR DALEY’S GOT a long and distinguished biking back story, having owned around 30 bikes since his first Fizzy back in 1974. “I like to find routes that avoid large towns, have less traffic, involve elevation and remoteness,” he says. He also enjoys a solid bit of foreign touring (Nordkapp and back via Sweden and Denmark a couple of years ago, for example) but living close to the edge of the Peak District National Park means he always has the option to look for that remoteness without having to put in big miles, which is where this route comes in. “It’s only 35 minutes from my house to the start point at Ashbourne, so it’s viable for an evening run or in winter when the days are short. It’s got a bit of everything — twisty, narrow, with dry stone walls, and faster swoopy sections with Alpine-style hairpins and lovely views.”

Sounds great — let’s have a look at it.

The ride

We meet up in Ashbourne, which is well worth a visit on its own — the centre is lovely and we’re setting out from the historic market square which makes a great meeting point (except on Thursdays and Saturdays when the market’s on). The town knows when to stop and we’re